Add Paul Pierce’s strained left foot to a laundry list of injuries faced by the Celtics this season.
The C’s have been battling broken bones, sprains, surgeries, and soreness since the start of the season. Tony Allen, Glen Davis, Brian Scalabrine and Bill Walker began the season on the sidelines. And the injuries extended beyond the bench — Kevin Garnett was still working his way back on to the court after undergoing knee surgery last year.
This season, there has been a theme of playing past the pain. As of Tuesday night, the Celtics have missed nearly 110 games due to injuries, and that number will continue to rise: Pierce is listed as day-to-day and Marquis Daniels is still rehabbing from thumb surgery.
Here’s how injuries have affected the C’s this season:
Tony Allen (21 games missed): Allen underwent right ankle surgery in June and made an unexpected return on October 9 for preseason action against the Knicks. He played eight minutes and credited the Celtics coaching staff for getting him back on the court. But after the game he noted his ankle was sore, adding, “I can’t be [psychic Miss] Cleo in this situation to tell you how I’m going to be tomorrow.” Turns out, Allen’s injury was not behind him. He missed the next 20 games with a sore ankle. (The Celtics went 16-4.) Allen sat out on January 10 with the flu before going against his reputation of being injury prone to play some of the best basketball of his career.
Marquis Daniels (26 games missed): When the Celtics looked to improve their second unit during the offseason, Daniels’ signing was considered one of the biggest steals of the summer. But while his positive contributions on the court followed him to Boston, so did his trouble with injuries. Daniels tore a ligament in his left thumb early in the season but played through the pain before undergoing surgery. His absence since December 8 has been a blow to a Celtics bench that has been called upon with injured starters. (They are 14-12 without him.) Once Daniels returns, the C’s can look forward to him giving both Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo a rest. He will also help Eddie House, whose offensive stats have dropped this season, find his shot by relieving him of the ball handling duties. The question is, how will Doc Rivers utilize both Daniels and the recently streaking Tony Allen?
Glen Davis (28 games missed): In his first season under a new contract, Davis got off to a troubling start when he broke his right thumb during a fight. The injury sidelined him for the first 27 games (the Celtics went 22-5) and did more than just damage his hand — it also damaged his reputation. Davis redeemed himself when he fought through a right ankle sprain and missed just one game in late December. But after getting into a verbal altercation with a fan in Detroit last month, his initial thumb injury has resurfaced as a question of Davis’ maturity and focus this season.
Kevin Garnett (11 games missed): It would have been unrealistic to expect that Kevin Garnett would come back in full force after undergoing knee surgery last year. It was also unrealistic to expect him to play all 82 games. (He had not done so since the 2004-05 season.) However his time off came earlier than expected. Garnett missed his first game on December 22 with a sore right thigh (the Celtics beat the Pacers by nine). Less than two weeks later, he was sidelined with a hyper-extended right knee. The C’s went 4-6 without their defensive leader and got a glimpse of the reality they faced with an injured KG.
J.R. Giddens (N/A): The Celtics recalled Giddens from the Maine Red Claws prior to last Friday’s game against the Hawks as a procedural move. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee on Tuesday to repair a knee injury suffered while playing in the NBADL. Giddens expects to miss three to four weeks. Although the Celtics had sent Giddens to Maine to get playing time, chances are he could have been called up in Pierce’s absence. Giddens received his first NBA start last month when Pierce was sidelined.
Eddie House (1 game missed): The Celtics battled a bout with the flu in early January. In addition to Tony Allen missing a game, House also sat out with flu-like symptoms on January 6. The C’s, however, pulled off a win over the Heat.
Paul Pierce (5 games missed): The funny thing about Pierce’s injuries is that they don’t usually seem that bad at first. After scoring 21 points in 40 minutes against the Pacers on December 22, Pierce began experiencing swelling in his right knee at home. “It went from just kind of hurting to sore to bad to extreme in like a 15-minute period, which was crazy,” he said.” Doctors detected an infection in his knee and he underwent two surgeries two clean it out. The C’s beat the Magic on Christmas Day without him, but were swept on a three-game West Coast road trip. Even though they bounced back to beat the Raptors on January 2, the 2-3 stretch makes his current injury even more worrisome.
Rajon Rondo (1 game missed): The point guard is perhaps the most vulnerable position in the Celtics rotation. Without a true back up, Rondo’s strained left hamstring in early January was a cause for concern. However Tony Allen stepped in and scored 14 points and 7 assists in Rondo’s absence. This was yet another stepping stone in Allen’s growth this season. Rondo missed just one game (a Jan. 2 win over the Raptors) and posted 25 points and 8 assists on his next game back.
Brian Scalabrine (5 games missed): Out of all the Celtics injuries this season, Scalabrine has added the most variety to his resume. He missed one game with a right ankle sprain in October, two with back spasms in November, and another pair after separating right shoulder in January. Even though he only sat out two games because of the shoulder injury, he actually played through seven games with it. Scalabrine had been filling in for the sidelined Garnett and wanted to maximize the opportunity. While it may not have been the smartest decision to play hurt, if anything, it showed Scalabrine’s hunger to be a contributor on this team.
Bill Walker (8 games missed): The player of many knee injuries suffered yet another one before the season even began. Walker tore the meniscus in his right knee during training camp and missed eight games. While this injury cost him practice and court time during the preseason, Walker plays a limited role and his absence was not detrimental to the Celtics. They were 7-1 without him.
Rasheed Wallace (3 games missed): The Celtics were dealt another blow as they were trying to maneuver their way without Garnett. Wallace, who had been starting in place of Garnett, missed three games with a sore left forefoot in January. This forced Scalabrine off an already depleted bench and into the starting lineup. The Celtics went 1-2, losing to the Hawks and Bulls, with a third-string power forward and a diminished second unit.
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