Heading into the Break

The All-Star break comes at an interesting time for the Boston Celtics, one of the NBA's hottest teams this month. The C's are winners of eight of their last nine games, each without Rajon Rondo, with victories over the Heat, Clippers, Nuggets, and Bulls.

Surprisingly enough the only loss of the stretch was at the Bobcats, but the argument can be made that the loss was a fluke. It came on the road a night after playing triple overtime at home against Denver, and the team had to cart Leandro Barbosa off the court in the third quarter with his torn ACL.

It has become clear that unless Danny Ainge receives an offer that knocks him off his seat, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce will remain in green. But with all the injuries moves need to be made, and they need to be made soon so this team is not playing so short handed after the break. It's unrealistic to expect a blockbuster trade as fans speculated before, but here are some realistic expectations:

1. Ainge and Doc Rivers are not going to rush this despite the urgency. Both want to wait till the deadline and pick their shots. Maybe they can work out some type of deal that benefits the team more than signing a free agent right now.

2. No one will be ruled out... Ainge has mentioned looking in Europe, Doc has mentioned looking in China... Let's hope not.

3. If Delonte West was really a player of interest, he would already be in Boston. He has a long history with the Celtics and has already made a comeback with them. Doc seems to like him so if it hasn't happened yet, don't expect it to.

4. D-League players will be looked at, especially guards. The name Shelvin Mack keeps coming up and sounds like it would be a good option.

5. Expect Boston to play with some 10 day contracts so they can see what they have, and essentially "try players out" before committing to them.

Celtics fans will see what the future has to hold, hopefully moves are made soon for the good of the team. The current roster has been hot, but they are going to need a deeper bench if they want to stay hot and have continued success in the postseason.