With training camp just 12 days away, I have been thinking about reasons for optimism. Here are just a few of the reasons that I am optimistic about this upcoming season.

Big Al. After a disappointing season last year, Al has a renewed sense of urgency. He is determined to prove all of his critics wrong. After the doctors finally found the bone chips in his ankle, he is finally without pain. He has been in Boston all summer working on his strength and conditioning. He is 30 lbs lighter and has his fat % down to under 10%. He is working with Clifford Ray this summer and should have a break out year.

Perk. Perk is due for a break out year also. His shoulder is healed and he is working hard on his game again this summer. Working with Clifford Ray and Ratliff should make a difference in his game this season. Perk signed an extension for quite a bit less than he could have gotten if he tried to hold out, but he feels loyalty to the Celtics and he feels he needs to earn his next contract. I believe he will and then some.

Ratliff. Ratliff may be a sleeper addition to this team. If healthy, which he seems to be, he will add inside toughness, rebounding and shotblocking, all of which we lacked for the most part last year. He won't be a scorer, but we have plenty of scorers on the team. He will be a defensive threat and shot blocker and will rebound and will add a veteran presence up front.

Clifford Ray. Every team that Clifford Ray has coached on has turned their rebounding around from one of the worst teams to one of the better teams. Rebounding was one of our big weaknesses last season and so I am looking forward to becoming one of the better rebounding teams this year. It is entirely possible that both Al and Perk can pull down double figures in rebounds every night.

Turnovers. Last season we were one of the worst teams in committing turnovers. Our biggest offender in that category is gone and will be adding to Minny's turnovers this season. We also are bringing in 2 pure points who will handle the ball more this season and who will keep Pierce from dribbling into double and triple teams all the time and turning the ball over. Plus, I believe that Wally will take better care of the ball than Ricky did.

Leon Powe. Danny has a knack for finding gems in the second round. Last year it was Gomes. This year, it will be Powe. He averaged a double double last season in college. He has an NBA body already and won't need the season to work on strength and conditioning as he is already there. He should make a contribution this season as he adds toughness in the middle and is an excellent rebounder and can score around the basket very well. He should do a lot to toughen up Al in practice as well.

Telfair to Green. We got a small taste of what these two can do during summer league with the between the legs pass from Telfair to a cutting Green for a slam. I believe that we will see many more exciting plays between these two this season.

Rondo and Telfair. It has been a long time since we have had 2 pure point guards on this team capable of running the fast break and leading the offense the way these two hopefully will. Rondo's defense will be a welcome addition to the team as well. The quality of PG play won't diminish when the second team is on the floor which will be a very good thing. Both are capable of playing fast break basketball at a high level and regardless of which player starts and which comes off the bench, we will have a quality PG on the floor at all times.

Chemistry. This team has incredible chemistry. They like to hang out together off the court as well as on the court. They get along great and all of them want to be here and are extremely hard workers. The kids have all been around Boston much of the summer working together. Pierce has really taken his role as mentor to heart and loves to have the youngsters over to his place to hang out much of the time. this chemistry is going to translate into better play on the court as they get used to playing with each other.

No Blount. One of Danny's best moves was to get rid of Blount. His attitude was like a cancer. He was averaging as many turnovers as rebounds and while he was in, Perk wasn't - all good reasons to be very happy that he isn't here.

Pierce and Wally. Paul Pierce proved last year that he can work within the system and he took his game to a new level. I believe that with 2 pure point guards who can run the fast break and who can find the open man, he is going to be even better this year. With his extension out of the way, and his elbow healed, there shouldn't be any distractions to slow him down. Wally was also slowed by injury after the trade. Without the pain in his knee to slow him down, he should be back to his deadly accurate shooting. I believe that he will be the perfect complement to the running game that we are going to be playing. Both Pierce and Wally are good rebounders at their position and very good at getting to the line. Wally is automatic once he gets there and hopefully without the elbow problems Pierce will improve over his last year's performance at the line.

As you can see, there are many reasons to be optimistic this season and I can't wait for the season to start.

With Rondo being featured in the Herald today, I thought it would be a good time to post this piece from Derrenmatts over on Celtics Green. Telfair has truly shone when the pressure and the lights were on him. He is definitely under the microscope here in Boston and so hopefully he will shine brighter than ever. If he does, expect great things from Boston and some exciting basketball being played. And if not, Rondo will be waiting in the wings to take over. We definitely seem to be in a good place with our PG situation.

Bassy may not have the big time height advantage for an NBA PG like Magic used to have, nor does he have the dead on shooting ability like Kevin Johnson did for Phoenix a decade ago. But one thing Telfair does appear to have, like many of the good ones before him had, is the ability to shine when the lights are on and when the intensity rises. If you've ever watched his documentary, "Through the Fire", in which cameras followed him throughout his senior year playing for Lincoln High, you see him stepping up his leadership and his play on the court when the lights went on. His eyes would be intently focused on the game and his body language just oozed determination. If you watched him in the Vegas Summer League, particularly the Denver game, he practically carried the team on his back in the closing minutes of a very tight game (we lost that game, but I give the credit to a better Denver team). The commentator for that game noted how Telfair won't win a three point shooting contest in practice, but with the game on the line, Telfair steps up to the occasion and nails a clutch three pointer with no hesitation on his shot. And though his first 2 years at Portland have been pretty unspectacular, he has had some shining moments. Against Cleveland late last year, he came off the bench and poured in 24 pts. You know that playing against Lebron probably had something to do with it. The very next night, he was given the starting nod for the first time in 3 months, against Milwaukee's tough PG duo, TJ Ford and Mo Williams, he attacked for 21 pts and 5 assists. Earlier in the year, going back to New York to play the Knicks (he's from Coney Island), and against his cousin Stephon, Telfair put up his best stat line of the year with 27 pts, 7 assts, 6 boards and 3 stls, shooting 67% from the field, 60% from beyond the arc and 8 - 11 from the free throw line. He's had to battle a lot of criticism since coming to the NBA because he's under 6 feet and he has a shaky jumper. But this kid puts in the time after hours to improve his game and his conditioning. He's definitely a hard worker. The good ones could step up their games when the game was on the line and when the spotlight narrowed down on them. That's where they made their marks and proved to be special players. Telfair has a long, long, long ways to go before being mentioned in this group, and in the same sentence as Isaiah Thomas and Magic Johnson. But what he has shown early in his playing career as a high schooler and a 2 year NBA PG is that when the stakes are high, he steps up to the plate and will not whither under the heat of the spotlight. He set numerous New York high school scoring records, often turning up the scoring dial when his team needed it most, and he led his Lincoln High team to 3 PSL titles, something that no team has ever done before. And in the McDonald's All-American game, he set out to set the all time assist mark, and he had a legit shot at doing it. The spotlight is going to be much brighter in Boston than it ever was in Portland. And this could be what Telfair needs; he thrives in such situations. source: Celtics Green - Derrenmatts Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!

Doc seemed to have a hard time last year settling on a rotation. It seemed we had a different lineup every game. The problem with that is that players never develop a chemistry by knowing their role and never get that telepathy that comes from playing with each other for extended periods of time. We see teams that win play the same players game in and gamne out.

A possibility that would help Doc as well as help the players to know their roles is to play 2 complete teams. We could have a first team and a second team and substitute them in mass. Each of these teams would be used to playing with each other and would know each other's tendencies. As a result, we would see much better play and fewer turnovers. Some of the turnovers last year occurred when a player wasn't where they were supposed to be or wasn't ready for a pass. If a team of 5 was used to playing together in practice and games, I believe that it would mean fewer of these turnovers.

We could have a first team that is more of a half court team and a second team that is a fast break team. I could see Pierce, Wally, West, Al, and Ratliff starting on a half court team and Telfair (or Rondo), Tony, Gomes, Perk, and Green on the fast break team. Or we could have 2 fast break teams. Or, we could go with one big team and one small team. Either way, both teams would be used to playing together and have great chemistry. It would define roles and I believe it would me more effective.

Training camp is going to be very important this season. Pierce and probably Wally will be starters, but after that, every player will have to work and earn his spot. We have players who can play more than one position so where they play is also up for grabs. Rondo and Telfair are pure points. Ratliff and Perk are Centers. But in between, Pierce can play the 2 and 3. Gomes plays the 3 and 4. West the 1 and 2. Tony plays 1,2 or 3. Al can play 4 or 5.

Which players will start? Which players will be on the Inactive List? Which players will be sent to the D League? There are lots of questions to be answered and Doc has a lot of decisions to make. I believe that a good decision would be to set a 10-11 man rotation using 2 separate teams rather than to substitute piecemeal as Doc did last year. Doc used the 2 team system somewhat the season before last and it seemed to work when he did. 15 days till training camp and then we will find out.

Justin is in the hosptital with his wife who is having their first baby and so no live show tonight. You can still join everyone in the chat room at 9 Eastern time for some good Celtics chat. JB and Duke will be there and hopefully their guests will join them in the chat. Jeff will be on the show on the 29th and Patrick may be joining them next week. We wish the best for Justin and his wife ... Another Greeniac is on her way!!!

CelticsStuff Live is going to have a big show tonight. Joining Jon, JB and Justin will be Patrick Gilroy and Jeff Clark.

Patrick Gilroy is the co-host of the Celtics Pride post game show that last year was on The Zone and has moved to ESPN 890 in Boston for this upcoming season.

Jeff Clark runs one of the most successful sports blogs on the web... Celtics Blog.com. Both of these guys are sure to have some good things to share with us about the Celtics and the upcoming training camp and season.

The broadcast will be from 9-11 Eastern time. Join the group in the Chat Room on the site as we have a great time there discussing the show and the Celtics in general. Don't miss it! You won't find better Celtics chat anywhere on the web!!