Dan I don't get your point. Are the Heat younger, better rested, more athletic? Yes. Does David Stern want a Lebron--Kevin Durant finals? Yes. What is there to get over? C's fans know we're underdogs. Is it too much to ask that fouls are called as fairly on the Heat as they are on other teams. IS Lebron such a gifted, agile player that he averages between 1-2 fouls a night in 40+ minutes of play? Get real, Dan.

Dan--why are you so negative most of the time. Is that your M.O.--be a jerk and get the fans worked up. You flip flop more than a politician does --one week the Sox are great, then they are bums. One week the Celts are going to walk through the sixers and then they are wimps. Perhaps if you would quit skipping your meds or take them all of the time you would show more consistency.

Thanks for stating the truth, DS. That Sixer series was pah-thetic, and at least we're getting to see some quality ball in this one.

if you'r a sports fan & don't have the abiltiy to complain why be a sports fan?

If sports writers were required to comply with the of rules of behavior for fans that are implied by this essay, nobody outside of his immediately family would have ever heard of Dan Shaughnessy.

Dan's right, let's not groan about the refs. You can't slap the ball away after a made basket once you've been warned and you can't push people into the crowd, both of which obviously happened. Doc was all over Malloy leading up to his T, and the guy had just had enough. Nothing diabolical going on here. Celts are simply overmatched. Maybe they can steal a meaningless game or two along the way after the Heat are up 2-0. Otherwise this series will be over quickly. All in all, a pretty good year for the Green. The real NBA finals are happening right now in the Western Conference Finals anyway.

The Celts scored 11 points in the 1st and 15 points in the 3rd quarters. They lost because they can't score, which is the name of the game. They lost because they suck. Their games against the Sixers were some of the worst playoff games in the shot clock era and now they're just continuing to play like a bunch of brick layers.

And you loved every minute of it, didn't you, Carrot Top.

The NBA needs to address the officiating issue if it wants to continue to be regarded as a real sport -- like football, baseball, and hockey -- and not some scripted entertainment product like pro wrestling. The NBA referees are the worst of the officials in all the major sports, and their actions are adversely affecting the integrity of the game. There is a real perception that the league is telling the referees which teams should win these playoff series -- and perception is reality. It goes back to LA-Sacramento 2002, Game 6. Nothing has changed since that day, 10 years ago, when the Lakers were handed a pivotal playoff game by a crew of referees who seemed on a mission to control the outcome of the game. The evidence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjRcTiwVEwo

Sure, Dan, the Celtics would have lost regardless of the call last night. Agreed. But, let's also not kid ourselves, either... You like to pursue the truth, right? Then let's all agree on this: the officiating in the NBA is a complete joke and has been for a long time. It undermines the sport, and puts the NBA a notch above Pro Wrestling.

No reasonable person thinks that the Celts lost last night as a direct result of the officiating. That doesn't mean we have to excuse arbitrary technical fouls.

Typical straw man argument here. No reasonable fan is suggesting they lost the game due to the officials - they lost because they were outplayed. But at the same time, one can be legitimately upset by the arbitrary and illogical technicals called on the Celtics that certainly did not help them at all at a time when the game was still very still up for grabs.

I'll stop crying about the officials as soon as the league and the officials show enough respect for the game to let it be played out LEGITIMATELY.

Dan Shaughnessy's job used to be writing about sports. In the last few years, it has turned into substance-free sensationalist, hoping to provoke readers into anger or frustration. ______ fans should stop __________ is not a headline you would see if there was any actual substance to his reporting. I've purposely tried to avoid Dan's columns for the last five years or so. We should stop reading the Boston Globe's Sports page until Dan is finally let go, so Dan can be left alone to stew in his misery and cynicism. Jackie Mac is gone. Peter May is gone. Michael Holley is gone. Michael Smith is gone. Bob Ryan will soon be gone. It's a shame this one isn't.

Don't believe I'm a 'Mazz fan' because part of his job is to now use the media to sensationalize on the radio (although he is more tempered in print), but as far as 'mazzfan''s comments are concerned, they are right on. The Globe has lost a lot of quality writers over the years (with the soon-to-be-gone Ryan possibly the biggest loss of all). What I do know is that not one Celtic fan I'm aware of wears rose-colored glasses when watching this team. Last night's performance was just a classic example of games we saw during this bizarro season countless times - a tired team showing indifference and only sporadic attempts to complete (one out of four quarters - which is about as much energy as they appeared to have). While I turned off the TV shortly after the 4th quarter started, I actually saw some signs for optimism (keeping them under 100 when they had their way for most of the game). This isn't about blaming the refs for the loss - it's about the absurdity of NBA reffing performance as a whole. Their subjectivity is at times truly atrocious and last night was a big-stage opportunity for the whole country to see it in a clear light.

Agreed, we didn't lose because of the refs - our best chance to snag one in Miami was always going to be Wednesday anyway. Still, that doesn't excuse the rabbit-ears on professional referees. The network commentators seemed to agree with the "whiny" Boston fans. They were pretty shocked about each of those ridiculous techs. What does Shaughnessy have to say about that? Hmmm, the Heat had more fouls called against them than the Celts? They also played a lot more players. Wade goes until late in the 3rd quarter before picking up his first? James does almost as well? Maybe Dan didn't notice the elbow across Rondo's head during LB's spectacular block? The tv guys just said "foul". Another one missed. They say if you want to draw fouls, you have to go to the basket. Well, Pierce did. And *never* got a call.

actually, check it out in the archives. Dan has been this way all along. I can remember his Mr. Negativity columns on the Celtics back in 1986 -- you know, the year they were the best team in the NBA. And, of course, that goes for his columns on all the other sports as well. Even when he writes a column ostensibly praising whatever team, he drips sarcasm and phoniness, and always seems to be setting them up for a fall.

So has he ever been.

Agree that bad calls didn't decide outcome of the game. Also, agree that whining about bad calls isn't best use of energy. At the same time, this game is symptomatic of a bigger issue -- namely that NBA officiating is generally bad and, at best, very inconsistent -- to the point of making the game almost unwatchable. You can dismiss the Celtics griping, but the bottom line is that the officiating in the NBA, compared to all other major sports is the poorest and most likely to affect the outcome of a game. The media playing "good soldiers" and ignoring a real problem by being so dismissive of post game criticism coming from players and coaches also smacks on insincerity. David Stern can pretend all he wants but the general consensus among fans, especially since Tim Donaghy's revelations, is that the referees have their preferences and marching orders on the "flip em" calls. The moronic technicals called in game 1 only fuel this ongoing problem.

Monday night's Celtic's performance was atrocious. But, the Refs' performance was just as bad. Dan...please go away. We probably would have lost anyways, but the Refs bad calls were numerous and one-sided.

Have to be feeling kinda embarrassed by this column now that you've seen Game 2, eh Dan?