First Round Snapshots: Rondo is the New Rose; Spurs Smack Mavs After Embarrassing Game 1

The Other Point Guard: So Ray Allen found his stroke and hit the game-winner. Ben Gordon, his brother in UConn-dom, went for a ridiculous 42. Tyrus Thomas blocked so many shots, the announcers said “Artis Gilmore”; Big Baby’s jumper was money throughout. And Paul Pierce was the captain, all on the way to a thrilling 118-115 Celtics win that kept the defending champs from going on the road in an 0-2 hole. ↵↵Sadly, Derrick Rose -- also known as the New LeBron -- got in foul trouble early and only made his presence felt toward the end. But for heck’s sake, can we please just acknowledge that Rajon Rondo carried Boston for most of the game? He put up a triple-double and slowed Rose -- all on a bum ankle. You want to talk about point guards truly arriving, how about this series for Rondo?↵
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↵Spurs Will Find a Way: We shouldn’t ever be surprised by the Spurs anymore. So they lose Manu, then the first game of the series at home. They simply throw on their jerseys, hold the Mavs to a measly 84 points, and put up 105 behind Tony Parker’s huge 38-point night -- 27 of it in the first half. This wasn’t just winning a must-win, or tying up a series before they head over to Dallas. It was the kind of resourcefulness, and killer instinct that makes San Antonio perennial contenders, even in a year like this when there’s every reason to suspect they’re vulnerable. ↵

↵↵Parker was like a man possessed, and the acquisition of Drew Gooden might well turn out to be invaluable. It’s strange to call a third seed beating a sixth, at home, a statement game. But just when it looked like San Antonio had its back up against the wall, Pop’s team came roaring back to smack around the Mavs and suggest it’ll take much more, from much better teams, to put them away -- Manu or no Manu. It’s up to Dallas to prove that this snap conclusion is as premature as Saturday’s reaction to Rose.↵

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