WALTHAM - Rajon Rondo might not play. The offense is sluggish. The defense is passable, but getting lazy. What a perfect time to be seeing the hottest team in the NBA!
That's the state of affairs for the Celtics, who will try to snap their first losing streak of the season tonight when they host the Trail Blazers, who merely are 18-2 in their last 20 games and are the surprise leaders of the NBA's Northwest Division with a 23-14 record. As coach Doc Rivers put it yesterday, "They're playing better than anyone in the NBA right now. Our record is better. But Portland is playing better. So, it's a good test."
But maybe not a fair one, as the valuable Rondo was held out of practice yesterday with his combo bad back/hamstring. Rivers said it was "50-50" whether Rondo would play. Rondo himself said it was the proverbial "game-time decision."
He is missed. He sat out Saturday's game against the Wizards and the Celtics put up 78 points, a season low. He played less than a half on Monday night and the Celtics exploded for 83 points, with one field goal (a third-chance tip-in) in the final 6:22.
The sore back came courtesy of a spill last Friday night in New Jersey. The hamstring has been bothering him longer; he sat out the Dec. 30 game against the Lakers because of it. As Rondo put it yesterday, "If it's not one thing, it's the other. [I'm] still stiff from that fall I had the other night. The hamstring probably takes time."
The Celtics have no reliable backup for Rondo, which, Rivers acknowledged, is not exactly a bell-ringer.
"It's been that way all year," he said.
Neither Tony Allen nor Eddie House has Rondo's expertise, speed, craftiness, or point-guard mentality. Rivers said he might decide to use rookie Gabe Pruitt instead. Pruitt has generally been either inactive this season or playing for the Utah Flash in the D-League. He last appeared in a Celtics uniform a week ago, making a 31-second cameo against the Bobcats.
"One thing Gabe gives us is the shot," Rivers said. "He can shoot the ball. We need that."
They do indeed. Their once high-octane offense has sputtered in the New Year, resulting in only one triple-figure game (an even 100 points against the Grizzlies). They've had only six games of 89 points or fewer, but, in their last four, they haven't even gotten past 86. Kevin Garnett spoke Monday night about the team losing some of its energy and spunk, and Rivers echoed that yesterday.
"We started our offense [with] 12, 10 [seconds left on the shot clock]," Rivers said. "Then we showed them a quarter of a game earlier this year where the lowest we started the offense was 17. You can see the difference.
"[In the old tape] they were sprinting up the floor. They were running up the floor. They were running into their sets. Of late, they're kind of getting into it and thinking the offense will take care of itself. And it won't."
Defensively, Rivers sees far too much switching. In fact, if he sees any switching, that's not a good thing.
"We don't switch," he said. "So, if you see switches, that means [we're making mistakes]. We had so many times [against the Wizards] where the wrong guy was guarding a guy because it's easier to switch. We got away from what we trust defensively."
Losing their edge
Rivers said one possible explanation for the team's play of late is a cutback in practice time. He did it after consulting with the bosses and the veterans, in hopes that players won't be fatigued at season's end. The immediate result, however, has been play that shows, well, a distinct lack of practice. "I told the guys it was going to hurt us more than you think," Rivers said. "Veterans think it's not going to hurt them, but in watching the film, they were shocked at the difference of our execution - at both ends. That's what no practices does. We'd still do it the same way, but they now understand you have to have great focus when you are getting more rest." . . . Celtics fans will get their first look at sophomore phenom Brandon Roy, who is putting himself into the MVP discussion. He missed the game in Boston last year with an injury. Old friend Raef LaFrentz also will be making a return to his former digs. He is used sparingly (128 minutes over 16 games).Missing persons
Film from Monday's Washington game revealed that the Celtics missed 18 wide-open jump shots. "Before I saw the tape, I didn't see [the open shots]; then you watch the tape and go, 'Wow,' " said Rivers. "That was a lot of shots we didn't make and the right guys taking them. You can live with that. But we have to play at a better pace." . . . The Blazers are 1-1 in this seven-game Eastern swing. They lost to Toronto in double overtime Sunday, then clobbered the Nets Monday. The Raptors and Jazz are the only teams to beat the Blazers in the last six weeks.Peter May can be reached at p_may@globe.com.
