Semih, Shaq, West expected to miss Sunday game; Robinson to play

Delonte West participated in practice today, according to Chris Forsberg, but Nate Robinson did not. Robinson’s status was unsure because of a bruised right knee suffered Thursday against the Lakers, while West’s practice was only his second since breaking his wrist in November.

Robinson decided not to undergo an MRI after leaving Thursday’s game. “We didn’t think it was necessary,” Danny Ainge told CSNNE. But he will still “try to give it a go” tomorrow, says Paul Flannery.

West lobbied to play against the Lakers, but Doc Rivers (and team trainer Ed Lacerte) weren’t having it. He could conceivably play tomorrow against the Heat, and will surely try to convince Rivers to play. But the C’s say he’s a no-go for tomorrow.

Rivers is right to continue inching West along slowly, even if — without Marquis Daniels, and with Robinson’s inconsistent (to put it nicely) production — it’s enticing to put West into the lineup before he’s ready. Rajon Rondo played 44 minutes against LA, and while it’s nice that he’s young and able to play so much time, I’d rather not run him into the ground each game.

But, as I said, West should be taken along slowly. The C’s should make sure the wrist is entirely stable before subbing him into a game. Even if Miami just took a half-game lead in the East, and the game tomorrow’s pretty damn big, and Rondo needs some rest, and now I’m kind of arguing that West should play, so I’ll digress before I get him re-injured.

Though West and Robinson took the court, Shaq, Semih Erden and Jermaine O’Neal provided 21 feet of missed practice. I’m not even sure that’s news anymore, though this is: Semih and Shaq could be out beyond the All-Star break. Their injuries are not healing as expected. Joy.

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This from the Globe 2/13/11, just prior to the Heat game.

For those who doubted the severity of Shaquille O'Neal's injuried Achilles tendon, he just entered the Celtics locker room wearing a walking boot on his right foot, not exactly a positive indication that he's returning soon. Today will be the fifth consecutive game O'Neal has missed with the injury and he is not expected to return until after the All-Star Break. The Celtics first game after the break is Feb. 22 against Golden State.

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