Doc Rivers announced at his pre-game press conference that Kevin Garnett would not be playing in tonight's game against the Kings. He didn't say if KG would play Friday, but it looks as though Monday is a more possible return.
"With Kevin, because he's so emotional, you just want to make sure he doesn't get down about stuff and that's where I'm always concerned with him," Doc Rivers said. "Starting this 'why is this happening to me' stuff and you don't want him to go there because it's not a bad injury but he doesn't like missing games. I think his goal was to play all 82 [games] and the fact that that's not going to happen pisses him off. It's just who he is, it's a good thing in the long run."
Rivers doesn't think that Garnett will have an issue trusting that leg because it's not a major injury.
"It's like coming back from an ankle injury," Rivers said. "You don't trust it completely and then you realize, 'I'm OK'."
The thing the Celtics really miss besides KG's intensity and defense, is his voice on the court. Rivers called KG perhaps the best talker on defense (not trash talking) in the history of the NBA. You could see how much the C's miss him in that respect over the last two games, especially in transition.
The news wasn't good for Jermaine O'Neal either. O'Neal will miss the game with swelling in his knee once again. This is certainly not a good sign for O'Neal, as he's yet to remain healthy for any stretch of time. The lingering knee issue is one that doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.
"I'm concerned," Rivers said. "Listen, I think he's gone two weeks now and a practice and his knee swells up. First of all it has to be extremely frustrating for him. Because he works his butt off to get back, and he was playing well. Secondly, we all have common sense. Thats a concern, you know, 'why is this happening?' So we have to figure that out."