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An old friend won a big award for his efforts in revitalizing another franchise:

Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird was voted the NBA's Executive of the Year on Wednesday, becoming the first person to win that award, plus the MVP and Coach of the Year honors. The Pacers went 42-24 and are tied 1-1 with Miami in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Bird's moves to strengthen the team during the offseason included promoting Frank Vogel from interim to head coach and signing starting forward David West.

Bird's connection to Boston is kind of obvious, but remember, too, that Vogel was Boston's one-time video coordinator and the Pacers landed West only after the Celtics' failed attempt to facilitate a preseason deal with New Orleans in exchange for Jermaine O'Neal.

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge finished with one third-place vote, which landed him in a six-way tie for 14th place. Did Ainge deserve better considering the rash of injuries Boston endured this season and the way the team surged later in the year with help from the likes of Mickael Pietrus, Greg Stiemsma, and Brandon Bass? Sound off in the comments.

Do you remember how Paul Pierce got the nickname “The Truth”?

Shaquille O’Neal does. In fact, he came up with it during a game in Los Angeles over a decade ago.


In the video above, Shaq and Pierce reflect on that game and more.

“That was probably my best game of my career at that point, in the Staples Center,” Pierce recalls.

“That day he played like he was in the league nine or 10 years,” says Shaq. “He had a lot of poise, he didn’t panic, and he was doing it against the world champs.”

It was after the Lakers came back to beat the Celtics by 5 that Shaq made his lasting declaration: “Write this down. Paul Pierce is the mother---- truth. I knew the kid could play, but I didn’t know he could play like that. … Paul Pierce is the truth.”

In his Wednesday PER Diem column , ESPN.com's John Hollinger breaks down just how close the Eastern Conference semifinal series between the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers really is. A sample:

The Philadelphia-Boston series may not be an aesthetic wonder, but thus far it couldn't possibly be any more competitive. Two hard-fought, one-point games -- one won by each side -- leave us no closer to having a victor than we were four days ago.

The odds still slightly favor Boston -- teams with home-court advantage have advanced 60 percent of the time after splitting the first two games, and even more often when the split happens with a Game 2 loss rather than a Game 1 loss.

Nonetheless, this one appears to have seven-game series written all over it. And it appears Game 1 -- a 92-91 Boston win -- may be the highest-scoring game. As I noted when previewing the series, Boston and Philadelphia were two of the league's top three defensive teams in the regular season, but both finished below the league average in offensive efficiency. Even during Boston's late-season surge, the Celtics weren't doing much of note on offense; they were just playing ridiculously well on defense.

Hop HERE to read the full story.

The NBA named Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers to its recomposed 10-member Competition Committee on Wednesday.

Rivers joins a panel that includes owners Dan Gilbert (Cleveland Cavaliers) and Joe Lacob (Golden State); general managers Bryan Colangelo (Toronto Raptors), Mitch Kupchak (L.A. Lakers), Kevin O’Connor (Utah Jazz), and Sam Presti (Oklahoma City); and coaches Rick Carlisle (Dallas Mavericks) and Lionel Hollins (Memphis Grizzlies). The NBPA will also designate one of its members to serve on the Committee.

If the Competition Committee votes in favor of changing a playing rule or any other competition-related matter, the recommendation will be brought to the Board of Governors for its consideration and vote. Check out the full release from the league after the jump.

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PHILADELPHIA -- After splitting a pair of games at TD Garden, the Eastern Conference semifinal series between the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers essentially becomes a best-of-five battle starting Wednesday night as it shifts to Wells Fargo Center (7 p.m., TNT). To preview Game 3, we go 2-on-2 with colleague Greg Payne.

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1. What was the most disappointing aspect of Boston's Game 2 loss?

Payne: The lack of late-game execution. It's become a hallmark of this team over the last five seasons, so it's always a bit of a disappointment when plays that could tie or win the game go awry for Doc Rivers and his club. Obviously no team is going to come through with a 100 percent success rate every time it's battling in a close game, but these C's seem to come through more often than not, compared to other teams.

Forsberg: Here's what is a little bit crazy: The Celtics played some terrible, terrible basketball over the first three quarters of Game 2 -- film of the middle quarters should be destroyed and never spoken of again -- yet it's the fourth quarter -- which actually featured some of the team's best ball -- that's so hard to ignore because of the late-game miscues. The idea that a visiting team hit its last five field goals (even if a couple of them were ridiculous circus shots) and made its final six free throws, all over the final four minutes, is almost unbelievable. Boston's only stop in that span was a 24-second violation. Now, give the 76ers a lot of the credit, but Boston's typical late-game defense completely disappeared and their offense was a mess. With that, the Celtics fumbled away both home-court advantage and any mental edge they had in terms of being the more clutch team after Game 1's flawless end-of-game execution. That's tough to swallow for a team that had a real chance to put a stranglehold on this series.

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PHILADELPHIA -- Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers said he expects everyone to be available for Game 3 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Arena.

The Celtics on Wednesday engaged in a late-morning shootaround, their first on-court activity since a Game 2 loss Monday in Boston evened the series, but Rivers believes the off day might have helped his players on the short turnaround.

"Everybody’s good," said Rivers. "We basically took the day off (Tuesday) -- we watched a little film and met; other than that we didn’t do anything on the floor."

But since injuries are unlikely to get better at this time of year, particularly with the spacing of these games, it appears the Celtics are trying to will themselves through the pain. At one end of the visitor's locker room, Avery Bradley massaged his ailing left shoulder while telling reporters he plans to suit up Wednesday despite another dislocation in Game 2.

"I just gotta make sure I’m careful," said Bradley. "But I try not to think about it and just play. If it pops out, then it pops out."

When the prospects of offseason surgery came up, Bradley said, "I’m going to do whatever I need to do to get myself ready for next season. As of right now, I’m just rehabbing it, trying to get it stronger."

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In the video above, ESPN NBA analyst Tim Legler explains why he's picking the Sixers to beat the Celtics in tonight's Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

PHILADELPHIA -- With Celtics captain Paul Pierce playing on one leg, Boston need someone else to deliver in the clutch in this Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Philadelphia 76ers:

ESPN.com's Beckley Mason writes on TrueHoop that Kevin Garnett has been Celtics' center since February, but is now the epicenter too:

Here's a big question: How many minutes can Kevin Garnett play?

Here's another big question: Can the Celtics get anything done without him?

Through 60 regular season games, Kevin Garnett played more than 38 minutes one measly time. Eight games into the playoffs, he has already passed that number every time, but for a blowout first win against the Hawks and Game 2's loss to the Sixers.

On Monday night, the Celtics were outscored by 17 points in the 14 minutes that Garnett sat. Coach Doc Rivers rested his key big man in the second and third quarters, which is the precisely when Philadelphia grabbed control of the game and established, then fattened a lead that the Celtics could not overcome despite Garnett playing the entire fourth quarter.

Back in February, Doc Rivers moved Garnett to the center position. At this point in the playoffs, no descriptor could be more accurate. With Pierce and Allen struggling to produce on injured legs and Avery Bradley’s left arm reduced to dangling uselessness, Garnett is the hub of everything the Celtics do offensively and defensively -- he is literally the center of the Celtics' hopes

Hop HERE to read the full story.

Jackie MacMullan phoned into ESPN Boston Radio with Adam Jones on Tuesday to discuss the Celtics' Game 2 loss to the 76ers and what lies ahead in this series.

Hop HERE to listen to the podcast.

ESPN Boston's Chris Forsberg joined Ryen Russillo on the NBA Today podcast Tuesday to talk about how the Celtics dropped Game 2 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Philadelphia 76ers and discuss Boston's season-long inconsistencies.

Hop HERE to listen to the podcast.

BOSTON -- With only a single offday before Wednesday's Game 3 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series, the Boston Celtics did not plan to practice Tuesday afternoon and will simply watch film before catching an afternoon flight to Philadelphia.

Some late-game miscues in Tuesday's Game 2 loss to the 76ers prevented Boston from packing a series lead and coach Doc Rivers acknowledged that, by splitting the two games in Boston, the 76ers will be gushing with confidence as the series shifts to Wells Fargo Arena.

But the Celtics gave them that confidence even before the fourth quarter of Game 2.

“I think we lifted their confidence [in Game 1]," said Rivers. "I really do. I mean, we played a home game in Game 1 where we stole the game. And, so, if you’re the other team, you have to have a little confidence coming in. That’s what I was happy with at the start of Game 2 [Monday], and then we let that go.”

Boston scored nine quick points Monday, but went cold from the field in the middle quarters. Much like in Game 1, the Celtics made a feverish late charge to erase a double-digit deficit, but this time the 76ers didn't wilt.

"Our young guys just keep growing and they’re really becoming men," said Philadelphia coach Doug Collins. "I’m so proud of them. Doc Rivers, arguably the best coach in the NBA, and for our guys to just scrap through a game [Monday] -- we just found a way. Again, I have to tell you, all season long we couldn’t win these games and now our guys are believing they can do it, and it is pretty special to watch.”

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BOSTON -- A look at ESPN Boston headlines after the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Boston Celtics 82-81 in Game 2 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series Monday evening at TD Garden, including Chris Forsberg on Boston's lack of late-game execution and Peter May on how the Celtics' shaky play has given the 76ers confidence:

ESPN Stats and Info puts Boston's offensive woes into perspective:

The Celtics were held to 11 points in the third quarter, tied for their lowest output in a quarter since the Indiana Pacers held them to 10 points in the fourth quarter in Game 2 of their 2005 Eastern Conference first-round matchup.

In fact, they were held to one point per minute over the second and third quarters while making just 9 of 37 shots from the field. They made 24 of 42 shots -- 57 percent -- over the other two quarters to stay in the game.

If the Celtics had gotten to the free-throw line, they might have been able to win the game despite their poor shooting stretch. Boston attempted only nine free throws in the game. In 1,879 playoff games over the last 25 years, the Celtics are one of only eight home teams to attempt fewer than 10 free throws.

BOSTON -- Celtics coach Doc Rivers expressed dissatisfaction with a late-game offensive foul call on Kevin Garnett that prevented Boston from generating what would have been a potential tying attempt in the final seconds of an 82-81 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 2 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series at TD Garden.

Referee Michael Smith whistled Garnett for an illegal screen trying to spring Paul Pierce for a potential 3-pointer with 10 seconds remaining in a three-point game.

“I wasn’t fond of it. At all," said Rivers. "I think Kevin got three off-the-ball fouls. So, clearly it looked like they were looking for it all night, and they got three of them. Listen, if you’re going to tell me that Kevin was the only one moving on picks tonight, then I’ll live with that. But he clearly was not the only one; he was the one who got the calls tonight. Listen, we put ourself in that position. At the end of the day, I say it all the time, if you put yourself in a position to let someone else do something, then you can lose games. And that’s what happened.”

Garnett got tagged with another moving screen in the first quarter, then got whistled for pushing Spencer Hawes while defending a pick-and-roll earlier in the fourth frame. For his part, Garnett reasoned that there were plenty of other moments that cost Boston a chance to win the game before his offensive foul.

“Mike was in a position and he called it. I’m not going to make a big stink about it,” said Garnett. “I think [referee] Danny [Crawford] had already given me a warning about how I was setting picks. I’m going to continue to set picks and continue to get guys open.

Later Garnett added: “Mike made a great call, man. I don’t really give it up to refs... I just thought in that situation you let the players decide the game. But if he thought it was a moving pick, then that’s what it is.”

Asked if he was upset at the referee's call, Pierce said: "That’s the name of the game sometimes. They make a call, you got to live with it.”