The Morning Walkthrough is a set of links to Boston Celtics articles throughout the internet, designed to get your day started the right way.

Dan Duggan, Boston Herald – “Kendrick Perkins is champing at the bit to make his debut after offseason ACL surgery. The C’s starting center has recovered rapidly and is hoping to return ahead of the Feb. 4 target date he set last week. ‘I think we’re going to keep the timetable whatever it is,’ Rivers said. ‘Honestly, he wants to play (tonight). He’s already approached me about that. The only consideration has been (trainer) Eddie (Lacerte) and Dr. (Brian) McKeon. I’m not going to listen to Perk, I can tell you that.’ Perkins participated fully in practice, working with the second unit. ‘Perk went through live practice and he looked terrific,’ Rivers said.”

David Aldridge, NBA.com – “Boston will need him. The only really healthy bigs the Celtics have at the moment are Glen Davis and rookies Semih Erden and Luke Harangody. ‘It’s exciting to know, for (Perkins’) own sanity, that he’s back on the floor,’ Allen said. ‘Having another big body that’s defensive minded, it definitely makes us a lot better. Bringing Shaq and Jermaine in, trying to incorporate them into everything that we’re doing, there’s an adjustment period. Jermaine hasn’t been on the floor a lot, so we’ve been minus a big, and Shaq has been in and out. There’s been a little inconsistency there as far as bigs, and minutes played. Perk’s been a guy that’s typically always been in there, and we’ve had a consistent lineup over the last three years. He knows, pretty much, the protocol of what we’re doing, and I’m sure he’ll catch up pretty quickly.”
But Rivers says Perkins will help at the other end of the floor, too. We’ve been good offensively this year,” Rivers said. “But when he’s in there, we’re really good. Because we can run stuff that we ran two years ago out of a (timeout), that he knows. Timing and all that stuff is so important, and he gets that. He’ll be able to come back quicker because of that.’ And the ‘real’ starting five will get to defend its honor. Twelve days.”

Frank Dell’Apa, Boston Globe – “The Celtics lost to Cleveland early in the season, and after a decent start to their campaign, the Cavaliers have lost 17 consecutive games. ‘It’s been a terrific season so far but we’ve had some bad losses,’ Rivers said. ‘And I tell our guys that some of the teams that have beaten us are under .500, and those are tough losses for a team that shouldn’t lose those games. So, more lessons learned, and [I’ve] just got to keep teaching them. Cleveland beat us once already this year. I rarely worry about the opponent, I worry about ourselves. And when we play right it gives us an excellent chance to win the game and when we don’t anybody can beat us, and that’s been proven this year.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “Reading between the lines, it appears the Celtics could potentially fly O’Neal to Phoenix, where he could join the team for Friday’s tail end of a back-to-back. Even if he doesn’t play, that at least gives him the chance to be with the team when it travels to Los Angeles for Sunday’s nationally televised showdown against the Lakers, the first battle between the two teams since Game 7 of the NBA Finals. It’s hard to image O’Neal, given his history with the Lakers, would miss that one, especially if the injury is not severe as Rivers suggested Monday.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “Delonte West did some skeleton work with the Celtics on Monday. He did not do anything live, but it’s clear that he’s progressing toward his goal of playing sometime next month.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “How are NBA All-Star coaches selected? The league sets a cutoff point (this year it’s Feb. 6) and the coach (and his staff) of the team with the best record in each conference earns the right to be on the All-Star bench. The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics (33-10) will play seven more games before that date, but coach Doc Rivers already boasts a 2.5 game cushion on the field and, barring a bumpy west coast trip, could be returning to the All-Star sideline for the annual showcase.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “During those skeleton drills, because of the lack of bodies available, guys often find themselves practicing at a position that they are surely not likely to play in a game. For example, Glen Davis spent time on Monday practicing at the small forward position. ‘He enjoyed it,’ Rivers said. ‘He thought he could shoot every time, like Paul [Pierce].’ Clearly, Davis is not a small forward. But then again, 6-6 forward Marquis Daniels is not a power forward, either, but he has seen some time at that position this season. All the Celtics have to be ready, to play any and every position. Because with all the injuries they have had this season, there’s no telling when an opportunity to play will present itself.”

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