I care that Jeff Green traveled to the White House to meet with a crew of wounded veterans called the Wounded Warriors. It’s a kind gesture from Green and obviously a wonderful cause. Green should be commended for his work in the community, and especially because he offered his time to soldiers who risked their lives for our country, soldiers who now need wheelchairs to play basketball.

But when it comes to rooting for basketball players (programming note: I’m going to sound quite cold-hearted in three… two… one…), I root for their athletic prowess and on-court mentality, not the extent of their community service. Hell, sometimes I don’t even need a reason to root for one player or root against another one. Cheering for sports teams and players can become confusing.

Producing on the court or on the field is the best way to earn praise. That’s why Albert Haynesworth has a chance to become a Gillette fan favorite, even though the former Pro Bowl defensive lineman is, by all accounts, a king-sized dunce. Judging by my Facebook feed, Chad Ochocinco has already become a fan favorite, the oversized personality with a smile as quick as his first step, even though he comes to Foxboro with a reputation as a locker room distraction. Manny Ramirez was a king in Boston until his oddities began to outweigh his fierce bat, Rajon Rondo’s a king although the Celtics once nearly traded him for behavioral issues, and fans could always overlook Glen Davis’s quirkiness until his production started to dwindle.

Then there’s Kevin Garnett, who could commit five or six murders and still be on my A-list of players to root for. I would even root for Garnett if he possessed all the talent of Mikki Moore, because Garnett plays the game like a lion would — you know, if lions could play basketball. Hell, he plays the game like Nicky Santoro.

Santoro was the muscle man in Casino. Watching that movie last night for the first time (I fell asleep in the middle of it, so don’t spoil anything — yes, I feel a little bit like my father when I pass out during the middle of a movie, and no, that’s never a good thing), I was taken aback when Santoro stabbed someone to death (or close to it) with a pen (I think), all because the person had called Santoro’s friend Ace Rothstein an asshole. I can’t quite envision Garnett stabbing someone to death with a pen (he prefers the ball-tap method of violence), but when Rothstein began to describe Santoro, I kept thinking of Number Five.

“You beat Nicky with fists, he comes back with a bat,” said Rothstein. “You beat him with a knife, he comes back with a gun. And if you beat him with a gun, you better kill him, because he’ll keep coming back and back until one of you is dead.”

Delonte West lives by the Nicky Santoro rules, too, and I don’t say that to open a discussion about his gun charges. I meant to say that West plays basketball by the Nicky Santoro rules. Celtics fans immediately forgave the lefty for his crimes, for allegedly meeting Lebron James’s mother for entertainment purposes (how’s that for a euphemism?), and for missing three quarters of the season due to injury. We forgave Delonte for all his past digressions because we knew that when Dwyane Wade beat Delonte with his fists during the playoffs, Delonte would come back with a bat. The bat might not always connect, but if Delonte goes down, he goes down swinging (pun intended). He’s no J.D. Drew.

As you already knew, choosing players to root for can be a complicated process. I liked Scal because he was goofy and I disliked Andrew DeClerq for the same reason. I liked Stephon Marbury because he was interesting and outspoken, but Sam Cassell’s personality bothered me to no end. I disliked Nate Robinson for his “whenever and wherever” shot selection, but I still hold a soft spot in my heart for Antoine Walker. I loathed Tony Allen because he took too many chances and I was lukewarm on Marquis Daniels because he didn’t take enough.

Maybe I should like Jeff Green because he helps wounded soldiers, and I definitely admire what he did. But when it comes to rooting for sports figures, I prefer Nicky Santoro to Mother Teresa. Or sometimes, I just prefer Scal.

It must feel wonderful to be so optimistic.

Yesterday, Dime Magazine published an interview with Rodney Stuckey in which Stuckey was quoted as saying, “On paper, we are the best team in the League.”

Stuckey then explained why he held such a radical belief. “We are deep and athletic,” he said. “All we have to do is play to our abilities. We don’t have the biggest roster, but if we share the ball, we’ll be alright.”

By the way, Ben Wallace’s corpse figures to be Detroit’s starting center. I don’t know what world Stuckey’s living in, but I imagine these are his beliefs:

On paper, Vinny Del Negro is the NBA’s best coach

Stuckey: “Most people think there’s only one thing worse than Del Negro’s hair cut: his offensive sets. But I’ve got to be real with you, folks. Del Negro’s just two steps ahead of every other coach. He’s a visionary. Ten years down the road, when every coach’s playbook becomes marked by confusion and hysteria, remember when I told you there’s no better X’s and O’s coach than Vinny Del Negro. Once Del Negro’s players come to understand his confounding genius, he’ll be alright.”

On paper, JaMarcus Russell is the world’s greatest quarterback

Stuckey: “Never mind that Russell was recently cut, or that he admittedly used codeine, or that his passer rating might as well have been in the negatives. All he has to do is play to his abilities. Russell doesn’t have the smallest waist, but if he ever learns how to stay sober and throw the ball to his own teammates, he’ll be alright.”

On paper, Hassan Whiteside is frontrunner for Rookie of the Year

Stuckey: “Look, guys, I know Whiteside’s offensive game can best be described as ‘non-existent.’ I know even the slightest breeze would blow him over. I know the only thing longer than his arms is the length he needs to climb to become a halfway decent NBA player. Whiteside doesn’t have a clue how to play basketball, but if he ever learns how to put the ball in the basket, he could possibly be alright.”

On paper, Vince Carter is as tough as they come

Stuckey: “Carter gets a bad rap. He mailed in games while playing for Toronto, hasn’t hit a clutch shot in decades, wastes his talents, and could never lead a contender to a championship. But you know what? If I was going to war, Vince Carter would be the first guy I’d want by my side.” (Editor’s note: If I ever went to war with Vince Carter, I’d probably jump on a grenade just to get it over with quickly.)

On paper, the Los Angeles Clippers are the NBA’s greatest franchise

Stuckey: “The Clippers have never won a championship. They rarely ever make the playoffs. Every player they draft either gets perenially injured or sucks major ass. But you know what? People talk about them, all the time. Donald Sterling knows exactly what he’s doing. And things are looking up — they just hired Del Negro!”

On paper, Sam Cassell is gorgeous

Stuckey: “Say what you want to say about Sam. Beauty’s in the eye of the beholder.”

On paper, Michael Sweetney is thin

Stuckey: “Just kidding with this one, guys. Not even I can try to argue this.”

Perkins is looking and feeling much better since the last time we saw him.

Three weeks after having surgery to repair a torn ACL suffered in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Kendrick Perkins is hosting a basketball camp at his old high school,Ozen High School, in his hometown of Beaumont, Texas–and he’s feeling good. (Beaumont Enterprise)

Perkins didn’t look like he just had surgery. He had no crutches or a noticeable limp when he walked.

“I feel really good – everything is going well so far,” Perkins said. “I can’t wait to come back (to the Celtics).”

Perkins is co-hosting the camp, for children ages 10-18, with his former teammate and Texas native, Sam Cassell. Teammates Nate Robinson and Rajon Rondo are also on hand, providing instruction and guidance to the campers. Cassell was impressed with Perkins’ maturity and dedication to the kids.

“His rehab is not going to be easy,” said Sam Cassell, Perkins’ former teammate who won an NBA championship with him in 2008 and organized the Beaumont camp at Ozen High School. “He could have easily said he couldn’t do it this year, but he didn’t because he knew what it would mean to all of the kids. He wanted them to know what road to take to be successful.”

You’ve got to love Perkins: he does everything the right way. A lot of professional athletes would have bailed on a camp like this after undergoing surgery and having the nightmare last couple months that Perkins has had. But not Perk. Not only is he the toughest, scowling-est bastard in the league, but he also has an unquestioned work ethic and a maturity level beyond his years.

“It’s always a pleasure to come back home and it’s a blessing to work with these kids,” the Boston Celtics’ center and former Ozen High School standout said. “I want to be a role model and give them something they’ve never experienced before – working with professional athletes.”

Rondo does some things every night that surprise even himself. (Photo by Brian Babineau/Getty Images)

When Rajon Rondo is on top of his game, everything comes down to yo-yo’s.

The game’s like a yo-yo in his hands. The ball’s like a yo-yo in his fingertips. He can walk the dog, put it around the world, even rock the baby. When Rondo’s yo-yo’ing around, the game is his. Everyone else is too slow. No opponent can keep up. It’s like he’s a grown man on a playground with little kids, only the little kids are all taller and stronger than he. But they aren’t faster, they don’t have better court vision, and they aren’t in control. They don’t have the game at their fingertips. Not like Rondo does.

“I would just take Rondo,” Doc Rivers said when asked who he’d choose if he had his choice of one point guard. “I wouldn’t even look at another point guard. There are some great point guards in the league, we’ve seen a couple of them the last two games, in Deron Williams and Chauncey Billups. But we have Rondo and he’s my guy.”

It hasn’t always been that way. Three seasons ago, he backed up Sebastian Telfair as Boston stumbled to a 24-58 season. Even two seasons ago, Rondo was the weak link in the Celtics’ starting five. Sam Cassell was signed midway through the season as a backup point guard, and the hope was that Cassell would play well enough to supplant Rondo as an end-of-game option. It didn’t work out. Cassell flopped, launching brick after brick, losing Doc’s confidence along the way. But that didn’t mean Rondo’s job of closing out games was safe. When push came to shove, and the Celtics needed to close out playoff wins, Eddie House often heard his number called.

Last season was different. Rondo emerged as one of the league’s up-and-coming stars with a breakout postseason. Paired against Rookie of the Year Derrick Rose and then a hungry Orlando defense, Rondo alerted the world what he’s always believed, in that self-confident heart of his: Number Nine will eat you alive. He dropped 16.9 points, 9.8 assists, and 9.7 rebounds per game, as he wrestled control of the Celtics from the two Big Three members standing. It wasn’t so much that there was a struggle for power, so much that Rondo seized it with little resistance. The conch was his, and he earned it the right way: By outplaying whatever opponent stood in front of him.

But there were rumbles of discontent. Rondo was fined for being late to a playoff game. He was labeled a troublemaker in the locker room, a disruptive force. “We need him to be more of a leader,” said Danny Ainge at the time. “He’s got to grow up in some cases.” Bob Ryan wrote, “He’s not some awful person, but let’s just say he has his ways, and he sometimes grates on teammates, coaching staff, and management.” Part of the solution on the floor, Rondo was deemed a problem off it.

Ainge looked into trading the young star in the offseason. His name was involved in rumors with the Detroit Pistons and Memphis Grizzlies, among other teams. Less than two months after being a nightly triple-double, Rondo was unsure if he’d ever play another game as a Celtic.

Not that it affected his preparation. After draft night passed and Ainge hadn’t pulled the trigger on any trades, it became clear that Rondo would stay with the only NBA organization he’d ever played for. Did he harbor grudges? Not on the surface, at least. Instead of pouting during the offseason, Rondo put on 11 pounds of muscle. Rather than fire back at Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers verbally, Rondo kept his mouth shut and returned to camp a different player. Scratch that, a different teammate. Where others might have rebelled at the criticisms, Rondo took them to heart. He changed his ways. He remodeled himself to be better for his team.

And it showed on the court. From day one this season, Rondo has been the Celtics’ leader. With his play, with his words, everything. “It’s weird,” Nate Robinson said of Rondo’s role on the team. “You’ve got Rondo running the show, you’ve got KG, and he’s a vet. It’s like you got a guy out here, young guy, running the show, and the vets and everybody are just listening and just try to play together.” The team that tried to get rid of him, now listening to his orders. The locker room he once disrupted, heeding his advice.

Boston rewarded his new attitude and improved play with a 5-year, $55 million contract extension. The NBA recognized him as an All-Star. He just broke Rick Fox’s Celtics single-season record for steals, and will soon erase Bob Cousy’s Celtics single-season assists record. With those two records, Rondo’s evolving maturity, and elite rebounding rarely seen from a point guard, Rondo’s season is one of the best a point guard has compiled in the Celtics’ storied history. Right there with Cousy’s prime years.

“[Rondo has] grown up before everybody’s eyes,” said Garnett, who has always contended that Rondo could become one of the league’s top point guards. “You want your point guard setting the tone every night. You want your point guard leading [you]. It’s great to watch because I’ve seen him when he was quiet, hiding in the corner, didn’t say two words. Sometimes we sort of miss that.”

Garnett’s only kidding about missing the old Rajon Rondo, the one who used to hide in the corner, come late to games, and scrape only the surface of his vast potential. That Rondo isn’t coming back. A maturation process has left a new Rondo, a better Rondo, a Rondo prepared to carry his team into tomorrow, and lead them today.

The wild thing about his evolution, the scary part for the rest of the NBA, is that Rondo will only get better. He’s improved by leaps and bounds every year, in every aspect. Each night, the team falls a little more into his control, as he continues the process of receiving the torch from the Big Three. The Boston Celtics aren’t yet completely his, but they will be.

And when they are, the Celtics will be in good hands.

Just like the yo-yo attached to his fingertips.

Dirk played well, but the Celtics got retribution. (Photo by Matthew Emmons/US Presswire)

I used to call balls Sam Cassells. You know, like, “Damn, that shot was clutch. He really showed some Sam Cassells on that one.” But after Ali Farokhmanesh drained a pullup three with almost a full shot clock and only 35 seconds standing between his Northern Iowa team and an upset of the number one-ranked Kansas Jayhawks, I will now call balls Farokhmaneshes.

Tonight, the Celtics showed a huge pair of Farokhmaneshes that they’ve been lacking all season long, overcoming a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit to run their winning streak to four games. For the Celtics, the winning formula was very familiar: Timely defense spearheaded by Kevin Garnett, scoring from Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, and an elite floor game from Rajon Rondo.

It was the starting five that won this game for Boston. Pierce had the lowest +/- of any Celtic starter, and he ended up with 29 points, 5 assists, 3 boards, and 2 steals. Oh, and that “lowest +/-” he registered? It was +16. Pierce was phenomenal on both ends of the court, showcasing his improved health with an array of drives to the hoop, creating easy buckets and earning 10 trips to the charity stripe.

But Pierce wasn’t the only starter inflicting damage on the Mavericks. Ray Allen scored 21 points, hitting a number of momentum-turning shots. Rondo was aggressive early and often, scoring 20 points and 10 rebounds. Kendrick Perkins got the better of Brendan Haywood, finishing with 11 points and 6 rebounds. Even Garnett, limited to a paltry 8 points and 9 rebounds, was as active defensively as Tiger Woods is when he’s off the golf course. Garnett seemed to get his hands on every loose ball, deflecting passes and snuffing fast break opportunities. The starters played as good a game as they have all season long, and — against a very good Dallas team — it was a damn good thing.

Don’t get it twisted, either. The Dallas team Boston beat tonight is a title contender. When you combine the way Jason Kidd instinctively passes the ball upcourt, pushing the tempo and allowing his teammates to create plays, with the amount of weapons the Mavericks have, you wind up with a dangerous concoction. Top it off with Dirk Nowitzki playing perhaps the best basketball of his career, and these Mavericks are a damn good team capable of beating any opponent in a 7-game series.

They just couldn’t get it done against Boston tonight. Not with Paul Pierce attacking the hoop and doing the things that have made him so successful. Not with the Celtics playing like, well, the Celtics. Wins like this were the calling card of the Celtics of old. They kept the game close, manufactured stops when they needed them, and called on Pierce and Allen whenever a bucket was necessary. Tonight was a return to that, and it was oh so satisfying.

After the game, Pierce said, “We’re trying to gather momentum for the playoffs. I’m healthy, Kevin’s healthy, and we’re ready to roll.”

It’s sure starting to seem like he’s right.

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.

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “The rest of the way, Blatche, who was killing the Celtics with 23 points, fell into the trap of talking trash to Garnett rather than playing. Wizards coach Flip Saunders said that was costly. ‘We choked … We got young guys, they don’t know what it’s like to be in a situation. We start talking to Garnett, start talking trash and everything else. Got Garnett and those guys juiced up and we just pissed down our leg the last six minutes. You have a veteran team that knows how to close out games, against a young team that hasn’t been there and instead of just letting a sleeping dog lie we juiced up their energies. We had plays coming off timeouts and we had guys going to the wrong side of the floor, we were so discombobulated.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “But while openly admitting that there are no excuses for their play over the first 42 minutes of Sunday’s game, the Celtics viewed the glass as decidedly half-full after rallying from a 13-point deficit for an 86-83 triumph at TD Garden. ‘You could probably say, in a small way, we did [get away with one], but we fought for it,” said Ray Allen, who scored 18 of his game-high 25 points after the intermission, including a pair of pivotal 3-pointers in the final two minutes. ‘We never gave up or thought it was over. I compare my feeling now opposed to if we lost that game. It definitely makes my food later taste a lot better. We just keep building, keep building. I have been reflecting on the championship year — losing to Washington three times, Charlotte beat us a couple times, and we were just so dejected because of it. But sometimes it’s just matchups, guys get hot. I think [Andray] Blatche and [Al] Thornton got hot tonight. We just have to move forward and continue working on our defense.’”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “The Celtics can strike fear in an opponent at the most important moments, a quality Paul Pierce hadn’t seen in a while. ‘A lot of these games, this year, we’ve let go,’ said Pierce, who scored 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting. ‘Tonight, we saw something that I like to see at this point in the season. Especially coming down the stretch. We saw the Celtics that I’m used to seeing.’”

Jimmy Toscano, CelticsBlog – “‘I don’t even know man, that was a bar fight,’ Garnett said with Pierce laughing in agreement. ‘Chairs were thrown, bottles were breaking. You had to get your back to something and just swing. So that’s what that was, all grit.’ Throughout his career, Allen has been one of the best in utilizing screens and picks to get open. This was no different tonight, as Doc drew up the play in the timeout that worked exactly as planned. Ray Allen did a nice job in summing up how it all went down. ‘Sam (Cassell) was over there heckling on the sideline when I walked down and he was trying to talk to me, and you know how Sam is. He looked at me and was like, ‘You’re getting the ball, you’re getting the ball, I know you’re getting the ball!’ So, you know I tried to shrug it off, so when I went to fake to Rondo I just cut out and Mike Miller is riding me and he’s kind of riding me making sure I don’t get the ball and he’s pushing me (the opposite) way so I just kind of lazily cut through to the basket and Perk and Kevin were coming up. And the minute he thought I was going that way I just cut hard and they got him. I was sitting there wide open.’”

Celtics Insider, Boston Herald – “But a great screen is nothing without a great shot. Allen took a pass from Rondo and rose for one of his picture-perfect jumpers. Though he was leaning slightly to the left, his form was solid and the shot was pure, ripping through the net to put the C’s in control. From start-to-finish, it was precisely what Rivers envisioned. ‘It was exactly the play,’ Allen said. ‘The bigs, Kevin and Perk, set a great screen and I came off. I think I even had more time, but that’s the one thing about shooting the ball – I don’t like to sit there and wait on the 3-point line. Once I come off, if the ball comes, I’m up in the air with it.’”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “Finley said he would try to ease his way in. His role with the Spurs diminishing, he asked to be waived, leading Boston to swoop in and sign him. But Finley said he knew he’d have to simply fit in on a team full of veterans and clearly defined roles. ‘Coach was pretty honest with me, which I can respect, that he doesn’t know how he’s going to use me,’ Finley said. ‘I have to respect that. I’m coming to a team that’s already established. They’ve put in X amount of games here, so for me to come in and try to establish a role right away would be crazy for me to even think that. But Coach has put me at ease. Just when my situation comes, go out there and play hard.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “‘You know, it was good to win a game like this as far as I was concerned,” director Doc Rivers said. “We’ve lost so many of these where we’ve played poorly and lost. It’s nice every once in a while to play poorly and win.’ The Celts were looking at 37,248 thumbs down (based on the sellout crowd of 18,624) when Washington opened the last quarter with a 13-4 run. But after a timeout at 6:10, during which Rivers told his team it pretty much had to pitch a shutout on defense, the C’s arose.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “It certainly was in the fourth quarter, which is when Allen scored six of Boston’s last seven points to extend its winning streak to four in a row – the team’s longest since December. And Allen’s big game came on a night when most of the Celtics struggled. Garnett had eight points, but he was 0-for-7 from the field. His backup, Rasheed Wallace, was marginally better. He (only) missed six of his seven shot attempts. And maybe the most telling statistic about Boston’s troubles, in the first half at least, could be seen in Rajon Rondo having just one assist. But down the stretch, Boston made all the big shots from the field and the line. And defensively, the Celtics limited the Wizards to 38.9 percent shooting in the fourth in addition to getting 10 points off of Washington turnovers.”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “Pierce hasn’t been healthy enough to carry the Celtics for long stretches, while Garnett is focusing on defense and rebounding. [Ray] Allen’s resurgence has been the biggest difference with the Celtics since the All-Star break, after which they are 8-3 and nearing Orlando in the Eastern Conference standings. ‘You guys don’t know, but [Allen] deals with a lot of different things with injuries. We all deal with different types of physical stuff,’ Garnett said. ‘He is no different than that. At the same time, he had talks of business, about where he was going to be in his future and stuff. I can just tell that he is a lot healthier. Everything that he is doing is a lot more fluid. He is not thinking a lot, he is just reacting and it’s beautiful basketball.’ Beautiful enough for two more years? The answer is no longer a resounding no. It’s now more like a maybe.”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “‘He never had any balance offensively,’ said coach Doc Rivers. ‘But there was something I liked and Armond (Hill, assistant coach) said it in the game. I said, ‘Boy, Kevin’s struggling a little bit out there.’ And he said, ‘But not on defense. He looks active. He looks great defensively. He’s just out of whack right now offensively. Let’s not worry about that. The fact that he has it on the other end, if we’ve got to take one or the other, we would take that.’ ‘ Wizards coach Flip Saunders also credited Garnett for getting Andray Blatche into a loud discussion that had both buzzing even after the game. ‘Dray had terrible decisions,’ Saunders said. ‘Dray is woofing the whole time to Kevin Garnett. You can’t do those things. It’s a learning process. You don’t take a guy who’s been defensive player of the year three times, probably the best power forward, and all of a sudden get that guy juiced up to play against you. You got no chance.’”

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