Celtics make history with win over Hornets

The Boston Celtics surpassed one record on Friday night with their 94-82 win over New Orleans and stand on the verge of another.  The victory over the Hornets ran their record for the season to 22-2 which is the best start in franchise history—and when the franchise in question is the Boston Celtics that means something.  A win Monday night against the Utah Jazz will up their record to 23-2, tying the seasoning opening record of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.  They’ve got a ways to go before they equal the Bulls 40-3 mark they’ve achieved that season, but there’s no reason they can’t make a run at that mark as well.

The Celtics Paul Pierce led all scorers with 28 points, while Kevin Garnett added 19 points and 10 boards.  Center Kendrick Perkins chipped in 9 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.  New Orleans was led by 23 points from David West, who also contributed 14 rebounds.  Chris Paul added 20 points and 14 assists for the Hornets.

Boston took some time before the game to honor James Posey, who was a big contributor off the bench to the Celtics 2007-2008 championship run.  Posey signed with New Orleans in the off season, but was warmly received by the Fleet Center crowd in a brief ceremony where he received his NBA Championship ring.  Kevin Garnett noted that such personnel movements are a way of life in pro hoops:

"We will always be forever linked with him. It's a business, and once the ball is jumped, then that's what it is until summertime."

Celtics coach Doc Rivers observed that Posey’s game hadn’t changed even though his uniform has:

"He's up to those same tricks. Last year, I loved what he did, setting flops, charges, grabbing, holding, getting away with hitting on the arm. Today I think I complained about Posey the entire game. He's a pain in the butt; he really is. Now I know why I loved him on our team."

In addition to the franchise best starting mark, the Celtics extended their current winning streak to 14 games.  That’s the longest by Boston since a franchise best 18 straight in 1981-82.  Paul Pierce downplayed such regular season honorifics, and gave evidence that the team’s focus is where it should be:

"It all goes out the window if we don't win the championship”

Boston will try to keep the run going as they host Utah on Monday night, followed by a trip to Atlanta on 12/17.  They’ll return home for their next three games against Chicago, New York and Philadelphia.  New Orleans will travel to Toronto on Sunday and Memphis on Tuesday before returning home for games against San Antonio, Sacramento and the LA Clippers.