The Celtics are about to head out on their first west coast swing of the season where they will play four games in six night starting Thursday night in Portland. While trips to the opposite coast are never easy, this one figures to be particularly grueling.
After making their stop in the Rose City, the Celtics head “backward,” as coach Doc Rivers termed it, to Phoenix for the second part of a back-to-back. Then it’s on to Los Angeles for a Sunday afternoon showdown with the Lakers. It ends in Sacramento on Tuesday.
According to Rivers, when the team saw the schedule they appealed to the NBA for an adjustment. “This is the one trip we really tried to get changed,” Rivers said. “We just wanted another day, but [the league] said no.”
The Celtics will be fortified by the surprise return of Kendrick Perkins and the expected appearance of Marquis Daniels, who has been dealing with a family issue. It’s possible that Shaquille O’Neal could be ready by Friday’s game with Phoenix. (They don’t have much interest in subjecting Shaq to a back-to-back, which likely rules out Portland.)
The Celtics are gradually coming back together and just in time for their first trip to Staples Center since losing the 2010 finals.
That’s where we’ll start:
WELCOME BACK TO THEIR NIGHTMARE
To a man the Celtics say this is just another game, but deep down the memory of Game 7 burns deep into their psyche. It’s been a constant theme since training camp and the prime source of motivation during the regular season, as well as a pointed reminder of what could have been.
They’ll never get over it, honestly, and that’s exactly why a January game with the Lakers doesn’t carry quite the same weight. “I really don’t care about going there unless it’s in the finals,” Perkins said.  
But the nerve is still raw and it’s not like the Celtics ever need any more motivation to play the Lakers, who have been settling into a nice groove since a midseason slump unleashed the hounds.
As Lakers dramas go, this one was a mild tempest in Phil Jackson’s herbal teapot. Jackson and Kobe Bryant bickered publicly for a hot second. Ron Artest reportedly confronted Jackson about his proclivity for calling him out in the press and everyone wondered when Pau Gasol was going to start dominating. Call it, creative differences. 
Not surprisingly, the Lakers rallied and have won 12 of their last 15 games since getting blown out by the Bucks, Heat and Spurs in successive games in late December. Are the Lakers back? Better question: Did they ever really go anywhere?
As always with the Lakers and Celtics there are on-court subplots to go with the offstage intrigue.
Rajon Rondo will undoubtedly face his personal defensive hell against the Kobe zone. This is the first time that the rejuvenated Kevin Garnett will face Gasol since he was outplayed in the finals. How much will Perkins give them against L.A’s frontline? Will Shaq play? Can Glen Davis match Lamar Odom’s versatility and energy?
On and on it goes. It gets no bigger than the Lakers and Celtics and it’s essentially the key to the whole trip.
SPEAKING OF PERK
The center’s unexpected return Tuesday night against the Cavs was important for three reasons: It gave the team a spark in the middle of winter. It momentarily helps solve what would have been a dangerous shortage of big men. But the third, and the most important thing to come out of Perk’s debut was that he looked good. Really, really good.
It’s been obvious for some time that Perkins used his rehab period to work on the rest of his body. He was a constant presence on the treadmills at the team’s practice facility and his swimming workouts are becoming the stuff of legend.
Perkins moved around the court Tuesday with far greater agility than we’re used to seeing and he didn’t mind mixing it up inside either. Still, he’s not all the way back yet.
“I surprised myself on a few plays,” Perkins said. “I know I can do better. I can do more. I was mad at myself. I didn’t block no shots tonight.”
What’s missing are his timing and his game-level conditioning. Perkins admitted he was a little winded at times Tuesday, proving once again that few things compare aerobically to playing in an NBA game. Both will just take time and minutes, and Rivers said he isn’t inclined to alter his plan to give him 16-18 minutes a night.
At least not yet.
THE BACK-TO-BACK
The Celtics have played seven back-to-backs this season and they have won the second game just twice. There was a late November blowout in Atlanta after an embarrassing afternoon loss to the Raptors, and a one-point win over Philly when Garnett capped off the best end-game play of the season, and that’s it.
Mixed in have been some of their worst losses of the season including last Saturday’s setback against the Wizards. Their next test comes Friday when they play the fast-breaking Suns one night after a game with the methodical Blazers. In terms of style you can’t get much different than Phoenix and Portland.
The Blazers average 91.5 possessions per game, tied for the second-slowest pace in the league. The Suns average just under 97, which ranks seventh. That may not seem like a lot, but the difference is plainly visible to even the casual observer.
The Celtics will want to play faster against Portland and slower against Phoenix. Transitioning from one gear to the next is one of the challenges of the regular season, as is trying to do it on consecutive nights in different time zones.
That makes the Blazers game one of the most important on the trip. A win would give them some cushion, while a loss would make the Phoenix game doubly important. 
CLEAN THE GLASS
After a strong start to the season on the defensive glass led by Garnett, the Celtics have dropped to ninth in defensive rebounding rate, which isn’t bad, but not as good as they were. The obvious reason for the drop was the absence of Garnett, but since he’s been back they’ve had only one dominant rebounding game (against Detroit) and four mediocre ones.
Asked about the slide after practice on Monday, Rivers said he isn’t worried about the rebounding yet, and the assumption is that when Garnett and Perkins get their timing back they will help the Celtics return to the top of the rankings.
That needs to happen on this trip because they face three of the top five offensive rebounding teams in the league in Portland, Los Angeles and Sacramento.
The Celtics held both the Blazers and Kings in check in their earlier meetings and will need a similar effort this time around. The Lakers need no advance scouting report. The 23 offensive rebounds they surrendered in Game 7 will haunt them the rest of their days.
What would constitute a successful trip? Taking at least two out of three against Portland, Phoenix and Sacramento would be a good start, but it all really comes down to Sunday in Los Angeles.
The Celtics already have wins against Miami, Chicago, Orlando and San Antonio. All that’s left from the regular season resume is a win in L.A.