The Celtics packed an entire season of memes into their season-opening 106-104 loss to the Knicks. Without Paul Pierce (bruised right heel), they came out flat and had few answers in the halfcourt without their best offensive player. Their depth up front was exposed by foul trouble, forcing Kevin Garnett to play almost the entire first half. Rajon Rondo (41 minutes) and Ray Allen (37) were almost always on the floor and despite the tremendous contributions from Brandon Bass, their second unit couldn’t hold a fourth quarter lead without the starters in the game.

Despite all that, the Celtics erased a 16-point first-half deficit just when everyone was preparing their obituary. There’s obviously life left in them, but last season’s struggles looked all too familiar in stretches on Sunday.

If you’re still feeling positive after Boston's first opening day loss since 2006, it has everything to do with Rondo, who scored 31 points, dished out 13 assists and most importantly, was once again the kind of whirring, attacking speed demon everyone missed in the second half of last season.

Rondo began the game by attacking the basket, and in a very positive development he also drained five of his first six free throws. Rondo was 9-for-12 from the line, reaching what would have been season-highs in attempts and maes in 2010-11. He knocked down jumpers when given room and looked to finish in transition.

His scoring decreased in the fourth quarter, but that may have had more to do with the Knicks, who kept defensive stopper Tyson Chandler under the basket and dared the Celtics to beat them from the outside.

Rondo single-handedly kept the Celtics in the game in the first 24 minutes and when everyone else arrived for the second half, he was more than happy to play facilitator. The downside to Rondo’s attacking game is that he took a number of hard shots both from the Knicks and the Garden floor and it remains to be seen if he can play that way every night in this compact, hectic season.

He’s going to have to be at his creative peak, however, because the Celtics offense will be a long slog if Rondo is not at his best.

Here are three other takeaways from opening day:

No Pierce, big problem

Sasha Pavlovic was as invisible as anyone who has ever started and played 15 minutes in an NBA game. Pavlovic didn’t attempt a shot. He had one rebound, one assist and didn’t do anything to stop Carmelo Anthony from scoring 37 points. Marquis Daniels also had his problems defending Anthony, but he at least provided four points, six rebounds and five assists, which is about what you expected from him.

But it was on the offensive end where Pierce was missed the most. The Celtics couldn’t run anything that looked like a coherent offense in the first half -- Rondo’s brilliance notwithstanding -- and in the final minute, the Celtics offense was put in a straightjacket without him on the court.

Allen dribbled into traffic only to find Daniels for an open corner 3-pointer with 4.4 seconds left. Daniels is no one’s idea of a 3-point marksman, but an open corner 3 is one of the best shots in basketball and one he had to take. Given a reprieve after Rondo tracked down a loose-ball rebound, the Celtics went to Garnett in the post but his jumper was contested and short.

Simply having Pierce on the floor makes those possessions so much easier because attention has to be paid everywhere. Without him, Allen struggled to find space and Garnett’s jump shots were often launched with a hand in his face.

There’s no sense in rushing Pierce back until he’s ready, but when he’s not in the lineup the Celtics become much easier to defend.

So much for the 5-5-5 plan

Celtics coach Doc Rivers has talked enthusiastically about a new minutes distribution plan for Garnett throughout training camp. Garnett would still get his 30 minutes, but he’d work in shorter shifts in an effort to keep his energy and intensity at peak levels.

It took one game for the plan to disintegrate.

With Bass and Jermaine O’Neal in first-half foul trouble, Garnett played 21 of the 24 minutes in the first half and finished with 37 overall. Not surprisingly, his last-second jumper came up short.

Garnett played 37 minutes only six times last season and five of those came in the first two weeks of November, so there is precedent for extending him early in the season. The Celtics are notoriously fast-starters and if they are going to stay in the race Rivers knows he has to maximize the early part of the schedule.

Still, with five games in the next seven days, the coach also has to be careful about achieving that balance. (Garnett may have put himself in danger of a suspension when he shoved former Celtic Bill Walker after the game was over.) In Rivers’ defense, the alternatives were not that enticing, especially in the first half with Bass and O’Neal in foul trouble and the Knicks building a 17-point lead.

Rivers rode Garnett, as well as Rondo and Allen, and the Celtics almost pulled out the comeback, but there’s only so much time left and in this case the ending didn’t justify the means.

New faces, same bench results

In his first game with the Celtics, Bass scored 20 points and had 11 rebounds, including five on the offensive glass. He scored in the halfcourt and he scored in transition. He converted rebounds into points and finished strong at the rim. That, in short, is exactly why the Celtics traded Glen Davis for him.

Bass’ energy and production were incredibly important because the Celtics new-look reserve unit lacks any kind of a creative scorer. Daniels can do a lot of things, but scoring on his own is not a strength. Keyon Dooling may in time prove to be a valuable reserve, but in 10 minutes of action he attempted only one shot. Chris Wilcox will get energy and second-chance points, but he has no viable go-to move in the halfcourt.

There wasn’t a single reserve player who registered a positive plus/minus and that’s a major concern for the Celtics, who are counting on their second unit to not only provide minutes but impactful contributions. Bass’ debut was a positive start, but the Celtics will need a lot more from their reserves as the games pile up.