Rivers, Celtics to just play along
Doc Rivers thought seriously about practicing yesterday. But that was before someone reminded him that Wally Szczerbiak was remaining behind in Minneapolis with his family. His wife delivered a daughter via C-section Monday afternoon.
Szczerbiak planned to return to Boston on a commercial flight last night, meaning he would have missed any workout the Celtics had. Without Szczerbiak in the gym, Rivers saw no point in holding a practice.
Starting with tonight against Phoenix at the TD Banknorth Garden, the Celtics will play four games over six days, including a road trip to Florida for matchups with Orlando and Miami. That means they will not have a chance to practice the way Rivers would like until next week when they have a three-day break between games.
Szczerbiak has played in three games with the Celtics and has had just one shootaround and one brief practice to familiarize himself with play calls and teammates' tendencies. And it has showed in an out-of-synch offense and a pair of road losses.
The Celtics went on the road last weekend with the second-best field goal percentage in the league (47.2 percent), then shot 39 percent (61 for 156) in losses at Milwaukee and Minnesota. Szczerbiak was a frequent visitor to the sideline as he tried to figure out where he was supposed to be, and when.
''We just have to work on continuity," said Rivers. ''We've got to get it together quick. We've got three games coming up [against the Suns and Clippers at home and the Magic on the road] and they're all tough games.
''The good news is, after the Phoenix game we'll have a practice and shootaround and we'll start being able to get it. The Phoenix game is not going to hurt us in our preparation anyway because they go small and change the way the game is played regardless. It might give us a chance to screw around with the lineup for that game."
The recent losses should not be taken as a referendum on the trade. Rivers said nothing that happened during the Minnesota loss Monday night made him change his mind about the value of the deal (''it was one bad night"). He is preaching patience, a popular watchword with the Celtics these days.
Patience with the integration of Szczerbiak. Patience with the development of the kids. Patience with regard to the team finding some consistency. Even Paul Pierce, who is playing through his prime while the Celtics rebuild, has emphasized patience in the wake of the Szczerbiak deal.
''We haven't spent a lot of time together," said Pierce. ''As time goes along, we're going to get better."
In the immediate aftermath of the trade, Pierce mentioned how important training camp would be with Szczerbiak, how that is a time of invaluable bonding. But that is far off in the distance, especially for a team that aspires to make the playoffs this season.
In the short term, Pierce is willing to sacrifice some of his offense to help Szczerbiak fit in.
In the two losses, Pierce did not have his patented offensive nights, as Szczerbiak led the Celtics in scoring both times. Pierce's struggles from the field were pronounced against Minnesota, when he went 7 for 23 and scored 21 points. Then again, the Celtics as a team shot 38 percent (30 for 79).
''I think we have pretty good chemistry," said Delonte West. ''We just couldn't get the shots to fall for us. Wally and [Michael] Olowokandi [who played for Boston for the first time against Minnesota] know how to play basketball. Even with chemistry, continuity, or whatever you want to call it, it still comes down to putting the ball in the hole."
Given what has happened recently, it would seem the Celtics are due for some shot-making.
