Perk's happy face.

The scene seems eerily similar to my kindergarten class, where we sat in a circle and passed around what my teacher called “the conch.” If you held the conch, just a regular seashell, you were allowed to speak. If you didn’t have the conch, your silence was insisted upon. It was kind of like Lord of the Flies, except an adult was actually in charge, and I don’t think my teacher considered us savages when the conch was somebody else’s.

The 20-24 Phoenix Suns gathered at mid-court during yesterday’s practice, to discuss how to right their recent wrongs. Their defense has too often resembled a five-man fish net, with holes everywhere. Their rebounding, too often non-existent. Their offense, not enough to carry their obvious flaws. Never mind that those are natural side effects of a roster that combines twenty-five small forwards. These Suns are frustrated, and they want to fix this leak before it sinks the entire franchise.

“We had a good stretch and now we’re having a bad stretch and we’ve got to find a way to end this as quickly as possible,” Steve Nash told the Arizona Republic. “We’ve just got to come out, play hard and compete and give ourselves a chance to win. If we lose, we can sleep at night if we compete. I feel like there’s been moments where we’ve been caught thinking instead of fighting.”

Questioning his team’s fight, Nash sounds the alarm, pleading for change. But it’s difficult to imagine a team that starts both Channing Frye and Vince Carter ever being tough. The problem is personnel more than anything else. Carter is who we thought he was, a disinterested star who continues to underachieve despite natural physical gifts that make even Michael Jordan envious.

One recent Carter anecdote sheds more light on the unfulfilled promise of his career: Grant Hill, noted great guy and awesome teammate, questioned Carter’s diet and conditioning. “He eats one too many cookies on that plane,” said Hill during a radio interview. Carter has never been willing to take the extra step to corral the greatness that once seemed his destiny. He’s never been willing to cut that extra cookie out of his diet, or to cut hard on every play. Now 34 years old, Carter’s an old dog. And it’s tough to teach an old dog new tricks. To continue using cliches, it’s not the size of the athleticism in the player, it’s the size of the combination of athleticism and fight in the player. Err, or something like that. What I mean to say is, Carter’s never been known as a fighter. If you ever did have to make a fighter analogy with Carter, he’d be the one with a glass jaw.

Maybe Carter should take notes when playing against Kendrick Perkins tonight.

“(Perkin’s) is a really physical guy,” Marcin Gortat told SB Nation. “He’s a guy who will never let it go. I’m going to kind of compare him to a little dog. These little dogs, they will never let go. They’re so small, they just keep barking and just keep running around you. You’re going to keep throwing the little ball and they’re going to keep running and bring it back. He’ll grab to your leg and he’ll never let go. That’s how is Kendrick Perkins. He’ll never let go. He’ll keep fighting with you, he’ll keep pushing you, keep hitting you and at some point you’re going to go like, ‘damn dude, you don’t have enough?’”

“But honestly, that’s great,” Gortat continued. “That’s character and I really respect him for doing that. I always seen this guy battling Dwight (Howard)…I really respect his game and respect him as a player. Even though right now he’s my enemy because we play today, I’m happy he’s back on the floor. He’s a good player and I believe that he deserves to play because of his hard work and his heart.”

According to Gortat, Stan Van Gundy used to say the key to playing against a player like Perkins wasn’t strategy — the key was having balls. Some of Gortat’s teammates should find some. Carter’s, specifically, have been lost for quite some time.

It’s a shame, too, that these Suns lack fight. They are wasting the remarkable twilight of Nash’s career.

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

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “West will add another dimension, but it’ll also mean the Celtics will have to go through another transition period. ‘It’s going to be an adjustment for the guys on the bench who are used to playing a certain way,’ Ainge said. ‘They haven’t had Delonte. Right now they’re having success, so it’s just another challenge for Delonte to find a way to fit in and find his niche in the team and find his role. And it’s another adjustment that Doc has to make in finding room for another player. And that’s not as easy as it sounds.’ West’s defense, his ability to be a floor general, and his scoring touch, will provide an instant boost to the second unit. ‘D-West definitely adds more versatility to the lineup,’ said forward Paul Pierce. ‘Somebody who can spell Ray. Ray’s been playing a lot of minutes in this stretch. He showed really great chemistry with Nate [Robinson] and our bench in the preseason and in practice. It’s going to be great to get his feet wet with that second unit and we don’t have to go with the starters for long stretches because of his versatility to play one or two positions.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “The Celtics figure to be a better team with West in the mix, there’s no disputing that. Even after producing an 8-2 mark during West’s 10-game suspension for offseason gun charges, Boston players gushed with excitement while pondering his integration into the bench rotation. ‘It’s great because he gives our second unit even more of a lift,’ Allen said Saturday night in Memphis after his late-game sharpshooting helped the Celtics top the Grizzlies, wrapping up a 3-1 trip. ‘It’s a great position to be in. We were able to weather the storm for the first 10 games and I know he’s champing at the bit — he’s ready to go. You get another player who solidifies that backup unit and can give you more of a scoring pop. He played well [in the preseason], so we’re looking forward to it.’ … ‘I think it will be different for [the media and fans] because you haven’t seen us full throttle since the preseason,’ said Garnett. ‘Practice, that’s our time, where we really become a team.’ … ’It’ll be nice. It’s good to have a body and another guy who kind of knows what we’re doing,’ said Rivers. ‘But it will be interesting. We have a really good rhythm right now, so we’ll bring him back and that will upset our rhythm a little bit.’ Yet again, it’s a boat worth rocking. ‘Obviously, Delonte is going to help us, but I don’t know exactly how yet,’ Rivers said. ‘We’re playing pretty well now. We have a pretty good rhythm and [West is] going to change our rhythm a little bit. So we’re going to have to get used to that. Having said that, I’d rather have that than not. We’ll see. I think Delonte will help Nate [Robinson] the most, but we’ll wait and see. He’ll help us.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “On Saturday in Memphis in the 116-100 victory, O’Neal had five authoritative dunks among his 7-for-10, 18-point night. Rondo, the lightning to Shaq’s thunder, is always looking his way. Rondo and Goliath have found a groove. ‘He’s definitely adding assists to my game, and that’s going to increase,’ said Rondo. ‘If his man’s off his body, all you’ve got to do is throw it toward the rim. He’s going to finish it.’ O’Neal returns the salute, saying, ‘All I have to do is work to get space and he’ll find me. I play my game and he gets me the ball.’ ‘Yeah, it goes both ways,’ said Rondo. ‘I love playing with him, and vice versa. I think he enjoys playing with me, as well.’ It is a measure of Rondo’s burgeoning greatness that his locker was not surrounded with media after he delivered 17 assists (and 11 points) at FedExForum. Seventeen? Yawn. This was the third time this season Rondo netted that number of dishes, and it’s not even his season high. That would be 24 against the Knicks. He is now averaging 15.1 a game, and has eight straight in double figures. ‘He has such good control and command on what we’re trying to run,’ said coach Doc Rivers. ‘We’re on the same page a lot offensively on what we want to run. He knows what I’m looking for and he has the ability to find it.’”

Paul Coro, Arizona Republic – “Suns Hall of Fame announcer Al McCoy has never uttered “Shazam!” as much as he did Sunday night at Staples Center. The Suns made beating the world-champion Los Angeles Lakers a side achievement Sunday by setting a franchise record with 22 3-pointers in a 121-116 road victory. Phoenix sank 22 of 40 3-points, also breaking the Lakers’ opponent record and coming within one of Orlando’s NBA record of 23 3-pointers in a game. The Suns’ previous record was 20, set in April 2006 against New Orleans/Oklahoma City and January 2008 against Denver. Phoenix needed them all, especially Hedo Turkoglu’s fifth 3-pointer that gave Phoenix a 115-109 lead with 34.7 seconds to go, sending the Suns to their fourth win in five games to make them 5-4 this season.”

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

You should have seen me yesterday. I had a nice back spasm, so I was sitting at my computer half-naked rocking an old-school heating pad on my back. I couldn’t really write because I had a throbbing headache that was stifling my creativity, so I said to myself, “Eff it, self. Learn how to create a YouTube highlight video.” A few hours of bumbling stupidity later, this Shaq clip was created.

Anyway, let me know what you think. And I promise, like fine wine, I will get better with time.

On one hand, Matt Janning had a training camp invite from the Celtics, who already have 14 players on their roster and that doesn’t even include Luke Harangody (who has yet to be signed). On the other, Janning had a two-year contract offer from the Phoenix Suns with some of that money guaranteed. I think he made the right choice. (Arizona Republic)

The Phoenix Suns signed Northeastern guard Matt Janning to a two-year, minimum-salary contract with a small guarantee Wednesday.

Janning will be in the Suns training camp to compete for a roster spot. Rather than one of the remaining additions being simply a third point guard, Janning would give the Suns a fifth guard with combo guard skills in a 6-foot-5 frame.

Suns Director of Player Personnel Todd Quinter likens Janning’s situation to when Jeff Hornacek was a Suns rookie of little acclaim. He said Janning has an outstanding feel for the game like Hornacek did. But also like Hornacek at that stage, Janning needs to make some tweaks to his shot and improve his strength to match up with NBA guards. He weighed 193 pounds at his Suns draft workout.

I hope Janning starts rubbing his face before every free throw. Seriously though, I was very impressed with one game he played while with the Celtics during summer league. The kid knows how to play and has a lot of physical talent. But there was simply no place for him on the Celtics roster.

Shaq? I dunno about Shaq.

Shaq, eh? (NBA Fanhouse)

Veteran free agent center Shaquille O’Neal — the future Hall of Famer without a team — has been lobbying the Boston Celtics aggressively, still trying to convince them that his addition would help their quest to win another NBAchampionship.

He still wants to be The Big Leprechaun.

Although O’Neal was unavailable for comment Friday, two sources close to him confirmed his continued interest in the Celtics, even though they currently have no room, or exceptions, under the salary cap to pay him beyond the NBA veteran’s minimum of $1.35 million.

The Celtics could pay him more, but only if his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, helped with a sign-and-trade deal.

“He only wants to go to a team with a chance to win it all,” one source said. “That’s a short list. Even for the money, he’s not going to a non-contender.”

*Trying to fight off the offseason beer goggles. Trying to fight off the offseason beer goggles.*

Oh, screw it. If the Celtics can get Shaq with the minimum then it’s worth it. Forget that he clogs the middle of the lane. Forget that his pick-and-roll defense can only be described as “epic fail.” Forget that he has crashed and burned in Phoenix and now Cleveland.

The Celtics don’t need Shaq to start. They don’t need him to play 35 minutes a game. They don’t need him to play a starring role. In fact, the C’s biggest problem with adding the Big Diesel would be explaining to him that starting wasn’t going to be his role, that Jermaine would be the starter while Perk’s down and Shaq would be the changeup coming off the bench. But if Shaq can agree to that? If he understands he’s not a starter anymore and wants to take the minimum?

As much criticism as he’s gotten the past few years, Shaq is still a massive man who can score down low and grab boards. And the Celtics need another big man pretty desperately. So desperately, in fact, that I’ve now talked myself into Shaq.

Go get him, Danny. I think there’s a remote possibility that  he could potentially, maybe bring something positive to the Parquet.

The Celtics have gotten rid of their morning walkthrough, but that doesn’t mean we have to. Here are a few Celtics links, and maybe even an NBA link or two, to help wake you up and get you focused for the day.

So many uncertain futures.

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “But as the disappointment settled in from Thursday night’s Game 7 loss to the Lakers, most of these players weren’t thinking about themselves. Almost to a man, they have quaffed Doc Rivers’ Ubuntu Kool-Aid for the last three years, and the possibility that their great motivator may now be stepping down with a year left on his contract is a painful thought. Though Rivers said he wasn’t ready to deal with the issue following the game – the loss to the Lakers was still far too fresh and numbing – he can count on a lot of calls over the next month while he retreats to Orlando. ‘Doc’s everything – everything,’ Kevin Garnett said. ‘It’s going to be a rough one.’ ‘I think everyone wants him back – that’s not even an issue,” said Garnett. “It’s just a matter of whether Doc wants to come back and whatever decision he sees fit to make for him and his family.’ ‘It’s tough. I can’t reflect on it right now,” said Rivers. “Probably in a week or so I’ll go hide somewhere for a while. But it was the craziest, most emotional group I’ve ever coached in my life. I told them that they made me reach places I never thought I needed to go – had to go. But through it all, we were the tightest, most emotional, crazy group that I’ve ever been with in my life. So that’s what makes it tough. I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I’m going to wait. I’m going to go and watch my kids play AAU basketball. Just wait a little bit.’”

Chris Mannix, SI – “Things don’t have to change. Rivers could be back. Top assistant Tom Thibodeau, who will be on the Bulls’ sideline next season, will need to be replaced, but there is growing support within the organization for the candidacy of ex-Nets coach Lawrence Frank, a Thibodeau-like workaholic who is respected by both Rivers and Celtics general manager Danny Ainge, to fill his seat on the bench. After the game, Rivers made his opening pitch for the players to return, reminding them that the ’08 championship team — the one with a healthy Perkins — had still yet to have a true chance to defend its title.”

Ian Thomsen, SI – “They’ve known all season that coach Doc Rivers may not return — my hunch is he won’t be back — but now comes a potential curveball from Phoenix. Doesn’t it make sense for the Suns to make a run at Celtics general manager Danny Ainge? His family was living happily in Phoenix before his 2003 move to Boston, and Ainge has done everything the Celtics could ask while winning a 17th championship and reaching the Finals twice in three years. With GM Steve Kerr and his lead assistant, David Griffin, announcing this week their decision to leave Phoenix, owner Robert Sarver will be looking for a new administration. People in the league expect Ainge to be at the top of his list now that the Celtics’ season is done. Ainge played for the Suns and then coached them for three seasons through 1999, and he would provide the franchise with a successful link to its traditions of winning with up-tempo play. Ainge is one of the top GMs in the league, with a longstanding record of finding talent in the draft, as well as showing no fear in making big trades. He remains under contract with Boston, so if Sarver is interested, he will have to go through the Celtics’ ownership group led by Wyc Grousbeck.”

Bob Ryan, Boston Globe – “Now let it be said that some among us — OK, me — were less enthusiastic about instant championship possibilities than others. I looked at the remainder of the roster and declared it to be the worst 4-12 in the league, a judgment that proved to be about as prescient as Dan Duquette’s proclamation that the 1996 Roger Clemens was in the twilight of his career. Please. At times you’ve got to man up and admit you’re wrong. I did like Rajon Rondo, but could never have projected his quick ascent to stardom in his second year in the league. I was totally wrong about Perkins, who looked like a career backup to me. But I will say I made that judgment before Danny Ainge signed Eddie House, James Posey, or, for the stretch drive, P.J. Brown. Absent any of them, the team would not have won. But the Celtics did win. They provided fans with one of the great start-to-finish experiences of their lives, going 66-16 in the regular season and then concluding the season with a 131-92 conquest of the hated Lakers. I can tell you for sure that no other Celtics team in my experience ever put the pedal to the metal on Day 1 without ever taking it off until the final buzzer of the final game. In that regard, the 2007-08 Celtics stand apart. Really. Need we say any more? They delivered. They ended a 22-year championship drought, and they did so by giving their fans the closest thing to a perfect season imaginable. A fandom cannot ask more than to see a team give them a nightly home show in the regular season before doing whatever it takes to get through the two-month grind of the playoffs. That’s the complete package.”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “‘I’ll deal with that when the time comes,’ Allen said when asked about his pending free agency. ‘But it’s obvious I don’t want to be nowhere else.’ Asked whether the Celtics could push for another title, he said, “I believe Kevin [Garnett] will be healthier next year. We go a lot around what he does and Paul [Pierce] is going to be better and just more experienced. As guys get older the efficiency goes up. I don’t see why [we can’t be back].’ ‘If Pierce does not exercise his early termination option and returns at $21 million next season, the Celtics will remain over the salary cap, meaning Ainge will have to use creative financing to replenish the roster. He still has a mid-level exception and both Allens’ Bird Rights. The free agency pool will be full of capable players. There was a reason Ainge had a wry smile on his face Thursday night, because he realizes the run is not over.”

Chad Finn, Boston Globe – “Trades or no trades, it’s going to be different around here next year. Ray Allen may not be back, and maybe that’s just as well. His defensive effort on Kobe was noble. But his beautiful, deadly jump shot, the main reason he will be feted in Springfield someday, suddenly had the look and effect of Tony Allen’s last night. If just two more had dropped . . . Paul Pierce can opt out of his deal, and with the uncertain labor situation, it might be the prudent thing to do, at least in his agent’s mind. Rasheed Wallace, who played his best when it mattered the most, just as he told his would in the midst of his 82-game paid holiday, might retire, and I sincerely hope he does not, something I could not have imagined writing six weeks ago. The man knows how to play intelligent, efficient basketball. And when he chooses to, he is a marvel to watch, with his high-arcing bank shots and sack of sneaky defensive tricks, including the old Rick Mahorn deception of pulling away when an offensive player tries to lean on him, sometimes leading to an embarrassing fall to the floor, a turnover, and a good laugh. And there’s the coach, Doc Rivers. I’ve written this before, but it bears repeating given that last night’s postgame press conference, during which he spoke of his team emotionally and in the past tense, certainly felt like an exit interview. He is the perfect coach for this proud bunch, shrewd enough with the Xs and Os, always on point when delivering a message (‘keep being aggressive’ and ‘trust each other, don’t be a hero’ were two of his spot-on go-to pleas last night), and an absolutely gifted and genuine people person.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN – “Pierce clearly didn’t want any reminders of what had just occurred. But he wasn’t particularly keen on looking toward the future quite yet, either. Asked about next season and the early contract termination option he holds, Pierce remained noncommittal about whether he’d definitely be back. ‘Man, stuff’s going so fast, truthfully, I don’t really know what to think right now,’ said Pierce. ‘I’m just reeling from this loss. I’m going to sit down with my family, wind down a little bit, then figure it out.’ It’s hard to imagine Pierce not finishing his career in a Celtics uniform, but it’s clear that he’s going to take a wait-and-see approach to the process, watching how the first dominos fall before making a decision. Pierce’s uncertainty highlights an offseason of questions for the entire Celtics organization. At the onset, it appears that everyone is waiting for the first shoe to drop, then things will trickle down from there.”

Ron Borges, Boston Herald – “A lot of people who don’t know as much as they profess to know about basketball owe Doc Rivers an apology. There have been few better coaching jobs than the one Rivers did this season with his too old, too young, too often injured Celtics [team stats], marshaling their energy through a 27-27 finish so as to pose them for a remarkable run through the playoffs. While they came up short of a second NBA title in three years, he showed an acute understanding of his team and how to match it up against four of the best players and three of the best teams in the NBA. Rivers did much the same the previous two years when he led the Celtics to an NBA title and Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, respectively. To put it simplest, when Rivers had enough players to be competitive, he made his team the most competitive one in basketball. Thursday night, with his center in street clothes because of a knee injury, Rivers mixed and matched what he had left brilliantly and, along with “defensive coordinator” Tom Thibodeau, put together an inspired effort that left the Lakers shooting 32.5 percent from the field and 20 percent from beyond the arc.”

K.C. Johnson, Chicago Tribune – “Eighteen days after accepting the Bulls’ three-year, $6.5 million offer to become the 18th coach in franchise history, Tom Thibodeau will be introduced to the media Wednesday morning at the Berto Center. Roughly 33 hours later, the Bulls could be announcing the 17th pick in Thursday’s NBA draft. And in less than two weeks, LeBron James headlines the greatest free-agent class in league history on July 1. Ready for a busy Bulls summer?”

Steve Buckley, Boston Herald – “Don’t take the bait, Boston sports fans. Don’t look for silver linings because silver linings are for suckers. And do not, under any circumstance, rationalize the Celtics’ loss to the Lakers by accepting the lovely consolation prize of how these have been grand times for a sports fan here. Once you accept yesterday’s success as a cure-all for today’s failure, that’s when complacency sets in. If the Red Sox, Patriots and Celtics decide to go the Bruin Way – not knowing or not caring about how to win a championship – that’s when the Duck Boats never again will be used for anything other than to haul tourists from the Back Bay to the Old North Church. A little more than two years ago, when the Patriots’ bid for an undefeated season crash-landed against the Giants in Super Bowl XLII, it mattered not one bit that three Super Bowl banners already were on display at Gillette Stadium. See, in a big league sports city that’s the way it’s supposed to be. It explains why Yankees fans were boiling over from 2001-08, and why Steelers fans don’t fluff off a postseason defeat by telling stories about the Terry Bradshaw years. In a true big league sports city, there is, or should be, an annual mandate to win. It was a good sign, then, when Celtics general manager Danny Ainge made it known minutes after the Game 7 loss that he was livid about what he had just seen.”

Dan Duggan, Boston Herald – “But the fact is the Celtics and Lakers were tied at 64 with 6:13 remaining in Game 7. If the C’s were a little better in those final six minutes, they’d be raising Banner 18 to the Garden rafters next opening night. Of course, the Lakers managed to make the necessary plays down the stretch in Game 7 to claim the title and revenge for their loss in the 2008 Finals. In a series decided by such a slim margin there were a lot of little reasons the Celtics weren’t able to prevail. Here is a look at five main reasons the Celtics came up short:”

Have a link I might want to look at? Send it my way by email (jayking@celticstown.com) or Twitter