Tired Legs

After straining his left hamstring against Oklahoma City,
 Rajon Rondo is officially listed as day-to-day. 

As if losing 89-84 to the Oklahoma City Thunder minus Kevin Durant and Jeff Green at home wasn't bad enough, the Boston Celtics suffered injury in addition to insult Friday night, literally. According to both ESPN and the Boston Globe, Celtics star point guard Rajon Rondo suffered a strained left hamstring. The injury occurred early in the fourth quarter when Rondo collided with Thunder guard Royal Ivey, who attempted to take a charge. Rondo was shaken up and immediately started limping before he was removed from the game.

Rondo is now considered day-to-day. As a result, one man's misfortunate becomes another's opportunity. Delonte West is ready to jump in should Rondo miss any time. West had a sparkling debut with the Celtics Wednesday night against the Wizards, pacing the second unit with twelve points, five boards, four assists as well as a steal and a block in just over twenty minutes.

The Celtics got a taste of what life would be like without Rondo when West joined the starting five after Rondo exited the Thunder game due to injury. Although West made two clutch free throws late in the game to keep it close, Delonte came up short when it mattered most. With just six seconds left on the clock and the Celtics down by three, West missed a wide open three that would have tied the game.

As the Celtics embark on two game road trip, Rondo is officially listed as questionable for Sunday's 1pm matinee against the Raptors in Toronto. With Boston already touting a 9-3 record, it makes little sense to push Rondo back into action too early and risk re-injury. If Doc is smart, which I think he is, he'll sit Rondo in Toronto and give his strained hamstring just a little more time to heal. Rondo, who plays so many minutes to begin with, could definitely benefit from some off time. On the flip side, Delonte will receive some much needed quality minutes with the starting unit, further shaking the rust off that resulted from his ten game suspension to start the season.

After all, it's much more important for Rondo to be fully healed and prepared to play on the second leg of the trip Monday night when the Celtics visit Atlanta. As we know all too well, the Hawks always seem to be a formidable challenge for the Celts. They're a young, up and coming team with fresh legs that brought Boston to the brink a few years back during the playoffs. While the true success of the 2010-11 Celtics will be determined in June, these early season obstacles go a long way in creating the team's personality.