C’s Are Living On The Edge

Posted by Brian Robb on Dec 9, 2010 119025 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2010%2F12%2F09%2Fcs-are-living-on-the-edge%2FC%27s+Are+Living+On+The+Edge2010-12-09+17%3A32%3A18Brian+Robbhttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D11902

It may not be the most beat up 17-4 team to ever have existed in the NBA but it’s probably not too big of a stretch to consider this year’s Boston Celtics to be a major candidate. Entering last night’s game with three players on the shelf indefinitely and three more questionable to play (Davis, Shaq and Rondo) you have to wonder just how many more shots to the depth chart this team can handle.

The consideration is even more pronounced when you realize that two of the team’s most vulnerable players to injury on the roster are the ones still playing in Marquis Daniels and Shaquille O’Neal. Last night, we got a sobering dose of reality for Daniels who once again saw an thumb injury flare up, this time his right thumb after he jammed it trying to catch a pass from Nate Robinson.

“It hurt pretty good, but I’m alright, though,“ he said. “A little swelling but nothing no ice can’t heal.”

Daniels didn’t fail to see the parallels to last season for the guy who hasn’t played more than 68 games through his extended NBA career as seen in this piece by Jessica Camerato of CSNNE.com:

“I was like, ‘Not again,’ ” he said. Daniels jammed his right thumb after attempting to catch a pass from Nate Robinson on Wednesday night against the Denver Nuggets. He felt his thumb get pulled back by a defender, and then watched his hand swell up.

“Nate threw me a bad pass,” Daniels joked loud enough for Robinson to overhear.

“I did, I did. I admit it,” Robinson laughed back. “But he should’ve caught it.”

Joking? About an injury?

Daniels is shrugging this one off. After undergoing surgery to repair torn ligaments in his left thumb last season, he isn’t going to let “a little sprain or jam” – as he put it – hold him back.

Especially when staying healthy is so critical to his game.

“For me, it’s very important because that’s all I keep stressing all year, my health and staying healthy,” he said. “If I can stay healthy, I think the rest will take care of itself.”

Perhaps the most devastating injury on the roster right now, besides one to the starting lineup would be to Daniels who has logged major minutes at the both guard spots and the small forward spot since the injury to Delonte West. With Nate Robinson already banged up with a sore heel and Rajon Rondo continuing to battle both hamstring and plantar fasciitis, Daniels’ versatility is needed more than ever. The injury clearly bugged him last night as he missed both shots in 17 minutes of action. Will it linger for a guy prone to injury woes? It’s a possibility this team can’t afford right now more than ever.