WALTHAM -- When Celtics coach Doc Rivers watched Warriors guard Stephen Curry’s 54-point performance, including all 11 triples against the Knicks on Wednesday night, he rooted for every shot to fall.

“Make ‘em all, that’s my thought,” he said before Thursday's practice. “Make ‘em all. It’s like golf. When a guy shoots a 61, which none of us could do, they hopefully don’t follow it up with another one, so I just wanted him to keep making all of them.”

As Curry attempts to recreate the magic against the Celtics on Friday, Rivers will respond with the defensive answer to an offensive talent he called "the best shooter in our league" on Dennis & Callahan Thursday: Avery Bradley.

“In my eyes, he’s probably the best on-the-ball defender in the NBA,” said Celtics captain Paul Pierce. “I’d be very surprised if he didn’t make the All-Defensive Team.”

Bradley ranks ninth among NBA players in points allowed per possession (0.68), according to Synergy Sports Technology. Opponents are shooting just 31.2 percent on 189 attempts against him.

“I think every great team needs a player like that, especially a great defensive team,” added Pierce. “With so many great scorers in this league and great individual play, you need that one guy who can go out there and kind of slow those types of guys down. We have that in Avery Bradley.”

The only other guard from last year’s two NBA All-Defensive Teams that allows fewer than 0.80 points per possession is Rajon Rondo, whose season-ending knee injury likely precludes him from earning any accolades this spring. Returning First Teamers Tony Allen and Chris Paul allow 0.80 and 0.86 points per possession (PPP), ranking 78th and 175th, respectively. Rondo’s Second Team All-Defensive backcourt mate Kobe Bryant allows 0.82 PPP and ranks 100th.

In fact, Bradley owns the best PPP numbers of any player who received an NBA All-Defensive vote last season. Iman Shumpert, Paul George, Russell Westbrook, Dwyane Wade, Thabo Sefolosha, Mike Conley, Derrick Rose and Jrue Holiday all earned votes in 2011-12 and none compare to Bradley in that regard this year. Among those guys, Shumpert has the next-best PPP average (0.76), and he’s played fewer games than the Celtics guard since returning from injury.

Of that group, Allen, George and Conley own better defensive ratings than Bradley, according to NBA.com/stats. Then again, so does Kirk Hinrich. Bradley captured just one First Team All-Defensive vote and a Second Team bid from the league’s 30 coaches last year, and that number should climb this season if those same coaches’ in-game approach to the C's stickler is any indication.

“They’re picking him now,” said Rivers. “They’re getting him off [his assignments], and that’s what they should do, but it’s nice to have a guy that can pressure the ball. I don’t know if Avery’s going to shut down everyone, but I know he’s going to give you the attempt to pressure, and ball pressure is important.

“I just use a football analogy: If you didn’t blitz Tom Brady and you just let him sit back there all day, he’s going to pick you apart. It’s the same in basketball. If you let the passers just sit there with no pressure, they’re going to pick you apart. And Avery is our blitzer.”

That approach has ripple effects that trickle down the roster. After ranking in the middle of the NBA pack in defensive efficiency for the first two months of the season, the Celtics have climbed to ninth overall thanks to Bradley’s return from double shoulder surgery on Jan. 2.

“He’s shown a willingness to sacrifice so much,” said Pierce. “I believe he can give us a lot more offensively, but he’s so great on the defensive end that it has an impact on this whole team. You don’t have to double as much, you don’t have to give as much help when you’ve got a guy like that who can defend at a high level.”

Bradley also forces opposing ballhandlers to dribble a few extra seconds off the shot clock before getting into their offense.

“That’s been the key to our defense,” said Rivers. “You think about the Jazz game and the size advantage they had. As the game went on, they went less and less to the post, because they didn’t have enough time. Avery singlehandedly at times took them out of their post game.”

Expect three things on Friday night: 1) Stephen Curry will bring the ball up the floor, 2) the Warriors will also run him off a handful of picks in hopes of getting enough open looks to put up another 54 points and 3) Avery Bradley will be there every step of the way.

“Some of the guys that are the best at putting the ball in the hole sometimes are going to have nights like that,” said Pierce. “Great offense trumps great defense every time, and when you’ve got a special player like that, it’s pretty tough unless you’ve got a guy like Avery Bradley on your team.”

In other words, an NBA All-Defensive guard.