After having suffered a sprained toe in practice, Delonte West’s role in tonight’s game between the Bobcats and Celtics is unknown. According to Steve Bulpett though, both Al Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins will return to action. In his article, Bulpett offers that… “West is still a game-time decision, according to Doc Rivers.”

And this information is available from Celtics.com…

“On the injury front, both Kendrick Perkins and Delonte West are questionable for tonight’s game, but there’s a chance that Al Jefferson could play for the first time since November 4 against Washington. Jefferson traveled with the team to Charlotte and will likely be a gametime decision.” (read more)

Other Links of Interest…
• Celtics.com Preview
• Bobcats Preview
• CelticsBlog.com Preview & Discussion
• Bobcat Bonfire Preview

With the holiday preparations taking place, I’m unable to run a Delonte.com game thread tonight to discuss the game play of the Celtics or Bobcats… So please head on over to the Celtics Blog Game Thread to discuss. Still, feel free to add your thoughts on my keys to tonight’s game as posted a couple of days ago.

Celtics Injury Update…
• Al Jefferson, Game Time Decision
• Delonte West, Game Time Decision
• Kendrick Perkins, Game Time Decision

Bobcats Injury Update…
• Brevin Knight, Out
• Alan Anderson, Out

It’s important to note though that Brevin Knight is expected to miss tonight’s game against the Celtics, which should really help out the Boston PG’s who struggled to defend him back in their November 8th meeting.

I’m recording the game and will watch it much later tonight so I can follow up with stats and a (poor?) analysis… But in the meantime, here’s hoping for another win in the Celtics streak!

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According to Herald reporter Scott Souza, Delonte West and Kendrick Perkins missed practice today at the Celtics training facilities in Waltham.

Delonte West and Kendrick Perkins were the latest additions to the watching wounded corps that already included Al Jefferson (appendectomy), Theo Ratliff (herniated disc), Michael Olowokandi (abdomen muscle tear) and Wally Szczerbiak (glut muscle soreness).

West injured his left big toe early in the workout, while Perkins rested a bout of plantar fasciitis in his left foot. Szczerbiak also chose to rest his still-aching muscle.

There was cautious optimism that none of the new injuries are too serious. Perkins said he plans to practice on Tuesday. West was termed day-to-day and the hope was that he would also practice Tuesday to get ready for Wednesday night’s game in Charlotte.

Clearly, the key to a win now on Wednesday will end up being more related to overall team health than it will be game plan and execution.

For more on Delonte’s injury, please see the following:
• Full post from Souza, Feeling the pain in Waltham
• Jeff’s post on CelticsBlog.com, West and Perkins Sit Out Practice

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Hey Delonte West fans, here’s your chance to help Delonte make it to the 2006-2007 NBA All Star game in Las Vegas on February 18th, 2006.

Delonte joins fellow Celtic players Paul Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak as entries for the Eastern Conference team. Former SJU teammate Jameer Nelson from the Orlando Magic is also on the ballot — so cast your votes today!

Remember too, you can cast votes every day until the voting period has closed… So get on it and make sure the Celtics are well represented this year at the All Star game!

Cast Your Vote Today!

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Delonte West shot 1 for 8 in 28 minutes of play scoring just 4 points — but the Boston Celtics rolled to their third straight win tonight over the New York Knicks by the final score of 122-188. The three-game winning streak is Boston’s longest since winning four straight from April 12-17, 2005. Captain Paul Pierce once again led the Celtics with his 39 point effort. Ryan Gomes played a consistent game again tonight with his 22 point, 14 rebound performance.

The fourth quarter of the game took entirely too long to be played with numerous fouls being called. While it will be tough to check for sure, it seems as though Delonte West actually committed seven fouls tonight before actually fouling out in the eyes of the officials. Still, it’s all good on a night like tonight with the Celtics clearly rolling along.

The Boston Celtics will return to action on Wednesday night when the team travels to North Carolina to take on the Charlotte Bobcats. The Celtics earned their first win of the season when Delonte’s jumper tickled the twine as time expired in the first overtime session against the Bobcats back on November 8th.

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7 for 12 Shooting… 2 for 2 from behind the arc… 6 boards… 2 assists… 2 blocks… 17 points. All in 19 minutes of play. Good news fans — It’s safe to say that Delonte has broken out. And in the words of the man himself, it’s “time get trigger happy”.

Last year the Boston Celtics struggled to win back to back games. So much so in fact, they only did it twice. I just checked the calendar and on November 17th — they’ve done it once and now head to MSG looking for a third straight win tomorrow night against the Knicks.

Perhaps more importantly though, for the second consecutive game, the Celtics simply clicked in the second half. Consider these as the keys to the game…

• The Celtics turned the ball over twice in the second half of the game, and were +7 in the turnover battle.

• Again, every Celtic player that was dressed played in the game and participated. The only player that didn’t score was Brian Scalabrine — but he was a consistent player in the second half of the game as the Celtics outscored the Blazers 68 to 47.

• Delonte’s efforts literally led the second unit…

All in all, this was one hell of a game for the Celtics. Anytime a team as young as this only turns the ball over 10 times as opposed to he 20-25 they normally do — it’s a game that builds confidence and momentum.

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