Everyone has their “one that got away.” You know, that person in your past who had all the tools to be a great match for you, but for one reason or another the two of you parted ways without ever really knowing what might have been. Maybe you’re in a great relationship now, maybe you’re not, but when times are tough, you sometimes think about that person and wonder, “What if?”
If the Boston Celtics go on to lose these Finals, Game 3 will be the one that got away.
She was gorgeous. (Pau Gasol: 3-9 from the field, nine points)
She was funny. (Lamar Odom: 2-9, five turnovers)
She was low-maintenance. (Derek Fisher: 1-6, six points)
She liked to pay her own way. (Kobe Bryant: 11-18 from the free throw line)
But she had this douchebag guy “friend” who was always hanging around, waiting to pounce. (Sasha Vujacic: 7-10, 20 points)
Still, at the very beginning, you were great together. (Ray Allen: 8-13, 25 points)
But something (was it fate?) stepped in and you just couldn’t make it work. (Paul Pierce + Kevin Garnett: 8-35 from the field, 19 points)
Just like that, you blew your chance. (Lakers 87, Celtics 81)
Boston had a golden opportunity to steal Game 3 and they let it slip away. Despite Ray Ray playing like he did with the Bucks, Pierce and Garnett looked all out of sorts, and could never really get it going. Pierce’s 2-14 shooting was absolutely brutal, and his play essentially cost his team the game and a commanding 3-0 lead in the series.
The Celtics can take solace in the fact that this is not the first time in these playoffs that a team squandered a chance to steal a game on the road. The Suns had a chance to win Game 1 in San Antonio. The Spurs had a chance to win Game 1 against the Lakers. What’s worrisome for Boston is that neither team recovered, and both teams went on to lose the series.
Ah, what could have been.
