GM's Desk: Looking Ahead to the Playoffs

Rajon Rondo has a 2nd championship ring in his sights, but a long road starts tomorrow night as the Boston Celtics enter the 1st Round against Andrew Bynum & the Philadelphia 76ers.

For the 2nd year in a row, the Boston Celtics (64-18) have earned the #1 spot in the Eastern Conference Standings with strong wins against the San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat and the Chicago Bulls. Unlike last year, the reigning NBA Champions have also claimed the best record in the entire league, which would give them home court advantage, something they narrowly avoided as an obstacle against the Los Angeles Lakers, who held the better record then.

The Boston Celtics tore through last year's post-season, stifling the Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat in just 9 games before sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers. To some fans and critics, Boston was the underdog in the last two of those matches, but the results spoke for themselves.

In the regular season, the LA Lakers split two games with the team that took their title away from them last year and the Miami Heat lost 2 of 3. However, the New York Knicks have drawn the Chicago Bulls in the 1st round. Unless history repeats itself, the Celtics may be faced with overcoming Spike Lee's favorite team, a squad led by Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire, who have stung Boston in the past.

But Andrew Bynum and Jrue Holiday are up first. It's time to see if they can change Boston Celtics' plans to "repeat" as the coveted NBA champions.