The year was 2007, and I sat squished alongside five friends in my buddy’s single dorm room. The seating arrangements could have been (much) better: sitting six people into a Skidmore College single is like fitting 17 in a Toyota Corolla. But I was in New York, I didn’t get Fox Sports New England, and my buddy Harry was the only person I knew who shelled out enough money for the cable package that included NBA TV. I wanted to, needed to, watch the new-look Celtics open preseason against the Toronto Raptors in Italy.

The C’s had just suffered through “The Gerald Green Year,” a youth movement of sorts that — combined with Paul Pierce’s injury-riddled campaign — left the Celtics with the NBA’s worst record, Doc Rivers with a bulls-eye on his back that columnists regularly took aim at, and fans with a “please lose as many games as possible so we can select either Greg Oden or Kevin Durant” mentality. When the NBA Draft lottery came and the Celtics were granted the fifth pick, I pondered my options. I could …

1) change allegiances and become a fan of some other team — ANY other team that wasn’t destined for failed season after failed season. But that really wasn’t an option, because, really, what kind of fan switches teams?

2) continue my existence as a miserable Celtics fan, blame Sebastian Telfair for everything bad that happened in life (“my keys got lost — screw you Telfair, you overhyped, underachieving son of a bitch!”), ask God daily why he ever mustered the cruelty to place Green, Telfair, Tony Allen and Wally Szczerbiak on the same team, and fall asleep each night muttering, “Allan Ray. Seriously?”

Or

3) talk myself into fully embracing Yi Jianlian, who Danny Ainge was reportedly enamored with at the No. 5 pick.

I chose the third choice. A seven-foot tall Chinese dude with soft touch and decent athleticism? Forget Durant and Oden! Yi’s the future of basketball! The Celtics got lucky to fall to the No. 5 pick!

FML.

The events that took place following the Draft lottery can only be described as stunning. The Celtics traded for Ray Allen on draft night, turning from laughing stock to “hmm, that team might be fun to watch” literally overnight. Rumors about the C’s acquiring Kevin Garnett shortly followed. I checked into HoopsHype 759 times per day from the computer where I worked at the local swimming pool. On the umpteenth day of The Garnett Watch, HoopsHype afforded me some ridiculously good news, which can only be judged by my reaction: in front of 75 kids, 15 mothers, three hot mothers and my boss, I loudly screamed “F*** YEAH” at the top of my lungs. I almost got fired, but who cares about a job in a time like that? The Celtics had just paired Kevin Garnett with Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Thank you, Kevin McHale. Would you like chopsticks with your pu-pu platter?

The Celtics quickly became the hottest ticket around town, but it’s important not to forget: there were serious question marks about whether they could contend in year one of the Big Three era. Ray Allen was 32 years old and coming off double ankle surgery. Paul Pierce had just finished his own injury-prone season. Kevin Garnett was still one of the five or six best basketball players in the world, but could the three of them really carry Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins on their backs? Remember, at that stage, neither Rondo or Perk had accomplished anything in their NBA lives. We knew very little about them. Rondo was young, uber-athletic and showed flashes of unadulterated brilliance, but lest we forget, he spent his rookie year backing up Telfair. And I assure you, it’s never a good sign when your team’s starting point guard was known as “Sebastian Telfair’s backup” just months ago. Perk was hulking, he frowned a lot and he had worked hard during his early years to cut a load of baby fat. But his offensive game was less complete than my latest Rubik’s cube, and it was difficult to calculate his defensive capacity. For so long, his defensive acumen had been hidden alongside young, immature teammates with nary a clue about how to play defense.

I really just used the word nary. But I digress.

For the first time, packed into the tiny dorm room, surrounded by the hot stench of my friends’ body odor, I saw the new-look Celtics in action. A few truths were immediately evident: Kevin Garnett looked odd wearing anything besides Minnesota Timberwolves colors, but he treated even preseason games like the NBA Finals. Ray Allen shot like a goddess, even when he missed, and also has enormous calves. James Posey would help everything, so much, even when he didn’t score. Eddie House had a quicker release than a virgin on his first time. But mostly, I watched and marveled at one thing: in the Celtics offense, the ball moved from side to side like a crowd’s eyes at Wimbledon. Back and forth, forth and back, the Celtics moved the ball like a Pete Carril Princeton team. You could never tell that two of the Big Three had recently been ball-stopping superstars with the basketball constantly in their hands. On this team, surrounded by so much talent, everyone wanted to keep everyone else happy. Maybe even too much so. The C’s passed up a few open shots to make the extra pass. But that was a trivial matter that more practice time would take care of. After watching Gerald Green for the previous year, this was like updating from Soulja Boy to Tupac.

At that point, watching NBA TV in that crowded, hot room, I still had no idea where the Big Three era would lead me. I didn’t know the Celtics would forge so quickly and rattle off 66 regular season wins, more than any team (1985-86, 67 wins) but one in Celtics history. I didn’t know they would struggle to beat the Hawks, barely nudge past a locked-in Lebron, find their inner playoff warrior against the Pistons and embarrass the Lakers in Game 6 to take home the franchise’s 17th title. I didn’t know “Anytthhinngggg isssss posssssiiibblllleeeee.” I didn’t know the slew of what-ifs that would follow in the coming years. What if Garnett didn’t get hurt? What if Perk never tore his ACL? What if Danny Ainge never traded for Jeff Green, or Rajon Rondo never dislocated his elbow? I didn’t know how joyful it would be to root for this Celtics team, even in the playoff losses, always so valiant and selfless and inspired, even if certain regular season games — especially the second night of back-to-backs — have been frightful to observe. I didn’t know Paul Pierce’s transformation into a mature man would finish. I didn’t know Rajon Rondo would blossom into one of the league’s most exciting, creative players, and also one of its most confounding. I didn’t know just how nice it would be to watch Ray Allen spot up on the wing in transition. I didn’t know Eddie House would become one of my favorite Celtics ever, James Posey’s hugs would be etched into my memory forever, or that Perkins — with his jaw that always seems set for war — would prove his worth and then some. I didn’t know losing to the Lakers in Game 7 would hurt so bad. I didn’t know I would come to love Tony Allen, even if I still hated him half the time. I didn’t know Stephon Marbury would be so strange, Glen Davis would make me feel the entire spectrum of human emotions, and Sam Cassell would never, ever stop shooting ill-advised shots. I didn’t know P.J. Brown would play such a crucial role in the only Celtics championship of my lifetime.

I didn’t know four years later, the NBA lockout would threaten to bring the Big Three era to a close without us seeing it through to the end. This glorious era that began when the Celtics got screwed in the NBA lottery might have just one season left. For the love of Scott Pollard, let us — let me — enjoy it.

Mostly due to the city’s history of racial inequality, partially due to cold and snowy winters, the Boston Celtics have never signed a truly significant free agent. Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, John Havlicek, Dave Cowens, Kevin McHale — name a Celtics superstar and he was acquired via trade or through the draft.

The most important free agent signing in franchise history was probably Don Nelson; before he became a zany, successful and entirely unpredictable coach, Nelson was a key figure, albeit a role player, on five Celtics championship teams. But even Nelson came to Boston with little fanfare and few other options — the year before joining the Celtics, Nellie averaged 2.4 points per game for the Los Angeles Lakers. And with the Celtics, he never averaged more than 15.4 points, 27.4 minutes, or 7.3 rebounds. The most important free agent acquisition in the history of the NBA’s winningest franchise never made a single All-Star game.

But Boston’s free agent luck might be changing. According to Stephen Jackson, players are beginning to look at Boston differently than ever before.

“When I first got in the league, I would never have thought about Boston. Ever,” Jackson told ESPN the Magazine’s Ric Bucher. “The way they embraced KG was a big part of changing that.”

The Celtics also have a coach, and a black one at that, known for treating his players well. The Boston players begged Doc Rivers to stay every time rumors flew saying he might take a leave of absence, according to Bucher.

“That’s a big piece of it,” one agent told Bucher. “They’d run through a wall for him.”

As the Celtics attempt to transition from the Big Three era to the “Rondo and whoever else” era, becoming major players in the free agent market has never been more important. The Celtics currently have only three players under contract for the 2012-12 season. That means Danny Ainge will have millions of dollars to play with in the summer of 2012, but convincing Dwight Howard or any other marquee free agent to sign in Boston will mean erasing five decades worth of free agent whiffs. And if Ainge does fail to upgrade the team through free agency, the Celtics could begin a long rebuilding process, one that could revive painful memories of Ricky Davis, Gerald Green and Sebastian Telfair. Either that, or Ainge could settle for second-tier free agents and the Celtics could become mired in what I will call “The Antoine Walker Zone,” where the Celtics make the playoffs every year but never have a chance to contend for a championship.

In his piece, Bucher discussed the possibility of a Jeff Green-Paul Pierce-Rajon Rondo core.

“A nucleus of Green, Rondo and Pierce ‘is definitely a playoff team, especially in the East,’ says an Eastern Conference executive who spoke on a condition of anonymity because the league has a $1 million gag order on its employees during the current lockout,” wrote Bucher.

But the playoffs are not supposed to be the end, not for the Boston Celtics, winners of 17 championships, but the means to the end. The Celtics are supposed to fight for championships, not resign themselves to mediocrity. The Antoine Walker era produced many memorable moments — banked three-pointers to win games, a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals, shimmies and shakes galore– but the era that came after it, the Gerald Green era, was more beneficial to winning a title than anything Walker ever accomplished in Boston. With Walker, the Celtics were stuck in quick sand, not going anywhere fast, pretending to make moves that would result in a championship but never really inching any closer. But after gutting the team and rebuilding with young talent (err, if you can call it talent), the Celtics were able to trade assets, contracts and draft picks to acquire the Big Three and bring Boston its 17th title.

In the summer of 2012, when Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen become free agents, Danny Ainge might have a choice to make: sign second-tier free agents and maintain a semblance of competitive mediocrity, or gut the entire roster and attempt to rebuild through draft picks and trades.

Or maybe, if the Celtics get lucky, if Stephen Jackson’s sentiments are shared by the rest of the NBA, or at least by the marquee free agents of 2012, the Celtics could skip the rebuilding process and simply reload.

What say you, Dwight?

Summer basketball often leads to ridiculous statistics. Gary Forbes scored 78 points in a Pro-Am game earlier this summer. Kevin Durant seemingly drops at least 40 every time he steps foot on a court. The defense is minimum and the offense is uninhibited by consciences or set plays, so scoring numbers soar.

So when Avery Bradley scored 16 points yesterday in the opening game of the Impact Basketball Competitive Training Series, that does not necessarily mean he played well. On the same day, Iman Shumpert poured in 25 points, Dahntay Jones 31, and Isaiah Thomas, the last pick in this year’s NBA draft, managed 28 points, 11 rebounds and 9 assists. Even Damon Jones, who hasn’t played professional basketball since Lebron James was a beloved NBA superstar, scored 16 points. And Sebastian Telfair messed around and almost got a triple-double, with 22 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds.

Bradley still has miles to travel before becoming a reliable professional point guard, and he knows that, which is why he’s in Las Vegas to participate in the Impact Training Series. This isn’t about scoring points, winning games, or earning the advantage in his personal matchup against Alan Anderson. It’s about getting much-needed reps, and mostly, it’s about improvement. (CSNNE)

The NBA is big on potential — that’ll get you in. But if you want to stick around, sooner or later, you have to produce.

For Bradley, that time is now. And that time is spent in this sweat box known as Las Vegas, working diligently to chisel out his frame and his game.

“That’s what I’m doing, little things like this,” Bradley told CSNNE.com. “I can come out, try and get better all the time.”

In case you were wondering, Bradley’s team lost, 102-86. Jermaine O’Neal scored 14 points in his game, but A. Sherrod Blakely noted, “It was clear that he was losing steam quickly. He can definitely help the C’s this upcoming season, but he doesn’t have it in him to play the kind of major minutes players in this league will be logging.”

Good thing he’s currently Boston’s only center, and even better, the Celtics will have zero cap space whenever the free agency period arrives. It’s time to get creative, Mr. Ainge.

The imaginary horns celebration came to define Darius Miles, or, at least, it became his most recognizable trait. The horns are the one aspect of Miles’ disappointing NBA career that will survive the longest in NBA lore, the first thing people will discuss whenever Miles’s name randomly pops up on an August weekday, whether the mention of his name comes after he gets arrested for carrying a loaded weapon into the airport or somehow, improbably, hypothetically, in the future, makes a return to professional basketball.

When Miles signed a non-guaranteed contract with the Boston Celtics on August 22, 2008, my 21st birthday, I offered the imaginary horns to my three brothers. I didn’t expect anything to come from the signing. Miles hadn’t been relevant since 2006; that was when he suffered a right knee injury so bad that the NBA deemed it career-ending and gave Portland salary cap relief for Miles’ contract. But this was Darius Miles who the Celtics signed — 6’9, third overall draft pick in 2000, arms longer than an airport runway, legs containing jet packs, once scored 47 points in an NBA game, had a cameo in “Van Wilder”, still only 26 years old — and so I gave the imaginary horns symbol to my brothers, the same symbol Miles and Quentin Richardson had presented to each other after every highlight play, or simply whenever they figured a situation merited pounding their heads.

That Miles never played a single regular season game for the Celtics came as no surprise. He had relied almost solely on his athleticism during his unsatisfying NBA stint, and his legs, deadened by the injury, resulting microfracture surgery, and two years of inactivity, no longer acted as trampolines. Adding to that, Miles was known as a problem child. Once, he shouted racial epithets at head coach Maurice Cheeks. Cheeks told Miles to leave the team’s film session, and Miles responded, “Make me.” When catching a fruit is no longer worth the juice, careers end and imaginary horns get put to sleep.

Miles did return for 34 games with the Memphis Grizzlies during the 08-09 season, but by then he was little more than a novelty act. Two years later, a couple days ago, he was arrested for carrying a loaded gun into the last place on earth anyone would carry a loaded gun, the airport. His basketball career is almost certainly over, another prodigious talent wasted to injury, drugs, crime, and/or a work ethic that couldn’t keep up with his outrageous physical talent.

So what makes a player become a bust? Why did Kwame Brown never become more than a serviceable NBA player, even though NBA scouts once salivated over him? Why did Micheal Olowakandi, drafted ahead of Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki and Vince Carter, become the butt of jokes rather than an All-Star center? Why did Lenny Cooke go from being Lebron before Lebron to a second-round draft pick who never played a single NBA game?

Cooke haunts me. Not in the way that I lay awake thinking he’s hiding underneath my bed waiting to hurt me, but in the way that I think about him a lot more often than I should. I never saw Cooke play live. I never spoke a word to him and probably never will. I hold no ties to him whatsoever except that I read about him when I was younger, and his potential floored me. But whenever a young player fails to pan out, I think about Cooke. I wonder why he never became an NBA star. Did he turn to drugs? Gangs? Did he stop working out? Eat too much? Listen to bad advice? All of the above?

Search for Lenny Cooke highlights on YouTube. The only video you’ll find is a grainy one entitled, “Remember when we played with Lenny Cooke?” That’s all we have left of the Lebron before Lebron, one of the most-hyped high school athletes of all time, a player who was ranked No. 1 in the high school class of 2002 for years, who dropped to No. 4 during his senior year (behind players named Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire and, um, Raymond Felton), whose stock only dropped when he was ineligible to play high school ball as a senior, who flew with the eagles and was said to see the game three passes ahead, whose only professional basketball experience came with the Columbus Riverdragons, Brevard Blue Ducks, Brooklyn Kings, Purefoods TJ Hot Dogs, Shanghai Dongfang Sharks, and, most recently, the Minot Skyrockets. A player who possessed the talent to become a cultural icon has only one YouTube highlight reel. It’s as poorly-constructed as Cooke’s plans to maximize his potential, and it only serves as a reminder of Cooke’s steep and sudden downfall.

In the NBA, the differences between players can be minute. One of the largest differences between J.J. Redick and Adam Morrison is that Morrison smoked two packs (or so) per day. Redick worked hard, understood his basketball mortality, redefined his game, and carved a role for himself. Morrison could not, or would not, do the same. So his NBA career lasted many fewer years than Kevin Ollie’s, who had less than one-tenth of Morrison’s offensive repertoire but kept himself in world-class shape at all times.

Ollie couldn’t hold Lenny Cooke’s jock, yet he surpassed everything Cooke did in the NBA by 13 years, 2,496 points, 1,501 assists, 1,018 rebounds, and $20.1 million worth of salary. $20.1 million pales in comparison to the $51 million Kwame Brown has earned been paid during his career. A year before Brown became the No. 1 pick in the 2001 draft, he competed in the Adidas ABCD Camp. The MVP of that camp, which included Brown, Eddy Curry, Ben Gordon, Randy Foye, and Sebastian Telfair, among others, was a sophomore named Lenny Cooke.

I have now gone full circle with my six degrees of separation, NBA bust division, but what I’m trying to say is that talent alone is not enough. In the NBA, where every player is gifted beyond belief (err, almost every player — Scal comes to mind, among others), so many things can derail careers — drugs, a shabby work ethic, injuries, bad advice, bad eating habits, emotional illnesses, and whatever else I’m forgetting. We know Darius Miles suffered from injuries, we know he dabbled in drugs (or worse), we suspect he suffered from a poor work ethic, and we imagine that his basketball career is now over.

So if you drink a beer tonight, pour out a sip for Miles — NBA bust, marijuana dabbler, physical freak, criminal, and the creator of something far more memorable than his own NBA career: the imaginary horn celebration, a celebration that highlighted Miles’s youth and exuberance and perhaps, just perhaps, the first sign that he was too immature to succeed in the NBA, and maybe even outside it.

First, what in the world was Kevin Love thinking? He couldn’t have been serious with that shot attempt, right?

Second, Dwyane Wade took his opportunity to welcome Wesley Johnson to the NBA. “You might have been the most athletic player at Syracuse, son. But you aren’t playing against the Butler Bulldogs anymore.”

Third, neither of the two reasons above are the main reason I posted this clip. It was only blog-worthy because my main man Sebastian Telfair thought he could take a charge.

Almost, Bassy. Almost.

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.

The Celtics could probably use Eddie House right about now. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Henry Abbott, ESPN – “Boston Celtics guard Nate Robinson was benched for two games near the end of the regular season, and it cost him $1 million, while saving the team twice that amount. A clause in Robinson’s contract calls for him to make a $1 million bonus if he both played in at least 58 games and made the playoffs this season. Robinson’s Celtics are in the postseason but he played in 56 games. As a result, the Celtics saved the $1 million they would have paid Robinson — equivalent to a quarter of his reported annual salary — and an additional $1 million they would have owed in luxury tax to the NBA (most of which would have been distributed to teams with payrolls below the luxury tax threshold).”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “Rivers was asked if Wallace was mentally into it during the season. ‘I don’t know,’ Rivers said. ‘I guess. With his play, you can say not. To me, I’m not going to go there. How does that benefit me? I’m into (tomorrow night’s) Game 3. So you can answer it any way you want to. Did he play as well as we wanted him to? No. But can he do anything about that? No. All he can do is what the next game gives him.’”

Brian Windhorst, Cleveland Plain Dealer – “The news on the Cavs Wednesday was positive. Varejao’s back spasms improved after two days rest and there is a good chance he’ll be able to take part in practice Thursday. Also, despite the initial plans for James to have another MRI on his sore right elbow, he hasn’t needed the test yet. Despite contrary reports, James has only had one MRI on his elbow to this point, though team doctors may perform another one to check on the healing process.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Said his coach, Doc Rivers: ‘He deserves it. He’s worked at it and it’s a great honor for him. He took it in stride. I love the way he took it, because you could tell he’s far more focused on the playoffs. Listen, when you’re in the first team in our league on anything, it’s a hell of an honor. He’s doing better than scratching (the surface). He’s so much better. It’s so rare when a point guard can affect a game, and Rondo has the ability defensively to do that.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “Garnett reported to practice yesterday and wanted to partici pate, telling Rivers he felt better, but that did not convince the coach. Perkins suited up but did not participate in drills and eventually left for treatment. He returned to the court following the team’s workout and said he will be ready for Game 3 tomorrow. ‘After the game Monday it was hurting, and even more when I woke up the next morning,’ Perkins said. ‘It’s still a little sore in my hamstring area. I am glad we had a few days to rest and hopefully I’ll practice tomorrow. I’ll be ready for Friday. I am glad we have a few days to rest.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “‘(Garnett) said he felt way better today than he did yesterday,’ Rivers added. ‘I think time’s on our side. I think he’ll be OK.’ At this stage, though, a little gallows humor is in order. ‘As a coaching staff, we (joked) when (trainer Eddie Lacerte) walked in that he’s the Grim Reaper,’ Rivers said. ‘That’s what we call him whenever he walks in because he doesn’t come to my office to tell me any good news. Right when he walked in, we were like, ‘Oh, gosh.’ He told us and I said this is just like a normal practice, not enough guys. That’s the way it’s been all year for us.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Especially now that Perkins has a sore knee. But after some momentary brooding in the first round over an inability to finish, the Celtics center once again has come around to who he is, and who he isn’t. ‘If I’m not scoring one bucket I’m going to be effective in the game, whether it’s rebounding, having a presence in the defensive end, whatever it may be I’m going to have an impact,’ he said. ‘There’s different ways to affect a game than just scoring.’ How long did Perkins allow his first-round offensive struggles to affect his spirit? ‘For a minute,’ Perkins said. ‘But after that, you know, it happens.’”

Tony Massarotti, Boston Globe – “Add it all up and you’ll determine that Rondo has had a direct hand in 112 of the 197 points the Celtics have scored in this series. And that is a safe, conservative estimate. Undoubtedly, there have been occasions in this series where Rondo’s wizardry has produced free throws or additional passes that produced hoops. Somewhere in the middle of this, Danny Ainge is undoubtedly smiling, and not solely because Rondo was selected after such luminaries as Patrick O’Bryant, Mouhamed Sene, Thabo Sefolosha and, for that matter, Shelden Williams in the 2006 NBA Draft. Even in the last year, Rondo’s stock has continued to soar, making that five-year, $55 million contract signed by Rondo last summer look like the biggest steal the Celtics have executed since Bird suckered Isiah in May 1987. The best part? Rondo has yet to even start that deal, which begins next season. Meanwhile, during a season in which he has displaced Bob Cousy from the Celtics record book, he continues to develop as a dynamic and dominating force that will guide the Celtics for years to come.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said Wednesday that he regretted tossing a towel into the air to try to distract Cavaliers forward J.J. Hickson’s free throw attempt in Boston’s victory in Monday’s Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinal series. ‘I regret that. That was very unprofessional,’ Ainge said during an interview on Boston sports radio station WEEI. ‘I was having fun with the hecklers and the crowd that was sitting around me. … There’s just no excuse. It was unprofessional. I regret doing it. The biggest reason I regret it is you guys should be talking about the great play of the Celtics and not talking about a towel incident. I’m shocked that it’s become this big a deal.’ [...] Celtics coach Doc Rivers and his players simply laughed off the attention being given to the situation. ‘Comical,’ said Rivers. ‘I didn’t know about it, honestly. I was up in my bedroom doing my work and my cell phone kept ringing, over and over again… When I saw it, I got a good laugh and giggle out of it. Danny’s going back to his playing days. It’s pretty comical.’”

Marla Ridenour, Akron Beacon Journal – “And while there seem to be woes aplenty on the Cavs’ side, including James’ sore right elbow and Anderson Varejao’s back spasms, [Shaquille] O’Neal cannot escape scrutiny. The 15-time All-Star has played nearly 39 minutes against the Celtics and has 20 points, eight rebounds and no blocked shots to show for it. Those combined totals would be barely above his single-game playoff averages as recently as three years ago, when O’Neal scored 18.8 points and pulled in 8.5 rebounds in four games for the Miami Heat. ‘We know, he knows he can shoot better,’ Cavs coach Mike Brown said Tuesday. ‘He hasn’t had a ton of opportunity. But we’re going to keep going to the big fella, because he’s going to have to be able to score some points down there to loosen it up for the rest of our guys. We need to establish a post game against Boston, and he’s one of the guys who can do it for us.’”

Steve Aschburner, NBA.com – “Telfair agrees that the ultimate goal is playing for a ring, at which the Cavaliers have a tremendous shot. Thing is, he’d like to play for that ring. ‘This is the first time in my career I’m being inactive. So there’s an adjustment to that,’ he said. ‘But y’know, I’m in the playoffs. I could have been home. So I’m excited about that.’ Telfair did get healthy in time to participate in four games for Cleveland near the end of the regular season. He scored 21 points against Indiana in the final week as the regulars mostly rested. In practice, he has been able to push Mo Williams, Delonte West and Daniel Gibson, and even has tried to play the Derrick Rose-Rajon Rondo role in the team’s prep work. Cavs big man Leon Powe, Telfair’s teammate in Boston, said: ‘Bassy’s looked real good in practice. Great floor general. He reads the defense well. Knows where everybody’s supposed to be at, like a good point guard should. Makes real good passes, right on target, and can get in the paint and cause trouble. And his shot got a lot better. I knew him from way back in the day and now he’s hitting the three, hitting the mid-range jumper. Y’know, he’s just been working. I was really impressed when I played with him in practice.’”

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