He may be banged up and fatigued, but Paul Pierce has played through tougher situations and performed better. The Celtics need their captain to be a factor on every possession tonight. Whether it's taking the ball to the basket and making Salmons work or drawing the defense and kicking the ball to others, Pierce cannot be the queasy quotient he's been through far too much of this series.
The Celts should own the Pierce-Salmons matchup at both ends of the floor, but it hasn't worked out nearly to the extent the C's -- and the Bulls -- expected.