Before you read this piece, take a couple deep breaths and quietly repeat to yourself over and over:
It's only one game. It's only one game. It's only one game.
OK. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, you have to admit — there are a lot of lessons we can glean from Game 1 of the NBA season. There are still 81 games to go, but we already know a lot about the Celtics, the Heat, and what lies ahead.
Here are seven lessons learned from Tuesday's season opener, an 88-80 win for the C's over the visiting Miami supersquad:
The Heat still have a lot of work to do.
This was Dwyane Wade's first full game with his two new superstar teammates, LeBron James and Chris Bosh. The three of them still have a lot to learn — when to take the shot, when to defer, when to get the supporting cast around them involved. It's a difficult transition, since all three stars are used to dominating with the ball in their hands. There's only one basketball, and Miami's three leaders will need to learn how to share it. They're still working out the kinks in that department.
The Celtics' defense is in championship form.
Led of course by Kevin Garnett, the Celtics' D was smothering from the opening tip. It's why the Heat scored just nine points in the first quarter and why they finished the game shooting just 36.5 percent. With KG as the vocal ringleader, the Celtics played a suffocating form of team defense that thrived with everyone rotating and helping teammates. If they can sustain that effort for 81 more games, you can just cancel the season. The C's will cruise all the way.
Rajon Rondo can take over a game without scoring.
Like Larry Bird and Magic Johnson used to do back in the day, Rondo carried the Celtics on Tuesday night despite shooting just 2-for-9. With 17 assists and only three turnovers, Rondo led an efficient Celtic offense that didn't need a high-scoring point guard to beat the Heat. You'll see plenty of similar Rondo performances this season.
Ray Allen and Paul Pierce can still carry the Celtics' offense.
The Celtics' two veteran scorers shot a combined 8-for-12 from 3-point land against the Heat. On one hand, that figure can't possibly hold up. But at the same time, the C's two leading scorers proved Tuesday night that they've still got plenty of late-game heroics left, even as they play into their mid-30s. It was Allen who hit the last-minute 3 to break the Heat's backs on Tuesday night, and Pierce who iced the win with a pair of free throws. The old guys have still got it.
Shaquille O'Neal will be great — for short stretches, at least.
Five minutes into the game, Shaq was throwing down back-to-back monster dunks and launching the TD Garden crowd into hysterics. Seven minutes in, he was getting winded and coming out of the game. This is how Shaq's season in Boston will likely unfold — he'll show flashes of brilliance, but he won't have the stamina to sustain it for long stretches of time. Luckily for the C's, they have the bench depth to fill in for the Diesel.
Glen Davis is going to be a star as a sixth man.
Speaking of bench depth, Big Baby might be more than just a sixth man this season — he might end up coming off the bench and playing crunch-time minutes for the Celtics at center. Baby gives the C's energy late in the game, post scoring and offensive rebounding. Doc Rivers will lean on Davis more than ever to rise to the occasion in the fourth quarter. He proved last spring in the Finals he could fill that role, and you saw more of it on Tuesday night.
For now, at least, the Celtics are the team to beat.
Obviously, it's a very fluid situation. After Wednesday night, we may already be revisiting the matter. But for the moment, the Celtics are wearing the belt. By beating the Heat on opening night, the C's have established that the East crown is theirs until someone wrestles it away.
There's a long season ahead. Boston and Miami will likely be jostling for Eastern Conference supremacy all year. But the Celtics have drawn first blood, and it's up to the Heat to strike back.
