Big 3 have been inconsistent for Celtics

Basketball Betting Lines

06/12/2010 -

BOSTON (AP) -When the Boston Celtics assembled their new Big Three in the summer of 2007, they suddenly had three different options on offense - too many for opponents to handle, it turned out, and the league's most-decorated franchise drove to its unprecedented 17th NBA championship.

So far in this year's NBA finals, though, the trio of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen has been more like the Big One-at-a-Time: Three All-Stars, taking turns making contributions but never all clicking at once.

``It would be great if all three and Rondo and everyone got it going in one game,'' coach Doc Rivers said Saturday before the Celtics practiced for Game 5 of the NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. ``I'd feel very good about that game if that happens. We're certainly going to try.''

The idea of having three scoring threats hasn't quite worked out in the first four games against the Lakers, as one after the other of the Big Three - and emerging star Rajon Rondo, too - has struggled. But the Celtics have managed to tie the series 2-2 heading into Sunday night's Game 5 because they've found other ways to contribute.

``You know what, they're a real sound defensive team and they're going to take some things away, and that's what it is,'' Garnett said. ``The series is a series of adjustments, and I feel like with each game comes a new set of adjustments. One game, it can be Paul, one game can be myself, one game can be Ray, it can be Rajon. But at the end of the day you have to be aggressive, take what they give you, and I think for the most part we've done just that.''

When Garnett struggled in the second game, Rivers made it his goal to get the biggest member of the Big Three going early in Game 3. It took Garnett only 75 seconds to match his Game 2 total of six points, and he finished with 25.

Pierce shot just 2 for 11 in Game 2, but scored 15 points - making 3 of 4 from 3-point range - the next game and then had a more characteristic 19 points with six rebounds and five assists when Boston won 96-89 to even the best-of-seven series at two games.

Allen hit eight 3-pointers to set an NBA record and score 32 points in Game 2, but in Game 3, he was 0 for 13 from the floor - one miss away from the worst shooting performance in NBA finals history - and he didn't snap out of it until late in the third quarter of Thursday's Game 4.

But it isn't just a shooting slump that's caused the numbers to fluctuate.

Allen seemed to struggle most when Derek Fisher was covering him, and it didn't help that Allen was running ragged at the other end of the floor chasing Kobe Bryant around. Players wind up in foul trouble, costing them minutes and also making it difficult for them to be aggressive driving the lane.

``As far as having a great game from all of us, it's real unpredictable,'' Pierce said. ``Teams have their scouting reports, and some things they want to take away from us each and every night, some guys more than others. So it's hard to predict the other team's game plan and what they want to give and what they want to take away.''

The players all insist that they aren't worried about their point total as long as they are contributing elsewhere - whether it's a denied entry pass on defense or a well-timed pick that sets someone else up for the score. But there's also a possibility that the poor shooting will affect their confidence at the other end, too.

``It was important to me to feel like I was actually in the game,'' Garnett said. ``I couldn't care less about getting the ball, I couldn't care less about scoring. But if I need to be effective in the post presence, then I need to do that. I thought Doc did a good job of just obviously consolidating the ball, giving me a chance to be aggressive.''

That's when having three stars can be an advantage - even if they're not all hitting their shots.

``We have multiple options on offense, but on defense we try to be as one,'' Garnett said. ``Absolutely it helps to have two, three other guys who can take the scoring burden and carry it, and you just focus on two or three other different things. It's definitely a joy, I can say that.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Police report: Terrell Owens hospitalized after attempt

Terrell Owens will address the media at a 3:15 p.m. ET news conference outside the Cowboys' practice facility after an internal police report indicated he tried to kill himself by overdosing on prescription pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened.

The Dallas police report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

Owens left the hospital late Wednesday morning, giving reporters a "thumbs up" but making no comment as he was driven away in an SUV.

Michael Irvin said that Owens denied he attempted suicide and said he was rushed to the hospital as a result of an adverse reaction to medication. And a source close to Owens told Michael A. Smith that Owens wasn't attempting suicide.

NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders said he spoke with Owens shortly before his release from the hospital and that Owens was in good spirits.

"The fact that it has been reported a suicide attempt, he's laughed at that notion. It was a case that medication that was taken wasn't accepted well in his system with the other vitamins he's on," Sanders said.

The series of events began a little before 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Owens' publicist, Kim Etheredge, said she was at Owens' home when he took pain medicine for his broken right hand. Concerned by how he began acting, Etheredge said in various interviews Wednesday with Dallas-area media that she called 911. Owens was taken to a hospital, with Etheredge saying it was an allergic reaction to the medicine.

But early Wednesday, several media outlets received a police report -- that had yet to be released by the authorities -- saying Owens had attempted suicide by overdosing on the painkillers, even putting two more pills into his mouth after an unidentified friend intervened.

The police document, first reported by WFAA-TV, said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

When officially released by police, about half the document was blacked out, including the phrases "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication" and "a drug overdose," as well as the details of Owens having two pills pried from his mouth and Owens saying "Yes" when asked if he intended to harm himself.

Etheredge, who said she was the friend cited in the police document, told Dallas-area media Wednesday that the police got the story wrong.

The tape of the 911 call could help clear things up. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get its contents, but fire department officials said it would not be available before late Wednesday.

The police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.

The friend, who is not identified in the report, "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth," the police report said.

Using her fingers, the friend attempted to pry them out of Owens' mouth. Owens told police he had taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied before the incident.

Etheredge told the Star-Telegram that Owens was "fine."

Etheredge said she called 911 because Owens was groggy and lethargic. After taking some supplements "it kicked in a reaction" with the painkillers, she told the Star-Telegram.

"Here's a person whose body is so clean, it really had a negative reaction to the medication and supplements he was taking," Etheridge told The Morning News. "Thank goodness someone was there to call an ambulance."

Police Lt. Rick Watson said he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.

It is not a crime in Texas for a person to attempt suicide.

"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."

Watson and fire department spokesman Joel Lavender cited privacy laws for the lack of information they could provide. Lavender said more details could come from the 911 call. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get the contents of the call.

"Let's just look at the tape, review the tape," Lavender said. "I'll give you an honest answer once I know something."

At the police news conference, Watson released a version of the police narrative with certain sections blacked out. The full report was obtained by several news outlets and reported first by WFAA. The AP received the full version from WFAA.

According to the police report, Dallas Fire and Rescue was called regarding someone "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication." Officers arrived to find Owens being stabilized by ambulance workers, who then took him to Baylor University Medical Center.

Owens was hospitalized late Tuesday because of what his publicist said was an allergic reaction to pain medicine he was taking for a broken hand. Doctors reportedly tried to induce vomiting.

Owens, one of the league's top receivers during his 11-year NFL career, is best known for wild stunts on the field and other publicity-seeking antics off it.

When the Cowboys signed him to a $25 million, three-year deal in March, they said their background checks indicated no red flags. In fact, team consultant Calvin Hill -- who mostly deals with troubled players -- said during training camp that his department was not involved with Owens because he didn't have a history of those kinds of problems.

He missed most of training camp, and three of four preseason games, because of a hamstring injury. He was late for work during his recovery and was fined for it, but Owens laughed it off, saying he overslept. He said it had happened before, though not with Dallas, and would probably happen again.

Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger during a game a week ago Sunday. The next day, doctors screwed in a plate so the bone could heal without fear of further damage. Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said last week that the pain medicine made Owens ill.

Owens had not practiced since the injury, but because Dallas had a bye this past weekend he did not miss a game. He was expected to practice Wednesday, and Parcells had said there was a chance Owens could play Sunday against Tennessee.

Owens had been especially looking forward to the Cowboys' game after that -- Oct. 8, in Philadelphia, against the team that dumped him midway through last season only months after he helped them nearly win the Super Bowl.

Owens was seen laughing and joking on the practice field Tuesday morning. He chatted briefly with reporters in the locker room in the afternoon and seemed fine. A 2-inch scar on the top of his hand was puffy but not wrapped, and he said the swelling was doing down.

While in the locker room, he took a pill from a white paper bag and looked at another medicine bottle that was in the bag. He also called a business partner about a towel-wrap venture they're starting and joked to TV cameras that he wasn't talking until Wednesday and it was only Tuesday.

"My little boy knows better than that," he said, laughing, as he plopped onto a sofa in the middle of the locker room.

Also Tuesday, Owens was involved in launching a national campaign for the National Alliance to End Abuse, an organization aimed at helping at-risk youngsters. He appeared at a high school Tuesday morning and was scheduled to visit others but had to cancel because of changes in the team's practice schedule.

Owens has played two games for the Cowboys, catching nine passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. For updated football betting lines and Dallas Cowboy Superbowl odds visit online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

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