From Peter Stringer of Celtics.com:

NEWPORT, RI – The Celtics started off camp with a hard three-hour practice this morning at Salve Regina, and while Coach Doc Rivers said it was apparent that the team’s conditioning needs some work, he liked his team’s energy and thinks that they have a leg up with so many returning players who already know his system.

“I thought our guys came with the right energy,” Rivers said of the morning session, which ended right around 1 p.m.. “It’s different from last year. A lot of our guys can pick up stuff quicker. The guys returning [know our stuff].”

One guy who knows the stuff but can’t show it is Kendrick Perkins, who’s still restricted to non-contact drills only, and spent the end of Monday morning’s session watching teammates scrimmage. Perkins got some extra midrange shooting in at the end of the session, but according to Rivers, he isn’t expected to really take part in any of the training camp or play in at least the first four exhibition games.

With Perk on the shelf, newcomer Patrick O’Bryant got the nod to play with the green team alongside Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Rajon Rondo.

“Patrick gets to play with the starters all practice. That can’t hurt a guy like him. He’s the only other tall guy,” Rivers said, noting that while the media’s been talking about Posey’s departure, he’s more concerned with the absence of P.J. Brown. “Patrick has a chance to take that role.”

As for the Posey role, Darius Miles is hoping to compete with Tony Allen for those minutes, and Rivers liked what he saw out of Miles this morning, even if it was brief. But given that he’s been all but out of the league for the past two seasons, Rivers will take what he can get.

“I thought by mid practice he was spent, but he fought through it and played,” Rivers said of Miles, who he says has “great instincts and feel” for the game.

Evening practice sessions are closed, so barring any major news, the next update will be tomorrow afternoon.

Are you pumped? Feeling giddy? Anxious? I certainly am. Our beloved Celtics are back, ladies and gentleman, and priming themselves to defend their title.

Let me say that again, in case it didn’t sink in. I said our beloved Celtics are priming themselves to defend their title.

Sounds good, doesn’t it?

My Quick Thoughts: It’s interesting to hear that O’Bryant got to play with the first unit. I would have figured Leon would have gotten that nod, especially in day one of camp. Hopefully P.O.Box 26 impresses.

Countdown to Preseason: 8 Days

Darius Miles

J.R. Giddens

Bill Walke

Patrick O’Bryant

Click here to see more photos of these Celtics newcomers, as well as the rest of the gang.

2007-2008 In Review

Record: 66-16
Eastern Conference Seed: 1
Playoff Results: Won NBA Finals vs. LAL (4-2)

Summer Of 2008

Key Additions: Patrick O’Bryant (via free agency), Darius Miles (via free agency), J.R. Giddens (via draft), Bill Walker (via draft).

Key Losses: James Posey (via free agency), P.J. Brown (via retirement), Sam Cassell (???).

It was but 12 months ago that basketball junkies across the nation were questioning the strength of Boston’s bench. “Do they have enough behind the superstar trio? Will the supporting cast ruin any type of success that this team has a chance of attaining?” Months later, the naysayers were silenced. However, they were not killed off, and may very well return this fall, as sixth man James Posey elected to decline his player option and sign a lucrative four-year contract with the New Orleans Hornets this summer.

Well-aware of the fact that the loss of Posey’s toughness, length, defensive ability, versatility, and clutch shooting cannot be replaced with a single player, Danny Ainge elected to fill the hole with a “backup small forward by committee” state of mind. In the 2008 NBA Draft, he acquired swingmen J.R. Giddens (30th overall) and Bill Walker (via trade, 47th overall), who each have signed contracts with the club. Soon after, Ainge signed returning guard Tony Allen to a two-year deal worth $5 million total (using Bird Rights). The savvy general manager even went as far as saying that Allen was a better defender than Posey, and is primed for a breakout year.

Then comes the wildcard: Darius Miles, who the Celtics signed to a non-guaranteed deal in late August. Miles not only has had his character questioned, but had specialists deem his damaged right knee a career-ending injury this past April. Should Miles make the Celtics’ final roster and appear in at least 10 regular season games, the Trail Blazers would be forced to pay off the remaining $18 million of Miles’ contract, originally signed in August of 2004. First, however, Miles must serve the 10-game suspension recently issued by the league for violating the league’s anti-drug program (the drug was found out to be a diet pill).

With roughly half of the team’s mid-level exception, sharpshooter Eddie House was retained on a two-year deal (the second year containing a player option), giving the Celtics at least one reliable shooter off the bench to insert in the lineup down the stretch of ballgames.

The vacancy left by P.J. Brown, due to retirement, called for a new backup center, as well. To fill the hole, Boston turned to Golden State Warriors free agent and former ninth overall pick (2006), Patrick O’Bryant. While raw and unproven, the 22-year-old big man gives the C’s something that they hadn’t had in a while – a long, athletic seven footer. The last five-man to dawn a Celtics uniform and fit that description is Mark Blount, who certainly didn’t make full use of his physical assets. With hard work and a little help from Clifford Ray, O’Bryant may have a chance to redeem his career in Beantown.

The status of Sam Cassell remains a mystery. In a recent interview, the 38-year-old guard noted that he was close to signing a contract with the Celtics – one year in length, with an option to return as an assistant coach in 2009-2010. Keep your eyes peeled for updates in the coming days, as you’d assume that if the team truly was sold on Cassell coming back as a player for this coming season, they would prefer him to be in camp on Monday. Time will tell.

Depth Chart

Biggest Strength

Team Defense: A year ago, the obvious conclusion would simply be “firepower; Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce together is scary.” And it still is, especially after taking the league by storm throughout the 2007-2008 season, but that’s not why the men in green were able to earn the franchise’s 17th title this past June. The reason that the 2008 Boston Celtics came out victorious was not because of Ray Allen’s sweet stroke, Kevin Garnett’s dream shake, or Paul Pierce’s step-back jumper. It was because of how this entire team bought into Tom Thibodeau’s defensive schemes, and displayed some of the best help defense the NBA has seen in a while (perhaps all-time). The big names of Allen, Garnett, and Pierce sold the tickets, but the defensive commitment won them the ring. As cliché as that sounds, it is truer than Paul Pierce’s nickname.

Biggest Weakness

Sloppiness: Oddly enough, the best 2008 NBA team just happened to be one of the most mistake-prone. Only Sacramento, Seattle, and Memphis turned the ball over more than the Celtics in the 2007-2008 regular season, as Boston’s 15.2 TOPG clip ranked fourth-worst in the entire league. In fact, the only other clubs to rank in the bottom-10 in turnovers and still manage to make the playoffs was Atlanta and Denver, who were each sent home at the conclusion of the first round. Very seldom do the NBA champs fail to take care of the ball like Boston in 2007-2008. If anything, that speaks volumes about how strong their strengths really are. However, it is not ideal for Doc Rivers to watch his team fall that low in the turnover column in 2008-2009. With the additions of four players age 26 or under this offseason, it makes you question whether or not the flaw can be corrected.

X-Factor

Tony Allen: A strong case could be made for Rajon Rondo to be deemed Boston’s 2008-2009 x-factor, but there is a difference between he and “the other” Allen. With Rondo, you expect improvement. You expect his postseason experience and extra summer of work to translate into better play on the court in his third season. On the contrary, you have absolutely no idea what to expect or make of Tony Allen. You did, however, know exactly what you were getting from James Posey each and every night this past season. With his services taken down south to the Big Easy, “TA” has a large pair of shoes to fill. Will he take advantage his brand spankin’ new opportunity and return to something similar to early-2007 form, or will he continue to issue Boston fans headaches strong enough to give a bottle of Tylenol a migraine? Time will tell.

What to Expect In 2008-2009

By my estimation, the C’s are on top of the world until proven otherwise. They may very well find themselves below last season’s 66-win plateau, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are no longer the best team in basketball. Don’t think for one minute that this team is going to get comfortable and revert to settling for one ring; they’re going for the repeat.

Standings Predictions
58-24
1st in Atlantic Division
1st in Eastern Conference

Annie Linskey of the Baltimore Sun reports:

Baltimore native and three-time NBA champion Sam Cassell said today he plans to become an assistant coach with the Boston Celtics after playing one more season.

Cassell, a 38-year-old guard who was part of the Celtics’ title run this year, told a reporter about his plans shortly before speaking at a City Hall news conference. “This is my last year playing with the Celtics,” he said. “Next week, I’ll sign the contract.”

After finishing the 2008-09 season, he plans to exercise an option to join the coaching staff. “I am playing this year,” he said. “After that, I have the option to do coaching for them.”

My reaction is similar to one of Scooby Doo’s: “errrf?”

From a roster standpoint, one of two things inevitably have to happen, as adding Cassell would push the Celtics roster to 16 players. One scenario would be that Darius Miles (non-guaranteed) gets cut. The other potentially being a minor two-for-one or three-for-two trade.

Time will tell.