Quite honestly, I didn’t watch tonight’s game as intently as I normally do. I usually take notes, but I didn’t do that. I usually Tweet up a storm, but I didn’t. I just watched like an average fan, taking no notes, and all along Kendrick Perkins rested in the back of my mind.

If I felt like that, so focused on the trade rather than the game at hand, how could the players — Perk’s brothers — ever focus? It’s no wonder the Celtics lost by 14 points, 89-75. They were playing a mile above sea level, halfway across the country, with only nine healthy players, on a day when their collective heart was broken and their shots were nowhere in sight.

The C’s just weren’t ready to play tonight, and — just this once — I’m not going to blame them. I can forgive tonight’s effort — shooting 39.0%, being outrebounded 52-38, and scoring only 75 points against the Denver Nuggets — because I know what they’ve been through. Just a few hours before the game, Kendrick Perkins was crying and saying goodbye. Kendrick Perkins, I repeat, crying. In the past two weeks, I’ve seen both Perkins and Jerry Sloan cry, two men who were never supposed to be reduced to tears. The Celtics loved Perk, and, far more than I, will miss him (though I already miss him quite a bit).

Boston signed Chris Johnson to a ten-day contract, mostly because their frontcourt rotation now resembles Johnson himself — very much lacking beef. I poke fun at Johnson, but he played a nice game tonight. He pieced together a Rudy-esque effort, one of those “If you had a tenth of the heart of Chris Johnson, you’d have made All-NBA by now” nights. I’m not sure Johnson will ever play so hard again — he might have been so active only because it was his first NBA game, and he was dying to impress someone, anyone. But he never stopped moving. Ever. He blocked shots. Caught an alley oop. And even though he still looks like he could use a whole bunch of protein shakes, Johnson made a positive impact. He just never stopped working. Sadly, for the Celtics, not everyone worked so hard. I have a feeling their minds were like mine: still stuck with Perk.

The story of tonight’s game was not Kendrick Perkins, and the Celtics — despite taking their sweet-ass time to rush to Garnett’s aid — weren’t entirely lacking toughness in Perk’s stead. But this team, until one or both of the O’Neal’s regain health, lacks bulk and strength down low, and Perk’s willingness to mix it up will be sorely missed. Nenad Krstic fails to inspire fear (or even any sense of trepidation) in his opponents, and there’s never any guarantee the O’Neal’s will ever return to full health. The C’s will likely add a player (or two, or three players) who get bought out, but Troy Murphy, Samuel Dalembert or Leon Powe aren’t going to supply the same iron soul Perk did.

During the third quarter, Kevin Garnett took an elbow from Kenyon Martin and crumbled to the floor. This was the Celtics as we know them; chippy, hard-working, annoying, causing opponents to overreact with unnecessary elbows and force. Garnett fell to the court, and Martin would normally have a scowl in his face a split-second later — and a green and white ’43′ bumping against his chest. But Kendrick Perkins wasn’t there to meet Martin. Glen Davis came running into the fray a few seconds later, and the other C’s followed. Yet none of the late-comers, I can promise, intimidated Martin. The Celtics, you see, have lost their muscle.

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

The most important Celtic?

Kevin Garnett, Anta – “When I’m not playing, I hate talking hoops, so sorry for not blogging. You know how when you ain’t a part of something, it hurts to talk about it. That’s how I feel. Know what I mean? Don’t get it messed up, just cause I ain’t playing don’t mean I’m not working out. I’m working super hard and feeling good. Didn’t get to tell you about the tough game against San Antonio we had on Wed. Game was CRAZY. We were up 9 with 57 seconds and we somehow almost blew it. They had the ball down by 2 with 7 seconds left. It was crazy how it happened. P2 got the block to save the win and Rondo had a triple double. Big game by him. He was doing amazing stuff. Friday we had Toronto and young fella Luke played great. He stepped up and had a double double (17pts and 11 rebounds). He’s hard working and knows how to play. If he keeps working hard, he’ll be good. It was nice to get the starters some rest and let the young guys play. We won by a bunch, so it was nice. After the game, Dr. looked at my leg and we’re close. Real close to getting back. Took the flight to Chicago and got in at 2am, so watch a movie and then shut it down. Chicago is a city I lived in, so always have a special place for Chi-town. Pre game, I worked out at the arena in the Bull’s workout room. Anytime I get to workout around another team, my gas gets going. I was killing the weights and wanted to play. When I was in there, Scal (Scalabrine old teammate) came in and got me going even more. Good to see him. I don’t know how to describe the game as the guys energy was low, the ball was ‘sticking’ and not popping around. Guys were not doing their jobs. Frustrating watching and not being able to help. We played 6games in 9 days, so the guys need a break. Off day tomorrow for them, but I’ll be getting my stuff in. The loss just makes me more motivated to get back and help my guys.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “‘He’s human,’ Rondo said of Davis. ‘It’s going to be a tough challenge every night. It’s never easy, and he has to continue to grow. He has to accept that he won’t play well every night. Maybe it will be the next night,’ he said. ‘But he’s taking that next step to where people are looking at him as a challenge. I just told him to keep working hard, stay humble, and play every night as if it’s your last.’ That, and to also keep these performances in perspective. Davis took more shots than any Celtic Saturday night and also missed more, as evidenced by his 4-for-17 performance. But last Wednesday against a far better San Antonio team, Davis had one of his finest shooting nights of the season with a 23-point, 10-for-18 display. But Saturday’s matchup carried an extra sting because Davis was matched against one of the stars of his position. Boozer, from going right at Davis with nine straight points in the second quarter to banging him with impunity, easily established turf. ‘It didn’t affect me. Just a learning experience for me, especially if I ever want to be on the same type of level as the KGs and the Carlos Boozers,’ said Davis. ‘You guys have seen me grow a lot, and now it’s time to hit a different level, a different notch. Carlos Boozer got the best of it today,’ he said. ‘But at the same time, I want that success. I want all that, being that guy. So I take things in stride, get better each day and keep working. I have to get the credentials to play in this league — to play against the Carlos Boozers and Kevin Loves of this league.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “The class of the NBA field has separated itself approaching the halfway point of the season. And as much as teams choose not to acknowledge closely following the progress of their peers, that cannot be denied this season, especially with the Celtics. Boston is skittish after last season, when a fourth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs meant losing home-court advantage for the final three series of the postseason, especially the NBA Finals. A five-horse race for the top seed in the East appears to be brewing and losses such as Saturday night’s 90-79 drubbing by the Chicago Bulls damage the Celtics’ quest for No. 1. Just five games separate the top five teams in the East, and the conference-leading Celtics (28-8, .778) have been caught by the Heat (30-9, .769), despite Miami’s well-chronicled dismal start. The Orlando Magic, who beat the Celtics on Christmas Day, are winners of nine straight, and the Atlanta Hawks are 8-2 in their past 10. There is an increased emphasis on the regular season, and scoreboard-watching has begun in earnest. Each time one of the other four teams drops a game, Boston realizes it has a chance to create more distance. That’s why the Celtics can’t afford to waste opportunities, such as Saturday night’s.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “A year ago, losses got the same treatment as losing a couple of pennies. It happens. Not that big a deal. But as we near the halfway point of this season, finishing with the best record in the Eastern Conference isn’t just lip service. Look no further than Saturday’s 90-79 loss at Chicago. You would have thought the C’s lost Game Three or Four of a playoff series by their glum expressions. ‘We find ways to win these type of games,’ said Paul Pierce, easily bothered more than most by the loss. ‘We don’t concede anything. We don’t say, ‘Six games in nine nights. The last game we don’t give a damn about.’ We’re trying to win them all.’ And it is that desire to not just finish well, but finish atop the Eastern Conference standings, that makes this team unlike the previous units since the C’s Big Three joined forces in 2007.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “Screens lead to open looks, which leads to easy baskets. Allen leads the NBA in plays off screens this season, running off screens on 33.7 percent of his touches. Only two players in the NBA use screens for more than 25 percent of their offensive plays — Allen and Chicago’s Kyle Korver. Considering that 17.4 percent of Allen’s touches come in transition and another 20.2 percent are spot-up jumpers, it’s amazing that so many of his offensive looks require his teammates’ grunt work. And on Saturday, his teammates didn’t create space for him, which is why Rivers might again have to stress the importance of screens. ‘It’s a film thing,’ Rivers said. ‘It’s better to reinforce in practice, but when you don’t have practice time, you reinforce it by film — by showing the ones they’re not setting. It’s not the most positive way of doing it, and I’d rather work it out on the floor than using film, because it’s always a negative weapon, but sometimes you do it.’ Saturday’s loss was a reminder of the perils of not putting in that effort. ‘Offensively, from the start of the game, we didn’t create any rhythm,’ Allen said. ‘It is [surprising] because [the offense] has been pretty good. [Saturday] was definitely a break from the normal, from what we were doing offensively. For whatever reason, this was an example of why we lose games. Statistically, it’s so glaring.’ Zero shots for Allen in a fourth quarter that opened as a one-possession game. Credit the Bulls for their ability to chase Allen around the court, but don’t let it screen the truth: Boston sputtered because it didn’t do enough to get Allen and its other shooters open.”

Ken Berger, CBS Sports – “Carmelo Anthony “does not need to be convinced” to sign a contact extension as part of a blockbuster, three-team trade that would send the three-time All-Star to New Jersey, league sources told CBSSports.com Sunday night. One executive involved in the trade talks called Anthony’s stance on an extension with the Nets “a non-factor,” because the teams involved “already know it won’t hold up the deal.” The tipping point in moving Melo toward giving up his preference to wind up with the Knicks was the involvement of the Pistons, who would send Richard Hamilton to the Nets to help Anthony with his reclamation project in Newark, N.J., for the next year-and-a-half. That key component was close to agreement Sunday night, with the Pistons poised to send Hamilton to New Jersey in exchange for Troy Murphy’s expiring contract and Johan Petro — who may go to the Pistons or somewhere else, sources said. Hamilton, who has two years and $25 million left on his deal, was the key cog in a broader plan to entice Anthony to give up his resistance to extending with the Nets instead of insisting on a deal to his preferred destination. The other part of that equation involves Chauncey Billups joining Anthony and reuniting with Hamilton in New Jersey, sources said. The principle pieces New Jersey has offered to the Nuggets all along — Derrick Favors and multiple first-round picks — would still go to Denver in this three-team scenario. The involvement of Billups, who has stated that he wants to retire with the Nuggets, necessitates the Nets sending Devin Harris to the Nuggets. Though Billups would prefer to stay in Denver, a person with direct knowledge of his thinking rejected the notion of the Nets buying him out this season if he is sent to New Jersey in this trade. “Highly unlikely,” the person said. … Despite repeated assurances from Anthony’s camp, the Nets did not yet have approval from Anthony’s mouth as of Sunday night, according to one person familiar with the situation. Last month, a person directly involved in Anthony’s decision told CBSSports.com that the only team he’d agree to an extension with via a trade was the Knicks. There have been no indications from Anthony himself that he has changed his stance. However, given the perceived risk of leaving tens of millions of dollars on the table with a punitive new collective bargaining agreement looming — and with the addition of Hamilton and Billups meaning Anthony wouldn’t have to go it alone in Newark — the Nets and Nuggets are convinced the contractual issue won’t blow up the deal.”

Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports – “The Nets and Detroit Pistons believed they had an arrangement in place Sunday that would’ve sent Anthony, Nuggets point guard Chauncey Billups(notes) and Pistons guard Richard Hamilton(notes) to the Nets as part of the blockbuster deal. Once the Nets and Pistons worked out the details of a side component to the 13-player deal on Sunday afternoon, the two teams were surprised to find Denver general manager Masai Ujiri wanting to replace players in the framework of the overall trade, sources said. Nevertheless, Nuggets officials were angry with the insinuation they had backed away, insisting they never agreed to a scenario where they would complete the deal. As one Denver official told Yahoo! Sports late Sunday, “People are trying to pressure us.” Still, everyone involved in the trade believed the Nuggets had come too far to walk away, and talks continued between Denver’s Ujiri and New Jersey GM Billy King late Sunday.”‘

David Aldridge, NBA.com – “Anthony refused to discuss a potential deal before the Nuggets played New Orleans in Denver on Sunday night. He said afterward he didn’t think a 96-87 loss was his last game in a Nuggets uniform. ‘Uh-uh, not at all,’ he said, repeating the phrase ‘not at all’ four times. Asked if that was an indication he wouldn’t sign the extension so the trade with the Nets could be consummated, Anthony demurred, saying: ‘I haven’t heard anything. Only, that it’s just been speculation as of right now.’ Anthony noted that team executive Josh Kroenke and general manager Masai Ujiri “are not even here, so I don’t see that happening.’ In what time frame was he referring to? ‘I’m just saying I don’t see it happening right now,’ Anthony said. This week sometime? ‘No.’”

Chris Broussard and Marc Stein, ESPN – “Denver, however, elected to play Anthony and Billups in its home game against New Orleans on Sunday night, suggesting that the Nuggets might not be ready to sign off on the trade and, according to sources, frustrating both the Nets and the Pistons at the end of a chaotic 72 hours. A similar scenario played out in the September deal, when the Nets and Nuggets hammered out the framework of a four-team swap with Charlotte and Utah, only for the Nuggets to decide that they weren’t ready to end their relationship with Anthony and back out of the deal. … Denver’s decision to play Anthony and Billups against New Orleans and a Bergen Record report Sunday night that the Nuggets want to make unspecified changes to the latest trade layout clearly rankled the Nets. The Record of New Jersey quoted an unnamed team official within the league as saying: ‘The deal is close. But Denver is looking to hit a home run.’ Earlier Sunday, one source close to the talks told ESPN.com that Sunday’s proposed trade was ‘on the 10-yard-line.’ Said another source with knowledge of the state of negotiations: ‘Almost there.’”

Got a tip? An article you think should be included? Send an email to jayking@celticstown.com or hit me up on Twitter @CelticsTown.

Watch it again. Keep your eyes only on Rondo this time. I’m almost positive he doesn’t look at Ray Allen once until he’s in midair, and even then it was just a quick glance. Unless Rondo has eyes in the back of his head, which is entirely possible. Hell, at this point it even seems probable.

While I’m discussing Rondo, was anyone else not very concerned with his injuries last night? He couldn’t stop Ty Lawson in the second quarter, but I didn’t feel like it had anything to do with Rondo’s hammies or feet. He just got caught doing what Rondo sometimes has a tendency to do — gamble. In the second half, when Rondo stopped reaching after Lawson, he began to stay in front of him. It wasn’t rocket science, and I don’t think it was Rondo being injured. It was just the simple matter of practicing the defensive principles Doc Rivers loves to preach.

Rondo’s offense, despite five turnovers, was great (read this), and his defense — despite that second-quarter nonsense — was actually pretty good. He harassed Chauncey Billups into 2-10 shooting, and only 5 points, and — as I already mentioned — did a nice job on Lawson in the second half.

The only truly troublesome incident happened in the third quarter. Rondo exited out of the game with 4:38 seconds left in the quarter, well before Rivers normally subs him out. Clearly feeling some discomfort, Rondo could be seen stretching on the sideline. He returned only a minute later, but the fear of God was instilled in me. No Celtics fan wants to see Rajon Rondo quite visibly in pain, even if he can still thoroughly control games while less than 100%.

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

Paul Flannery, WEEI – “In a brief conversation as he headed out of the locker room for the team flight to Philadelphia, Rajon Rondo said that he was fine. It’s admirable that Rondo won’t discuss his various injuries and even more admirable that he’s playing through them, and still doing it a high level. He played 30 minutes, took just three shots, rarely attacked the basket and still dished out 13 assists. ‘He was great,’ Rivers said. ‘I thought Rondo was good. Really good. He looked fine. I thought he had it in cruise a little bit, but he was just trying to run the team.’ That’s the difference between the 2010 Rondo and the one from years past. His speed is his greatest weapon and even without it he’s still able to be effective. But Rondo is hurting. Ty Lawson, who in fairness makes everyone look slow, repeatedly got past him. He also came out of the game in the third quarter and stretched out his leg. After a few minutes he walked back to the scorer’s table and checked himself back into the game rather than let his leg get stiff. ‘Him and Nate [Robinson] are actually grinding it out,’ Paul Pierce said. ‘Those two are both having feet problems. We’re just thankful that we get them through right now. We’re trying to get through this tough stretch where one day we get healthy. I don’t know when that day is going to be.’ It may never happen, actually. The healthy part, that is, because it appears that Rondo is going to be bothered by his leg and foot ailments for the foreseeable future. Credit him with playing through it and playing as well as he can, but understand that it’s not easy for him right now.” Read more »

Alley oop. Easy. The renaissance of Kevin Garnett, in the words of Mike Gorman, continues.

It was a 16-point blowout and the Celtics never trailed, but tonight’s 105-89 Celtics win shouldn’t have been so difficult.

The way they were humming in the first quarter, the C’s should have had the Nuggets screaming “Uncle” by halftime. Instead, some starters were still on the court with two minutes remaining. Blame the Celtics bench, and Ty Lawson.

Forgetting a short stint of god-awful defense by Rajon Rondo (you reach, Lawson teach), I have zero complaints about the C’s starters. In fact, the first nine minutes of the game might have been the most complete nine minutes played this season — by any NBA team. Kevin Garnett was leaping around on pogo sticks. The team’s arms were a maze keeping the Nuggets away from the bucket. And oh yeah, the C’s shot a blazing 68.4% from the field for the quarter.

The Celtics did damage inside (Garnett didn’t exactly have a difficult time scoring over — or around — Shelden Williams), and outside (leaving Ray Allen wide open is not a good idea). I know the Nuggets didn’t have Carmelo Anthony tonight, but dealing with the C’s thorough blitz would have been tough for the Nuggets, even if an in-his-prime Michael Jordan had been on their side.

As well as the C’s played in the first quarter (and that quarter was a sliver away from perfect), that’s how bad they were in the second quarter. Defensive principles? Who needs those? Throw them out the window. Ball movement? Not exactly. Before a few reserves scored in garbage time, only Glen Davis and Semih Erden scored off the bench. Speaking of Davis, was he high during his halftime interview? Drunk? Just winded? If I didn’t know any better, while Davis slurred his way through the interview, I would have sworn he was on some serious drugs.

For one night, Ty Lawson was the bane of my existence. Is it THAT easy to waltz right by Nate Robinson? Is Rondo THAT hurt, where Lawson can make him look like he’s walking in quicksand? With his speed and aggression, Lawson turned this game around and kept it close. He also came *this close* to causing me to break my hand, as I almost punched a whole through the wall when he repeatedly burned the Celtics point guards.

Contrary to what we saw tonight, Lawson isn’t really the league’s best point guard. He’s pretty good, I’ll give him that, and absurdly fast, but the Celtics second-quarter defense (or lack thereof) helped him look like an evolutionary mix of Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt and Tony Parker. In the second half, Rondo stopped gambling and played straight-up defense, and the big men started to provide help in pick-and-roll situations. Suddenly, the game didn’t look so easy for Lawson. That’s what happens when you remember (and actually use) your defensive principles.

To be fair to Rondo’s defense, Chauncey Billups needed 10 shots to score five points. If Rondo felt any resentment toward Billups for whatever happened this summer on Team USA, well, count one for Rondo. He made his point. At least for tonight, Billups didn’t deserve to be on the same court as the Celtics’ star.

Did anything else happen?

Rondo briefly left the game, and could be seen stretching on the sideline. It was unclear whether his hamstring or feet were bothering him. Marquis Daniels also looked to injure himself — the right thumb. If you recall, he injured his left thumb last season.

My brother came up with the best description of the starting Celtics frontcourt I’ve heard yet: “Get mentally abused by one big man, and physically abused by the other.”

J.R. Smith is, for lack of a better word, interesting. In his return to the Garden, Shelden Williams didn’t exactly receive a loving reception. It was more indifferent.

With less than a minute left, Von Wafer took an obscene 30-footer with plenty of time left on the shot clock.

Glen Davis and Nene had some beef. Sadly for Davis, the beef was not food.

And, umm, did you see Erden’s finger roll? If Erden had become black, worn short shorts, been the best scorer in the league, and looked like a skinnier version of an ambidextrous person, he could have briefly convinced people he was George Gervin.

Oh, I forgot one thing: It’s a shame Avery Bradley doesn’t have a grasp of the Celtics’ offense yet. His defense is scintillating. I’m normally the type of person who only notices defense if it’s bad. (Like when Robinson and Rondo were repeatedly roasted by Lawson.) But Bradley, as KG does, forces you to admire his defense, by being THAT much more impressive than everyone else. Unfortunately, the rookie still hasn’t learned how to contribute with the ball in his hands. Once he does, his defense will be a weapon.

Tonight’s game should have been less competitive, but the Celtics accomplished what they needed to. They sent George Karl home still searching for his 1,000th win. And if you just closed your eyes when the bench was in, the Celtics won in very impressive fashion.

*****

P.S. — Garnett scooted over to George Karl after the game. My imagination might be running wild, but I bet he was clearing things up after his alleged “cancer patient” comments. Karl, who fought cancer all of last season and still isn’t completely out of danger, took offense to Garnett’s alleged comments.

*Searching my brain for a way to relate Antoine Walker to tonight’s game preview, and thus continue over-covering Walker’s D-League return.*

*Still searching.*

*Searching one last time.*

Fortunately for you guys, I can’t figure out a way to tie Antoine Walker into a Celtics-Nuggets game preview. As such, I will actually have to discuss the current Celtics, rather than a D-Leaguer who played his last Celtic game in 2005.

Tonight’s game has a bajillion different storylines. There is George Karl’s quest for his 1,000th win (he’s one short); Shelden Williams’s return to Boston (I doubt he’ll receive a video tribute); the Paul Pierce vs. Carmelo Anthony career trajectory comparison (their career paths are actually quite similar); and the simple matter of whether the Celtics will actually be able to field a team of five healthy players. Okay, so that isn’t quite a bajillion. But it’s four, and I’m probably forgetting quite a bit more. Also, I assume Shaq will address the Turkey rumor. So that makes five.

Quite frankly, I have no idea who will or will not play for the Celtics tonight. But I can still find three keys to the game:

1. Pound the ball inside

Umm, Shelden Williams (yes, the guy you might remember from last year) starts for the Denver Nuggets. If that doesn’t make Kevin Garnett’s eyes light up, I don’t know what would. Garnett should spend the night being defended by a combination of Williams and Al Harrington. That would be bad enough if Garnett was entirely unmotivated, but let’s not forget: on the day Garnett sank a buzzer-beater to defeat the Knicks, he saw far too much of the word “Harrington.” That is to say, he was looking at the back of Harrington’s jersey all day. Harrington scored 30 on a hobbled Garnett that day and encouraged a wave of “the demise of Kevin Garnett” talk. Methinks Garnett doesn’t forget.

2. Stop J.R. Smith

No, Smith is not the Nuggets’ best player. He certainly isn’t their most consistent. But when J.R. Swish gets hot, the Nuggets are tough to stop. It’s no coincidence the Nuggets have won all three games in which Smith scored at least 20 points. He’s like Denver’s Nate Robinson, or a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get, but sometimes it can be quite delightful.

Why is a key to stop Smith, rather than Carmelo? Well, I’m not entirely sure stopping Carmelo is possible.

3. The potential of Rondo vs. Billups

Yup. Another storyline I forgot. Billups was another player who won gold with Team USA, while Rondo went home (for whatever reason). If Rondo does play, this matchup should be a good one. The two play the position quite differently, but both are effective in their own ways.

While I’m discussing Billups, Mr. Big Shot is a very undeserved nickname. Has Billups hit some clutch shots in his life? Sure, but so has Vince Carter. That doesn’t make either of them the best options come crunch time. Mr. Big Shot’s latest crunch-time failure came last night, when he 1) decided not to call a timeout after a rebound, with 6.3 seconds remaining, and 2) almost lost possession, then missed a jumper that would have tied the game.

One last thought: I don’t want Karl to win his 1,000th NBA game tonight. I’d rather he wait at least one more game. But I love that when we talk about Karl, we are now talking about basketball. As long as we keep talking about basketball, that means everything is going according to plan.