Hobbled Perkins gets a break from practice

WALTHAM -- What a difference a week makes. Eight days ago, the Celtics showed up for practice, but there were too many injuries and not enough bodies to go around. Two days of unproductive workouts begat dreadful losses to the Bobcats and Knicks.

Yesterday, it was Small Ballapalooza. Kendrick Perkins, the only healthy center, was given the day off (and Doc Rivers said Perkins won't practice today, either) because of his sore foot (plantar fasciitis). But everyone else was able to go (minus the injured and recovering centers, Theo Ratliff and Michael Olowokandi).

"That's the first thing coach talked about when we came in," Paul Pierce said. "A lot had to do with us guys being injured and banged up. We couldn't even put 10 guys on the floor last Monday.

"It's a different case this week. We're going to rest Perkins. He's going to be there Wednesday. That's the focus we had today coming in: getting two good practices before Wednesday's game."

Rivers acknowledged he was "disappointed" by the two not-so-spiffy workouts last week. He said the coaches look ahead to practices "and I circled two great ones -- and they both were blown." He added, "We've got healthy guys [now] and, with a young team, the one thing you have to do is have practices."

As for Perkins, Rivers said, "We've got to keep him off his feet [during practices] and then, in the game, we've got to keep him on his feet."

Rivers, who saw his team perched atop the Atlantic Division standings, reminded listeners that the Celtics have won four of six, and, once again, said he sees nothing but good times ahead.

"I've been saying it for two weeks now," Rivers said. "You take two steps forward, one back, that's probably what we're going to do for a while. I'm fine with it. I like where we're going."

Pierce wore tape on his left wrist and said it was for a mild sprain suffered in the Milwaukee game Saturday night. He dismissed it as no big deal and Rivers concurred . . . Sebastian Telfair played the entire second half of the Bucks game and he was happy to talk about his performance -- from a defensive standpoint. "When I play good defense, I play good offense," he said. "That's when I'm being aggressive." Telfair also got some props from Bucks coach Terry Stotts, who said, "Sebastian Telfair disrupted the timing of the offense. We were battling the shot clock. We turned down some shots that disrupted the flow. We lost a little confidence at the offensive end, and it snowballed to the defensive end." . . . Pierce on the Celtics looking fresh Saturday on the second night of a back-to-back: "How physically tired could we be when we didn't even play Friday? We played, but how hard did we go?" . . . The Celtics might catch a break tomorrow night in that the Nets played Sunday night in Los Angeles, arrived home yesterday and have to host the Bobcats tonight. They'll have played twice since Boston last played.