25-year old starting center Kendrick Perkins will miss the next 5-6 months after having his ACL surgery yesterday. The Celtics don’t expect him back until December or January and that is a huge blow to them. Perkins really stepped up last season for the Celtics as he played in 78 games (all starts) in which he averaged 27.6 minutes, 10.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.7 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 442 games (328 starts) in his 7 years with the Celtics and he has averaged 22.2 minutes, 6.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.4 blocked shots per game.

Starting Celtics’ center Kendrick Perkins tore his MCL and ACL in his right knee which will cause him to miss the deciding game of the NBA Finals tomorrow night in L.A. Perkins has started all 23 of the Celtics’ playoff games to this point and he averaged 25.0 minutes, 5.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. The Celtics will miss Perkins’ size inside as Glen “Big Baby” Davis will likely replace him in the starting lineup. Davis has played in all 23 games (1 start) this post season for the Celtics and he is averaging 20.1 minutes, 7.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. I have little doubt that Davis can step up and have a big game for the Celtics and he is a better offensive player than Perkins so that will work in the Celtics’ advantage. Rasheed Wallace will also likely see a bump in playing time tomorrow night. He has played in 23 games (0 starts) for the Celtics this post season and he is averaging 16.3 minutes, 5.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Wallace has always stepped up the bigger the games get and I think tomorrow night qualifies as a big one.

Paul Pierce, who is the Boston Celtics’ leading scorer, returned to the lineup on Tuesday against the Detroit Pistons after missing a week due to a thumb injury.  Pierce looked a little rusty in their game against the Pistons and was not very aggressive on either end of the court.  He played 29 minutes and only had 9 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist.  Being back on the court was a great sign for the Celtics though, and Pierce bounced back very nicely last night.  He looked like his old self in the Celtics’ win over the Bobcats, and came out much more aggressively.  In only 27 minutes he lit it up for 27 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1 block en route to a Celtics 104-80 blowout win.  If this is a sign of things to come for the Pierce and the Celtics down the stretch, then they may get themselves back to the team that started the season 23-5.  Injuries and age looked like they were really starting to catch up with the Celtics, as they even lost to the 6-54 New Jersey Nets recently.  However, if they have a healthy and determined Paul Pierce back, it could change the whole dimension of their team.  Hopefully for the Celtics’ sake, last game was not a fluke for Pierce and he can get this Celtics team back on track.

Paul Pierce is listed as “day to day” but the All-Star small forward is considering taking some extended time off to heal up.  Pierce injured his thumb pretty badly against the Lakers last Thursday, but continued to play through it.  It was obvious Pierce was not healthy, with his shot struggling and his minutes drastically cut.  Pierce is also suffering from the flu and didn’t even come to the arena in the Celtics 110-106 win over the Knicks last night.  This could be a huge hit to the Celtics, who seem to be cursed with the injury bug this season.  Kevin Garnett has also missed an extended period of games this season and still does not look 100% with his weak knee.  Pierce is the Celtics’ go-to-guy and arguably their best player though.  He is averaging 17.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.2 steals, and 35.3 minutes per game.  Pierce has been shooting the ball great this season too, hitting 44% of his threes and 46% overall.  More and more signs are pointing to this Celtics dynasty coming to an end, as Rajon Rondo is the only player who is young and/or healthy out of the Celtics’ top players (Pierce, Garnett, Rondo, and Allen).

Paul Pierce, who has missed some games recently with a sprained foot, says his injury is not as bad as initially reported and that he is fine.  Pierce plans to play tonight against the New Orleans Hornets and says that he wants to participate in the All-Star game.  Pierce is also scheduled to be a part of the All-Star 3-Point Contest.  The Celtics really need Pierce to stay healthy, as he is their leading and most consistent scorer, and their best all-around player.  He is also lighting it up from outside, which is the reason why he was selected to participate in the 3-Point Contest.  This season he has played in 42 games (all starts) and is averaging 18.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 35.6 minutes.  He is shooting 47% from the field and 46% from three.  The Celtics’ staff pulled him out of practice on Monday since he was apparently hobbling around.  Pierce should not be worrying about the All-Star festivities and should put getting healthy a main priority.  The Celtics are hurting right now with Kevin Garnett not playing like his old self due to knee problems, so Pierce is that much more important to the Celtics.  In my opinion I think Pierce should sit out of at least the All-Star game itself, and maybe participate in just the 3-point Contest.  Without Paul Pierce the Celtics season would be pretty much over.