MIAMI — When Rajon Rondo suggested in the aftermath of the Celtics' Game 1 loss to the Heat that if Dwyane Wade and LeBron James go to the basket, they need to "hit the deck," it was not surprising.
The Celtics, looking old, injured and overmatched, are clearly searching for something that can turn the Eastern Conference finals into a series.
And Rondo's proposal indicates that he knows his history well. The Celtics may have authored the manual on how to stop a team that is more athletic, more gifted and just plain better when Kevin McHale's clothesline of Kurt Rambis swung the tenor of the 1984 Finals, which had tilted heavily in the Lakers' favor, toward Boston.
It was preceded by a Lakers rout in Game 3, which prompted Larry Bird to describe his team as "a bunch of sissies." After the takedown of Rambis, Pat Riley called the Celtics "a bunch of thugs."
In retrospect, it seems like a term of endearment, seeing as how Riley eschewed Showtime when he left Los Angeles for New York — preferring instead Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason and John Starks — and then in Miami, where he reshaped the Heat around tough guys likes Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway and Kurt Thomas.
So, in a predictable display of machismo, the Heat, when asked about Rondo's promise and Kevin Garnett's pledge to make Miami not look so "comfortable," walked the line between sneering and shrugging.
"We're men just like they're men," said Wade, who had 22 points in Game 1. "We're not going to let anyone come in and punk us."
"I don't know," James said when asked what the Celtics' comments told him. "It doesn't tell me anything. I expect a physical game every single game I play in, me personally. It's no surprise to me. It's not like, oh, I've got to gear up for it. I'm already geared up for it."
James, who had 32 points and 13 boards in Game 1, said it has been the same for him since he was a freshman in high school.
"Physical play has always been a part of an opponent's game toward me and toward the team I've been on," he said. "So it's not surprising when I hear it or see it through the course of a game."
It is the way of basketball: When all else fails in trying to stop an opponent, put him on the deck. For the best, most athletic players, like Wade and James, it is a rite of passage. The Pistons had their Jordan Rules, which this season were reprised for Blake Griffin, generating debate about how to best respond.
This is where some of the hard feelings stem from. The Celtics, as veterans who have put in their time — and as Celtics, really — have stewed over the idea that the nouveau riche Heat get the calls that they want and feel entitled to. And on Monday didn't get.
Neither Rondo nor Paul Pierce shot a free throw, and the Heat were 21 of 27 inside the paint. That, as much as the trigger-whistles for dissent, is what chafed Boston coach Doc Rivers and what led to responses to get tougher, if not rougher.
"It's the playoffs," Miami forward Shane Battier said with a laugh. "When you lose a game, the first thing that every team says is you've got to play more physical, we've got to be tougher. I don't think that's specific to the Boston Celtics. That seems to be the answer for every game this year that you lose in the playoffs."
The Heat have been through this before, too. Bird, now the Pacers' president, called his team s-o-f-t during the Eastern Conference semifinals. Riley's charges played their part predictably. Udonis Haslem was suspended for a game and Dexter Pittman for three after their hard fouls.
"A lot of teams try to create an identity about how they're going to be considered throughout the season," Miami veteran forward Juwan Howard said. "Some teams want to be known as a hard-nosed team, a hard-working team, some teams want to be known as the most physical team, some teams want to be known as the most complete team. When you hear people say our team's playing soft, we're trying to play more physical, the message it sends to me is a lot of their executives, coaches want to mentally amp up their players to play harder and play tougher."
Interestingly, you rarely hear a team called on to make more shots — something that might be important for Ray Allen and Pierce, who combined to go 6 of 25 in Game 1. Or have better ball movement and spacing. And sending James to the line, where he was second in free throws made this season, is not necessarily a good idea.
Why the emphasis on physical play?
"I don't know. That's a good question," Battier said, taking a moment to mull it over. "The stats that sort of attach themselves to physical play — the rebounds, the loose balls, the screen-setting stats — tend to produce better numbers when you are more physical."
And winning that battle, and often a series, usually means hitting the deck.
