LOS ANGELES - While taking a late-morning cab ride downtown for yesterday's big game against the Lakers, Glen Davis and Ray Allen couldn't help but reflect on life after the scare Davis had last Sunday.
Davis played yesterday for the first time since being involved in a three-car accident he caused by sliding on a patch of ice while en route to Boston for Sunday's game against New York. The second-year forward missed two games after the accident, but the coaching and training staff cleared him to play.
In the 92-83 loss to the Lakers, the 6-foot-9-inch, 289-pounder finished with 4 points and 4 rebounds in 13 minutes.
"Any serious accident you get into is scary," said Davis, who suffered from headaches in the days after the crash. "You just got to appreciate life and really understand the reason why you are here. I am always thankful that no one got seriously injured."
While Allen routinely gets to the arena early on game day, Davis joined him earlier than usual to take some shots, run sprints, and get rid of some rust.
"We just were talking off-the-court stuff," Allen said. "I just told him that you know how the world can change, your life can change. We always have to be prepared for whatever changes that are presented to us."
Davis expressed strong appreciation for the concern the Celtics showed for him following the accident. He added that he didn't have any major physical problems as a result of it.
"You're going to be bruised up a little bit, but that's the game," said Davis. "I play with bruises every day."
Asked about his return to action, Davis said, "I felt good. I felt a little rusty at first, but then I got back in the groove."
Hashing it out
While the Celtics have a growing reputation for trash talking their opponents, they had an internal battle going against the Lakers. Following an Allen turnover on a wild pass intended for
Rajon Rondo with 7:47 left in the third quarter, the two Boston guards got into a heated discussion. With the Lakers coming back on offense,
Paul Pierce pulled Allen away and pushed him toward his defensive assignment to end the verbal dispute. Rondo said the Celtics had a spirited debate during a second-half timeout, too. "We are so competitive, we want to win," said Rondo, who had 6 points and a game-high 12 assists. "We've got to get past that because it's not like us. It's not like the usual Celtics." Said
Kevin Garnett, "We argue every night. That's why I think we're so good and that's why we've been able to mesh so early. We do voice our opinion. Tonight's no different just because it was Christmas or an ABC game. Our communication is our strength, whether it's arguing or a small quarrel. But the fact that we are all talkative and do voice our opinions is the strength of this team."
Star gazing
Garnett is still on pace to be an Eastern Conference All-Star starter after the second balloting returns, which were released yesterday. Cleveland's
LeBron James is leading East forwards with 1,259,764 votes, while Garnett is second with 905,506. Nets forward
Yi Jianlian, aided by votes from his native China, is third (762,162), Toronto's
Chris Bosh is fourth, and Pierce is fifth. Allen is fourth among East guards with 354,642 votes, but Rondo didn't have enough to rank among the top 11.
Kendrick Perkins is 10th among centers with 54,772. Following the completion of fan voting for starters, the head coaches in each conference will vote Jan. 29 to determine the remaining All-Stars.
Blue Christmas
Though the Celtics were on the road on Christmas Day, Pierce and
Gabe Pruitt are from Los Angeles, Garnett has an offseason home in nearby Malibu, and
Sam Cassell and
Eddie House have local ties from their days with the Clippers. But coach
Doc Rivers and other members of the team couldn't help but miss family members on the holiday. The Celtics celebrated Christmas during a team dinner in San Francisco last night. Rivers said they didn't have the dinner Christmas Eve in Los Angeles because he didn't want to take Pierce, Garnett, and Pruitt away from their families. "Obviously, I'd rather have [the game] in Boston," Rivers said. "That's how it should be since we were the team that won [the championship]. But it's not a big deal. [Christmas Eve] was a tough night. When you're in your room by yourself and your family is at home having Christmas Eve dinner - and that's our tradition at our house since we've been there - that's tough. You're sitting in your room and you're thinking, 'What do you do?' You're just sitting there watching bad TV."
Packing the house
Pierce got 43 tickets for family and friends. He joked that it was easy to find tickets upstairs and that "everybody could come to the Clippers game." . . . Rondo wore Christmas commemorative
Nike Blue Chips that had red laces, green trim, and Santa Claus on the tongue. Several other Celtics also had sneakers with Christmas colors. On their uniforms, the Celtics and Lakers wore commemorative NBA Christmas patches in the shape of a snowflake.
Marc J. Spears can be reached at mspears@globe.com
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