Clueless on the Road

Now you know why the regular season is important -- for that crucial homecourt advantage. And from the looks of things, the Boston Celtics can only look forward to that good ole homecooking.

In 1987, the late Celtics game color man Johnny Most went to see then team doctor Thomas Silva about deafness. Imagine Silva's surprise to find a TV ear plug that had been embedded for quite a while now in Most's ear for months! The raspy-voice commentator had no clue!

Twenty-one years later, the current edition of the Celtics wish for temporary deafness as they have to hear chants in opposing arenas that "Paul Pierce sucks" and "Boston sucks" while they struggle to win on the road. The questions and the doubts are beginning to pick up. If they play like this, how will they win even against road and playoff tested teams like Detroit and San Antonio?

"If I knew, we wouldn't have these conversations," mumbled a forlorn Kevin Garnett after the Game 4 tie of the Cavaliers.

The speculation is the Big Three have become afraid to step on one another's toes in the fourth quarter where many of their games have been lost. Maybe so, but that's not an excuse.

They played well in the regular season knowing full well what awaited them in the playoffs. Theoretically they can win their home games to snatch banner #17, but one meltdown then that's all she wrote folks.

But should that happen, then the sports scribes will be writing about Dallas East.