DOOM AND GLOOM already ?……..Me thinks we can still win with or without KG…my reasoning is based on the improved play of Rajon and Perk. I also think that we can take down the Cavs in perhaps 7 gruelling games. the recent play of Baby (who reminds me so much of Antoine Walker when he moves around the basket ..infact, Glenn has a better midrange game than Antoine ever had so Yeah, I feel more confident in the C’s ability right now.

Defensively we would suffer I know but it should challenge our coaching staff to try and compensate KG’s loss and his intensity, I still think we can somehow pull it of…Remember we still have PP and Ray who can neutralize Lebron’s production.( Last yr, Ray dissapeared in the series with Cleveland that is why it reached 7 games but this yr. if Ray can just muster a 15 pt ave in a series with the Cavs, we can get past them, book it.

If he’s not 100% healthy by the second round, should we bring him back at all? The post just a couple days ago talked about his total minutes in the NBA. If he’s not healthy enough to give us at least 90% KG, and we need at least that much to make a run at the title then is it worth it to bench him and get him rested and healthy for next year?

We know that the extra long season last year wore on him and on everyone on the team and it was absolutely, definitely worth it because we won the title. But if we’re almost sure we won’t win the title this year, then why pay the same price?

Here’s something we know for sure; KG will try to come back no matter what his physical condition is like. That’s just the player he is and that’s one of his best qualities. It’s also a dangerous quality because his intensity leads him to expend a tremendous amount of energy at all times. If he comes back before he’s ready and this could very well happen, we might see career threatening damage; that’s just how knees work. Obviously this is a question for the doctors since I and almost no one here has the adequate expertise.

without KG, i don’t us beating the Cavs at home (they’ll be 38-1 that day). that’s a lot to ask. personally, i don’t think it’s worth rushing things. i say we just get healthy, KG in particular, and ease him in as the playoffs start. if he can’t give much at first, wait till he’s better, even if it means waiting till next year.

i am not for doom and gloom but i also don’t see us going far without a healthier, and improving, KG. KG at 50-75% is not going to be enough.

I like how the guys who are healthy are playing. What I wish I knew was whether Scal and Powe are attending practices right now. If Scal, Powe and KG are say 80%, I think we can still win it. Baby is playing so well and Powe was playing so well, and Marbury might be on the verge of providing a huge boost out there. He actually moves a lot like Chris Paul out there and he is being totally unselfish. House is on fire, and Ray is playing well. This is a great team that might pull it out even with kg playing limited(16-24?) minutes in many games.

KG should have had surgery a month ago and he might have been ready to play by playoff time. I think.

Love the self-evident truths! Makes me feel a lot better about the whole thing…

If you look at what the Magic have left on their schedule vs. what we do, there is no way with a half game lead that we are going to end up with the 2 seed not being healthy. The Magicon the other hand don’t play anyone tough other than Houston. It is likely that they will win out. Worst case lose 1 game. We on the other hand play the Heat and Cleveland. We will lose at least one of those two. Then a tough game against Philly who will have something to prove. I think we will lose 2 of the 5 and end up 3rd. Philly may give us a little trouble with a young athletic team, but we can handle them. The tougher matchup will be against Orlando in the next round. Not a big deal if we have KG and Powe back. If no KG then we will struggle but it is still winnable. No KG and the EC finals won’t matter as we won’t beat them in a series without him. It is what it is.

- Completely agree that these remaining games don’t matter

- Do not agree that without a near-100% KG we can’t win the ECF. Anybody who really believes that can just walk away now, because it’s almost certain that KG will NOT be back at near-100% for the playoffs. (http://www.celticsblog.com/2009/4/3/821370/we-do-know-whats-wrong-with-kg-the)

- I don’t understand how this continues to be a subject of speculation. It has been reliably reported (source: KG’s agent, Andy Miller) that KG has loose cartilage in his knee. It’s too late for arthroscopic surgery pre-playoffs. Therefore, it’s almost certain that KG will NOT be 100%, and worse, he could go to 0% at any time. That’s the reality. It’s not a “bone spur”. It’s not a “knee strain”. It is what it is.

- KG will not want to play if he’s hurting the team. If he’s a step slow on D and unable to fight for loose balls and rebounds, he will probably not play.

- With Baby, Perk, Powe (and even Mikki) stepping up for KG, this team can win it all. Rondo will be key. Marbury will be key off the bench. And of course the reliable Remaining Two.

- With or without KG, this team has the best defensive scheme in the league. Others have tried to emulate it, but none has matched it. Defense wins championships.

- Remember too that both Cleveland and Orlando (and the Lakers, for that matter) depend on one player per team. Take LBJ or Howard out of the equation… through bad games, excellent D, fouls, or a twist of fate… and that team is dead in the water. That’s a bad place to be for any club. On the other hand, we lose KG and we’re still in their contending.

- Our remaining players must stay healthy from now on. One more loss of a key guy would be devastating. Health is the biggest factor going in. (Paul – use that hyperbaric chamber of yours!)

- And finally, much will depend on the refs. If the NBA is determined to crown Lebron James this year, we can’t win. Only rarely can 5 guys beat 8. But if they call fair games and let us play our D, we win.