CELTICS INJURY REPORT

by **112288** Sat Nov 20, 2010 1:14 pm

Celtics guard Rajon Rondo suffered what the team termed a strained left hamstring and sat out the final 4:44 of Friday's game, while forward Kevin Garnett endured an elbow to the back of the head that sidelined him for a 14-minute stretch, including nearly the entire first quarter.

Rondo is day-to-day and will be re-evaluated after receiving treatment Saturday, but expects to travel when the team departs for a brief two-game road trip to Toronto and Atlanta. Garnett returned to play 30 minutes against the Thunder and seemed no worse for the wear after the game.

Rondo crashed to the floor clutching the lower part of his left hamstring after Oklahoma City's Royal Ivey absorbed a charge with 6:19 to play in the game. Rondo got examined on the bench, but returned soon after. He played only 13 seconds before he was swapped out in favor of Delonte West as the Celtics tried feverishly to rally.

Asked about the strained hamstring, Rondo answered, "That's what the doctor said." Asked for a prognosis, he said only, "I'll just get treatment [Saturday] and we'll see."

Rondo suggested it was coach Doc Rivers' decision to pull him from the game. Asked after about Rondo's condition, Rivers said, "I don’t know how Rondo is; I have no idea. I just knew he wasn’t running right and had to come out."

Rondo finished with 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting with seven assists over 33:25. Garnett chipped in 16 points (hitting 10 of 10 free throws, but just 3 of 6 shots) while adding two rebounds, a steal, and a block. Despite the unsightly lump on the back-right side of his skull, he seemed fine after the game.

“I just got [an elbow] man, and a hell of a ‘bow at that," he said. "It’s part of the game. No one out there is 100 percent. I'm no different from that. I came back. I continued the game and tried to get my team with it.”

Rivers said he wrestled with the decision to initially re-insert Garnett.

"I didn’t know if I should play him," said Rivers. "I still don’t know if I should have played him, even though he played OK. He was having headaches there for a minute. [Celtics trainer] Eddie [Lacerte] said he remembered everything and he did whatever tests that they do. But I was very concerned with that. So all that, obviously, throws you off a little bit."

112288