JAN
13
From Courtside for Wizards-Celtics in D.C.
Posted January 13th ago via Mr. Irrelevant
The following is a portion of the full post
Images and full post at Mr. Irrelevant

A night after overtime victory in Atlanta, Washington beat the NBA's best, providing their first victory against a winning team since early December. Unsilent Majority and I were courtside (both donning blogwear, of course) and damn near stormed the floor in the exalted closing moments (not really, but still).

It was that type of night at the Phone Booth, filled up as much for the visiting Celtics as for the home five. Boston fans were everywhere, sporting Patriots jerseys and caps and missing their team's playoff game, which is weird. Regardless, they made some noise, noise that was ultimately drowned out by a 'signature win' for a Wizards team holding onto the fourth seed despite their absent superstar.

It's obvious now that what Arenas left behind is still solid. The remaining lineup features a determined, average-to-good veteran at each position. Antonio Daniels handles the ball, mad dashes to the rim and elevates his play during key moments. DeShawn Stevenson is 'The Locksmith' with touch from three. Caron Butler improves annually and will factor into MVP voting. Antawn Jamison flat-out busts his ass to the tune of 21 and 11. Brendan Haywood, though infuriating to fans and teammates alike, may be the second-best center in the East.

That group's effort is inspiring to watch, especially from up close. KG is lauded for his fierce determination (and deservedly so), but that intensity was matched by the Washington collective. All this energy and effort was more glaring in light of Paul Pierce and Ray Allen's general malaise. A night after winning in New Jersey, Pierce especially seemed fatigued, spending much of the night holding his h...

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