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The Celtics look to test their three stars Justin Kauffman ‘09

This year, the Boston Celtics completely reshaped their starting squad by adding Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to their roster. As a result, the Celtics were forced to give up Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak and Al Jefferson, three of the last year’s five starters. Doc Rivers, the Celtics coach, was desperate for any way to improve the team, because last year the Celtics won a pitiful twenty-four games. The starters that left the Celtics year in the offseason contributed a lot to the 2006-2007 team; however, they were not able to compete with the rest of the NBA. Al Jefferson, the twenty-two year old rising star, averaged sixteen points and eleven rebounds per game, while blocking 1.5 shots. This young center is now one of the starting five on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Numerous people are skeptical about his ability to play in Minnesota because of the competition level. Michael Blair, a WHS Celtics fan, said, “Yeah. Jefferson got a lot better last year, but I really don’t know if he can play at as high of a level in his new division.” West and Szczerbiak both headed to Seattle to play for the Supersonics. For the Celtics, these two scoring guards compiled a total of 27.3 points, 6.1 assists 6.1 rebounds per game. The Celtics received three-point king, Ray Allen, in return for West and Szczerbiak. Prior to last years season, Doc Rivers was quoted saying numerous times that he was attempting to build the Celtics roster for the future. As a result of his views, the Celtics roster consisted of many players fresh out of high school or college with one dominant veteran, Paul Pierce. Doc Rivers and the Celtics decided to take a new approach for the 2007-2008 season. First, Ray Allen was invited to the Celtics to play with seasoned veteran Paul Pierce. Kevin Garnett also agreed to come to Boston after Ray was traded from the Seattle Sonics. Garnett was reluctant at first, because of the Celtic’s 2006-2007 season, which seemed to be rock bottom for Boston’s beloved team. “I really didn’t see it getting any better at that point. Watching Celtics games was so uninteresting because of how often they lost,” Blair said, commenting on the horrendous 2006-2007 team. The Celtics are schedule start the regular season against Gilbert Arenas and the Washington Wizards Friday, November 2. This will be the very first time Garnett, Allen and Pierce attempt to make something happen and hopefully they show their ability to win.