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WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Saturday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Celtics invade Fenway Park for softball practice
* KG revels in Boston's team-building process
* Video: Harangody highlights Saturday scrimmage

CELTICS INVADE FENWAY PARK FOR SOFTBALL SCRIMMAGE



The first time Paul Pierce stepped onto the field at Fenway Park was pretty magical and he clutched the Larry O'Brien trophy as the 2007-08 world champion Celtics made a victory lap around the hallowed baseball grounds. It seemed like the next visit could hardly live up to the initial tour.

But when Pierce and his teammates gathered at the lyric little bandbox Friday -- the idea of bringing another world title back there next June in mind -- he came away gushing about a team-building exercise that allowed the Celtics to enjoy a intrasquad game of softball in the shadow of the Green Monster.

"That was my second time on the field at the stadium, but that was one of the best days of my life, actually," Pierce revealed Saturday after Boston's afternoon practice. "That was a fun day, man. Y'all had to be there to know what I'm talking about."

Fortunately, the Celtics did enough talking -- and Tweeting -- to give us a glimpse into the experience. It turns out point guard Rajon Rondo organized the adventure, which led nearly the entire Celtics organization (sans coach Doc Rivers) to invade Fenway on a perfect fall afternoon that few will soon forget.

"A fun day, we had our families out there," said Kevin Garnet. "A beautiful day at Fenway Park. It was a dream come true, I felt like I was 10 years old again."

According to Shaquille O'Neal's Twitter, Team Rondo -- which included Shaq, Pierce, and Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge -- emerged with a 32-25 triumph over Team Garnett on the strength of the event organizer's MVP performance (which Nate Robinson suggested included three home runs).

Pierce joked he hit only .100 for the day, but noted he earned Gold Glove honors in the field. Not even a lackluster day at the plate could take away from the experience.

"We're a close-knit group," said Pierce. "All the personalities out there, it's about team chemistry and team bonding. It's all fun. We have a great group of guys, that's why we do things like that. Top to bottom, everyone likes one another and it's fun doing trips like that. All it's doing is building our chemistry."

Rivers joked that he heard Red Sox GM Theo Esptein was in attendance, but left early based on the lack of talent on the field. He also ragged on Ainge for not being mentioned among MVPs (Rondo, Jermaine O'Neal, and Von Wafer earning top accolades) despite playing three major league seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays before his NBA career.

Jermaine O'Neal said he felt slighted after being the second-to-last pick in the draft (his sore hamstring and a need for a designated runner hurting his stock), but produced the day's first homer in his first plate appearance.

"I was the first one to take it yard," said Jermaine O'Neal with a smile. "On the bus ride over, I couldn't believe I was second-to-last in the draft. I heard the names coming, and you never really listen to the names other than your own. It was me and then like one of my trainers. I'm like, 'Man, I'm better than that.' The first at-bat, I took it yard and felt pretty good about that."

Rivers joked the Celtics will return the favor for the Red Sox soon at TD Garden.

"We're going to challenge the Red Sox now to a baksetball game," said rivers. "With baseball, I don't think we're going to win."

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ORLANDO -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics held an offday practice Monday afternoon at Amway Arena in advance of Tuesday's Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* With four straight wins, C's have built rare momentum
* Game 1 cleanup: Avoid double team; Limit dribble penetration
* Loose balls: KG watches Family Guy; Why Doc loves Orlando

With four straight wins, C's have built rare momentum



Celtics captain Paul Pierce started answering a question about building momentum and paused after noting that Boston had won four straight games in the postseason.

"I can't remember the last time we won four games in a row -- it is four games, right?" asked a concerned Pierce. "I can't remember the last time. I don't like to say that, so hopefully we can keep it going."

To jog Pierce's memory, the Celtics put together a four-game streak back in mid-March, topping the Pistons, Knicks, Rockets, and Mavericks. Earlier that month they also put together a streak over the Pistons, Bobcats, 76ers and Wizards -- clearly not a wrecking crew of NBA talent.

From there, you'd have to go all the way back to December to find another streak of similar length as Boston built a 23-5 mark, culminating with a Christmas Day victory in Orlando.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers can't explain why his veteran team has struggled so much to build off its momentum this season, but hopes they've figured it out by now.

"I always worry about [momentum], even when we win one game," said Rivers. "We just haven't been the type of team -- and it's strange because veteran teams usually handle that well -- but we have not. We have not handled it well all year.

"You can always tell [when Boston wins games] because our practices are always louder when we win. So I know [Monday's] practice there will be a lot of talk and a lot of whistle-blowing to get them focused. That's how we are."

Boston certainly has a propensity to take its eye off the prize when things are going well. Heck, the Celtics nearly coughed up a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter of Sunday's Game 1 win.

But with three straight victories to close out Cleveland last round, coupled with a big Game 1 victory over the Magic, the Celtics are quietly playing some of their best basketball of the season. Even if sometimes the NBA world seems more concerned about why the likes of LeBron James and Dwight Howard are underperforming.

The Celtics watched film from Game 1 for less than an hour at their team hotel Monday before trekking to the arena for practice. According to Shelden Williams' Twitter account, the Magic's arena staff turned out the lights on the facility as they were going through their session.

Boston hopes it's not as easy to shut them off. After all the hand-wringing about whether Boston could flip a switch this postseaosn, suddenly that switch seems jammed in the "On" position.

Game 1 cleanup: Avoid double team; Limit dribble penetration



Despite dominating Sunday's Game 1 for the first 36 minutes, the Celtics couldn't get out of their own way over the final 12 minutes, which left plenty of things on Rivers' fine-tune checklist on Monday.

Chief among his concerns were limiting dribble-drive penetration by point guard Jameer Nelson (who slayed the Celtics in the fourth quarter) and re-stressing to his team that they must avoid instinctively double-teaming against the Magic.

"We double-teamed three times and they scored all three times, when we were not supposed to double team," said Rivers. "Then dribble penetration. Jameer killed us off the dribble. We have to do a better job there."

After forcing the Magic to miss nine 3-pointers in the first half, Orlando got a bit of a spark from the outside after the intermission, finishing 5 of 22 from beyond the arc. Nelson, the only Magic player to connect on multiple 3-pointers, registered 20 points on 8-of-18 shooting (2-of-7 beyond the arc) with nine rebounds and two assists.

"We focused on the things we didn't do well," said Kevin Garnett. "We anticipate this team coming out full of energy on Tuesday night, so we have to be ready to go."

Loose balls: KG watches Family Guy; Why Doc loves Orlando



* The Celtics have largely brushed off the suggestion that they might be angry from the national media's focus on what other teams have done wrong, more so than what Boston has done right this postseason. Garnett said it's surely fodder for motivation, but he doesn't put too much stock into it.

Heck, he hardly hears the pundits giving his TV viewing habits.

"A lot of stuff motivates us, but I watch a lot of Family Guy, so I don't really watch your programs," said Garnett. "I don't really hear what you guys say. But, at some point, it gets back to the group. It can motivate us. But it's what's in front us -- we had Miami to beat, we had Cleveland to beat -- those are all motivational subjects. Orlando is no different. Both these teams are very good, that's enough motivation. We saw the way Orlando was lighting people up in the playoffs against Charlotte and Atlanta, that motivated us more [than the pundits]."

* Guests at the nearby Downtown Orlando Marriott awoke to find travel guides supporting Orlando tourism outside their doors this morning. The local bureau might want to line up Rivers for some TV commercials after the area resident gushed about living in these parts.

"It's a great place to live -- the best," said Rivers. "I've lived everywhere, fortunately or unfortunately. And this is the best place for our family, the best place we've been. We made the decision when Jeremiah, my oldest, he had lived in Milwaukee, Chicago, Connecticut, San Antonio, Los Angeles, and then Orlando. That was going into his eighth-grade year and, we figured, he's an army brat now. So, when we got here, after about the third year, we said, 'This is it.' It's a great place for our family and we'll never move. We knew -- this was my third year [as head coach of Orlando] and things were great -- but I knew I wouldn't be coaching here forever. But we'll be here forever. It's a great place for us."

* For even more video from today's practice session, hop over to our YouTube page with more clips. Check out Rasheed Wallace, still sporting that Philadelphia Flyers hat, much to the dismay of Bruins' fans, below:

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Saturday morning at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Sunday's Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Perkins sits with sore knee; expected to play Sunday
* Even without LeBron, Pierce expects to work for points
* Loose balls: Nelson's the key for Magic; East goes through Orlando



Celtics center Kendrick Perkins watched practice from the sideline with a pair of ice packs over his knees after his problematic right knee acted up at the start of on-court activities.

Perkins battled tendinitis in that knee late in the season, sitting out two games in late March, then hyperextended it during the morning shootaround before Game 2 in Cleveland. Coach Doc Rivers didn't seem overly concerned, but erred on the side of caution on the eve of the conference finals. Game 1 against the Magic is Sunday at 3:30 p.m. in Orlando.

"His knee is bothering him," said Rivers. "He tried to go early, but it started bothering him a lot. He wanted to go, but I told him, 'Look, I don’t need you tonight, you're not going to help me today in practice. I need you tomorrow.' So I shut him down."

Rivers said he expects Perkins to play Sunday and much of the chatter at Celtics' practice revolved around the role Perkins will play in defending Orlando's Dwight Howard.

"I think Perk is going to be one of the biggest keys in this series," said Paul Pierce. "We're going to ask him do lot of 1-on-1 guarding with Dwight Howard because we can't really come off the rest of these guys the way they shoot the ball from the perimeter, swing it and drive it. I think in the past Perk has played [Howard] pretty well, so we're going to ask him to do that again, especially coming off a tough series where he had to guard Shaquille O'Neal."

At the end of Saturday's practice, Rasheed Wallace ran through drills with the first team and is likely to see extended minutes against Orlando regardless of Perkins' health, especially considering his success against Howard and the Magic in the past.

"[Wallace is] equally as big [for us]," said Pierce. "We've got two guys who are capable of matching up on Howard 1-on-1. Teams go out and double him and it frees up the shooters. We've got an advantage at that point if we don't have to double when guarding him. [Wallace] is going to be key too, and, if eventually we need Kevin [Garnett] to guard [Howard], we've got yet another guy who can guard him 1-on-1."

Even without LeBron, Pierce expects to work for points



Asked if he expects his scoring to come easier now that he doesn't have to defend Cleveland superstar LeBron James (or a player of his caliber), Pierce said there's not exactly a vacation awaiting him in Orlando.

"[The Magic have] a combination of guys that can make up for LeBron," said Pierce. "[Michael] Pietrus is playing really well, Vince Carter is playing well, Matt Barnes ... It's definitely not going to be a night out for me because I'm not guarding LeBron James. These other guys are playing well, they hold their own with the rest of their team and they're key components to what they're trying to do out there."

Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy said earlier this week that the Magic might utilize Barnes to guard Ray Allen instead of Pierce, which suggested Orlando views Allen as the bigger offensive threat at the moment.

Barnes missed practice Saturday in Orlando because of back spasms, but expects to start Sunday. After the session, he said the injury flared up after first occurring in Game 3 of the Magic's second-round sweep of Atlanta.

"Whatever, Vince or Barnes is going to guard [Pierce], they've only got so many guys, just like Ray or Paul will guard one of them," said Rivers. "They did that in the regular season some. Right now the interesting thing is teams are more concerned about Ray and that's a big change because it's been Paul all year.

"Hopefully Paul hears that and takes it personally."

Pierce averaged 13.5 points while shooting 34.5 percent against Cleveland, topping 14 points just once in the six-game series. Allen, meanwhile, is averaging 15.7 points per game on 42.5 percent shooting. The Celtics are 6-0 in the postseason when Ray Allen scores 18 points or more.

Loose balls: Nelson's the key for Magic; East goes through Orlando



* The Celtics brushed off talk of this being a rematch from last year's conference semifinals, pointing to the roster changes on both sides, including the additions of Garnett and Jameer Nelson, both of whom missed last year's meeting with injuries. You can easily make the case that those two players have been the MVPs for their teams during the postseason thus far and the Celtics are extremely concerned about what Nelson can do by creating off the dribble.

"Jameer is the key to their team. He's as important as anyone," said Rivers. "I think he's their best player in the playoffs so far. He's been phenomenal. Rondo and him is going to be a heck of a duel."

* Rivers, an Orlando resident, was asked if he had his wife and family scouting the Magic all year and quipped: "Yeah, they've been there all year. I've got all the notes, but they didn't work last year, so I'm not going to take them any more."

* Even after dispatching the vaunted (and top-seeded) Cavaliers, the Celtics are not underestimating the Magic. Quite the opposite, they've always viewed Orlando as the team to beat in the quest for Banner 18.

"We told our guys, Cleveland wasn’t our goal and neither is Orlando,” said Rivers. “Having said that, Orlando is the team that, coming into the season, you felt if you wanted to get out of the East, you had to beat Orlando. They’re the team that won the East last year, not Cleveland, and I wanted to make sure our guys had focus on that.”

* The Celtics watched film for an hour at the start of Saturday's session, then got on the floor for another 70 minutes before catching an afternoon flight to Orlando.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Monday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Tuesday's Game 5 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Cleveland Cavaliers:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Pierce: 'There's nothing wrong with me'
* Rondo's ready for the LeBron treatment

Pierce: 'There's nothing wrong with me'

Boston Celtics captain Paul Pierce understands it's only natural for some to question whether he's completely healthy given his offensive struggles against the Cleveland Cavaliers so far this series, but he stressed Monday he's in good condition and reaffirmed that his production doesn't matter so long as his team wins.



"There's nothing wrong with me," said Pierce. "The key for me is to just being focus, being ready to give this team what it needs to win. There's nothing wrong with me."

Averaging 11.8 points per game on 32 percent shooting through four games, Pierce is under the microscope for a dip in his typical offensive production. On Monday, repeating what he said after Game 4, Pierce stressed that his focus in this Eastern Conference semifinal series is more on the defensive end.

"I do whatever I gotta do to help this team win," said Pierce. "Guarding LeBron [James] is no easy task. He's the two-time MVP and a lot of their offense goes through him -- pretty much all of it. I know I have to focus on that end, more so than the offense. I knew that coming into the series."

Celtics coach Doc Rivers echoed everything Pierce stated, suggesting he's healthy and doing his part defensively.

"Paul's fine," said Rivers. "Obviously, we want more out of him. But we're getting a lot out of him. The unfortunate part, for Paul, is that he's an offensive player, and that's what everyone sees in him. He has a defensive role this series, and [the skeptics] are going to look at his offensive numbers. That's the bad part of being Paul Pierce. If it was Tony Allen, people would be happy because he's doing a great job defensively. But it's Paul and they want more. We're going to get more out of Paul, I believe that."

The counterargument is that Allen guarded James for much of Game 4 and still found a way to score 15 points, which is more than Pierce has totaled in any of the four games thus far against Cleveland. Pierce has been plagued by foul trouble and both coach and player admitted that's an area of concern.

"It's really been throwing me off, getting two quick fouls pretty much every game in the first quarter," said Pierce. "Hopefully I can clean that up, be more consistent. ... I'm digging myself a ditch with fouls. There's good fouls that I’m getting, and some bad ones. That’s way the game goes. I know I can do a better job at it."

Added Rivers: "I think, over anything, having played that game, when you get early fouls, rhythm-wise, it takes you out of games. Two early fouls, it's had an impact."

When a reporter jokingly suggested bringing Pierce off the bench instead, Rivers chuckled and stressed again how good he's been defensively.

"I thought last night, [Pierce] was the best [at defending James] of all the games," said Rivers. "In Game 2 he was pretty good at it, just trying to get in his airspace. It's a tough job. They use him in so many ways. LeBron is different than a lot of other great players because, the other great players, you know what they do -- there's usually one thing. LeBron runs the point at times, he's a facilitator, he's a driver. He's their speed player when trying to get in transition, he's a poster player. There's a lot of stuff."

When Pierce was asked about his pivotal two-handed, baseline slam in a one-possession game in the fourth quarter, he laughed at the suggestion of rising to the occasion despite his struggles.

“I'm ready -- I’m not a rookie,” Pierce chuckled. “This is my 12th year. I’ve been in every situation. Foul trouble, not playing, things not going well for you. I know how to get through those times. It doesn’t affect me like it used to when I was a younger player, when I had two or three fouls where and not really playing the type of basketball I wanted to play. The key is to stay focused, do what I have to do to help the team. All that other stuff goes out the window."


 
Rondo's ready for the LeBron treatment



The day after his 29-point, 18-rebound, 13-assist effort, Rajon Rondo remained the center of attention at Celtics' practice. But the focus had shifted slightly from his efforts in Game 4, to whether he can have as much of an impact in Game 5 if the Cavaliers employ James to defend him.

Rondo and the Celtics seem unconcerned with the situation.

"It really doesn’t matter about the matchup," said Rondo. "Obviously, it's the playoffs and the big thing is matchups, but, to me, I don’t really care who’s guarding me. I gotta run the offense and in our system. If we get easy looks in transition, it doesn’t matter who's guarding me."

Echoed Pierce: "I'm not really concerned about [Lebron on Rondo]. We gotta get the ball to Rondo on the break, let him dictate the pace. It doesn't matter. We've got to get him open, set screens, cause different matchups for him. If they put LeBron on him, it really doesn't matter."

Rondo noted that James is a great help defender and will likely be involved in helping when Rondo doesn't have the ball. That's a strategy similar to what the Lakers used against Rondo in the 2008 NBA Finals. It will be up to Rondo to keep James -- or any defender, for that matter -- honest by making jump shots and finding ways to create havoc when afforded space.

Click HERE to read more on the potential LeBron vs. Rondo matchup.

WALTHAM -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Thursday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Friday's Game 3 vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers in an Eastern Conference semifinal series:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* KG: I'm definitely ready to go
* Perk: A little sore, but feeling better
* Loose balls: Rondo with war wounds; No C's on All-NBA teams


KG: I'm definitely ready to go



Celtics forward Kevin Garnett surprised his coach and the training staff by participating in nearly all of Thursday's 75-minute practice session and suggested afterward that his strained right midfoot will not prevent him from playing in Friday's Game 3 against the Cavaliers.

"It was a good two days of treatment and I’m good," said Garnett, who experienced no limitations in practice. "It was a very solid day and I'm looking forward to [Friday's] game."

Said Rivers: "He went most of practice and moved pretty well, which is very good news for us. I was surprised he went -- [trainer] Eddie [Lacerte] and I were -- but the swelling went down a lot [Wednesday] to basically none today. He said he didn't feel a lot of pain, so that was good."

Garnett lobbied to practice Wednesday, but Rivers demanded he sit out.

"We live on the planet of Doc Rivers," joked Garnett. "On that planet, you sit out on some days to get rest. [Wednesday] was a productive day, just like [Thursday] was a productive day."

Asked again if he'd be ready for Game 3, Garnett answered; "I'll definitely be ready to go."

Perk: A little sore, but feeling better



Celtics center Kendrick Perkins also returned to practice, sporting a big rubber sleeve over his right knee as he went through drills. Perkins admitted he's still a bit sore from a strained right knee suffered in the shootaround before Monday's Game 2, but hasn't wavered from his stance that he's going to play in Friday's Game 3.

"It’s a little sore, but nothing I can't play through," said Perkins, who said he also participated fully in practice with no limitations. "It feels a lot better since the last game on Monday. I feel a lot better, coming in and getting treatment with Ed Lacerte. It felt great [Wednesday], improved today, so it's getting better."

"I practiced the whole time today. It didn’t affect me, really. There's still pain there, but nothing serious."

Asked if Perkins moved well, Rivers couldn't resist a jab at his big man.

"Perk looked fine, he moved pretty well," said Rivers. "Yeah, he moved well for Perk."

Perkins admitted Wednesday the injury came from "being clumsy" while running down the court during the morning shootaround on Monday. The injury tightened up on the area behind his right knee after Boston's Game 2 victory, but it's improved each day since then.

Loose balls: Rondo with war wounds; No C's on All-NBA teams



* Perkins suggested the three offdays this week weren't just good for him and Garnett, but also for the entire Boston team to rest bumps and bruises. He said Rondo had been dinged up after spilling to the floor numerous times during the season, including a big bump from Shaquille O'Neal in a Game 1 loss that Rivers jokingly dubbed, "an assassination."

"[Rondo is] a little bruised up from hitting the floor a little bit," said Perkins. "It's nothing serious. Just a few war wounds."

* The Celtics didn't place a single member on any of the three All-NBA teams announced Thursday. A nod to the best all-around players in the league, Boston didn't earn any of the 15 available spots with guard Rajon Rondo finishing with a team-best 47 points.

By comparison, LeBron James earned a league-best 610 points to lead the First-Team. Paul Pierce (6 points) and Kevin Garnett (1 point) also earned votes. The full voting can be found after the jump below.

(Read full post)

CLEVELAND -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Sunday afternoon at Quicken Loans Arena in advance of Game 2 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Cleveland Cavaliers:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Doc wants more from 'Sheed; willing to call Shelden
* Pierce: C's have to treat Game 2 like it's Game 7
* Loose balls: C's confirm errors in film work; Too much Rondo?

Doc wants more from 'Sheed; ready to call Shelden



Celtics coach Doc Rivers didn't sound ready to pull the plug on the Rasheed Wallace experiment quite yet, but admitted that, if Wallace's defensive play doesn't improve moving forward, he's willing to consider utilizing Shelden Williams more off the bench instead.

"[Wallace] has to play better, bottom line," said Rivers, who has given Wallace plenty of rope this season. "He has to play better defense -- the offense will come -- but he has to be a better defender. And we can't wait for him. He has to be a better defender for us."

Wallace, underwhelming for much of the 2009-10 season, continues to provide little in the way of production in the postseason despite all the playoff experience he brought with him to Boston. After logging a mere two points and two rebounds over 13 minutes in Saturday's Game 1 loss, Wallace is now at minus-20 in the plus/minus for the postseason, the lowest number on a team that's won four of the six games it has played.

Rivers seemed unwilling to completely yank Wallace from the rotation, but noted that Williams won't be overlooked.

"{Williams] enters the discussion every day," said Rivers. "He's definitely in the discussion, there's no doubt about that."

The 35-year-old Wallace is averaging 3.5 points on a mere 35 percent shooting and 2 rebounds per game this postseason. This from a player who has averaged 14.2 points on 44.5 percent shooting and 6.5 rebounds over 159 career playoff games. What's more, he's slow to react on defense, often getting raced past by ball-handlers and struggling to corral 50/50 balls against more athletic big men.

Asked if Wallace's minutes could be on the decline, after already slipping in the first round, Rivers said simply: "It could be. The bottom line is he has to play better. And we'll give him every opportunity to play well."

Williams, who is playing in his first playoff series in his four years in the league, has appeared in only one game, logging 18 minutes against Miami in the Game 2 that Kevin Garnett was suspended for.

Asked about more potential playing time before that game, Williams said he doesn't change his preparation.

"You prepare like you prepare for every game," he said. "If it happens or if it doesn’t happen, you go in the same way... Like I said, I go into the game preparing to play, and if it plays out like that, I’ll be ready."

Wallace is clearly the superior player when he plays to his abilities, but his abilities appear to have diminished rapidly this season. Even with numerous starts for injured Garnett, Wallace did not register a single double-double this year. Even Williams registered one double-double at the start of the year while playing in place of injured Glen Davis.

Pierce: C's have to treat Game 2 like it's Game 7



"Sense of urgency" has been a familiar catchphrase around the Celtics this season. It crops up whenever Boston steer itself into an unsavory position, which has been a fairly regular occurrence since late December.

Facing the prospect of digging themselves an 0-2 hole with a loss Monday night, Celtics captain Paul Pierce urged his teammates to elevate their play in Game 2.

"The urgency has to go up, we don't want to go down 2-0 and put yourself in that type of hole, especially against a team like Cleveland," said Pierce. "The urgency is there. We felt like Game 1 was important, but we let it slip away due to little things. Hopefully we clean those things up, come back with the same type of mindset, the same type of energy, with a little more perfection in our game and we'll be alright.

"We gotta play Game 2 like it's Game 7."

Especially since the stats don't particularly favor the Celtics after a Game 1 loss. The Cavaliers have never lost a series after winning Game 1 (10-0, regardless of series length), while home teams that win Game 1 in best-of-seven series are 256-40 all-time in the NBA playoffs, or a sterling winning percentage of 86.5 percent.

"The first game is the first game," said Davis. "It's tough because we felt like we should have won. But it is what it is. We still gotta play Monday. We still gotta play two games at home. The season is far from over."

Loose balls: C's confirm errors in film work; Too much Rondo?



* The Celtics watched film for 45 minutes before trekking to the Q for an afternoon practice session and the tapes only confirmed Rivers' suspicion that his team settled for too many jumpers in the second half.

“I thought we settled,” said Rivers. “I said it after the game, but usually after the game you say stuff and then you watch the film and only half of it is true... It's pretty much what we saw. We bailed them out on a lot of shots -- quick shots. We didn't make a lot of next passes. We didn't attack. They had guys flying at us in the air, and we were still trying to shoot jump shots, instead of putting the ball back on the floor. That's not even an adjustment. That's what we should do anyway."

* Did the Celtics lean on Rondo too much Saturday night? Rivers thought maybe they didn't lean on him enough.

"Ask [Cleveland], did they rely too much on LeBron?" Rivers said while noting Rondo's domination in the pick-and-roll during the first half. "You got something going, you stick with it. I thought we should have done it more. I said it before the series, I think it's a good advantage. I actually thought we didn't do it enough. It's a tough one for Rondo, because sometimes, he's so conscious of trying to get Paul and Ray [Allen] involved. I told him, 'Listen, you got the pick-and-roll advantage, we want you to take advantage.'"

* Allen noted the Celtics need to do a better job quieting the hot hand, even if that player isn't the now-two-time MVP James.

"The difference in [Game 1], I believe, was Mo Williams," said Allen. "We have to recognize the flow of the game and understand that, if anybody gets hot, we have to make adjustments. Our defensive antennae have to go up."

Rivers noted that a second-half switch on James that flip-flopped defensive responsibilities between Pierce and Allen, might have weakened Boston's help defense and caused confusion that allowed both Williams and James to catch fire.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Friday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Saturday's Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Cleveland Cavaliers:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* No arguments from C's about James as MVP
* Rondo the key to beating the Cavs?
* Loose balls: 'Alright' practice, Pierce a 'natural-born shooter'

No arguments from C's about James as MVP



Celtics coach Doc Rivers and captain Paul Pierce offered no protest when asked about reports that Cleveland's LeBron James had been voted league MVP for the second straight season.

"He deserves it, he earned it all year," said Rivers. "Congratulations, he deserve it. I don't think that, with Kobe [Bryant] and [Kevin] Durant and Dwight [Howard], who I don't think gets enough credit for what he does with their team, there's not a lot of other choices."

Echoed Pierce: "If you asked players, and asked player to be honest, just based on what he achieved in that division and with that team, it should be unanimous."

James is expected to receive the MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern on Sunday at the University of Akron, during an offday between Games 1 and 2 in Cleveland.

Asked if any pregame ceremony to acknowledge the award would be a distraction before Game 2, Rivers said it would only be so for the Cavaliers.

"I hope it's a distraction for them," said Rivers. "It won't be a distraction for us, none of us are getting it. Hopefully he doesn't give a long speech and we can go play basketball."

For more on James' second consecutive MVP award, hop HERE.

Rondo the key to beating the Cavs?



After Doc Rivers anointed him the most important player of the upcoming series, Rajon Rondo laughed off the title.

"He's putting pressure on me, huh?" said Rondo.

In fact he did.

"I think Rondo is the key to the series," said Rivers, who, over the past two days, has also pointed to rebounding, defending the 3-point shot, limiting the Cavaliers' bench, and keeping James in check as other 'key' factors.

"His speed has to be a factor. He has to be disruptive defensively with his speed and ball pressure. They are going to help off him and he's got to handle that well. Really how well he handles them dropping off him and not guarding him will be the key to us winning. When he's effective, our whole team is effective."

That doesn't necessarily mean Rondo needs to hit all those open jumpers the Cavaliers will give him. But when the ball comes to him and defenders are scrambling to help, Rondo needs to make them pay at times by exploding to the basket and creating opens look for teammates.

Rivers noted that Miami employed a similar loose defensive style against Rondo in the final games of Boston's first-round triumph and expects Cleveland to utilize that same strategy from the onset.

For his part, Rondo said he hasn't changed his own game to compensate for disinterested defenses, particularly due to Boston's success as a team.

"We’ve been winning and successful," he said. "I'll continue to do what I do best and make adjustments as the game goes on."

As for his health, Rondo deemed himself "fine" after battling a stomach bug in Game 5.

Loose balls: 'Alright' practice, Pierce a 'natural-born shooter'



* Rivers didn't seem thrilled with his team's practice Friday before catching a plane to Cleveland, but noted Boston is ready for Saturday's Game 1.

"It was alright -- it wasn't a great practice, it wasn't a bad practice," said Rivers. "We did get a lot of work in, got a lot of stuff in. Guys are just ready to play."

After a two-hours session Thursday, the Celtics were on the court for over an hour Friday making final preparations for the start of the series.

* After discussing the many ways James can hurt a defense, Pierce was asked about whether he is more comfortable shooting from the perimeter or driving to the basket.

"I think I'm comfortable doing anything," said Pierce. "I don't limit myself to being a shooter or a driver. I'm a natural-born scorer. I think I can do it all over the court. If a shot is there, I'm going to take it. I'm a threat all over the court."

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Thursday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Saturday's Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Cleveland Cavaliers:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* C's not concerned with LeBron's elbow
* KG: LeBron's a different beast
* Perk on Shaq, battle of the bigs

C's not concerned with LeBron's elbow



Celtics coach Doc Rivers didn't need to see an MRI to diagnose Cleveland superstar LeBron James' ailing right elbow.

"He's fine," said Rivers. "I'll tell you what, if he goes three or four games and shoots left-handed only, then I'll believe he's hurt. Other than that, we'll be ready for the LeBron we've seen all playoffs."

The Celtics practiced for a shade over two hours Thursday afternoon and news of James' diagnosis -- an elbow strain and bone bruise, according to the team -- probably hadn't made its way through the locker room. But it didn't matter. Players and coaches were fully expecting to see James on the court Saturday.

And they were expecting the same level of play from the soon-to-be MVP.

"LeBron with a bad elbow is still better than 95 percent of the league," shrugged Celtics captain Paul Pierce. "So it doesn’t matter."

When a new pack of reporters wandered over and repeated the query, Pierce reiterated: "I'm treating it like he's 100 percent."

Echoed Kendrick Perkins: "I don't know, it's just crazy, the whole elbow situation, how he made one with his right arm, then got hurt, [and shot] with his left. That whole situation is crazy. But we're not worried about what's going on with their end. We're worried about us."

KG: LeBron's a different beast



A lot of the practice chatter centered around whether the Celtics could employ the same sort of "superstar defense" they used on Miami's Dwyane Wade on James. Opinions varied at times, but there were two prevalent thoughts: 1) James' supporting cast is far more talented than Wade's and 2) LeBron is just otherworldly himself.

"[James forces teams to] give every ounce on the defensive end," said Garnett. "He's going to put so much pressure on you, defensively. Great players, man, you can't do much about them. You try to slow them down; make them look for their 'B' or 'C' move. The key is controlling everybody else. But they have so many different weapons from Mo [Williams] to [Shaquille O'Neal] to [Anderson] Varejao off the bench, and a lot of people don't think about Delonte [West] giving them a spark. They're very much connected and they play connected. We have to be ready."

And the James-Wade comparisons?

"LeBron is a different beast," said Garnett. "Obviously he has a better cast than D-Wade, who is one of the best 1-on-1 players, as is LeBron too, but he probably defers to his teammates a little bit... in that he can turn around 35 [points] with 8 boards and 9 assists. That mean he's all-around. And that doesn't even mention the steals or blocks."

Perk on Shaq, battle of the bigs



Celtics center Kendrick Perkins said he's a Shaq fan. Just not right now.

"I can't be a fan right now," said Perkins. "I gotta go against him. I respect him, he's arguably the best center of all time. But I gotta go get him now."

Perkins noted the battle of the bigs might decide this series, particularly with the mix-and-match abilities that Cleveland boasts.

"They're deep with their bigs," he said. "They start with Jamison and Shaq, but come off the bench with [J.J.] Hickson, Varejao, [Zydrunas] Ilgauskas, or maybe Leon [Powe]. We just gotta be able to match up with them. And I think we got it, guys who can matchup great. [Glen Davis] and Rasheed [Wallace] will be huge for us."

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Monday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Tuesday's Game 5 of an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series with the Miami Heat.

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Celtics endure two-hour session after Game 4 loss
* Allen sinks 145 free throws after Game 4 misses
* Loose balls: Pierce on defense; C's want to limit 3-pointers

Celtics endure two-hour session after Game 4 loss



The Celtics' workouts the day after postseason games have typically been short and limited to film review. On the heels of a mistake-laden Game 4 defeat in Miami, the Celtics spent two hours at work Monday afternoon, watching film the first hour and going hard on the court in the second.

"Film should have been 20 minutes, but it turned into an hour," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. "There was a lot of stopping and starting, then explaining and re-explaining. That happens when you win sometimes, too. But I thought we needed to watch the film."

While Dwyane Wade's 46-point outburst was certainly a primary topic of discussion during that film review, the Celtics also examined how they shot themselves in the foot by committing 16 turnovers (which Miami turned into 28 points) and missing 11 free throws (including five in a row late in the game). Boston played well over the 40 minutes in the middle of the game, but sloppiness and mental lapses proved to be the game's bookends for Boston, preventing the team from making Wade's effort a mere sidebar to what would have been only the fifth best-of-seven sweep in franchise history.

Celtics guard Ray Allen said pouring over the film helped cleanse the mind.

"I think when you're watching film, and you're pointing out some of the same themes that you're doing wrong at both ends of the floor, you don't mind watching," said Allen. "As a team, we're so keyed in to trying to figure out what we need to do to be better.

"When we watch film, the film doesn't lie -- the position we're in, getting better position, making the extra pass on offense, seeing what they're doing against us. It's the best piece of education we own. We walk out of film session feeling so relieved. We understand why certain things happened. We get to that problem and keep certain things from happening again."

Allen sinks 145 free throws after Game 4 misses



Allen said he got up 150 free-throw attempts on Monday after enduring only the 14th game in his career -- regular-season and postseason combined -- where he missed three free throws or more. Not only that, but he missed three in a row in Game 4.

After Allen missed his final three attempts, Kevin Garnett clanked two more, preventing Boston from charging closer than four points in the final minutes. Allen has only missed three free throws or more in 12 of 1,022 regular-season games. He hadn't missed three freebies in a row since Feb. 10, 2007 and hadn't missed three consecutive from the charity stripe since a playoff game between the Spurs and Sonics on May 17, 2005.

"I hadn't shot that many in a while," said Allen, who reported he kept count of the 150 attempts and missed only five. "The thing about it is, I had such a bad rhythm [in Miami], I just trying to figure out where it came from."

Loose balls: Pierce on defense; C's want to limit 3-pointers



* Celtics captain Paul Pierce said part of the problem in Sunday's Game 4 loss was that the Celtics allowed Wade's supporting cast to contribute far more than they had in the first three games of the series. Pierce called himself the chief offender after Quentin Richardson hit a quartet of 3-pointers as part of a 20-point effort.

"We can't let the other guys have big games," said Pierce. "We can't let [Quentin] Richardson go out here and have a big game, 20 points in the playoffs. Other guys like [Carlos] Arroyo and [Michael] Beasley can't have big games. Wade's going to have the ball most of the time, we gotta expect him to have big games because of that. But it's the other guys. And I'm a big part of that as the guy guarding Q Richardson."

Pierce reiterated his stance that he doesn't plan to make another trek to South Beach later this week.

"We don't want to go back to Miami," said Pierce. "The next time I go to Miami, I hope I'm on vacation. Right now we're just trying to take care of this game."

* Given that both Wade and Richardson slayed Boston from the outside on Sunday, Rivers noted the team had to get better at perimeter defense.

"We have to get out to the shooters," said Rivers. "They beat us with the extra passes then the attack dribble. They beat us with the extra passes and 3-pointers. We have to do a better job on weakside defense."

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Wednesday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint in advance of Game 3 of an Eastern Conference opening-round series against the Miami Heat:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* KG expects Heat from Miami fans
* Doc continues to laud Perk's play

KG expects Heat from Miami fans



Celtics forward Kevin Garnett said Wednesday that his teammates made it easier for him to be away from the arena for Game 2 with their lopsided win, but his focus now is on Game 3 and bracing himself for a hostile environment.

"My mindset now, I'm thinking about Game 3 and thinking about how hostile it's going to be down in Miami," said Garnett. "We've played on the road in the playoffs, we know it's going to be difficult, so I think that's the mindset now.

"I don't expect any of us to get any cheers down there. I'm no different from that. I'm not saying I'm the villain or the hero, I could care less. I've played on the road before. I've played in San Antonio and I know they hate me there, for whatever reason. This will be no different. It is what it is. I could care less."

Garnett also said he's not resting on the success the team enjoyed beating the Heat twice in Miami during the regular season, including once without him.

"The regular season is the regular season," said Garnett. "I never mix the two, to be honest."

Doc continues to laud Perk's play



After Tuesday's Game 2 victory, Celtics coach Doc Rivers singled out a second-quarter pass by Kendrick Perkins that ignited Boston's 44-8 run spanning into the third quarter and helped the team build a 32-point cushion. On Wednesday, Rivers continued to heap praise on his big man, going so far as to suggest Perkins was the best player on the court.

"Perk's been fantastic defensively, he's doing a great job and a lot of it is 1-on1," said Rivers. "You can't use too many guys on [Jermaine] O'Neal with [Dwyane] Wade running around. I think what he's doing is great, trying to fight [O'Neal] off the block, and he's been pretty good at that.

"I thought Perk was the best player in the game [Tuesday]. I thought his passes is what got everybody shots. Most of [Glen Davis'] layups came off Perk passes. A couple of Ray's shots and, again, the biggest play of the game, when [Miami] was up four, and I had gotten on them three or four times about making the next pass, Perkins threw that skip pass to Michael Finley for a 3-pointer. I think he played a great floor game and he was our point-center [Tuesday]."

For his part, Perkins said he focused on defense and the offense came on its own.

"I was really just thinking all defense and Doc kept telling me to make the extra pass. Baby was open a lot under the rim -- I just kept hitting him. If he wasn't open, then the guards and the 3[-pointer] was open. The thing about the Heat, they're a great help team, but I don't think they made the second effort to help on the next pass. They're going to help on the first pass, but it's the next pass that they get beat on."

Even with a 2-0 advantage, Perkins expects Miami to come out swinging on its home turf.

"They're going to give us their best effort," said Perkins. "We gotta be prepared for everything. When teams get tough, we can't put our heads down. We gotta stay with each other. It's going to be tough out there, it's not going to be an easy job."



(h/t: Boston Globe on KG-Duncan video)

BOSTON -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics held a lightning-fast practice Monday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Nate, Marquis out of rotation; Shelden challenging Baby?
* TA passes tests, earns playing time reward
* Loose balls: Doc and Rasheed talk it out

Nate, Marquis out of rotation; Shelden challenging Baby?



Following up on his postgame remarks Sunday, Celtics coach Doc Rivers reiterated Monday that the players featured in Sunday's win over the Cavaliers will likely make up the team's postseason rotation. That means Nate Robinson and Marquis Daniels, who both saw "DNP -- Coach's Decision" next to their names Sunday, currently are bound to the bench.

But Rivers inserted one interesting wrinkle, noting that he very nearly utilized Shelden Williams as a reserve over Glen Davis.

"[Robinson and Daniels] will have their day, too, and they’ll play in the playoffs and the end of the regular season, that's how this team is built," said Rivers. "Their role right now is to keep working every day in practice, but there will be a day or time when we are going to need them. When someone is in foul trouble, or someone might not be playing well. The same thing with Shelden. I went back and forth, honestly, before [Sunday's] game: Shelden or [Davis]. Shelden is playing so well -- they’re so close with the way they’re playing. It won’t take much to get those guys on the court."

Given the recent struggles of Robinson and Daniels, it's not terribly surprising they've been relegated to the end of the pine (though, considering the expectations of both when they arrived in Boston, it is a bit shocking to see them fall so far as the playoffs near). The fact that little-used Williams could leapfrog a player that started in place of Kevin Garnett last postseason is a bit more noteworthy.

Davis spent extra time after Monday's light practice getting up mid-range shots, then talked to the media a bit about embracing a role that calls for him doing a lot less of that very activity. Davis has morphed into an energy presence beneath the basket, highlighted Sunday when he blocked a shot, then hurdled a front-row fan while attempting to chase the loose ball, only to return to the court and end up in the middle of the action again.

"That's my role this year," said Davis. "Last year, I had a different role. Last year, my role was to be a scorer, hit open jump shots. This year we have Rasheed Wallace, so I had to find another niche to be successful and to help our team, [a role] no one else can do. Being an energy guy is my role. It's good to know I can do other things, but you have to stay in your role and do what's best for the team."

Davis is struggling mightily to convert shots around the basket, with an alarmingly high number of his attempts being blocked around the rim. Even so, it would seem his energy -- the same attribute that has allowed Tony Allen to re-emerge at the guard position -- would keep him on the floor, particularly as he's been the team's best offensive rebounder.

"You've got to have a knack for the ball," Davis said while explaining the art of offensive rebounding. "Right place, right time. It's just a feel. You can't teach offensive rebounding. You've got to go get the will."

TA passes tests, earns playing time reward



Guard Tony Allen recently has seen an uptick in playing time, thanks in large part to the energy and production he showed after Ray Allen got in foul trouble during Friday's overtime loss to Houston. It was another example of Tony Allen providing the team with a jolt of energy in an emergency situation and it appears he's become the backup point guard behind Rajon Rondo as the postseason nears.

"I think it’s like when you're in school, you take tests and quizzes," explained Tony Allen. "I think I've been getting quizzed all year, in games games and situations. I passed some of those tests and it's paying off now."

Like Davis, Tony Allen seems to have flourished by not focusing on scoring.

"I approach each game as a defender," he said. "Although I know I can score, I take advantage when opportunities are there to score, going within the offense. That will keep me on the court, not trying to do too much. I'm out there with Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce -- those are primary scorers. I've got to feed off those guys. That's basically given me the opportunity and I understand that."

And Tony Allen very much likes the opportunity to match up defensively against superstars like LeBron James. The two got into a bit of jawing after James missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer in the final moments. According to Ray Allen, Tony Allen was just telling him he did his job to prevent him from scoring, and James was merely dismissing the gum-flapping. Tony Allen backed up that story Monday and noted he didn't catch any flak from his coaches for the encounter.

"Doc didn't say anything besides, 'Good job, good job.' That's all I heard," said Tony Allen. "I didn't say anything. We weren't arguing. We were just talking. It was nothing."

Tony Allen did admit he had motivation to atone for a defensive lapse that allowed Aaron Brooks to hit a 3-pointer that helped force overtime in Friday's loss to the Rockets.

"Basically, I really wanted to win [Sunday's] game because of the fact that we lost three in a row," said Tony Allen. "I played extensive minutes in back-to-back games, but the last game I gave up a 3-pointer to Aaron Brooks. I was just into the game."

Loose balls: Doc and Rasheed talk it out

* After Wallace drew a technical foul Sunday late in the third quarter against Cleveland, he vented his anger to anyone who would listen, and some of that venom got directed at Rivers as he pulled Wallace from the game. On Monday, Rivers wouldn't elaborate about why Wallace got so heated, particularly at his coach, but said the two had a good conversation about the episode.

"It happens. It won't be the last time," said Rivers. "As a coach, your job when a -- I call it an emotional hijack -- happens, your job is keep your team focused and you can't focus on the one guy. Then after the game, the next day, you have a conversation and get that right. Emotionally, it's not personal. When you have an emotional hijack, you don't get along with anybody at that moment. I understand that.

"We had a great talk. I didn't seek his apologies, but he said, 'Hey, I should have controlled myself.' I don't know if that's an apology, but I didn't ask for him an apology because I didn't need it."

With 49.9 seconds left in the third quarter, Wallace got irate after Davis was whistled for a foul against Zydrunas Ilgauskas. It wasn't so much the play on the court that appeared to irk Wallace, but the fact that referees did nothing a short time before when James barked at them for not calling a foul on a layup.

After James scored under the basket, he barked at an official about a non-call, going so far as to slap his own arm and note, "That's my [expletive] arm," right in front of the Boston bench. The referees did not assess a technical foul for James' outburst.

Wallace, who's been T'd up for for more innocuous words, didn't like the superstar treatment afforded James and picked up his first technical foul since Feb. 19 in Portland.

After the game, Rivers downplayed the episode, joking that, "My wife screams at me and we still love each other."

* Rivers reiterated his appreciation that Dennis Johnson is headed to the Hall of Fame after Monday's official announcement: "It's awesome, it really is. I wish he had been able to see this day. I thought he deserved that. After what he gave to the game, we should have given back to him earlier. But he's still in, and that's really good."

* The Celtics weren't on the floor long for a practice that started at noon. By the time the media invaded a short time later, most of the players had already cleared out and Rivers noted that he held a glorified shootaround to ensure all the players were present for the team's flight to New York Monday afternoon.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics practiced Saturday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint:

The rundown (a quick look at practice headlines)
* Celtics chat about Houston loss, watch film on Cavs
* Pierce: We still believe we're a championship team
* Beautiful day for an outdoor practice?
* Jamison in, but Varejao out for Cavs

Celtics chat about Houston loss, watch film on Cavs



Following Friday's head-shaking overtime loss to the Houston Rockets, Celtics coach Doc Rivers noted that it would likely be an interesting day of film study. But when the Celtics arrived to practice Saturday, the film being dissected was game tape of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

"We talked about [the Houston loss]," said Rivers. "I didn't think we needed to go back there. I thought we needed to move forward. Sometimes you still watch the film, work on it, and then move forward. But with a 1 p.m game [Sunday], we had to chose to move forward. And we have."

The decision falls in line with Boston's long-standing mantra of not dwelling on the past. The Celtics could waste plenty of time lamenting any of their 28 losses -- including the last three at home -- but Sunday's visit from the Eastern Conference-leading Cavaliers could go a long way towards rebuilding confidence that might have eroded during this latest skid.

"[Sunday's game] is important in the way that we've lost three in a row," said Rivers. "It'd be great to win a game, and great to beat Cleveland. But after the game, it goes back to being just another game. Say we beat Cleveland, then take a step back against New York or Toronto, then it wouldn't have been as important. What's important for us is that we've done a lot good things the last two games. Offensively, where we had been struggling, now we're shooting 60 percent and 50-whatever percent [the last two games]... And, defensively, we've been struggling the last two nights. So we have to go back and fix some of that. That's just how it's been this year."

Pierce: We still believe we're a championship team



Celtics captain Paul Pierce stressed his belief that Boston remains a championship-caliber squad despite a seesaw season that currently seems stuck on a low given the three-game losing streak. But Pierce said a lot of that faith comes from how this team deals with adversity.

Pierce detailed how Celtics players talked both after Friday's game and again Saturday morning about how to fix the problems that plagued them in defeat.

"The good thing about us is that, after a game like [Friday], we sit in the locker room and talk about it, or sit in the trainer's room and talk about what we need to do. That's a positive sign. Even in a tough stretch, we manage to stay together and talks things out.

"The tendency is to point the finger or get mad at each other. That's not the case with this team. That's what I love about us. We still believe we can win a championship. We still believe in one another. That's why we do what we do... This team has been through a lot of adversity. For us to still be together, to still talk about it, I have a lot of confidence [in this team]."

Beautiful day for an outdoor practice?

Rivers opened his chat with the media by gushing about the warm weather outside. Asked if he ever considered taking the team outdoors for a session, he joked that he might if they had an outdoor court, before quickly noting that, even then, it probably wasn't feasible.

Not that he hadn't pondered it.

"It would be fun," said Rivers. "There's an outdoor court in Cleveland, right next to the hotel. Sometimes you think, 'Maybe we should use that.' And then you think, 'Maybe not.'"

Jamison in, but Varejao out for Cavs

The Cavaliers are expected to have the services of forward Antawn Jamison (neck stinger) for Sunday's game, but forward Anderson Varejao -- a player that drove Boston nuts in the last two meetings -- will sit out again with a left hamstring injury, according to the team.

Jamison left Friday's win over the Atlanta Hawks in the fourth quarter with the stringer. Jamsion returned from a one-game absence to score 15 points and grab 12 rebounds in the Cavaliers' 104-93 triumph over visiting Boston last month.

Varejao has sat out the past three games with the nagging hamstring. He won't be missed by the Celtics after registering a pair of double-doubles off the bench in the last two meetings between the teams. LeBron James' exploits aside, Varejao may have been the biggest difference between the teams lately with his energy and rebounding.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A very quiet day as the Celtics practiced Thursday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint. Boston put Wednesday's loss to the Oklahoma City behind it (even and is there was a ton of chatter about free throws) and coach Doc Rivers said his team is focused on making the necessary improvements to position itself for postseason success. Here's some news and notes (or what passed for news and notes, on this eerily quiet day):

Rivers: Players were aggravated more than me



Asked if there was any lingering anger after Oklahoma City's win Wednesday night in which the Thunder boasted a 2:1 advantage at the charity stripe, Rivers said his players were more upset than him (though clearly it didn't sit well with anyone in green).

"I think they were more aggravated than me," admitted Rivers. "I thought we could have went to the line more, but I also thought we could have been more aggressive going to the basket as well. We took a lot of threes. I think [Boston players] were complaining more that they thought they were playing good defense, and they [were called for fouls]. But whatever, I don’t think about it any more. I always look at our free throw number, not the opponent's free throw number."

But about those free throw numbers, the Celtics have been giving up more freebies than they're taking on a consistent basis lately.

"It's about being more aggressive going to the basket and fouling less," Rivers said. "It's a combination of both them, it's not just one. We want to get to the line more, but, listen, last night we shot 60 percent from the field. When you shoot that high from the field, you're probably not going to get to the line that much because you're making everything."

Rivers said he would have liked to shoot 60 percent and shoot 30 free throws, "but that didn't happen." He was also asked if Kevin Garnett's ability to shoot from the perimeter has also driven down the number of trips to the line.

"He's down [in the paint] a lot, making shots and scoring points," said Rivers. "Maybe he's too efficient. He's scoring without getting fouled. I do think Kevin was down on the post a lot. He got the ball into the paint and I saw 2-3 times after he scored, he turned around looking for the call. You can't worry about that. You just gotta play."

Celtics guard Ray Allen was asked if it was weird to see a younger player like Kevin Durant attempt 15 free throws, while Boston attempted 17 overall.

"It's a different game from when I was that age," Allen said to laughter as he walked away.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics engaged in a rare March practice session Saturday afternoon at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint:

The rundown (a quick look at the practice headlines)
* Finley's not bitter, but wants to 'destroy' old team
* Doc's injury update: Perk likely out; Nate likely in
* Pierce talks free throws, Friday's win over the Kings

Finley's not bitter, but wants to 'destroy' old team



Celtics swingman Michael Finley said there's no bitterness as he prepares to face his former team when the San Antonio Spurs visit the TD Garden Sunday night (ESPN, 8 p.m.). But he said he'd still like to "destroy" them.

"I still want to beat them, believe me," Finley said with a smile. "I don't want to go out and roll over dead for them. It's still my job to go out there and do my best to give my team the best chance to win the ball game. Although we're friends, I want to destroy them. I still want to beat them. That's not going to change. The fact that we're friends, it's something we can laugh and cheer about before or after the game, but that 48 minutes, it's all about business."

There was plenty of chatter about whether Finley can help the Celtics with some advance scouting of the Spurs after spending the last three-plus seasons in San Antonio before requesting and receiving his release earlier this month. Finley, who appeared in 25 games for the Spurs this season and averaged 3.7 points per game, has received a spark in Boston, averaging 5.8 points per game over 11 appearances. What's more, after shooting just 38.1 percent for the Spurs this season, he's shooting a robust 55.1 percent for Boston and has earned a steady spot in the rotation coming off the bench.

We'll have more on Finley and Sunday's matchup against the Spurs later on ESPNBoston.com.

Doc's injury update: Perk likely out; Nate likely in



Celtics coach Doc Rivers indicated that Kendrick Perkins is almost certainly out for Sunday's game against San Antonio, while Nate Robinson is likely to be in uniform so long as his ankle doesn't swell following Saturday's hourlong practice session.

Robinson participated fully in activities and showed no ill effects from a sprained left ankle that chased him from Friday's win over the Kings in the second quarter. Robinson injured the ankle while crashing to the floor on a layup attempt and, while he lobbied to return in the second half, the team held him out after the ankle swelled.

Perkins missed only his second game of the season Friday after Rivers asked the big man to shut it down for a couple days due to tendinitis in his left knee. If he does sit out Sunday's game, the Celtics see it as an opportunity for some rare extended rest this time of year.

"Nate looked pretty good," said Rivers. "We didn't do a lot, but he moved around well and I think Nate will play. I don't think Perk will play."

Elaborating on Perkins, Rivers added: "He may play tomorrow, but I don't think he will. Right now, I'd say no. The way we look at it, this gives him three extra days. This is the only break [this month] we have with two days off between games. He'd get Monday and Tuesday before we play [Oklahoma City] Wednesday night. If my math is right, that just gives him longer rest.

"[The knee] was bothering him and it was affecting his play. Obviously, if this was the playoffs, he'd be playing, no doubt. But it's not, so we have to take advantage. The same thing goes for Nate. We wanted him to run, get some movement today. If there's any swelling or if he's sore at all [Sunday], he will not play. Even if he feels good, we have to be healthy in the playoffs."

Rivers also sat Paul Pierce for much of Saturday's practice, noting he's a bit sore from all the recent game action, particularly after enduring all the injuries he's had this season. Pierce did participate in shooting drills to close out the session and spoke with reporters, so it seems any missed time was strictly for maintenance.

Pierce talks free throws, Friday's win over the Kings



With 12 freebies attempted in Friday's win, Pierce hopped over John Havlicek to not only become the Celtics' franchise leader in free throw attempts (5,375 overall), but also leapfrogged to No. 22 on the NBA's all-time list.

With 93 free throw attempted in March, this is already Pierce's busiest month at the line this year. Asked what the difference has been, Pierce noted, "I'm being more aggressive and going to the basket. Before, I didn't have a lot of lift."

With a trio of maladies (right knee infection, left midfoot sprain, and right thumb sprain) behind him, Pierce's numbers are soaring this month, as he's scored 22 points or more in five of his last six outings.

Pierce registered 22 points in Friday's win over the Kings, but noted the team could have been more crisp in the second half.

"We have to close out the game a little better," he said. "We kinda got lax with a 20-point lead. When you have a team that's looking forward to the offseason, 10 games left, you gotta put them away... They're playing for nothing but pride, we've been on the end of that stick before. The season is coming to an end and you're making vacation plans, but... they still got a lot of pride -- an NBA team with a lot of young guys trying to get better and compete."

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A collection of news and notes after the Boston Celtics held a rare practice Saturday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint:

The rundown (a quick look at the practice headlines)
* First official practice a success for Finley
* Going small with Finley and first unit?
* Measuring stick game? Perk sees it both ways
* As the playoffs near, do coaches hide their playbooks?

First official practice a success for Finley



The Celtics engaged in a short, but spirited practice Saturday in advance of Sunday's showdown against the Cavaliers in Cleveland. About the most important reason for the session was to get newly acquired Michael Finley a chance to familiarize himself with the playbook in a non-game situation.

"Michael so far, and I don't want to jinx it, has been as good as I've ever had at picking stuff up," said Rivers, whose troops had officially practiced just once in Waltham since a session on Feb. 8.

"We ran a play today where [the ball-handler is] supposed to look for a big to slip and, guys who have been here haven't thrown that pass yet, but the first time [Finley] ran it, Shelden [Williams] got a layup. Maybe he's been in the league a long time, but his timing is really good."

Finley's made a quick impression, connecting on 10-of-14 shots, including 3-of-4 3-pointers, for 24 points in his first three games with Boston. He's averaging nearly double his season scoring average in Boston. Even still, Finley is still learning, as Rivers realized when Boston went to run an inbounds play Friday night and the 15th-year veteran had a look of bewilderment on his face.

"I'm my own worse critic, but I'm still a step slow to react on offensive sets," said Finley. "I'll continue to study film and the tapes they've given me. By the time the playoffs roll around, I'll be comfortable."

Finley does admit that he's already very comfortable in his new surroundings, even if he's learning on the fly.

"It's been smoother than I would have thought," said Finley. "With a different team, a different organization, a switch in conferences -- I had all those things going against me -- but these guys welcomed me with open arms and that's made the transition easier.

"It's good to be playing again, playing on a championship-caliber team -- a team that was already set, they don’t have to wait on me. I'm just trying to fit in, get some good looks at the basket. Guys are finding me, coaches are putting me in position to be effective, and I'm just making the most of it."

Going small with Finley and first unit?

Finley sneaked in a little work with the first unit (see the photo at the top of this entry) late in the session, giving the team a small look by essentially replacing Kendrick Perkins in the starting lineup (Kevin Garnett being the only big on the floor). Rivers suggested it was commonplace to work guys in different roles at the end of practice, even if the Celtics would seemingly be well-served to go with a small look at times if an opponent like the Cavaliers did the same.

"We always use different lineups, you never know with foul trouble when you might need to go small, "said Rivers. "We do it probably every practice, one or two different guys, because you never know what the rotation might be when you start a game in foul trouble."

Rivers noted that Cleveland does have the ability to go small with LeBron James at the 4, but suggested Boston could stay big against a lineup like that.

Measuring stick game? Perk sees it both ways

In one breath, Kendrick Perkins admitted he's eager to see how the Celtics stack up against the Eastern Conference-leading Cavaliers Sunday. But asked if it was a role reversal for Boston to be using Cleveland as a measuring stick (as opposed to the other way around, as in recent seasons), Perkins did what he does best -- he got defensive.

"In a way, but they still haven't won anything," said Perkins. "They're just the best team in the league. They haven't done anything we haven't done. They're just the best team in the league."

The Celtics went through the Cavaliers while producing championship No. 17 in 2008.

As the playoffs near, do coaches hide their playbooks?

As part of their final 18 games of the 2009-10 regular season, the Celtics play the Cavaliers and Bucks two times apiece, and also travel to meet the Raptors. That's a trio of teams they could potentially see again in the postseason. So do coaches start holding back on plays with eyes towards the playoffs?

"No, hell, I don't even have enough plays in with all these news guys," joked Rivers. "Not this early. I think everyone, right now, is still playing. It will be interesting, that last week [of the regular season], we play Milwaukee twice and Toronto, so then it gets interesting. I hope we [have to consider limiting the playbook], that means we've played well enough to do something like that."