Kevin Garnett joined his Celtic teammates at this morning's shootaround for the first time since last Friday's visit to Detroit and is expected to return to the starting lineup against the Los Angeles Lakers tonight.
But coach Doc Rivers expects Garnett to be going at less than full speed, at least until he recovers from the effects of the flu.
"It's easy to feel good at shootaround," Rivers said. "But when you are running up and down the floor, when you haven't done it, it's a different ballgame."
Garnett missed wins against Minnesota (109-101) and Philadelphia (100-99).
"We need (Garnett) every game, we barely won those games without him," Celtic center Kendrick Perkins said. "What he brings to the table, a lot of guys feed off. We need 'Ticket.' "
There was never really any doubt that he'd be back, was there? Let's hope he's at full strength.
In other news, J.R. Giddens has been given a return ticket of his own, as the team sent him back down to the D-League.