Troubling signs in Celtics’ loss to Lakers

So it begins. On Christmas Day, the LA Lakers got what they couldn’t last summer: They got their “Game Seven,” their revenge. For those who watched the Celtics’ fourth-quarter collapse in LA, the game served as a reminder that a march through the playoffs and an eventual championship is not a foregone conclusion. It reminded us that the Celtics are not perfect and also just how much work Danny Ainge will have to do to keep the Celtics on top.Perhaps the most disturbing part of the loss was not the actual play on the floor; it was the obvious infighting taking place both on the court and on the bench. Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo said that sometimes the Celtics simply want to win too badly.”We were arguing, which we haven’t done in the past,” Rondo said. “We’re just so competitive. We wanted to win. You know, one guy thought one thing and somebody else thought the other. That’s not like us. That’s not the usual Celtics. We all had our opinions in the huddle. We didn’t let (Celtics coach Doc Rivers) do the coaching. With two minutes to go, we came out of the timeout and didn’t know what play to run. That just blew the game right there.”For a team that has been on the same page for the better part of the last 18 months, watching the Celtics suddenly fall off that page was alarming, to say the least.Another alarming trend is the suddenly-increased minutes of 32-year-old superstar Kevin Garnett. Rivers pointed to a 5-minute stretch in the fourth quarter against the Lakers where he had to rest Garnett at the turning point of the game. Unlike other stars, Garnett seemingly is without the ability to take it down a notch; therefore, it is up to Rivers to keep Garnett’s minutes at a manageable number.Garnett himself trusts Rivers’ judgment, saying, “Whatever Doc says, I’m with. I wish I was perfect. But I feel really, really good. I haven’t always had the chance to say that this year.”In a perfect world, Rivers would much rather see Garnett’s minutes stay below 35 rather than the 42-45 he has seen in recent weeks.”He was at 34 or 35 or 33 on a lot of nights,” said Rivers. “That would be a great number.”Not unlike last season, it appears that Ainge will be playing the field and scouring the clearance racks looking for late-season and playoff help. While most people feel that the Celtics are in need of length and size, there are increasing whispers that the C’s are in desperate need of a legitimate scoring punch off the bench. With a Stephon Marbury buyout just a week or two away, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Garnett/Marbury reunion sooner rather than later. After all, Ainge has not shied away from other malcontents, like Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, and Gary Payton.