And he shall lead us..

"We got this."

"I own the paint."

Doc Rivers knew he would be short-handed tonight against the Hawks. With Shaq out until at least Sunday, J.O., DWest and Perk still getting healthy and Rondo now out for a couple of weeks, he had 5 bench players.

One of them, Von Wafer, went down with back spasms early in the game. Could it get any worse..? Well, for these Celtics and their leader Doc Rivers, adversity is just motivation. The C's fight, fight and then fight some more to beat the Hawks tonight 102-90 at TD Garden. Ray Allen again led the C's in scoring- he had 18 points to lead the 6 Celtics that were in double-figures this evening. With a serious big-man shortage in Boston right now, Glen Davis' 18 points and 10 boards off the bench were huge to say the least.

This team just continues to defy the odds. They are focused beyond belief right now. It is absolutely scary to think how great this team will be once they are completely healthy and have had some continuity. Scary.

C's now get a couple of days off before hosting the Indiana Pacers on Sunday. Doc Rivers was quoted as saying that Shaq could indeed play on Sunday, and CSNNE reported that Jermaine O'Neal is also very close to coming back soon. Tip-off on Sunday at the Garden is at 1pm.
(video courtesy of Chris Forsberg)