The basketball game was about Paul Piece leading the Boston Celtics to a win. Afterwards, it was about Carmelo Anthony waiting for Kevin Garnett in the parking lot.

Rivalries are what the sport is about. Giving people a team to hate and root for in the same time is the life-essence of most team sports. There’s always been some sort of rivalry between the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks, but it’s been too one sided in recent years for it to be officially recognized.

Now that the Knicks are a much more formidable team than in previous year, while the Celtics are trying to re-ignite their season and their playoff aspirations, to call this fixture a rivalry seems much more fitting.

It wasn’t just Carmelo Anthony getting tangled up with Kevin Garnett in a bunch of physical collisions during the game. The New York Knicks are in somewhat of a funk, frustrated about not being able to defend and shoot the ball as well as they did earlier this season. The fact that Rajon Rondo wasn’t even playing made the loss even more painful for the Knicks to swallow.

Anthony took it harder than anyone. After the game he didn’t stop to answer any of the media questions, going right towards the Celtics’ locker room, seeking something, maybe a confrontation with Kevin Garnett. Not getting what he was after, he went and waited near the Celtics’ team bus until he was directed in the right direction by MSG security and Mike Woodson, arriving to help defuse the situation.

Kevin Garnett didn’t seem to excited about the whole situation. Maybe he was just happy he managed to get into Anthony’s head.

Listen, heat of the battle, man. Guys go back and forth. He’s trying to get his team to go, I’m trying to get my team to go, both teams are colliding, not to mention that it’s the Knicks and the Celtics. Just what it is, man.

Doc Rivers, delighted with his team now climbing back to .500, winning their last three games, was being cryptic in his comments.

I’m going to let y’all figure that one out. I’m going to stay out of that. If it was the playoffs, I’d tell on him, but since it’s not, I’m going to just be quiet.

Rivers is still fuming at Atlanta Hawks GM Danny Ferry, who reported Rajon Rondo to the NBA after the player bumped into one of the officials during the game last weekend, leading to a one-game suspension (his second this season) to Rondo.

There’s nothing wrong with getting heated. It happens. It’s a fun game, it’s competitive, it’s rough at times. That’s good, I think all that’s good. It should never carry over past that. I’ve had my moments as a player as well. It does, but you don’t want it to. And whenever it does, you feel terrible later. This is the way the game should be played, to me; it should be a competitive hard game. I thought overall the officials let us play, both teams. That’s good with us.

Carmelo Anthony had a terrible game, scoring only 20 points while shooting a horrendous 6-26 from the field, leading to a 96-102 loss at home. Kevin Garnett finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Image: Source