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According to Steve Bulpett in the Herald the Celtics met with center Greg Oden today.

The Celtics met with free agent center Greg Oden today to discuss his potential signing.

Reached a short time ago, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said the meeting was mainly an informational process for each side.

"We wanted to talk to Greg to see where he is physically," Ainge said.

"We're just finding out as much as we can and letting Greg know what we have here," said Ainge. "He's not ready to play now, but he's someone who's very interesting."

Oden won't play until next season, if he plays, and Danny made it clear that there is nothing imminent and Greg has several teams interested in talking to him. It was reported that Miami and Cleveland were in the lead for his services and that he wasn't interested in Boston. But if he came to Boston to talk, it would seem that he is indeed interested in Boston. Perhaps playing with Kevin Garnett may hold some amount of interest for Oden. It would seem to me that that opportunity would interest any young center. For now, it's just a meeting. But it's something intriguing to think about.

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The Celtics, now 23-23, will play their toughest game this week tomorrow afternoon against the Clippers. The Clippers are a terrific 34-14 and third place in the western conference. Personally, I think they are the favorite to win the title. Remember, there's no Jared Sullinger, so it'll be tough. Here are tomorrow's five things:

5. KEEP BARBOSA HOT:
Leandro Barbosa has really stepped up since Rondo went down. Against the Magic, Barbosa had a solid 12 points and 4 assists. He just needs to keep this up and he'll be a fan favorite.

4. GET BRADLEY HOT:
Unlike most players on the team, Avery Bradley has struggled recently. Last night, he had just six points on three of nine shooting. He needs to turn it around quickly.

3. GIVE TERRY A FEW MORE SHOTS:
Jason Terry had 12 points on 4/8 shooting against Orlando. He has slowly gotten better in recent weeks and I expect him to stay on track. I think he deserves a few more shots now that he's turning it around.

2. HAVE A GOOD START:
Pat Summit once said that you can't win a game in the first half, but that you can lose one. The Clippers are a very good team, and the Celtics must make sure to stay in the game. I say make sure you aren't outscored by more than five in the opening quarter.

1. PLAY HARD:
The Celtics are in the middle of a very up and down season. Right now, they are on a hot steak. They have a tough opponent and they will have to really want a victory if they are to get one.

Tip-off for tomorrow's game is at 1:00 pm ET. Live Game Updates will be available here.
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Tommy has been saying all year that the Celtics need to run more and pass more and advance the ball quicker. He was always frustrated with Rondo walking the ball up. He's enjoying the way this Celtics team is playing out of necessity with Rondo gone. As a matter of fact, so am I. They are running, advancing the ball quickly with the pass, and getting into the paint more. I hope they keep it up.

Tonight's Honey Dew List: "Keep the diversity going, they were so successful w/ all those guys scoring multiple figures, and limit the 3's!"
— Tommy Heinsohn (@CSNTommy) February 2, 2013

I know that Orlando isn't a great rebounding team, but it was kind of exciting to at least see the Celtics as a team putting out effort on the boards. When they work at it, they do pretty well. It's frustrating when they stand around and not go after them. I think they know now that each one of them have to work at it. Again, I hope they keep it up.

2 early OREBs for Boston. Mike: "Don't get too excited, Orlando's not a great rebounding team." "It is what it is when it is that."
— Tommy Heinsohn (@CSNTommy) February 2, 2013

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What would a Comments post be without a wheelchair mention and some officiating complaints.   Seems like they are in every thread.  Love that our bench is producing so well these past few games.   I was stuck with the Magic feed last night.  I missed Mike and Tommy but even worse, they kept getting the names of the Celtics wrong.   I've highlighted my favorites.  What are yours? 

Baby's gonna come out on a wheelchair and prove his old team, and us, wrong.

Paul Pierce's wheelchair?

Not only is Rondo out for the season for Boston... …it was announced today that rookie forward Jared Sullinger underwent back surgery Friday and will also miss the rest of the season.

Right... Sullinger was red-flagged too before the draft because of his back I’m glad the Magic didn’t draft him.

I liked him, but I’m glad that we got Nicholson over Sullinger. Mostly the same player, one has a back problem and the other doesn’t though.

Bradley is so pesky. I love it
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The Celtics won their third consecutive game Friday night at the Garden. Any anti-Celtic NBA fan will say that it was just against the Magic, but I'm proud of them. They really persevered today after the horrible news that Sullinger will miss the rest of the season. They are now an ok 23-23 and still eighth place in the conference. It could be better, but I'm fine with it.

Tonight's USOTN goes to the performance of Leandro Barbosa. Barbosa's 12 points was tied for the third most on the team. His solid performance was one of many, but his sticks out. He was given no playing time, was accused of asking for a trade, was completely ignored by the fan base, yet answered the call of duty. When his team needed him, he stepped up. He is a great team player.

The Celtics also did nicely in the head-to-head stats. For example, they out-rebounded the Magic 38-37. Along with that, both them and Orlando had 14 turnovers. The C's managed to shoot 50% from the field to the Magic's 37.9%. Boston shot a decent 22.2% from three point range, while the Magic shot just 15.8%.
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6:54: The Celtics may win tonight but they have had an overall bad day. They have released news that, following back surgery, rookie Jared Sullinger will miss the rest of the season. This is the second time in the last five days that a star player has gone down, following Sunday's announcement that Rondo will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. On the bright side, they have a pretty easy opponent tonight in the 14-31 Magic. I expect them to win, but the long term effect of today will cause plenty of losses. Let's just think about tonight for now, and deal with the injuries later.

8:04: The Celtics played the way they were expected to play in the first quarter. A solid performance by the C's has them up 25-18. Terry leads the Celtics with 7 points. Following him are Lee with 5 and Barbosa with 4. Nikola Vucevic leads the Magic with with 7 points.

8:36: The Celtics didn't play amazing in the second quarter, but still got the job done. Thanks to a large amount of traded baskets, the Celtics lead at halftime 46-35. Garnett now leads the Celtics with 10 points. Jeff Green and Jason Terry each have 7. Boston is out-rebounding Orlando, 27-23.

9:21: The Celtics out-scored the Magic in the second quarter, 26-24. At one point, the Magic pulled to within four, but their rally was quickly shut down by the C's. After three quarters, the Celtics lead 72-59. If they can just play decent in the fourth, they will be at .500. That's pretty good for a team who has lost two of its stars in the last week.

9:46: The Celtics have won, 97-84. It was an overall solid performance by them tonight against a pretty weak team. Jeff Green continues to improve his game, leading the Celtics tonight with 17 points. Courtney Lee, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce each had 14 points while Terry and Barbosa put in 12. The Celtics' next game is Sunday afternoon at 1:00 pm ET. They will be hosting the Clippers.
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According to a press release by the Celtics Sully has undergone successful back surgery.

The Boston Celtics announced forward Jared Sullinger underwent successful lumbar disc surgery today at the New England Baptist Hospital. Surgery was performed by the medical staff at the New England Baptist Hospital which is under the direction of Celtics Team Physician, Dr. Brian McKeon. Sullinger is expected to be ready in time for training camp for the 2013-14 season.

Yesterday, Doc said that the back spasms weren't serious. Today he has surgery. I'm wondering if they decided to go ahead and get surgery out of the way now to avoid chronic problems later. If so, it might be a smart decision. Either way, it's good news that they expect him to be ready for training camp.  I, for one, can't wait until next year's camp to get to watch this kid again!!

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Life is indeed cruel. Just as Celtics fans were starting to feel good about the rest of the season without Rondo, they get another blow that may be even tougher to take. Jared Sullinger will undergo back surgery and will miss the rest of the season. Last year it was Jeff Green and Chris Wilcox with heart surgery and this season it's Rondo's knee and Sully's back.

Sully had just moved into the starting lineup and was playing great.   He had played through some pain for the past couple of weeks and then had to leave Wednesday night's game against Sacramento in the first quarter. He missed the Celtics' practice on Thursday and Doc said he didn't think it was serious. Now, it appears that the back pain had worsened and surgery is needed. But then again, the Celtics knew it was a possibility when they drafted him. From ESPN before the draft:

Sullinger, who is projected to be a lottery pick in the draft on June 28, underwent a series of medical tests at the draft combine a week ago. A number of NBA team doctors have reviewed the information from the NBA and have told their front office staff that Sullinger's back issues could shorten his NBA career, and some have advised their teams not to draft him in the first round.

I'm very disappointed that Sully won't get to continue to play this season.    He has been a breath of fresh air for the Celtics this season.   He was fun to watch. We haven't had anyone who rebounds and bangs inside like him for a long time. I'm still glad the Celtics took him, even with the red flags and now the surgery. He's a player and I'm hoping that the surgery will fix the problem and he'll come back next year and pick up right where he left off and have a long and productive career.  

The thoughts and prayers of Celtics nation are with both Sully and Rondo for successful surgery and a quick recovery.   

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The Celtics, after their impressive blowout win over the Kings, will host the Magic tomorrow night at the TD Garden. The Magic are not the team we are used to seeing. Now that Howard is in L.A., this team has fallen apart. They are a horrible 14-31, but they're still an NBA team. The C's still have to play hard. Here's tomorrow's 5 things:

5. KEEP GETTING CONTRIBUTIONS FROM LEE:
Courtney Lee has had good game after good game recently. He seems to be filling in for Rondo nicely. He had just nine points Wednesday night, but that's still helping.

4. HAVE BRADLEY MAKE HIS SHOTS:
In Wednesday night's win, Bradley shot just 4/11 from the field. This is not what they need from him. Eventually the schedule will get harder and they'll need him to shoot at least 50% every night.

3. BETTER EFFORT ON THE OFFENSIVE BOARDS:
If the Celtics are going to win consistently, they will need to get more second chance shots. On Wednesday night against the Kings, the Celtics were out-rebounded offensively 12-6. This needs improvement.

2. REBOUND ON THE DEFENSIVE BOARDS:
On Wednesday night, the Celtics out-rebounded Sacramento 32-27. This is solid, and I'm not going to criticize it. Just keep it up. They are very good with the duo of KG and Sully.

1. GET ONE BIG QUARTER:
If they can manage to have just dominate quarter, they will win. Against the Kings, it was just one big quarter that dictated the outcome of the game. Take away that second quarter, and we would've seen a long rant in last night's USOTN post.

Tip-off for tomorrow's game is at 7:30 pm ET. Live Game Updates will be available here.
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On Wednesday night the Celtics faced the Kings in what might have been the last time a Sacramento team comes to the TD Garden. The Celtics looked to begin the first chapter of their season without Rajon Rondo who was diagnosed with a torn ACL after pregame warm-ups Sunday. The Kings came to town amidst a potential relocation to Seattle and looked to get their second win over the Celtics, this time on the road.

The biggest question coming into tonight's game was whether or not the Celtics can still be a playoff team without their leader in Rondo. The Celtics have a surplus of guards on the roster yet no pure point guards who can quarterback the offensive. Doc made it clear the team would look to play a "point guard free" offense where everyone handles the ball and looks to feed the open man. The Celtics came out on a mission to show fans and naysayers alike they're still going to compete at a high level and did just that winning 99-81 over the Kings.
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The Celtics have proudly won two in a row. Tonight's game was a kind of competitive first half followed by a boring second half. The Celtics overcame a first quarter deficit with a huge second quarter where they outscored Sacramento 37-14. After that, they didn't even have to try. Now just one more win and they'll be even at 23-23.

Tonight's USOTN is a simple one. It takes no basketball knowledge but I still found it interesting. In tonight's game, despite winning by 18, the Celtics were outscored in three out of four quarters. Just look at the stats. The Kings outscored the Celtics in the first quarter 24-22, in the third quarter 22-21, and in the fourth quarter 21-19. It's not like the Celtics were getting blown out or anything, but we still must be thankful that there are second quarters in NBA games.

Tonight Paul Pierce had another nice game, leading the Celtics with 16 points. Following him was KG with 13, and Green/Terry with 12. The Celtics were out rebounded in tonight's game, 39-38. Boston also shot 53.4% from the field to Sacramento's 39.2%. At this point in time, I think that panic time is officially over.
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According to Marc Stein on ESPN, the Memphis Grizzlies have agreed to trade Rudy Gay to the Toronto Raptors in a trade that also involves the Detroit Pistons.

The Memphis Grizzlies and Toronto Raptors have agreed in principle on a trade that will send leading scorer Rudy Gay to the Raptors, according to sources with knowledge of the deal.

Sources told ESPN.com the Grizzlies will acquire forward Ed Davis and veteran guard Jose Calderon from the Raptors and then move Calderon to a third team to ultimately make this a three-team deal.

The Detroit Pistons, sources said, are one of the prime options to take on Calderon, having pursued the Spanish floor leader all season.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Pistons have agreed to send Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye to the Grizzlies to acquire Calderon as part of the trade.

Memphis, sources said, is also expected to receive a second-round pick from Toronto as part of the deal.

The Raptors, sources said, are expected to take on Grizzlies reserve center Hamed Haddadi in addition to Gay.

This will be an emotional trade as players like Rudy Gay, Jose Calderon,  and Tayshaun Prince have played for the same team their entire careers with the same team and it will be hard for them leaving.  This is of particular interest to Celtics fans as it now puts to rest all the rumors of trading Paul Pierce for Rudy Gay.  At the end of the day,  I'm happy the Captain is still a Celtic.  He has earned the right to finish his career in Boston.   

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7:04: The Celtics, coming off their great win over the Heat, will host the Kings tonight. Obviously, there will be no Rondo due to his torn ACL. We will likely see Bradley, Lee, and Terry share the point guard position. The Kings are a weak 17-29 and not favored to win this game. I think this game will be close but I pick the Celts to pull it out. Keep checking back here after each quarter for updates.

8:09: In the first quarter, we saw a competitive Celtics team. Despite being outscored 24-22, they are looking very good after 12 minutes. Eventually they'll pass the Kings for the lead. I predicted this game to be close, and so far I'm right. Enjoy the second quarter.

8:38: The Celtics played terrific in the second quarter. After a somewhat bad first period, the Celtics completely dominated the Kings. In the quarter, the C's outscored the Kings 37-14 and now lead at halftime, 59-38. Garnett leads the C's with 11. Jeff Green has 10.

10:20: The Celtics have won. It wasn't really a statement game, but it was a start to a possible turnaround. Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 16 points. Garnett chipped in a nice 13. Stay right here at CG, post game as USOTN coming soon.
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The Celtics just the beat the Heat are now getting ready to face the Kings. The Kings are just 17-29 and third-to-last place in the conference. The Celtics, after their great win on Sunday, are 21-23 and eighth place in the eastern conference. Tonight will also be the Celtics second game without Rondo, so they'll need to find a replacement for him who can produce. That's number five on today's five things, here are the other four:

4. KEEP GETTING GREAT EFFORT FROM SULLINGER:
Despite not scoring a ton, Jared Sullinger played terrific on Sunday. If a few more passes went his way, he would've scored more. We'll just have to sit back and relax with this guy because we know that he'll do awesome.

3. KEEP GETTING GREAT EFFORT FROM BARBOSA:
Leandro Barbosa, while attempting to fill in for Rondo, came out with his best game of the season on Sunday. Barbosa, according to ABC's commentators, was the Celtics MVP of the first half. He needs to do that again.

2. HOPE PIERCE PLAYS WELL AGAIN:
If Paul Pierce can play the way he did against the Heat, the Celtics will win. He was very clutch but still hasn't quite turned it around. A good game tonight would complete that.

1. TRY HARD:
They have some momentum, they need to keep it. If they play lazy tonight then the Heat game would turn out as a huge waste of time. Tonight, in my opinion, is a must win game.

Tip-off for tonight's game will be at 7:30 pm ET. Live Game Updates will be available here.
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The Celtics had a tough past week. Their losing streak extended to six games and on Sunday received news that Rajon Rondo suffered a torn ACL and would be out for the rest of the season. Things started off on a sour note in their losses to Detroit and Cleveland yet Sully put together solid performances, particularly at the Cavs as he finished with a double-double. The Maine Red Claws also had a tough week going 1-2. Previous to last week they held the top spot in the D-League with a record of 16-8. They gave up the top spot to the Bakersfield Jam yet still sit on top in the Eastern division.
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It sure was nice to do comments for a win finally.   Heat fans spend more time trashing their own team than they do cheering for them. I guess that's the nature of bandwagon fans. I love how they say KG is finished and then say they wish Bosh played more like KG.   It was nice to see the Heat fans not gloating over Rondo's injury and wishing him a quick recovery.   I've highlighted my favorites.  What are yours? 

Boston has been trash lately but you just know they are going to give it their best against the HEAT.

Ray Allen 10/10 from 3 and gets beer poured on his head on the way out

I don't simply want the win... I want to blow these guys out!!

Boston is sucking right now, but honestly, they bring their A+ game against us EVERY TIME. Especially in their building, and the fact that it's Ray's return?!



im expecting Ray to come in to a chorus of boos. I think the guys are going to want this one pretty bad, even if just for Ray.
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            The storyline should have been Ray Allen's return, a matchup between two Eastern Conference powers  or Lebron James's first game in Boston since his game 6 assault. Instead it's about an ACL, a team left without it's leader and the possibility of the KG era ending in Boston. Times are certainly becoming bleak in Celtics nation as season crippling moments are just piling on and the promise of tomorrow is fading away. Before we explore the team going forward fan's should examine the truly inspiring battle witnessed today in the Garden.

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The Celtics, despite losing Rondo for the season, won today's game. It took then two overtimes, but I'll take it. This was all defense for both teams, as the final score was just 100-98. Garnett led the Celtics with 24 points, followed by Pierce with 17 and Terry with 13. Lebron led the Heat with 34 points, followed by Allen with 21 and Wade with 17.

Today's USOTN goes to the performance of Leandro Barbosa. Barbosa had a great game as he had 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists. There is a chance that Barbosa will be Rondo's replacement along with Lee and Bradley. He played very hard today and I'm surprised that his stats weren't better. Thanks for the effort, Leandro.

It is impossible to predict what will happen to the Celtics without Rondo. It really depends on what Danny Ainge thinks. Is this a lost season? Can they still make a title run? Should they make a trade, or stick with what they have? We will just have to wait for the season to unfold.
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 Rondo didn't start against the Heat and word was that he was sent to the hospital for an MRI for a suspected hyperextended knee.   Rondo is back in the building and the report is that he has a torn ACL.    As can be expected, Rondo didn't want to speak to the media.  That's a lot to digest for him.   This changes everything for the Celtics at this point.   Danny has some serious thinking to do about what direction to take the team in now.    More news when it becomes available.

According to a team official, the four-time All-Star suffered the right knee injury against Atlanta in the fourth quarter on Friday.    Thinking maybe Danny should give Delonte West a call. 

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12:16: The Celtics, coming off their embarrassing loss in Atlanta, will head home to face the Heat. The Heat, along with Benedict Allen, are 28-12 and first place in the eastern conference. The Celtics, on the other hand, are just 20-23 and have lost six in a row. However, on the bright side, they are eighth place in the conference and two games ahead of the ninth place Sixers. This game will be tough but it could end up being a turning point in the season. We'll just have to see. Keep checking back here after every quarter for updates. Enjoy the game.

1:31: It couldn't been worse. The Heat got off to a quick start and are leading after the first quarter, 26-22. Ray Allen has just two points in five minutes so far. Bosh leads the Heat with 10 points. Garnett leads the Celtics with 5 points.

2:04: The Celtics played like it was the conference finals in the second quarter. Because of great effort on both ends of the court, the Celtics outscored the Heat 23-19 in the quarter and are now tied at the half, 45-45. Leandro Barbosa has had a terrific game with 7 points and 3 assists. Garnett still leads the Celtics with 9 points. Bosh still leads the Heat with 12 points. Imagine what a boost it would be for this team to beat their arch rival in Allen's return to Boston.

2:11: What you are about the hear may shock you. I am not kidding when I say that. The news that was brought in just a few minutes ago made my heart skip a beat. As anyone who watched the first half noticed, Rondo has not played. He is out today with a "hyper-extended knee." Now, according to the Boston Herald, the Celtics are fearing that Rondo has a torn ACL. Again, they are just fearing. But just the possibility of something so horrible happening is scaring me.

2:50: Well, it's official. Rondo has a torn ACL. In the third quarter, the Celtics were outscored 23-19 and now trail 68-64. A lot of cheap fouls being called on the Celtics and none on Miami. So it's basically your average Miami Heat game. All the calls go their way yet they barely win.

4:06: The Celtics have won. What a story we have read today. Their star player tears his ACL, yet they still pull it out. The final score in double overtime: Celtics 100, Heat 98. Garnett leads the C's with 24 points. Stay here, post game and USOTN coming soon.
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