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NEW YORK -- Following the advice of veteran center Kenyon Martin to wear funeral attire, the New York Knicks arrived at Madison Square Garden with most players decked out head to toe in black suits before Game 5 of an Eastern Conference first-round series with the Boston Celtics.

Informed of their coordinated efforts to wear all black, Celtics coach Doc Rivers quipped about his own attire, "Me, too."

The Celtics had already downplayed the Knicks' plan earlier in the day at shootaround with Paul Pierce noting, "This is basketball. I'm not going to be dead after the game." And Kevin Garnett said he had not paid any attention to New York's "shenanigans."

Many of the Knicks wore all black to Sunday's Game 4 and the Celtics avoided the sweep with a win at TD Garden. With his team still facing an uphill climb with the Knicks owning a 3-1 series advantage, Rivers said his message to his team was simple.

"Win. Really, I don’t think you need to get deep when you’re down, you just want to make sure everybody wants to win," said Rivers. "Like I said before the last game, seventh games are easy; everybody wants to win a Game 7. I’ve always thought, not everybody wants to win when you’re down 3-0 or 3-1. You just want the right guys to want to win. That’s what we have to be; we’ll be ready."

Asked if he thought any team would rally from a 3-0 hole, Rivers said he wouldn't mind his team being the first.

"I think that would be wonderful," said Rivers. "Someone’s going to do it. And I want it to be us, obviously, since that’s the situation we are in. But someone will do it. I really want to be a part of that."

As for what he's seen on film that has hurt his team, Rivers offered, "The clear thing that is obvious is when we start turning the ball over, and, in that stretch, give up offensive rebounds, then force shots, we usually lose leads or get down further. And that’s been pretty much obvious to anybody this year."

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley said he wasn't feeling when he was tardy for the start of Thursday's practice, but suggested he's ready to go for Game 3 of an Eastern Conference first-round series against the New York Knicks.

"I just wasn't feeling that good yesterday," said Bradley. "But I'm good now. Just a stomach ache. But I'm fine now."

Celtics coach Doc Rivers, however, expressed some concern about Bradley's health, particularly given what the team is asking him to do as their primary point guard.

"He didn’t practice much," said Rivers. "He wasn’t feeling well, so we gave him a Tums, and we told him to sit there. Honestly, I’ve had this for three years now, when guys are feeling flu-ish or anything, I don’t really want them near any other guy. I just think that’s pretty sound advice."

Rivers hinted that -- without naming names -- he'd consider potential lineup changes that could ease the burden on some of his overwhelmed players, which could include Bradley as the top-unit ball-handler.

The Celtics ultimately elected to move Jason Terry into the starting lineup alongside Bradley, moving Brandon Bass to a reserve role.

"I don’t mind the pressure on Paul [Pierce], honestly, I want to take pressure off a couple other guys," said Rivers. "I think there are some guys who were are just asking them to do things they can’t do. We gotta relive the pressure from them. Paul, actually likes pressure, he doesn’t mind. Carmelo [Anthony] -- they don’t mind. That’s what they do. That’s why they make all that money. But we’re asking other guys right now to do way too much. We don’t have a lot of choices in the matter. We can add more guards on the floor at times with them. I just think it’s too much, obviously. We have to figure out a way of relieving some pressure."

As for Kevin Garnett and the hip pointer suffered in Game 2, Rivers said he limited him in practice on Thursday, but only to preserve his health.

"He looked good," said Rivers. "To the point where I had to keep taking him out and I had to keep hearing him. I always look at that as a good sign, when he’s screaming at me for taking him out of practice."

Before the game, the Celtics handed out Boston Strong t-shirts for fans in attendance and wore special green warm-up shirts adorned with the Boston Marathon logo. Hop HERE for more on the team's plan to honor members of the community that assisted in the aftermath of last week's marathon tragedy.

[Note: Updated at 7:57 p.m. to note that Jason Terry has moved into the starting lineup.]

NEW YORK -- Basketball, finally.

While the Boston Celtics admit there are far worse cities to be stranded in than New York, the 72-hour crawl to the start of Game 2 has been arduous, particularly as they've been dwelling on a sloppy Game 1 loss. And after what amounts to three straight days of trying to correct all its errors from Saturday afternoon's defeat, Boston is relieved to get back on the court Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.

"Especially on the road, you'd rather get right back at it," admitted Rivers. "You just feel like you're sitting around the room and doing things like that, but obviously being in New York helps in some ways. It's not a bad city to hang out in and go have dinner. So I think we'll be ready."

For the Knicks, Pablo Prigioni is back in the starting lineup after sitting out Game 1. How does that change things for Boston?

"Well, it just gives them another decision-maker. I mean, he's brilliant," said Rivers. "He's another Jason Kidd-ish type guy and so it just gives them another smart player on the floor and another guy that can create plays, and that makes them really good. It's no coincidence that when he's in the lineup they play better, because they have a lot of IQ on the floor at the same time."

The Celtics are hoping that a somewhat undersized backcourt of Prigioni and Raymond Felton allows Boston to take advantage at the 2-guard spot by getting Paul Pierce the ball near the post.

"We're going to attack whoever guards Paul," said Rivers. "I'm sure [Knicks coach Mike Woodson is] thinking the same thing. It doesn't matter who's guarding Paul, Paul's going to get the ball, he's going to get it in the post, they're going to come trap. Hopefully there's an advantage there."

Let's play some basketball.

NEW YORK -- Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers said he's uncertain how Friday's events (including the apprehension of the second suspect in Monday's marathon bombings) will affect his team emotionally during Saturday's Game 1 of an Eastern Conference first-round series against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Rivers knows his team was distracted on Friday, but is hoping the good news from back home might give his team some sort of emotional jolt at the start of this series.

"[Friday] was a strange day," said Rivers. "You’re going to practice and you hear guys on the phone and literally everyone is calling home, yelling or you could hear them saying, ‘Stay in the house!’ And we’re going to practice and I even told our staff, we’re going to make a lot of mistakes in practice today. There’s no way their focus is where it should be. And you felt that going into practice. And, honestly, we were right, practice played out that way.

"So I don’t know. Thank gosh it’s over, in that regards. It was good to see everybody in the city happy, hugging and rejoicing. And I’m sure our players had a chance to exhale, because their families are still back there. [Injured point guard Rajon] Rondo was supposed to join us yesterday, and he couldn’t even get out. He was locked in and had to stay in himself. What does that do for us today, I have no idea? I think, emotionally, it could go either way. Hopefully we can figure out a way, if it’s not going the right way, to gather them right and get it back. Thank gosh it’s a four-quarter game because I’m always worried about any team, even if it wasn’t for this, being too emotionally high at the beginning of a game. Because you still have to finish the game. We’ll see."

Inside the Boston locker room, where Celtics plays were sporting special marathon patches and wearing yellow Boston Stands As One warm-up shirts, players like Avery Bradley expressed relief that a violent and frightening 24-hour manhunt was over.

"It feels good. I'm just happy there weren't a lot more people injured," said Bradley. "That was the biggest thing for me, I didn't want anybody else to get hurt. But it is a good feeling knowing that everything is done now, that people are safe, and people can feel like they can go outside now."

Added Bradley: "It was real tough [to focus on basketball], especially seeing as I live in Waltham, which is the next town over. It was hard, but all I could do was pray that everything would be OK."

A couple other pregame notes:

* Rajon Rondo is with the team for the start of the playoffs. Rivers is happy to have him along, noting, "I want him around. He’s a good mind. He’s a great, great mind. And he knows the game. He’s a smart kid. People have no idea his IQ, they really don’t. It’s funny right now, even after our shootaround, he’s into it." Rondo had previously planned to join the team on Friday, but couldn't get out until the manhunt ended around Boston.

* Pablo Prigioni is officially out for the Knicks; Chris Copeland takes his spot in the starting lineup and the Knicks will go with a starting backcourt of Raymond Felton and Iman Shumpert.

BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets haven't seen each other since Christmas and a lot has changed, but each side remembers the damage inflicted by the other.

The Celtics are still smarting about two early-season thumpings that left coach Doc Rivers calling his team "soft," while the Nets haven't forgotten Boston's yuletide victory in Brooklyn.

"Well, we’re different and they are too, obviously," said Rivers. "I’m sure their confidence is much higher. When we played them on Christmas Day, they were going through a lot of stuff. They handed it to us pretty well earlier in the year. I think both teams are different."

Echoed Nets coach P.J. Carlesimo: "Obviously Rajon [Rondo] not being here, [Jason Collins] started for them at center last time, [Kevin Garnett is] just coming back [and] we’re playing kind of a different roster now than we were playing then. It’s different. But again, they play the same way. They came in and just lit us up on Christmas Day and we played well the game prior to that up here. I don’t think either of us will do things differently, I just think it’ll be different players."

While coach Doc Rivers has hinted he's got a rest plan in mind for his veterans, it won't come tonight (no surprise given that Boston has had the last two days off). The Celtics will once again trot out their new starting unit of Avery Bradley, Paul Pierce, Jeff Green, Brandon Bass and Garnett, only the second time that unit has started this season.

Rivers likes the versatility that lineup offers, both on the court, and with an ability to audible to different combinations. The Nets provide an excellent test for a lineup that is as big as Boston gets with a lack of pure size on its roster.

"I like the ability to have that lineup and other lineups instead of just having this 'small lineup' with Jeff at the 4," said Rivers. "We want to have three lineups -- Jeff at the 2, Jeff at the 3, Jeff at the 4. Or if you want to call Paul the 2, I don’t care who you call the 2. I just think it gives us more versatility. This lineup is good. It’s important because it gives us a third lineup, because there’s one lineup we can’t go to, and that’s the very big lineup, like two 7-footers. We’re not going to be able to do that. We need to have as much versatility as possible going into the playoffs to play multiple styles."

BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics welcome back both Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce on Sunday night against the Washington Wizards.

Garnett missed the last eight games due to left ankle inflammation, while Pierce sat out Friday's loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers due to a sore right ankle. The duo will join a new-look starting lineup alongside Avery Bradley, Jeff Green, and Brandon Bass (that combo has spent a mere 13 minutes together this season).

Bradley suffered a bruised collarbone in Friday's loss and sat out practice on Saturday, but is in the starting lineup despite lingering soreness. He'll be needed to contain Wizards point guard John Wall (more on him below).

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said both Garnett and Pierce felt good after going through Saturday's practice session and he doesn't expect any limitations for his players.

"I’ll watch Kevin, I doubt if he plays his normal 30 minutes, so I’ll watch him, but there’s no limitations by any of the doctors or anything," Rivers said.

Asked about having nearly a full lineup available, Rivers said, "It’ll be nice to look down the bench and see more guys down there. That’ll be nice. I wouldn’t be surprised to be a little rusty because of [the time missed]... [but] it’s nice because you have time to to try to get some kind of rhythm back."

A couple more pregame nuggets:

* HITTING THE WALL: Rivers gushed about the recent play of Wall, but said his eye-popping stat lines might have more to do with health than development. "I think his development came over the last couple years and now he’s putting it into play," Rivers said. "He’s playing terrific. He’s getting to the foul line at a record pace. He’s [averaging] 14, or 13½ [free throws] over the last seven or eight games, that’s crazy. I think what people miss with Washington though is the job that [coach Randy Wittman has] done with the defense. They are fifth in the league defensively. So I think everyone’s talking about Wall, while they are building the wall defensively. You guys like that play on words? I worked on that all day."

* DOC'S GOT MORE JOKES: That wasn't Rivers' only playful moment of the pregame session. Asked about Wittman, his former teammate, and whether he knew the two would be coaches some day, Rivers noted, "I knew Randy would be a coach, for sure. He talked about it all the time. And he coached a ton when we played. He used to say 'help' a lot defensively because he was always getting beat off the dribble. We just assumed he’d be coaching, you really did."

BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics will be without both Paul Pierce (sore right ankle) and Kevin Garnett (left ankle inflammation) when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night at TD Garden.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Pierce should be back by Sunday, while Garnett, who will sit out his eighth consecutive game, could do the same.

"I think [Pierce will] be fine by Sunday; it’s just sore, so we’re just not playing him," said Rivers. Asked about Garnett’s potential to return that same day, he added, "I think most likely, but I don’t know that."

Garnett went through skeleton drills with the Celtics during an afternoon walk-through at the Garden. The team shut him down for two weeks in order to allow the inflammation to subside.

"He hasn’t done anything on the floor with us. He’s done some shooting, and today he ran through the skeleton, and he looked fine," said Rivers. "Again, that’s skeleton. No contact or anything like that. He looked good. He looked exactly like Kevin, so I’m thinking he’s fine."

The Celtics will start a lineup that features Avery Bradley, Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, Brandon Bass, and Chris Wilcox.

Backup guard Terrence Williams dislocated his right pinky finger in Wednesday's win over the Detroit Pistons, but will be available.

"Play? Of course I'm playing," he said. "I don't need my right finger. It hurts. It hurts when I dribble, it hurts when I pass or catch the ball a certain way."

Later he joked: "I'm going to try to play with (my right hand) behind my back. Try to play like Bob Cousy."

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics captain Paul Pierce, who missed Monday's game in Minnesota due to personal reasons, is back in the starting lineup for Wednesday's visit from the Detroit Pistons.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers wouldn't elaborate on Pierce's absence other than to reiterate that it was for a personal matter. He had said previously it wasn't for any negative issue, including a sore right ankle that he iced in the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss to the New York Knicks.

Boston will stay big with its starting lineup, running Pierce alongside Avery Bradley, Jeff Green, Brandon Bass, and Chris Wilcox.

Rivers didn't have much of an update on Kevin Garnett, who is in the midst of a two-week break to allow left ankle inflammation to subside.

"Honestly, I haven’t asked one question about [Garnett's return]," said Rivers. "I don’t even know when two weeks is. Whenever it is, it’s probably coming up, and he’ll play."

Rivers said he wasn't overly worried about Garnett shaking the rust from his absence.

"We have a lot of practice days coming up and Kevin's been working out," said Rivers. "He hasn’t lost all his conditioning, but you do lose some when you don’t play."

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics guard Courtney Lee will return to action Friday night against the Atlanta Hawks after missing three games due to a sprained left ankle, but he'll do so in a reserve role.

"I’m not going to start him, but I’m going to play him," Rivers said. "I’m just going to see the minutes and see how he feels."

Added Rivers: "He looked OK today in shootaround, but he didn’t have a practice to fall back on, so who knows and we’ll just see."

The Celtics will go with the same starting lineup from Wednesday's win in Cleveland with Chris Wilcox alongside Avery Bradley, Paul Pierce, Jeff Green and Brandon Bass.

The Celtics will trot out another new starting 5 on Wednesday night as Chris Wilcox joins the first unit alongside Avery Bradley, Paul Pierce, Jeff Green, and Brandon Bass.

Boston is playing without both guard Courtney Lee (sprained ankle) and Kevin Garnett (ankle inflammation). On Tuesday against the Knicks, Boston went with Jordan Crawford in Lee's starting role, but now in Cleveland the Celtics will go big with Wilcox at center and Green shuffling to a swingman role.

The Celtics have lost five straight and owns a 1½-game lead over Milwaukee at the bottom of the Eastern Conference playoff ladder.

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics guard Courtney Lee (sprained left ankle) will sit out his second consecutive game and miss Tuesday's visit from the New York Knicks.

Jordan Crawford draws the spot start for Boston, allowing the Celtics to keep Jason Terry in his preferred bench role.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said he wasn't sure if Lee, who injured the ankle on Friday in Dallas, would be healthy enough to get back on the floor by Wednesday's game in Cleveland. The Celtics are also without Kevin Garnett, who is expected to miss two weeks while battling inflammation in his left ankle. Boston has already lost Rajon Rondo, Jared Sullinger and Leandro Barbosa to season-ending ailments.

Tyson Chandler is out for the Knicks because of a bulging disk in his neck.

"[Lee] just didn't improve much," Rivers said. "You pretty much prepare for everything, just like [Knicks coach Mike Woodson does] over there. They've had the same stuff, so just a lot of injuries right now for us and for them."

As for the decision to start Crawford, Rivers said that Terry lobbied to stay in his bench role.

"No, it was more JET; he really does not like to start," Rivers said. "He likes coming off the bench.

"I talked to JET about it. We started him [in Memphis on Saturday] and you just could see it. He likes being in this role, especially when he knows Courtney will be back and other guys will be back, and he'd rather just stay in his own role."

Is it rare to find a guy who doesn't like the frills of starting?

"It's rare," Rivers said. "Most guys love hearing their name called with the flames and all that stuff going up. But I think he's pretty much over all of that stuff at this point in his career. And he really believes he's better for the team coming off the bench, so it's refreshing. It's really nice."

Rivers is hoping Crawford can provide a spark in a spot start.

"That's why we traded for him," Rivers said of his outburst potential. "When you lose Barbosa, who was pretty much good on nights and on some nights bad, we looked at who can do the same things. I mean, Jordan is the perfect character for that role when you think about him. We laugh, but he is on the All-Scare Team. He scares me and [Woodson]. Every night he scares both coaches."

Speaking of injuries, Rasheed Wallace popped into the Celtics' trainer's room to visit with old friends before Tuesday's game. Wallace is sidelined after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured bone in his left foot.

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics center Kevin Garnett will sit out Monday's visit from the Miami Heat due to illness, according to coach Doc Rivers.

Garnett, who has been held out of basketball activities for the past two days due to a left adductor strain, is now also battling the flu and that, Rivers said, more than the injury is what will keep him off the court against the rival Heat.

Jeff Green starts in his place for the Celtics.

"[Garnett is] sick, really. It’s not the injury," said Rivers. "He just has a terrible flu or whatever and, with the injury, we just felt the combination -- it was too much to play."

Garnett didn't go through the team's shootaround on Monday morning, but was still listed as a game-time decision. Rivers got a look at him when he arrived at the arena and determined he wasn't fit for action.

"He's in [the trainer's room] now. Right when I looked at him, I said, ‘You’re not playing,'" said Rivers. "He wanted to play, and even [team trainer] Eddie [Lacerte] came to get me, to tell him not to play."

Would Garnett have played if not for the illness?

"Yeah, he would have played," admitted Rivers.

Even though Rivers has preached a desire for health and rest over wins and playoff seeding, he said the team would have preferred to have Garnett on the floor for Monday's game.

"You want Kevin on the floor," said Rivers. "I guess it gives him more rest, and maybe that will help too."

Rivers said he expects Garnett to be on the team's flight Tuesday afternoon for the start of a three-game road trip in New Orleans on Wednesday.

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics center Kevin Garnett will sit out Saturday's visit from the Charlotte Bobcats due to a left adductor strain. Jeff Green starts in his place.

The Celtics have considered giving Garnett games off over the final weeks of the regular season, but this is not rest-related, according to coach Doc Rivers.

"Kevin’s not playing tonight -- not because it’s a night off; he wasn't moving well yesterday in practice or today [at shootaround]. So we’re sitting him."

Rivers didn't elaborate much on the issue and wasn't certain of Garnett's availability moving forward, including Monday's visit from the East-leading Miami Heat.

"I don’t know," said Rivers. "Honestly, I haven’t looked that far ahead. I have no idea."

The Celtics rested Paul Pierce in Tuesday's visit to Charlotte and absorbed a 26-point loss. While Rivers said he'll play recently added big men D.J. White and Shavlik Randolph, he's hoping Boston's depleted frontcourt depth won't be an issue against a Bobcats team that has hurt the Celtics on the glass while beating Boston twice this season.

"[Boston's small lineups have] been awful against them," said Rivers. "Really, they stay big against us and they hurt us, but I look at it, I’m putting my five best out on the floor and seeing what we can do, if we can create a pace that will benefit us."

Later Rivers added: "Honestly, in the three games [this season], the one thing they’ve done consistently is beat us off the dribble. All of them, Gerald Henderson and all their guards, even their bigs are beating us off the dribble. The second thing is their rebounding, offensive rebounding has hurt us, and usually those two things do go hand-in-hand. If you can’t keep the ball in front of you, then your bigs are in help the entire game, and their bigs are free to rebound. Our guards have to player better."

BOSTON -- Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers playfully opened his pregame media duties by offering, "Say it ain't so, Wes," amid the news that wide receiver Wes Welker had agreed to a two-year deal with the Denver Broncos.

Rivers, a frequent visitor to Foxborough during the NFL season, even if his true allegiance is to his beloved Chicago Bears, said the news of Welker's defection resonates with the Celtics.

"It's hard to [keep teams together]," said Rivers. "We lost Ray [Allen], it feels like, the same way [the Patriots] lost Wes. You wanted him and you did everything you could and somehow they go somewhere else. Just like we wanted Ray to stay, I know they wanted Wes to stay, and it just sometimes doesn't work out. There's too many other people involved. That's what is great once everyone's signed -- it's the coaches and the players and no one can get in your group. But once you get into free agency, a lot of other people get involved with decision-making that is outside of winning and losing, and that's why I guess it's called free agency. But it makes it tough."

Back on the subject of basketball, here's a few more quick hits before Wednesday's visit from the Toronto Raptors:

* NO REST FOR C'S: The Celtics will have 12 available bodies as, one night after Paul Pierce got his first day off of the season in Charlotte, everyone is expected to play against the Raptors. Rivers said he'd like to get Kevin Garnett a couple more games off before the end of the regular season, but noted, "It’s no process. Really, it’s just what you see. You travel with the guys, you talk with them all the time and when you pick up something where you think a guy needs a day off, you give him a day off. A lot doesn’t go into it. I’m not one that really looks at the schedule and says, ‘Let’s do it on this game or this game.’ It’s more what’s in front of you and you make a decision."

* GAY A GO: Rudy Gay (back) will play for the Raptors. Rivers noted they are a different team since his addition, particularly because of his trickle-down effect: "Well, they're better. They have a go-to guy and having a go-to guy allows the other guys to be better players. I think the guy who's probably benefited the most, without watching them every game, would be [DeMar] DeRozan, because he's a guy that likes to get to the basket and Rudy creates space. So I thought it was a good move for them."

* PIETRUS MISSES BOSTON: Old friend Mickael Pietrus invaded the Celtics' locker room before Wednesday's game to catch up with his former teammates. Pietrus expressed disappointment that he wasn't brought back, though Rivers noted he might have been waiting for more money than Boston could offer during free agency. "I can’t get over it. I cannot. I’ll be honest with you," said Pietrus. "I just can’t. Because Boston was what I like to do, fight, protect your jersey. That’s what I like to do. I’m really happy to see those guys back. You never know, hopefully I’ll be back. Cross your fingers. I would love to play here."

Celtics captain Paul Pierce will miss his first game of the season Tuesday night in Charlotte as coach Doc Rivers gives him a rest day against the Bobcats.

Pierce started the first 62 games of the season, but Rivers has expressed a desire to get all of his veterans as much rest as he can find before the postseason arrives. Center Kevin Garnett got an offday in Phoenix late last month, missing his first game of the year, and now Pierce gets the front end of a back-to-back off in Charlotte.

Jeff Green took Pierce's spot in the starting lineup.

Rivers says he pondered sitting Pierce, Garnett or Jason Terry while on the flight to Charlotte from Oklahoma City. He chose Pierce.

Rivers laughed when he said "I don’t get a lot of kickback right now when I say I'm sitting one of them."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.