I got back in touch with Cavs-loving, Luke Ridnour look-a-liking Adam Cole-Kelly to get his thoughts on Game 2. Below, we each give a quick synopsis of Game 1, followed by two possible scenarios for tonight’s showdown. Also, like the cheap-shot taking Clevelander he is, Cole-Kelly used this arena to rip apart the moniker of Boston’s bloated prince: Glen “Big Baby” Davis.

Enjoy, and go C’s!

Rich Levine:

I suck at pool. But luckily for me, most of friends suck as well. Most of our games consist of drunken miscues, table scratches, the random behind the back attempt and someone, at some point, spilling their beverage onto the felt. It goes on forever until one of us accidentally knocks in the eight ball, putting myself, my opponent, the game, and anyone unlucky enough to be waiting for a table and watching the game out of their collective misery. Ladies and Gentleman, Game 1 of the Celtics-Cavs series.

WickedGoodSports.com & The Improper Bostonian’s Rich Levine brings you another installment of “The Dino Radja Experience.” On this week’s podcast, Rich is joined by Nick Altschuller, also of The Improper, and by special guest Adam Cole-Kelly, a writer for VH-1’s “The Best Week Ever”…and a delusional Cavs fan (sorry Adam, this is a Boston sports blog.) You can also check out Rich and Adam’s series preview.

Just want to say it before all this gets underway. If Magic, Michael, Larry and Lebron are all 23 and sitting in the green room waiting for David Stern to call their name, if I have the number 1 pick I’m taking Lebron. That said - Celtics in 6.

As part of our coverage of the Celtics second round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, I’ve enlisted the help of my buddy, Adam Cole-Kelly.

Adam is a writer at VH1’s Best Week Ever, and despite his current residence in New York City is a Cavs fan of mammoth proportions (Not as mammoth as this Clevelander, but still mammoth in his own right).

We’ve found success as a team before—our turn of the millennium dominance of the public basketball courts in Seville, Spain has become somewhat of a legend along the banks of the Mediterranean—and I feel confident that over the course of the next six or seven games (which in the NBA Playoffs amounts to three or four months) we’ll be able to provide you with a fresh and unique perspective of the series and all the awesomeness that comes with it.

For our inaugural installment, we threw out 10 pertinent questions and answered them from our respective soap boxes atop Celtics/Cavs Nation. Call it a series preview. Just don’t call it unstupendous (because that’s not a real word)

But first, a quick word from Adam.

This isn’t the regular season, this isn’t Rome and this isn’t a mid-afternoon shootaround. This is the National Basketball Association playoffs, a time for dedication, relentless vigor and overall outstanding play.

As I sit here in my dimly lit office on a dark and damp Friday night, I can’t help but think that the Boston Celtics must grow up. They have to do it quick and at the same time learn that the playoffs are a different beast. This isn’t some run of the mill mid-term exam; this is the SATs of basketball, a time of the year where everything but your heart and inner self is put aside. What I see before me now is gutwrenching and totally contrary to what was on that floor during 82 regular season games. There is no sense of urgency at all!

Pretty hard to believe we are about to play game six and according to the old saying this series hasn’t even begun yet. Hopefully the Celtics will put an end to that tonite and win in Atlanta. It’s no mystery as to what they have to do. Joe Johnson must be double/triple teamed as soon as he puts the ball on the floor and has to be run off threes. To a lesser extent the same can be said about Josh Smith. On the offensive end the Celtics must continue to take the ball to the basket. They cannot fall in love with the three or even the fifteen foot jump shot. Jump shooting teams never get to  the line, never get easy baskets, and most of the time don’t win games, especially on the other guys court. Time for the C’s to get their swagger back and ground the bothersome Hawks. 

Also will be interesting to see how the Wizards fare at home tonite against the Cavs. A surprising number of basketball people think Washington may actually be better without Agent Zero. We’ll see.

What kind of road do the Celts have ahead of them? Is it going to be the joy that overcomes a runner when they see a freshly paved flat street in their line of vision? Or, is it going to be like the nauseating feeling that comes over a person when they drive their brand new BMW over a pothole going 80mph on 128? I don’t have a BMW, but I’d like to.

I desperately wish I had the answer to this burning question, because I know so many of you would like to know. But if the way the Philadelphia 76ers have been manhandling the Detroit Pistons is any indication of where this ride is going, it likely will be as unpredictable as New England’s ever-changing weather patterns.

You see, over the first three games of the Pistons/76ers series, Philadelphia surprising leads the “fierce” and “dominant” Pistons 2-1. Are you kidding me? The 76ers have blatantly outplayed the Pistons. If you watch the games, Detroit looks lost and totally tormented by some kind of inner turmoil. They don’t look right.

Wicked Good Sports and Rich Levine from The Improper Bostonian are proud to present The Dino Radja Experience: A Celtics Podcast for April 25th, 2008.

Comcast SportsNet’s Greg Dickerson went to Hawks shootaround this morning and reports on some interesting comments made by Mike Bibby about the Garden faithful.

As the lights of the TD Banknorth Garden shine down on the hallowed parquet floor and the 16 championship banners sway to the faint breeze filtering through the building, I can’t help but wonder how this season will end.

Will “K.G.” live up to the hype and dominate? Will Paul Pierce finally get his gold? Will Rondo freeze? Will Ray Allen shoot with determination or desperation? These are all questions weighing heavily on my mind today as the opening tip-off against the Atlanta Hawks draws closer and closer.

The National Basketball Association playoffs are a beast, a conundrum of blood, sweat and tears. To me, with K.G. aboard the Celtics’ ship this season, the future looks bright. He is the prototype of what it takes to win in this league. He is a potent elixir of grit, talent and the determination. He has it all.

Pierce is a matured player, a man who finally can see a light at the end of the tunnel. He can taste it, he can smell it, and he can already feel the sterling silver, 24 karat gold glazed Larry O’Brien Trophy in his hands. Will Pierce make a name for himself in the annals of Celtics lure? Stay tuned.