Did everyone know that's Mario West?

Jessica Camerato, CSNNE – “The Celtics trimmed their roster Wednesday by waiving training camp invitees Stephane Lasme and Mario West. … The Red Claws still have the rights to West, a guard who played the last three years in the Atlanta Hawks organization. In the meantime, West will return home to Georgia and work on improving his offensive game. He sees himself developing into a player like Bruce Bowen or Raja Bell, one who focuses on defense first and then finds his niche offensively. ‘I have things I need to work on but I think they were, overall, pleased with the effort I gave,’ West told CSNNE.com. ‘I was just grateful for the opportunity, to be honest. Any time you get an opportunity to come in with a championship-caliber team, I took a lot of pride in putting on that jersey and practicing with those guys. I feel like I made life-long brothers in this locker room.’”

Julian Benbow/Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “Still, he scored 12 points last night on 4-of-5 shooting, and has fit in nicely with the Celtics’ static starters while injuries have nagged at Jermaine O’Neal, keeping him out of half of the exhibition games, including last night’s. ‘He’s been great,’ Paul Pierce said of Shaquille O’Neal. ‘He’s obviously been a huge presence for us down there. You saw today when we got him the ball, they tried to double-team him and we skipped it to open shooters. That’s going to be a big factor going in, a guy who can draw double teams. When you’ve got two or three guys in your starting five who can do that it just makes things easier on the offensive end. He’s a big plus for us.’”

Dan Duggan, Boston Herald – “‘Just making the team is not enough for me,’ said Wafer, who had eight points last night. “I’ve been playing in the NBA five years and I’ve been sitting on the bench for four. You just can’t get better sitting on the bench. I want to play, bottom line.’ Wafer might get a chance while West is out, but the minutes he covets don’t figure to exist here. ‘It looks real sketchy because we have so much talent,’ Wafer said. ‘We got a lot of talent, I don’t know. I’m just going to go into it thinking positive.’”

Jessica Camerato, CSNNE – “Wafer felt more comfortable with his game after “finding his legs” and felt that the pace of the game seemed to slow down after doing so. ‘I think I showed them that I can get better, that I’m willing to just play defense,’ he said. ‘I feel like I got a lot better defensively, but hopefully I can continue to play. Just making the team is not enough for me. I want to play. I’ve been playing in the NBA five years and I’ve been sitting on the bench for four. You just can’t get better sitting on the bench. I want to play, bottom line.’ The bottom line on the Celtics, though, is that minutes are not readily available. The team added depth to its bench this summer, making it even more difficult for a player — especially one who has been out of the league for over a year — to get on to the court. ‘I would rather be out there,’ he said. ‘But I’ve got to take what’s given to me.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “Lasme, a former UMass standout, was disappointed but said he felt he made a positive impression. ‘It was actually longer than I thought it was going to be,’ Lasme said. ‘They actually liked me a lot. It came down to the end. (Doc Rivers) said I was an NBA player and not to worry about anything.’ Lasme said he is open to playing the NBDL. ‘It is basically my decision if I want to go,’ he said. ‘I’m sure somebody’s going to call. I’ll wait for the phone call and make my decision from there.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “Celtics starters have lobbied coach Doc Rivers to play extended minutes throughout the preseason, often disappointed with their efforts in the first half and seeking to immediately atone for sloppy play. With no other games standing between Wednesday’s preseason finale against the Nets and Tuesday’s much-ballyhooed showdown with the Miami Heat, the Celtics’ veterans wanted to showcase their potential one last time. Ray Allen fueled a feverish third-quarter outburst by scoring all 14 of his points in the period, connecting on four shots, including a pair of trifectas, as the Celtics embarked on a pair of 13-2 runs to erase a double-digit deficit and build a comfortable cushion that carried them to a lopsided win. ‘We came out lackadaisical,’ said Shaquille O’Neal. ‘But we picked it up. When our guys turn it on, usually the outcome will be like this.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “From his left hamstring to his left wrist and now to his back, it’s been difficult to keep track of every injury that has nagged Jermaine O’Neal during training camp. The difficult part about the center’s plight now, according to Rivers, is that more down time may call into question just how much O’Neal can contribute once the Celtics open their season. ‘Yeah, there is (concern),’ Rivers said before the game. ‘(O’Neal) hasn’t been able to get on the floor, obviously. It’s not going to happen tonight and maybe not for the first couple of practices, so there is some concern about opening night and what he can do for us. JO and I were just talking, and it was, after the first day of training camp, you’re never healthy again. You have to get something. But how much can you function? It’s what you’re going through the rest of the year.’”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “Halftime had arrived, and Ray Allen had as many points as the scribes detailing his struggles. But if there’s one thing Celtics Nation has learned about Ray Allen, it’s that regardless of how bad he may be shooting, he can get it going at any time, against any team. The New Jersey Nets were reminded of this on Wednesday as Allen scored all of his 14 points in the third quarter to help propel the Celtics to a 107-92 win to close out their preseason. ‘I always say when Ray’s going, we’re a tough team to beat,’ said Paul Pierce who had 11 points on 3-for-6 shooting. ‘Every game we try to establish him early.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Rondo wouldn’t be the first poor free throw shooter (63.0 percent career, 62.1 last season) to shy away from trips to the line. Antoine Walker, who shot 55.7 percent from the line in his last half-season with the C’s in the spring of 2005, had become almost exclusively a perimeter player. Some theorized that part of the reason was a fear of going to the line. Rondo lives at the rim. And yet that ability to split the lane doesn’t always produce contact. ‘I don’t know,’ Rivers said of whether Rondo is hesitant to draw fouls. ‘I just know he has to get there. Why he’s doing it, I’m not inside of that brain. I’m not even sure I want to go there. But the fact is, with his speed at point guard – point guards with the rules, where you can’t touch a guy above the free throw line, should end up on the free throw line.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “Danny Ainge is as much relieved as he is excited that the roster had shaped up this well. ‘If you’d have told me we could have had this team we have now after Game 7 of the Finals, I could have gotten a lot more sleep,’ the director of basketball operations said.”

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