The Celtics are glad that they have 34-year old power forward Kevin Garnett back in action.  In his first four games back from injury, K.G. is averaging 30.3 minutes, 17.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  He has now played in 34 games (all starts) for the Celtics this year and he is averaging 31.5 minutes, 15.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 steals per game.  Getting Garnett back for the starting lineup improves the Celtics because it allows Glen Davis to go back to the bench where he’s more comfortable.

24-year old point guard Rajon Rondo has really stepped up this season when healthy.  He has been the ultimate playmaker on offense as he would rather dish a pass to another Celtics player than take his own shot.  Rondo has played in 27 games (all starts) for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 37.5 minutes, 10.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 13.4 assists and 2.5 steals per game.  Rondo is shooting 51.6% from the floor as he is getting to the basket a lot this year.  But, he is only shooting 27.3% from three point range and 43.5% from the free throw line as he leaves a few points on the floor every night.  If he could get his free throw shooting up to 70% he might be the best point guard in the league.  Rondo is also an excellent defensive player as he almost always shuts down the opposing point guard.  Rondo is the player the Celtics can least afford to lose and it showed on the court when he missed a few games earlier this year due to injury.

38-year old center Shaquille O’Neal still appears to have a lot left in his gas tank.  He has played in 24 games (all starts) for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 21.5 minutes, 10.2 points, 5.4 rebounds,  0.6 assists per game and 1.0 blocked shot per game.  He is shooting a stunning 66.9% from the floor so far this year but only 57% from the free throw line.  Shaq still has a lot to offer if the Celtics keep playing him around 20-25 minutes per night so that he doesn’t wear out or get injured.

With Rajon Rondo injured and Nate Robinson not being a pass first point guard, Paul Pierce has been essentially running the “point” from his forward spot.  In his last five games, the 33-year old Pierce is averaging 38.0 minutes, 18.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game.  He has now played in 28 games (all starts) for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 35.4 minutes, 18.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.  Pierce has really stepped up when the Celtics needed him to as his all around game seems to keep getting better with age.

34-year old power forward Kevin Garnett has really been on his game lately.  In his last five games, Garnett is averaging 32.0 minutes, 17.4 points, 12.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  K.G. is shooting 54.2% from the floor and 92% from the free throw line in his last five games.  Garnett has now played in 20 games (all starts) for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 32.6 minutes, 15.6 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game.  The Celtics are going to need to start watching Garnett’s minutes when they start getting their other big men healthy.

29-year old SG/SF Marquis Daniels is off to a decent start for the Celtics this year.  He has played in 17 games (0 starts) for the Celtics and he is averaging 18.2 minutes, 5.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  Daniels is also shooting well as he is hitting 49.3% of his shots from the floor so far this year.  Daniels has taken over Tony Allen’s old role and he is giving the Celtics quality minutes off the bench.

38-year old center Shaquille O’Neal has looked like his old self in his last three games, averaging 25.0 minutes, 18.0 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.0 steal per game.  Overall, the “Big Shamrock” has played in 11 games (all starts) in which he is averaging 22.7 minutes, 12.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game.  Shaq Daddy is trying to lay claim to the starting job at center while Jermaine O’Neal & Kendrick Perkins are out of action.

33-year old Paul Pierce, 35-year old Ray Allen and 34-year old Kevin Garnett are all still playing at a very high level so far this year for the Boston Celtics. Pierce has started 10 games for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 37.5 minutes, 21.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. Pierce is still the best all around offensive player for the Celtics not named Rondo. Ray Allen has also given the Celtics a nice boost this year as he is averaging 39.7 minutes, 18.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. He is still the best shooter the Celtics have to offer from long range. Kevin Garnett is still the enforcer under the basket for the Celtics. He has also played in all 10 games for the Celtics this year and he is averaging 34.8 minutes, 15.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game. Doc Rivers is going to want to start watching the minutes for the Big Three because he doesn’t want to burn them out as the NBA season is a very long one.

The Celtics have a lot of injuries along the front line to start the year so they needed someone off the bench to step up. 24-year old power forward Glen “Big Baby” Davis has answered the call. He has played in all 6 games (0 starts) for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 30.2 minutes, 13.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He is also shooting 57.1% from the floor so his shooting looks improved this year. I think Davis has grown up over last summer as he realized he let the Celtics down a little bit last season due to his off the court issues.

24-year old point guard Rajon Rondo has hit the ground running this year. Rondo has started 3 games for the Celtics so far this year and he is averaging 41.7 minutes, 10.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 16.7 assists and 2.0 steals so far this year. Rondo continues to make everyone on the Celtics whole team better, as he would rather create an easy basket with a pass than putting up his own shots. Rondo is also a great rebounder and defender for his size and he brings those skills every single night to the Celtics.