I'm a bit torn, here.

As a Timberwolves fan, I want to see KG win a championship.  As an NBA fan, I want to see the Hawks complete an unthinkable upset on Sunday in Boston.  And as a sports fan, I want to see any team from Boston go down in defeat. 

Why?  In all honesty, I'm a jealous SOB...with an endless line of incompetent teams in Minnesota, it's nauseating to see Boston teams have some tremendous success.  I loved seeing the Patriots finish the 2007 NFL season 18-1, and admittedly, despite KG's 12 seasons as the face of the Timberwolves franchise, witnessing the Celtics lose in humiliating fashion would put a slight grin on my face.  I'll admit it...I'm little more than a bitter, frustrated Twin Cities sports fan.

What's a Wolves fan to do?  Well, as much as I appreciate KG's endless line of contributions to our favorite squad, it's impossible not to love the scrappy bunch of guys from Atlanta.

Going into the Celtics-Hawks matchup, I considered the series to be the equivalent of a first round bye for Boston.  I thought the Hawks might steal one of the games in Atlanta, but other than that, I was expecting a thorough domination by the Celtics.  Anyone who says they believed all along that the Hawks could compete with Boston is a dirty rotten liar - indeed, this was supposed to be one of the most lopsided playoff series in recent memory.

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And, in fact, the three games in Boston have been completely one-sided.  But the difference between Boston's performances at the Garden and their performances in Atlanta has been nothing short of mindboggling.

In Atlanta, the Celtics have looked amateurish and old on the defensive end, especially in critical junctures of games.  Their game six strategy focused on double-teaming Joe Johnson whenever he touched the ball, but this approach led to nonstop open looks for the Hawks.  Give Johnson credit for being extremely unselfish with the basketball, but give Doc Rivers a big fat wag of the finger for allowing the Hawks to have considerable success on the offensive end.

The free throw disparity in game six will undoubtedly raise eyebrows; the Hawks shot a stunning 47 free throws during the game (and sunk 36), while the Celtics could only manage 25 free throw attempts, making 20 of their shots from the charity stripe.

Were there some borderline calls on Boston?  Absolutely.  But don't blame the officiating for their game six debacle - Boston played lazy defense in the fourth quarter, frequently allowing opportunities in transition for Bibby and company, and they picked up plenty of fouls along the way.  When you're tired - mentally and physically - you tend to commit unnecessary fouls, and the Celtics appeared utterly worn.

After the Hawks tied the series at 2-2, I saw an absolutely ridiculous argument from a Celtics forum; apparently, the tough competition Boston was facing from Atlanta was supposedly making them battle tested, improving their ability to face adversity later in the playoffs.  Nice try, but there's no imaginable way to spin this humiliating series into a positive for the Celtics.  Win or lose, they'll still emerge from their duel with Atlanta as a beaten, battered team.

Indeed, even if Boston survives game seven, what are we to think about the Celtics' chances against a well-rested LeBron James?  What are we to think about their ability to beat Detroit on the road in a potential Easter Conference Finals showdown?  If they can't play serviceable defense on the road against Atlanta, how can they possibly win a championship?  This series has dismantled previous playoff expectations for Boston.

To be fair, Atlanta has played a helluva lot better than we thought they would.  They're playing like a 50-win team, not a squad that finished the season 37-45.  Even if the Hawks can't upset the Celtics on Sunday, this Atlanta team would have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.

As for our man KG, we've seen a familiar sight from him - fading in the fourth quarter.  Some things never change, huh?

Ripping KG here at T'Wolves Blog might not be taken terribly well, but anyone who isn't disappointed with his fourth quarter performance in games three, four and six needs to start being honest with themselves.  The man is not perfect, and unfortunately for the Celtics, KG's unwillingness to take big shots in crunch time has traveled with him from Minnesota to Boston.

Still, although I've been generally underwhelmed with KG's fourth quarter performances on the road in Atlanta, he wasn't the reason Boston lost game six.  Rarely will you see Ray Allen shoot as poorly as he did late in game six, as he went 1-8 from three-point range on Friday.  He had countless opportunities to sink key shots, and he seemingly failed each time.  It was embarrassing.

If you would have told any NBA fan that, out of the eight opening round playoff series, the Celtics-Hawks matchup would be the only series to go the full seven games, you would have been declared a certified nut.  But these Hawks have shown some unexpected gutsiness, and their youth has proven to be their best asset in their home games.

Since Atlanta has already been blown out three times in Boston, the Celtics deserve to be the favorites by a considerable margin in game seven.  But this has become a one-game series; now, anything can happen.  As this series has proved, we shouldn't be surprised by anything that happens between the Hawks and Celtics.

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