Sean Deveney

The NBA opener is behind us, and for the Cavaliers and Celtics, perhaps the best thing there is to say is this: There are 81 to go. That's because, after a well-played first half, the two teams had a ragged second half. Eventually, Boston came out the winner, 95-89.

It's folly to read too much into one game — remember, the Celtics topped Cleveland in last year's opener, but neither team reached the Finals — but still, the first 48 minutes of the season did raise some interesting aspects about the East powerhouses and the league in general.

1. Boston's bench can (finally) be a weapon. In recent years, it seemed the Celtics' reserves were simply an aspect of the team to be tolerated. That has changed. "When you look at it now, [coach] Doc [Rivers] has guys he can point to and know what he is getting," said guard Ray Allen. "He didn't have that last year, and he only had it to a small extent in 2008, too."

Guard Marquis Daniels looked sharp in 17 minutes, scoring seven points and handing out two assists, but the big key was forward/center Rasheed Wallace, whose outside shooting will give Rivers an unconventional weapon all season. Wallace was 3-for-6 from the 3-point line, including a big shot that gave the Celtics an 80-69 lead with just over 10 minutes to play.

2. Shaquille O'Neal will take some getting used to. One thing O'Neal doesn't do all that well anymore is make his hook shots and 8-foot runners. He needs to recognize that and rely less on those shots. He is an excellent passer, but the Cavaliers don't seem comfortable with dumping the ball to him and letting him run the offense from the post.

3. Where's West? One other Shaq-related aspect of the game stood out — coach Mike Brown played O'Neal and big man Zydrunas Ilgauskas together in a key stretch in the fourth quarter. At 24 minutes, Ilgauskas had the most playing time of any Cleveland reserve. The Cavs need a speedy return by guard Delonte West, who has been hit with a pile of off-court problems. There's no way Ilguaskas should be their sixth man.

4. No worries about KG. Kevin Garnett missed an important fourth-quarter dunk, and he took a hard tumble after a foul by O'Neal, but at no time did he look tentative in returning from a knee injury. Garnett scored 13 points with 10 rebounds, and with Wallace around that probably is what we can expect from KG all season.

5. Welcome back, refs. No harm, no foul, so to speak. The NBA locked out its officials for the preseason in a dispute over the collective bargaining agreement, but they were able to hit the floor in time for the season opener. LeBron James wasn't happy about a palming violation he received — they're supposed to be calling that more now, LeBron — but for the most part, there were few complaints about the crew of Steve Javie, Tony Richardson and Derek Richardson. After a few weeks of replacement refs, these guys look infallible.

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