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.

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “No one questions whether Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are the team’s leaders. But how effective they have been is debatable. Remember, this is a team that talked about winning 72 games before the season started. At this point, they’ll be lucky to finish with the third-best record in the East. While coach Doc Rivers still believes his team ‘is close’ to being with the likes of Cleveland, there lies part of the problem. They are close, but have shown no signs of getting any closer.”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “The Celtics entered yesterday’s game nine games behind the Cavaliers, and were the fourth seed themselves. To get to back to the Finals, they’ll likely have to get through the Cavaliers, and whether they want to or not, they find themselves wondering how they measure up. Yesterday, after the Celtics took their second loss to the Cavaliers in just three weeks, the dif ference between the teams wasn’t the monster-sized center Cleveland added in Shaquille O’Neal (at home nursing a surgically-repaired thumb), it wasn’t the shooting they added in Anthony Parker and Jamario Moon, and it wasn’t even James and his 30-point, 8-rebound, 7-assist performance. ‘The glaring difference,’ said Boston’s Ray Allen, echoing everyone’s thoughts, ‘was just their effort.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “Kendrick Perkins is the Celtics’ truth serum. His doesn’t have the arrogance or bravado to believe things suddenly will heal themselves as some of his teammates and coaches do. He lives in Realityland, where he watches opposing teams repeatedly chase down loose balls and take charges and block shots. It’s time for he and Rajon Rondo to assume more of the direction of the team because they have watched the Big Three fall short for too long. ‘You just have to find it within,’ Perkins said. ‘You can’t point fingers. You have to look in the mirror. There were a lot of things today we all messed up on. Just the effort plays.’ When asked if it was time for him to take more of a commanding role, Perkins said, ‘I think maybe a different guy gotta try to step up and be a leader. I think sometimes you try to feed off your All-Stars, but maybe somebody else gotta step up. I’m talking about leading by example. One spark or positive energy on the court and guys tend to feed off that. Maybe it’s gotta be me, Rondo, ’Sheed, somebody.’”

Jessica Camerato, WEEI – The Celtics had made the argument that the Cavaliers are better without Shaquille O’Neal, who has been out since spraining his thumb last month in Boston. Even though the Cavs give up size, they make up for it in versatility and speed. On Sunday, however, the smaller Cavs team played bigger than the Celtics. Playing without O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who had averaged 5.3 rebounds for the Cavs in 53 games, the Cavaliers outrebounded the Celtics, 51-43. They grabbed six more offensive rebounds and scored 10 more points in the paint. ‘I thought they were the more physical team, and they were the smaller team,’ Rivers said. ‘Without Shaq, they’ve gone small a lot and we’re big — that’s who we are. But if we’re going to be big, we’re going to have to act big. And we didn’t do that tonight. I thought they did. I thought they really took the fight to us more tonight.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “But Rivers didn’t want to dwell too much on regular season drivel. ‘Two years ago, we swept Atlanta in the regular season and went seven games,’ he said. ‘When the playoffs start, it’s a new thing. We understand that, but what we have to do is just keep improving so, when the playoffs start, we’re ready.’ His point is well taken, but it can’t be soothing to Celtics [team stats] followers when the 2007-08 Hawks are being held up for inspiration.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “That’s also a good indication of where the Celtics stand right now in the eyes of the NBA. Their 104-93 loss to Cleveland once again illustrated how far from 2008 form the C’s have fallen. Coach Doc Rivers continues to say that his Celtics are close to hitting stride, but evidence continues to pile up on the other side. Yesterday’s loss dropped the Celtics to 1-2 against the Cavs, with an April 4 date at the Garden remaining in the regular season series. The loss also dropped the Celtics to 2-9 against their three chief conference rivals – Cleveland, Orlando and Atlanta. There’s another way of looking at that number – the Celtics no longer belong in the foursome.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Anyone who thought Kendrick Perkins handed the Cavaliers some bulletin-board material with his, “They still haven’t done nothing we haven’t done,” comment would be disappointed. The Cavaliers, like their leader, are too even-keeled. If any offense was taken, it was internalized. ‘Well, he’s right,’ LeBron James said before the game.”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “‘Leon was spectacular for us,’ said coach Mike Brown. ‘Antawn (Jamison) picked up his fourth foul, and we put Leon in the game and I thought he was the difference maker.’ Indeed, Cleveland was ahead by two when he came into the game, and up 13 when he left with 8:08 to play. Powe deflected the praise afterward, and before the game was crediting someone else with a huge assist that he is still in the NBA – and that was a member of the Celtics organization. Powe was in many ways on his own when he got hurt in the first-round playoff series against Chicago last year. He was heading into a free-agent summer, meaning a successful surgery was critical if he hoped to get another contract. Given a choice, he decided to stick with Celtics physician Brian McKeon.”

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

Here’s a post to our fan blog. It was a nice breakdown of potential pickups the C’s could make from the remaining free agents. Post to our fan blog here.

Two years ago the Boston Celtic’s front office decided to sign Sam Casell well into the season. Last year, Stephon Marbury got to join the club late in the year. Both Sam and Marbury ended up being sub-par vets who missed quite a few shots. This year, with the C’s looking to boost the front court and add a swingman, here are some possibilities.

Michael Finley – He’s a SG and SF who could nicely complement ‘Quis. The only problem is he’s shooting 38% from the field. Still, for a guy averaging 15 points per game for his career, I like him, and would welcome him on the Boston team. [Editor's note - One other problem, besides his shooting percentage: He's ancient.]

Larry Hughes – Averaging 9 points a game this season, Larry’s decent, but is shooting only 36%. Attitude issues and lazy defense are issues. Reminds me too much of Sheed, but he could back up Ray and let Quis focus on the 3.

Rashad McCants – If we can get him, I want him! McCants is only 6-4 so he’s limited to 3rd string SG but is a good rotation player. He shot 44% last season and is 43% career wise. Last season, he scored 10 points a game and is similar to Tony Allen, except for TA can rebound and distribute. (Editor’s note: McCants is a better shooter, and might be less likely to turn the ball over.) McCants can score and hustle but has bad character. I’d still like him to score in bursts for 8 minutes a night.

In a nutshell, the C’s could use a swingman who could play and score a little so Ray and Paul can rest before the playoffs. Rashad McCants would be the best fit, but Finley and Hughes could help. Hopefully, we get the right guy, and can position ourselves better for the playoffs.

(Editor’s note: McCants is a guy I haven’t thought about at all. He must be a headcase to not have any suitors after showing decent scoring potential, but the man can certainly score.

Other free agents include Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Mikki Moore and Wally Szczerbiak. I’m unsure whether J.R. Bremer would be willing to accept a buy-out from his current Russian club. I’m kidding about the possibility of adding Bremer to the mix… I think. Reports are that Allen Iverson will be bought out but, with his daughter’s illness that has kept him out of many games, it’s possible he still won’t sign with any other team. Zydrunas Ilgauskas is pretty much already a Cav, even though there’s still a Tayshaun Prince-thin chance he signs with another team.)

The Boston Celtics are interested in signing Zydrunas Ilgauskas for the season’s stretch run, according to the Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn.  Ilgauskas, who was traded to Washington from Cleveland, is still expected to resign with Cleveland when the 30-day period during which bought-out players cannot sign with their former teams passes.

Ilgauskas will have to fight for a job on the Cavaliers, who are stocked in the frontcourt. And teams such as the Hawks, Mavericks, and Celtics are interested in Ilgauskas, a solid center with shooting skills off the pick-and-roll.

I’m not sure how Ilgauskas fits in Boston. Rasheed Wallace is already the C’s backup center, and Perk has done a good job at center. Ilgauskas is a solid player with good shooting ability, but I don’t see how he makes the rotation any better, except as injury insurance.

After 48 straight hours of studying Hoopshype, ESPN.com’s NBA Trade Machine, nba player salaries, the salary cap, and the luxury tax, I finally feel qualified to write about the upcoming NBA trade deadline on February 18th. Read more »