The Boston Celtics have struggled to start the season and at 7-9 they have an uphill battle if they are going to position themselves to be a home court team at least in the first round.  To add to the slow start they are dealing with injuries to a lot of key players including reserves.  Rajon Rondo has missed the last 3 games with a bad wrist. Ray Allen is dealing with a jammed ankle that kept him out of the game last night against the Magic and he has already been ruled out on Thursday when they travel to Orlando . Backup point guard Keyon Dooling has missed some games but it looks as if he should be ready to go on Thursday against the Magic. Michael Pietrus who has been big for the bench missed last nights game with a shoulder injury but let’s just hope it was a one game thing and he can get back on the court for their matchup with Orlando .  Finally Chris Wilcox has been sidelines with a calf injury.  His absence is missed as the Celtics are thin in the frontcourt.  The good thing is that guys have been getting there chance to step in and play and some are really stepping their games up.  

Avery Bradley has gone from a third string point guard who plays minimal minutes to starting and running the team.  He isn’t being asked to score he is causing opposing point guards all kinds of problems with his defensive intensity and great on the ball skills.  Paul Pierce appears to be “running” the team while Rondo and Dooling are out but Bradley has proven that he belongs in the NBA and when he is given the opportunity he can really help the Celtics. E’Twaun Moore got some good game experience backing up Bradley last night and scored 6 points on 2-7 shooting.  Moore hasn’t received much playing time and will need to play well to earn time on the floor especially with a lot of guards getting closer to returning.  Still I like what I see in him and don’t have any problems with him playing especially with the lack of bodies right now.  

A guy I have been really impressed with this season is Brandon Bass.  That move has proven to be a clear upgrade over Glen Davis and he really gives the Celtics a lot of flexibility.  Bass is comfortable banging down low and crashing for boards but he is also effective with the jump shot and really has been a pleasant surprise off of the bench.  Bass is averaging just under 12 points a game and 6.5 rebounds.  Bass is logging a lot of minutes and is counted on to spell KG and at time Jermaine O'Neil who are older players and can't handle all of the minute that they used to be able to.

Paul Pierce appears to have found his game and is leading the team while Rondo and others are out.  Pierce is really starting to asset himself and is looking to score and get this team back to where it needs to be.

Looking ahead to the schedule in the next few weeks it is going to be a challenge for them to gain some ground but there will be plenty of opportunities to pick up wins.  Thursday they head to Orlando and it will be interesting to see if they can put an effort like they did last night especially if they are shorthanded once again.  After that they host the Pacers who have already beaten the Celtics twice this year.  Back to back games agains Cleveland followed by Toronto should be 3 games that the Celtics should win and must win if they intend on being contenders this year.  They need to start taking care of business against the teams they are supposed to beat. The Knicks are up once again and it will be a chance for the Celtics to avenge their Christmas day defeat.  The Lakers are also not to far away as the Celtics host them on February 9th.

The Celtics have dug themselves into a little bit of a hole but they have the talent and experience to bounce back and make themselves contedners for one last run with this group.  Health is the main concern for the Celtics, if they have their star players they will be just fine.