KG heals all wounds?

Kevin Garnett returned last night against the Orlando Magic to give the Celtics a much needed boost on offense, defense and provided the team with some swagger they have been lacking.

It's been two days since the Patriots choked against the Jets and the pain is still fresh. But it only took a little over 24 hours for Kevin Garnett to return to the Celtics starting lineup and give Bostonians everywhere hope for some optimism for the remainder of the season and to take our minds off the Patriots loss. In a game which some sports and NBA analysts called it "one of the best" of the year, Garnett thrived and stole the spotlight for the night. 

Orlando came into the night with something to prove. After unloading a quarter of their team in a 3 team total blockbuster, they believe the moves they've made will help them finally get over the wall that is formed by the Boston Celtics. KG had something to say about that last night. He tallied 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals with one of them coming with under a minute left that helped win the Celtics the game in a well played 31 minutes. He changes everything about this team. No one can replace what he does on the court when he's injured. "We look like a totally different team out there," Celtics forward Paul Pierce said. "You can't replace what Kevin gives to a ballclub. ... He raises everyone's play when he's on the court."

During the past few weeks that KG has missed, people and analysts all around the league have questioned the fact if the Celtics are done. Orlando and the Miami Heat were rolling while the Celtics lost a couple games in a row and all of a sudden the Heat found themselves sitting atop of the Eastern Conference. The trend going around the league was will the Celtics be looking up to the Magic and the Heat for the rest of the year? And maybe for good? As of today that question is no. The Celtics are 31-9 and are 2 1/2 games ahead of the next contender, Miami. Keep in mind that 3 of our starters, Garnett, Rondo and Perkins have missed a total of 60 games combined (not to mention the injuries to Delonte West, Jermaine O'neal and Shaquille O'neal) but yet we still sit atop of the East. 

So I have a question for the critics now. When we return to full strength (Perkins, Delonte, Jermaine O.), will contenders be looking up at us for the remainder of the season? With the Heat dealing with some injuries and the Magic still building team chemistry, the sky is the limit for this balllclub. As for right now it's all about one thing to this city and this team.....18.