Le Basketbawl

If you have not been following the NBA Eastern Conference you may be unaware at just how badly the Boston Celtics have played since the end of December. However the phrase “Like Crapolla” would certainly be fitting as the 2008 NBA Champions have been gutted by injuries over the last few weeks. The team originally lost All-Star forward Paul Pierce for about two weeks due to a knee inflammation which was drained twice during his time off.

Before Pierce returned Boston would lose another All-Star from their front-court as “The Big Ticket” Kevin Garnett has been out with stiffness in his surgically repaired knee. The veteran hyper-extended his right knee and the Celtics did the right thing by allowing him time to recover rather than him playing through the pain and allowing the situation to linger.

Fortunately for Boston they had prepared for exactly that situation as they had signed veteran Free Agent big man Rasheed Wallace during the off-season. Unfortunately for the Celtics however Wallace suffered pain in his left foot and has missed the last three games two of which were losses.

Well the “Boston Herald” reported on Friday that the players are on the mend and are expected back soon. The Celtics are off until Monday when they host the Dallas Mavericks. Wallace is expected to be ready to play in that game. Friday night Boston takes on the Portland Trail Blazers and reports are that Garnett could be back on the floor for that game.

Celtics bench boss Doc Rivers told reporters “I’m just glad that he’s running right now. We’ll have a couple of practices over the next week where he can get on the floor and work with us. We’ll play him when he’s ready, and that’s it. But there’s an outside chance that Portland could be the return game for him.”

When Boston has all their pieces lined up they most likely are the most complete team this season in the NBA. However injuries can devastate a team; especially an older team like the Celtics that have so many veterans they rely on. This team needs a healthy Kevin Garnett and Rasheed Wallace  if they want to win it all in June. When fully staffed they have the ability to do it. The question becomes do they have the ability to remain healthy?