CELTICS - 88

Pistons - 79

If this rate of scoring continues, the winning number will be between 440 and 1232.

The best thing about running a contest on your blog is the fact that, after you've run the initial blog asking for entries, you can get another two or three posts out of just compiling the guesses people made and/or updating the progress. For example, here are all of the guesses received before the deadline:

Sharfa - 385 (Sharfa obviously expected the Celtics to lose 4 straight to Detroit. Either that or she believes the Celtics will win the championship and set an NBA record, averaging only 28 points a game.)

FatHairyBastard - 410 (Another expectation of 4 straight. And he's not anywhere near as good looking as Sharfa, so I should just kick his ass right now. However, he IS fat, hairy, and a bastard, so I'll wait until his back is turned and then club him with a brick.)

Connie/Mom - 627 (My Mother. MY MOTHER. Mom! You think the Celtics will lose, too? Jeez. Do you have another son I don't know about who's a Pistons fan?)

Goody - 630 (My friend who has season tickets and was nice enough to invite me to game seven, should it come to that. He said he believes the Pistons will win the current series in seven games. In other words, he's such a good friend, he's invited me to be a witness to the most painful moment of the entire season. Gee, thanks, Fred!)

Shrinky - 689 (She's from the UK, so she gets a pass.)

Artjewl - 723 (She's not from the UK. But, the Celtics could win 8 straight and average 91 a game, so OK.)

SandraRee - 860 (Now we're getting into the territory where the Celtics must at least get to the finals to reach these numbers. No more snide comments.)

ChuckaStoneDesigns - 912

TickledPink - 919

Sassy - 934

John-Michael - 941

Lime - 950

Buck - 962

ChrisStone - 990

Pete - 1012 (My softball coach for the past three years. He says he doesn't want the prize. Well, who does? It's 10 [crummy] CDs. Anyway, he has asked that, if he wins, the prize be given to the runner-up. So, if you don't win, but you get the CDs, anyway? You'll want to go to Pete's house and beat him senseless.)

Michael - 1066 (My favorite comment: "If it was good enough for William The Conqueror, it's good enough for Leon Powe.")

Eilleen - 1095

DavidSullivan - 1099 (My cousin. He won the last contest I had here, involving the World Series. Some folks were of the opinion that the fix was in. I've never denied it. However, this time it's definitely on the up-and-up.)

(BWAH-HA-HA!)

Dave - 1190 (NOT my cousin. No chance.)

BurningSky - 1191

Now, this is where my own guess would have fallen. I figure 13 games; a total of 1209 points. I am notoriously pitiful as a prognosticator, so the nearer you are to my guess, the less chance you probably have.

The Lovely (yet surprisingly affordable) Tara - 1267 (Sorry, kid! Too close to my guess to have any chance whatsoever.)

KevinSmith - 1287

Rooster - 1295

Chuck - 1300

And there you have it. Considering the prize (10 [crummy] CDs, with an infinitesimal chance at a real honest-to-goodness $25 gift certificate) this is a surprisingly large number of entrants. I'll update after each Celtics game.

ALERT! ACTUAL BASKETBALL TALK AHEAD! RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!

I dissed Celtics coach Doc Rivers pretty hard the other day. I feel I should say something else, so here goes. Doc got it right in game seven against Cleveland, and he also got it fairly much right last night. So, credit where credit is due. Good job.

I truly like the man. He seems like a very nice guy. His players like him a lot, and that certainly counts for something. Whatever roller coaster ride he's given my blood pressure, so long as the Celtics win, no problem. More power to him.

The biggest problem the Celtics have at the moment is Ray Allen. He absolutely stunk up the joint for much of last night. His shooting is about as far off as you could expect from a player with his formidable resume. He hasn't been totally worthless, as he's contributed here and there, via defense and other aspects, but his overall worth to the team at this point is far below what is expected - and needed.

What's the solution? I suppose it's just to keep getting him open looks and hope the shots start falling. Either that or Doc has to seriously consider benching him in favor of a more consistent performer. Eddie House as the two guard wouldn't be an outrageous choice at this point. Or, if you want to take an iffy shot, Tony Allen. He's one of the better defensive players available, at least, and he does have some mighty fine offensive tools at his disposal, although his lack of experience under pressure may be deadly.

On the other hand, Rajon Rondo has been wonderful. He keeps getting the "can't shoot" label from the media, but he keeps putting the ball in the hole. He reminds me, in many ways, of Doug Flutie. No matter how many times Flutie flung the ball downfield, many commentators continued to question his arm strength right up until he retired.

Some folks bring intangibles to the table. And some folks will never see those intangibles. That's just the way life is. Rondo is a very special basketball player. I wouldn't want anyone else running the offense. He, rather than Ray Allen, is now the third part of the "Big Three", IMHO.

GO CELTICS!

See you soon.