Celtics set to sign No. 2 choice

The Celtics will sign second-round pick (40th overall) Justin Reed today, according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein. The sides agreed to a two-year deal worth approximately $1 million. The first year is guaranteed and the team holds the option on the second. Director of basketball operations Danny Ainge announced last week that Boston planned to sign the 6-foot-8-inch forward from Mississippi.

"He's really excited about it," said Bartelstein. "He really enjoyed playing for [coach] Doc [Rivers] this summer and thought he learned a great deal. He's tremendously appreciative of the opportunity Danny is giving him. It will be impossible for someone to outwork Justin Reed. He's going to do everything he can to show it was a great decision by the Celtics."

The Celtics now have 16 players with guaranteed contracts on the roster for the 2004-05 season. Under NBA rules, teams are allowed only 15 players under contract once the regular season begins. However, that assumes both Gary Payton and Rick Fox will be in uniform. Fox, 35, is not expected to play for the Celtics primarily because his oft-injured body (left foot surgery, dislocated thumb as his latest maladies) would have trouble handling the rigors of an 82-game season.

SHIRA SPRINGER