Rumors have been swirling lately about the Boston Celtics’ sharpshooter Ray Allen possibly being traded.  The big rumor is a possible trade for Monta Ellis, which would send Ray Allen to the Golden State Warriors and bring Ellis to the Celtics.  Although Ellis is younger and a prolific scorer, I don’t think he would fit in with the Celtics.  Allen has been one of the Celtics most consistent players this season, and he is not the reason for their struggles over the past month.  He was a key part of their NBA Championship in 2008 and they will need his clutch shooting come playoff time this year.  Allen is one of the best outside shooters in NBA history and although his shot has not been as good this season as it has in years past, he still has the ability to catch fire and light it up on any given night.  On the season Allen is averaging 15.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 0.9 steals on 45% shooting and 35% from three point land.  He is also a strong defender and does not have a big ego, saying publicly that he wants to stay in Boston until he retires, even if that means taking a lesser role in the near-future.  The Celtics should hold on to Allen as long as they can.

The Boston Celtics have hit the low point of their season after losing to the Detroit Pistons (15-26) last night, making it their 5th loss in 7 games.  However, you cannot blame Paul Pierce for the Celtics current losing ways.  Pierce is playing hard, leading the team in scoring, and shooting a great percentage (especially from three).  Pierce is shooting 47% from the field and 47% from three, while averaging 18.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.3 steals.  With Kevin Garnett out, the Celtics have really struggled.  He is expected to return tomorrow, but it will take some time for KG to get back into form.  In the meantime, perhaps Pierce should get some more shots since he is shooting the ball so well.  He is only averaging 12.4 shots per game and has not shot more than 19 shots in one game all season.  The Celtics’ point totals have been hovering in the 80′s and 90′s lately, so maybe it is time for Pierce to put up some more shots and take on more of the scoring load, especially with the way he has been shooting the ball this season.

Kendrick Perkins is having by far his best season with the Boston Celtics this year. He has played in 39 games (all starts) for the Celtics this season and he is averaging 29.3 minutes, 12.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.1 blocked shots per game. His shooting range seems to be expanding a little bit every game as he is hitting 63.9% of his shots from the floor this season. Perkins’ next trick should be improving his free throw shooting as he is only hitting 59.6% from the charity stripe. Perkins is looking like he and Rajon Rondo will be the major players for the Celtics down the road in the future.

Kevin Garnett could be returning for the Boston Celtics as early as this week, and this good news could not have come sooner.  The Celtics have lost two in a row and seven of their last eleven games.  They are 27-12 on the season, so over half of their losses this season have come in the past eleven games.  Garnett has been out nine of those eleven games, not playing since December 28th after hyper-extending his knee, and the Celtics have gone 5-4 without him.  Good news for the Celtics is that Garnett practiced yesterday and plans to return on Friday against the Portland Trail Blazers.  Garnett is averaging 15.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.0 blocks this season.  He is also their vocal leader and anchor on defense, so Garnett has some major intangibles for the Celtics that can’t be measured on stat-sheets.  Garnett has been battling knee problems for the past few seasons after having a relatively injury free career, and hopefully for his and the Celtics’ sake it doesn’t continue.  Garnett is only 33, but since he came into the league as an 18-year-old he has already logged 1,084 games and over 4,500 minutes in his 14-year career, so these knee problems may not go away.

The Celtics need more out of Glen “Big Baby” Davis who is off to a slow start after missing most of this season due to a broken thumb. He has played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Celtics so far this season and he is averaging 14.1 minutes, 4.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. He is only shooting 35.5% from the floor so far this year and that is very weak for a power forward who is usually shooting from close range. With Kevin Garnett hurting and Rasheed Wallace in the starting line-up the Celtics need Big Baby to step up.

Reggie Lewis was just coming into his own as a player the Celtics could build a team around when he suddenly died on July 27th, 1993 at the age of 27. He was at an off-season practice when he died of a sudden cardiac death. Lewis played 6 years for the Celtics appearing in 450 games (352 starts) in the regular season and he averaged 32.6 minutes, 17.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Lewis also played very well in the playoffs for the Celtics. He played in 42 games in his post season career and he averaged 30.4 minutes, 17.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Lewis shot 51% from the floor in the playoffs in his career and that is outstanding. Lewis is gone but not forgotten as he was a soul set free way too early from this Earth.

Rajon Rondo has finally been getting the recognition he deserves in the past year, but this guy’s numbers just keep getting better.  He was a talented rookie filled with potential, who averaged only 6.4 points, 3.8 assists, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.6 steals.  That was only a glimpse of the player Rondo would become.  He has improved his numbers every year, and is now averaging 13.5 points, 9.6 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.6 steals.  What is probably most impressive is Rondo’s field goal percentage, which improved from 41% his rookie year, to 53% this year.  Rondo still needs to his outside shot and his free throw shooting, as he is not much of threat beyond 20 feet and is hitting only 11% of his threes and 60% of his free throws.  Rondo’s athleticism counters that though, and his alleyoop finish to win the game last night against Miami with 0.6 seconds was nothing short of amazing.  There is probably only one other point guard in my mind that could come close to finishing that play, and that would be the Chicago Bulls’ guard Derrick Rose.  Those two had a great battle in last year’s playoffs, and it will be a great rivalry to watch for years to come.

The Celtics have waived rookie shooting guard Lester Hudson. Hudson played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Celtics this season and he averaged 4.4 minutes, 1.4 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists. The Celtics didn’t have much playing time to offer Hudson so they likely did him a favor by letting him go.

With Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce out of action due to injuries the Celtics really need Rasheed Wallace to step up. Wallace has played in 31 games (2 starts) this season for the Celtics and he is averaging 21.6 minutes, 9.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. But, it’s Wallace’s shooting which has been way off this season as he is only hitting 38.7% from the floor and 28.1% from three point range. He starting to look like a player who is on the downside of his career which is not good news for the Celtics who need him to step up right now.