It was only a week and a half ago that the Celtics and Lakers met, but so much has already changed.
The Celtics looked like the best team in basketball that day, and maybe they still are, but now they are without invaluable reserve Marquis Daniels as well as 14-feet of length with Shaquille O’Neal and Semih Erden also expected to miss the game.
The Lakers meanwhile have their own health issues. Center Andrew Bynum suffered a bone bruise on his left knee against the Celtics and is wearing a protective sleeve. Kobe Bryant is receiving treatment on his ankle.
The loss to the Celtics prompted talk of trades in Los Angeles and suddenly Bynum’s name has popped up in the latest round of Carmelo Anthony musical chairs. (Whether that speculation was real or just a transparent attempt by the Nuggets to gain any kind of leverage is another matter.)
In the interim, the Spurs have continued to lap the field in the West, while the Heat have gained ground in the East. What we have for the rematch is two teams trying to get through the unforgiving NBA winter.
“They’re one of the teams that we feel we have to beat to win it, but other than that, that’s all it means,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said after the team practiced with just 10 players Wednesday. “I don’t overdo regular season games. I enjoy them when they have more meaning. I just know it’s the Lakers and the Celtics and that’s always a good game.”
Here are five things to watch as the Celtics go for the sweep:
RAY ALLEN GOES FOR HISTORY
Ray Allen needs to break the NBA record for most made 3-pointers and he needs to do it Thursday. Reggie Miller will be there to broadcast the game on TNT and see his mark fall. It’s the Lakers, it’s in Boston and most importantly, if Allen can’t make two 3-pointers and become the NBA’s all-time leader, the Celtics will probably be in trouble.
Allen’s career has demanded consistency, which is a pre-requisite for becoming the all-time anything in pro sports. But his role with the Celtics has helped Allen achieve something else: recognition for his all-around game.
He was an All-Star before and he probably would have been one somewhere else, but there is no better fit for Allen’s unique skill-set than with the Celtics. It’s a symbiotic relationship because their halfcourt offense revolves around how opponents defend Allen coming off screens.
 “Our saying is: ‘Score in the first six seconds or get Ray or Paul [Pierce] open,’” Rivers said. “That’s basically what we do and it’s all with screens. Ray is so smart. He knows what big is going to show and what big will not.”
When Allen joined the team, Rivers sat him down and told him that he couldn’t be the player he was in Seattle. The offense wouldn’t run with the ball in his hands, but it could still run through him.
“We’re not going to win that way,” Rivers told him. “Just trust it. To the other guys we have to make sure they understand that when Ray is open, get him the ball. It’s no coincidence that he’s the most efficient that he’s ever been in his life and it’s because of that trust.”
This is Ray Allen’s moment -- something he’s worked for all these years -- but becoming the all-time 3-point king won’t define him completely. There is so much more to it than that. 
THE KOBE FACTOR
In case you’ve forgotten, Kobe Bryant scored 41 points against the Celtics the last time and had zero assists. Bryant was so good that day he kept the Lakers in the game well into the fourth quarter, but he wasn’t good enough to win it by himself.
We can debate all day and all night whether Bryant takes too much of the scoring load on his shoulders, and whether or not it’s beneficial or detrimental to his team.
But understand this: there is no player in the league the Celtics respect more than Bryant. So much so that Rivers felt compelled to call timeout just to tell them to stop worrying about it during his barrage.
Of course Bryant will be out for revenge in the rematch. That’s what he does. How he decides to go about trying to get it will have a large role in how the game unfolds.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PAUL PIERCE CHECKS OUT?
Marquis Daniels was more than just a steady, versatile reserve. He was also Paul Pierce’s only qualified backup. Without Daniels, Rivers will have to great creative with his lineups and that could include playing a lot of small ball.
“It depends on whatever we can get away with, honestly,” Rivers said. “We can go two smalls with Ray at the [small forward.]”
The Lakers are a good matchup to go small against, since they do the same thing with Bryant playing alongside Shannon Brown and Steve Blake. That also plays right into the Celtics hands since it also puts Blake or Derek Fisher on Rajon Rondo, which helped open the door for Rondo to rack up 15 second-half assists in the first meeting.
However the scenarios play out, one thing is certain: Pierce has to stay out of foul trouble. He ate up Ron Artest in the first meeting and he can’t expect the same thing to happen this time.
DEPTH UP FRONT
Shaquille O’Neal isn’t likely to play and Semih Erden isn’t either, so that puts the onus on Kendrick Perkins, Kevin Garnett and Glen Davis to hold down the middle against Bynum, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom.
As always with the Celtics, they must keep the Lakers away from the offensive glass and hold them to one shot. It’s the single-most important dynamic of this matchup and the Celtics are playing short handed.
The Lakers are the reason they went out and added so much size in the offseason. We’ll see how they do with a depleted frontline.
WHICH RONDO WILL APPEAR?
Since taking the Lakers apart in the second half, Rajon Rondo has been on a roll. He had 17 points and 10 assists in a win over the Kings, 26 points against the Magic and was one of the few active Celtics in their loss to the Bobcats.
Rondo has been assuming a larger role in the team’s offensive structure and it’s coming at just the right time with all the injuries. He’ll need to be that aggressive against the Lakers and their infamous Kobe-zone defense.
How Rondo attacks the Lakers is the game within the game. He’s taken more jump shots than ever before and is also getting to the free throw line and making his shots (he’s hit 17 of his last 20 free throws).
Bryant will always be a problem for Rondo, but when the Lakers take him out or move him to small forward, Rondo can do whatever he wants against Blake and Fisher.
If the Celtics are going to survive this stretch, they need the awesome Rondo, not just the very good one.