If anyone was wondering whether there was any love lost in the rivalry between the Boston Celtics, LeBron James and his new Miami Heat teammates, former NBA Finals MVP Paul Pierce just added a little fuel to the fire via his Twitter page. Less than an hour after Pierce and his Celtics defeated the new look Heat for the second time this season 112-107, Pierce put his own spin on the famous “I’m taking my talents to South Beach” quote first uttered by LeBron during his “Decision” to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers.

It’s obvious Pierce really enjoys beating the Heat, and I’m sure it has to do with all the praise and high expectations handed to Miami. Lost in the mix and hype to some was the fact that the Celtics are the defending Eastern Conference champions and still favorites to compete for the title.

They were also less than 10 minutes and three Staples Center referees away from winning their second title in three years together as the original revamped “Big Three” this past June. Throw in the fact that Pierce has eliminated LeBron’s teams along the way and it makes for some great back and forth.

No word on whether the Tweet will be deleted or labeled as a hack like the last time he poked fun at an opponent, but so far it already has more than 100 retweets. Regardless, it’s time to get your popcorn ready.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

The Celtics rounded out an already colorful bench cast by bringing Cavaliers castoff Delonte West back to Boston with a non-guaranteed contract Wednesday.

West, who was drafted 24th overall by the Celtics in 2004, joins showman Shaquille O’Neal, high flyer Von Wafer, and the comedy duo of Nate Robinson and Glen “Big Baby” Davis (a.k.a. Shrek and Donkey) on the Celtics bench, making Boston the runaway favorite for the annual Patrick Crawley Most Entertaining Second Unit award.

The question isn’t whether West will make a good sidekick to Nate Rob and Big Baby though. The question is whether he will get a roster spot in Boston. And, if he does, will he get playing time?

Here are the pros and cons of bringing West back to Beantown:

Pros

* He’s a long-time favorite of general manager Danny Ainge. In fact, Ainge said this week that trading West in 2008 was one of the toughest decisions he has had to make as a GM. That’s a testament to West’s competitiveness and his passion for the game, both of which have been hallmark qualities for the Celtics in recent years.

* He plays defense. With the departure of Tony Allen, the Celtics need a player off the bench who can rise to the challenge of defending the opposing team’s best guard. West is happy to be that player, something that will likely set him apart from Wafer and Robinson.

* His non-guaranteed contract makes him a non-risk. If he plays well and keeps his nose clean, Boston has him for a year at the veteran’s minimum. If he acts up, the Celtics can ship him out of town faster than an n-word out of Dr. Laura’s mouth.

* He’s a career 82 percent free throw shooter (84.5 percent in the postseason). By comparison, Tony Allen is 73 percent for his career and Von Wafer is 74.5 percent. That’s a significant upgrade for the Celtics at the end of games.

* He’s actually a decent three-point shooter. West may have clocked in at 32.5 percent from beyond the arc last season, but he’s made 35 percent or more of his threes in the other five seasons he’s been in the league. That doesn’t necessarily make him Ray Allen but it does give Boston more than what Tony Allen offered (29 percent career).

* He’s a comedy goldmine. From rapping about hot sauce in his KFC bag to carrying a shotgun Desperado-style in a guitar case to crying over new shoes to allegedly sleeping with a teammate’s mom, he’s a one-man comedy routine. Celtics fans are lucky to have him. He’s like Ron Artest East.

Cons

* His shot selection. Sixty-seven percent of West’s shots were jump shots last season according to 82games.com, and he made just 43 percent (effective field goal) of his jump shots. By comparison, Tony Allen took 60 percent of his shots at close range, many of them on back door cuts. In other words, Allen took easy shots. West takes difficult shots. That’s something Rajon Rondo and Co. will have to adjust to as West joins the second unit.

* He’s somewhat injury prone. The same tenacity that makes him a pesky defender also makes him susceptible to getting hurt. Between a broken finger last season and a broken wrist in 2009, West has a history of picking up nagging injuries. He has yet to play over 71 games in a season.

* His miserable 2010 season. West’s season averages last year: 8.8 points and 3.3 assists in 25 minutes per game on 44.5 percent field goal and 32.5 percent three point shooting. Granted he was hurt for a chunk of the season and had personal issues hanging over his head, but it’s still a worry that he had the second worst season of his career at age 26.

* He’s about 26 fries short of a happy meal. Yes, West has some serious disorders, but he’s also a Dennis Rodman-sized headcase. We’re talking about a guy who gets arrested for riding around with a full-fledged arsenal on his person. A guy who disappears for days on end on account of mood disorders and depression. A guy whose life would, according to Red’s Army, be “too unrealistic” for Hollywood. Not exactly someone you’d be itching to add to your locker room, right?

Judging by this list, the pros of having West on the roster outweigh the cons. It’s close. But the pros outweigh the cons. As much of a distraction as he is off the court, West brings a lot to the table, namely tenacious defense and clutch free throw shooting.

If he can keep his personal issues under control he’ll be an asset to the Celtics, especially in the playoffs.

Patrick Crawley is the sports editor for Neon Tommy and the managing editor of Basketball Fiend.

Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers is in Los Angeles to watch his son Austin play in the 2010 Boost Mobile Elite 24 game on Saturday. On Friday he took in the Under Armour High School Slam Dunk contest (won by Deuce Bello of Westchester Country Day in High Point, N.C.) and stuck around after for a quick interview. Doc talked with us about his starting five never losing a playoff series, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the additions of Shaq and Jermaine O’Neal. Check out the video below.

Shaquille O’Neal wants to end his unemployment by signing on with the Boston Celtics for the 2010-11 season. A couple of weeks ago there was talk of Shaq going to Atlanta. His name has also been mentioned (who knows how seriously?) in connection with San Antonio, Cleveland and New Jersey. Shaq says it’s not about the money. He wants to play somewhere that has a chance to win. Signing with Boston would be putting winning where his mouth is.

From Fanhouse:

Although O’Neal was unavailable for comment Friday, two sources close to him confirmed his continued interest in the Celtics, even though they currently have no room, or exceptions, under the salary cap to pay him beyond the NBA veteran’s minimum of $1.35 million.

The Celtics could pay him more, but only if his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, helped with a sign-and-trade deal.

“He only wants to go to a team with a chance to win it all,” one source said. “That’s a short list. Even for the money, he’s not going to a non-contender.”

Be sure to keep up with the latest college football odds.

Shaq, AI and T-Mac. I don’t know which one will find a team first and it doesn’t really matter. Any thing those three guys give you at this point is gravy. They’re all past the point of being meaningful contributors on winning teams.

Shaq Wants to Wear Celtics Green [Fanhouse]

So today is Monday, June 21, 2010. If you follow the NBA or the Los Angeles Lakers then you know today is “Parade Day” where the team and its fans enjoy a celebration of their latest championship run in the heart of Downtown L.A.

Seems great right? Not really, especially since I’m not a Lakers fan and consider myself a member of the sports fan elite. That makes me a sort of endangered species, a fan within the city who doesn’t swear blind allegiance to the popular team and shower them with exaggerated praise.

Since the Lakers won their 16th title last Thursday against the Boston Celtics, the only team they still trail in prestige and banners (Boston has an NBA record 17, including nine won against the Lakers), I’ve had to endure an endless amount of television coverage and Homer-ism.

Every single local channel has run special segments on the team, Laker history, etc. Look, even though I wasn’t rooting for them, I know they won and people were bound to be happy. But as a person who regularly criticizes the Lakers and their supporters as the lowest class of fans, they’ve sure proven me right.

From the severely ill-informed proclamations that Kobe Bryant is now greater than Magic Johnson or Michael Jordan (how about no), the feigned ignorance about benefiting from preferential officiating and the morons destroying their own streets and cars in uh, celebration, most Lakers fans qualify as a village full of idiots.

If that wasn’t bad enough, today was like the culmination of it all. I woke up to wall to wall coverage of the Laker Parade, stock full of Kobe and his fake smiles to chumps like Sasha Vujacic thinking they actually deserve to be called NBA champs.

Sasha Vujacic getting a 2nd ring gives douchebags across the world more hope.

I’ve been dealing with simmering bitterness ever since I saw the way the fourth quarter of game 7 was turning into the same old home cooking for the Lakers (they had a 37-17 free throw advantage for the game, 21-6 in the critical 4th and 200 to 149 for the series) they’ve enjoyed on every successful championship quest.

It doesn’t matter that Boston was by far the more aggressive team for the series (they consistently drove more and shot more total field goals despite taking 20 less 3-pointers than Los Angeles) or that the referees completely changed the tempo of the otherwise greatly officiated game in the fourth.

Just like it doesn’t matter that Kobe Bryant had yet another sub par NBA Finals performance (6/24 stink bomb in his biggest career game at home and 40 percent shooting for the series), because after all, (sarcasm) he’s the greatest ever! (/sarcasm).

The only positive I’ve taken from it all was the fact that after today, I won’t have to deal with too much more ignorant nonsense. Because most Lakers fans are casual followers in the same mold as those of the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys, they’ll forget the NBA exists in about half an hour and find pretty butterflies to chase in amazement.

- Will.

The Sports Snob will be published once a week here on YouBeenBlinded.com. Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

Referees in the NBA seem destined to forever be a hot topic, especially among the fans of whichever team loses, so today I’m tackling the officiating so far in the NBA Finals.

The Tim Donaghy scandal and the recent parade of knee-jerk “the refs made sure we didn’t win” reaction losing teams and their fans employ have almost irrevocably blurred the line between legitimate gripes with officiating and just plain old whining.

There’s a big difference between the two and it’s no surprise that most of the improper criticizing of officials comes from bandwagon fans. The problem has become even more glaring with this year’s Finals, a hotly contested, physical battle between two teams that genuinely dislike each other.

Whether you highlight Kobe’s angry physical antics when losing (does anyone hysterically throw their arms up more during games?) or the venom exchanged between the two fanbases during the historic rivalry, enraged fans have been looking for the easiest excuse when their team loses.

You know, other than “the other team just played better.”

Kobe is among the leaders in complaining to referees.

Blaming the refs has fit that mold perfectly, although it’s a big joke coming from Lakers fans. I have very little doubt that crooked or impartial refs, gambling and the almighty dollar in general are possibly influencing how games are called in some form. If you honestly believe a money-making organization as big as the NBA is 100 percent clean then you’re a fool. But to listen to fans of the very franchise that has arguably benefited most (and in the most egregious ways) from questionable calls since the Shaq era in Los Angeles until now complain is absolutely ridiculous.

The officiating during the infamous 2002 Western Finals between LA and the Sacramento Kings was a downright travesty. The epic game 7 collapse by the 2000 Portland Trailblazers has also been redefined to exclude a sizeable free throw disparity (37-16) and awful calls. Derek Fisher has gotten more flops called his way than anyone since Vlade Divac. And I won’t even talk about how Shaq used to get away with camping in the lane and offensive fouls during the three-peat. It’s no coincidence that despite playing the same way since then he’s lost the benefit of his Lakers pass and gotten more whistles.

That brings us to this year. The Boston Celtics currently hold a 3-2 advantage in this year’s finals and are one win away from their NBA record 18th championship banner.

Every single game Boston has won was followed by Lakers fans complaining that the refs “screwed” them and favored Boston. Aside from the first two games, which were universally bashed as foul-fests created by whistle-happy refs, the last three games have been called pretty evenly. Both teams had some bad calls go against them, but it’s been mostly neutral. If there appeared to be any type of advantage at all, it’s actually for the Lakers.

This is why the anti-ref rants of LA fans seem even more hollow and hypocritical.

Of the five games played so far, the Lakers have shot 22 more total free throws (144-122) and have twice shot 10 or more in a game than Boston. So to suggest that the referees are giving the Celtics an advantage at the line is just a lie.

Well then they call more fouls on LA right? No.

Let’s look at the numbers; 127 total fouls called against Boston, 121 against Los Angeles. Combine that with the fact that the Lakers drive to the basket considerably less than Boston (LA has shot 18 more 3-pointers so far despite having six fewer total attempts) and at least 10 late-game intentional fouls LA has committed and you see just how many breaks they’ve really gotten.

Scientific diagram depicting the logic behind Lakers fans complaining about officiating.

The bottom line for the last two games has been that Boston has just wanted it more and played harder as a team, something LA has failed to do. The refs have done a decent job of not being the focus of each game and “let the players play.”

So quit the whining Lakers fans, because complaining about NBA officiating while supporting a franchise with such a checkered history on the issue just looks pathetic. Nobody believes your empty cries, especially not when guys like Mike Bibby, Jameer Nelson, Dikembe Mutombo, and countless others look back at all the uncalled elbows and phantom fouls.

LA is the major market team with the top-selling star and all the Hollywood glitz, so I won’t be surprised if this series goes seven games or if they once again benefit from some home cooking to get a ring. This is entertainment and deep pockets and all that shine go a long way.

Just don’t be too shocked if every so often someone without all that glamour exposes your carefree entitlement and punches you in your mouth and takes what you want.

Do like your hero Kobe says and man up or get out.

- Will.

The Sports Snob will be published once a week here on YouBeenBlinded.com. Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

One of the remaining big chips in NBA free-agency is off the board now that Rasheed Wallace has committed to signing with the Boston Celtics. ‘Sheed is expected to sign a two-year deal for the mid-level exception on July 8.

The move puts the Celtics back on top as the Eastern Conference favorite. Assuming Kevin Garnett is healthy, KG, Wallace, and Kendrick Perkins give Boston flexibility down low. The Cleveland Cavaliers have to respond by signing Lamar Odom or Shawn Marion, and it’s widely believed LO is returning to LA so that leaves Marion. And even then Boston is still slightly better.

Wallace commits to Celtics [Celtics Blog]

Darius Miles recently signed with the Boston Celtics meaning Cs fans will get a steady dose of Miles pounding his head if the troubled forward can get on the floor. Darius and former Los Angeles Clippers teammate Quentin Richardson started doing the DFHB years ago, and it’s good to see that Miles is keeping the tradition alive.. Even while playing air hockey.

The info section on the YouTube page for this video says Darius Miles was playing against a kid. If that’s true it means Miles is the type of dude that congratulates himself over for the most mundane task… I made it to practice on time.. Double fisted head bump. I took a leak and didn’t get any on the floor.. Double fisted head bump. I didn’t violate the NBA’s anti-Drug program.. Double fisted oohh.. oooops.

Two good notes for Darius Miles.. At least he doesn’t sound punch drunk in the above video like he did in this Slam Ball interview:

and none of his homies are getting busted for having a couple ounces some weed.

The U.S. Olympic basketball team is in Las Vegas getting ready for a run at the gold while the Boston Celtics are living it up. KG, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Sam Cassell and Rajon Rondo put their Sin City partying on pause to check out Manny Pacquiao vs. David Diaz. As you can hear in the video one of Pacman’s dreams was to meet Kevin Garnett, and the two share a mutual respect for one another.

There’s no telling when Youtube will pull this video down so enjoy it while you can. Slow motion and several angles of Manny Pacquiao’s 9th round knockout of David Diaz:

People were worried that Manny Pacquiao would lose some speed when he moved up to 135 lbs. I have some bad news for his competition.. He didn’t. Pacquiao looked just as fast and he says he’s even stronger. David Diaz’s face and the ring canvas agree.

Manny Pacquiao, David Diaz, knockout, Boston Celtics, video, youtube, utube

There are always two things you can count on following a sports championship. A parade and a riot. Boston held its riot after 4-2 series victory over the Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA championship. If this is how Boston acts after the Celtics win the title it’s a good thing the New England Patriots didn’t go 19-0. Clouds of smoke would still be covering the city.

Boston Celtics, rioting, video, youtube, utube