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Of course, Shaq takes Halloween a step further

What can I possibly add to this image? 

Yowza.

MEGA CREEPY/AWESOME UPDATE.

After the jump... Shaqueeta appears on video.  Prepare for your brain to explode:

Happy Halloween from The Truth

Good to see that after all the "blood, sweat and tears" the Captain still knows how to have fun.  This is his Halloween costume... which makes sense since his daughter is dressed up as a princess.

Pics are all via Paul Pierce's Twitter page.  More after the jump

UPDATED:  after the jump:  Newly added photos of most of the rest of the C's in costume... AND David Ortiz!

Plus... more photos courtesy of Jermaine O'Neal's twitter

Delonte: "We laughed about [the fight] today"

Via Chris Forsberg 

"I'm competitive, he's competitive, as long as it's for the betterment of the team, there's nothing wrong with healthy competition and pushing each other to get better. Things went a little far, but at the same time, we were able to move past that," said West. "We're professionals." 

Asked if he felt the two had patched things up, West added: "Oh yeah, no question. We laughed about it today."

Apparently, Shaq and KG made fun of the whole thing somehow.  Follow the link for Delonte's interview on video.  I'd like to think this is all over now.

Shaq, by the way, missed practice and he's not sure if he'll be able to play Tuesday.

Inside the C's Dancers photoshoot

 

Peter Stringer of Celtics.com drew the short straw and was forced to talk to the Celtics Dancers as they got ready for their big photo shoot.  

Poor guy.  Hope he got hazzard pay.

McHale not a fan of robo-officials

[Photo credit: Barry Tse's Flickr page]

In ESPN's latest piece on the current state of officiating, old friend Kevin McHale has some less-than-enthusiastic thoughts on the direction of referees in today's NBA.

Now an analyst for NBA-TV, McHale said the current officiating system, with its computerized oversight, has "roboticized" this latest breed of NBA referees, rendering them either unwilling or unable to practice what McHale describes as the lost art of letting some fouls go in order to protect the flow of the game.

"Nobody goes to a game to watch 500 whistles," McHale said. "I just wish they'd let them play a little bit more in the paint, and not call the ticky-tack stuff out front."

Stern rejects the notion of independence from the rule book."That's not a methodology for inspiring confidence in your coaches and players," he said.

I find myself in semi-agreement with Kevin. True, no one likes watching a whistle-heavy game. But Stern has a point. Those games in which teams spend the first quarter figuring out what exactly constitutes a foul or travel can be just as frustrating -- especially if the rules change for the 4th quarter, as they so often do.

I'm mostly encouraged to see that the NBA is taking officiating seriously. Between the clamp down on player complaints and what seems to be a more accountable system of official criticism and instruction, it seems that they're headed in the right direction. Now if only they can teach Dwyane Wade what constitutes a carry.

The rest of the piece is quite good. It's about the man Stern tapped to turn around officiating post-Donaghy. Data analysis, the military, "super observers" -- there's a lot in it. It's worth a read.

Your Morning Dump... Where less passing = fewer turnovers

Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

“We’re trying to get the three scorers - Paul, Ray (Allen) and Kevin - to be more aggressive offensively,” said the coach, who gave his team yesterday off following Friday night’s win against the Knicks. “Half of our turnovers in the first half (against New York), we were turning over when we had a layup but threw the ball to someone else so they could have a layup.”

Garnett was indeed the most egregious offender on that count. At one point he passed up an easy scoring opportunity off a 3-on-2 break to bounce a pass off the hands of an unsuspecting Shaquille O’Neal for one of the team’s 11 first-half turnovers.

“I was thinking I’d take the first one,” Rivers said. “So it’s funny how even though they’ve been together for so long, at times they don’t want to step on each other’s toes. It’s amazing how long it takes at times.

“And that’s Kevin, especially, passing up open shots. But they’re finding their way, and they will find their way. I’m not that concerned by it.”

Doc Rivers' order: Be selfish

The Celtics were overpassing a LOT in the Knicks game.  That not only led to turnovers, it led to a lot of missed shots where a guy might not have been expecting to get the pass.  If KG, for example, passes up a layup so someone else can score... that someone else might be getting ready for a rebound rather than the pass.  And if we get to a point where they're always expecting a pass... then they're not getting into rebound position. 

Got it?  Overpassing has a ripple effect. 

It's pretty simple:  If you've got a layup... take it.  Guys are ok with it if you're taking easy shots.  If you're forcing bad shots, then they'll get on your ass.  But if you're taking a good shot, even when someone else is open... then it's no big deal.  Take your shot.

On Page 2:  Cousy talks about his 28 assist night

Rondo being Rondo

(image courtesy of SoleCollector.com)

Early in the preseason, Celtics fans like myself started to notice Rajon Rondo was wearing his Nike Hyperfuses quite loosely.

Nick DePaula, writer for my favorite sneaker website, Sole Collector, noticed too.

Check out the piece he did on just why Rajon wears his kicks so "weirdly"

Von Wafer plays dumb about the fight

 

Look man... we all know something happened.  Just be a man about it and cut this "this is the first I'm hearing about it" crap.  

It's pretty clear that Von is not ready for prime time.  This ain't Houston, man.  Things are a little different around here.

Career Night for Rajon Rondo

There have quite a few times when Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo has sent a decree to the rest of the NBA stating that he is the best point guard in the NBA.  While there is certainly plenty of room for people to sit at that sports debating bar, one thing is undeniable right now: Rondo is throwing dimes like nobody else in the NBA.

He's a magician, ninja, necromancer, warlock, wizard, jedi, whatever.  The man doesn't really need a nickname and it's probably best to sit back and enjoy this rare once-in-a-lifetime player that wears the green every game.  It's difficult to pinpoint his game, especially since he's said that he never watched the NBA growing up as a kid in Kentucky.  So while you and I were mimicking Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and/or Michael Jordan, Rondo plays without the tainted imagery of anyone else in his mind.

Perhaps Kevin Garnett described him best after last night's symphony:

"He was amazing. We all know that he is an influence on the game. And tonight, man -- stats are one thing, but the influence and how he controls the game is another. There are very few in the game that can do it. He's a special player, man. Even when he looks bad on nights, he makes it look simple at times."

Rondo is a triple-double threat every time he takes the floor, and against the New York Knicks he posted another one with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 24 assists.  Just to give you an idea of how absurd that is, he had more than, or just as many assists as 21 TEAMS totalled the same night:

•  Cleveland Cavaliers - 15
• Sacramento Kings - 21
• New Jersey Nets - 18
• Charlotte Bobcats - 17
• Orlando Magic - 5
• Miami Heat - 17
• Denver Nuggets - 19
• New Orleans Hornets - 23
• Oklahoma City Thunder - 16
• Detroit Pistons - 16
• Milwaukee Bucks - 18
• Minnesota TimberWolves - 13
• Memphis Grizzlies - 17
• LA Lakers - 21
• Phoenix Suns - 21
• LA Clippers - 17

The Toronto Raptors, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks all equaled his total of 24.  The Indiana Pacers had 25, just a single assist more.  The only TEAM to best Rondo's 24 was the Golden State Warrirors with 32.  Amazingly, he had nearly 5 times the total amout that the Magic put up.

Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com posted some great work about Rondo and the game last night. Be sure to check those out, and once you're done, sit back and enjoy all 24 of his assists with the video below:

 

Big Baby sings Ke$ha for the crowd

 

Our boy MrTrpleDouble10 caught this video of Big Baby singing Tik Tok as part of a contest at The Garden.  It's every bit as awesome as you'd think it is.