The Trade is just an excuse, and a lame one at that

'It was tough after that,' coach Stan Van Gundy said. Howard protested his sixth foul on an offensive rebound with one minute, 17 seconds left, and Orlando behind 108-106. He angrily flung the ball to the other end of the floor. 'It was one of those crazy games,' Magic point guard Chris Duhon. How crazy? Duhon injured his right thumb and was unable to play in the second half, leaving the Magic (47-27) with only one point guard -- Gilbert Arenas -- and just eight players Coach Sunglasses." Gerry Callahan of the Boston Herald: "Teams go through bad stretches. It happens. Even America’s team, Virginia Commonwealth, lost 11 times this season. The Celtics are going through an ugly stretch right now -- they have lost 6-of-11 and scored 90 points just three times in that span -- and there are more theories for their tailspin than tattoos on Delonte West’s torso. The new guys are still learning Dolce & Gabbana Sunglasses. The old guys are pacing themselves. Everyone is waiting for one O’Neal or the other to show up. The top spot in the East means everything to Chicago and to Miami, and not so much to the Celtics, who went to Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals after finishing fourth in the regular season. The Celtics can blame their slump on any number of factors, but there is one thing they definitely cannot, they must not, attribute it to: The Trade. Sorry, but The Trade isn’t the reason for the slide Armani Sunglasses. The Trade is just an excuse, and a lame one at that.