IC Cold Links: Recappin' Ray Allen's Sweet Stroke

Here are a few links of interest after the Pacers loss in Boston last night:

• Bruno's Inside the Game LIVE (live chat format, good times) and Postgame Report. Jim O'Brien succinctly sums up the problems Ray Allen posed for the Pacers.

  "Ray is a great player and is hard to guard off screens. If you guard him on one side of the court, he sprints to the other side of the court and they have big bodies setting screens. You give him six inches, he puts it down, most of his shots were well guarded and he knocked him down. He is a great player."

• Mike Wells reports on Ray Allen doing the heavy lifting to push the Celtics past the Pacers.
• Mike offers Slick Leonard's thoughts on the passing of Johnny "Red" Kerr in his Pacers Insider post. He also has a little update on Danny Granger.

  All-Star forward Danny Granger, who has missed the past five games with the partially torn tendon in his right foot, did some shooting after the team's morning shootaround and before the game.

  Don't get too excited, though, because Granger still thinks he'll be out for another week and a half or so.

  "I'm wearing a shoe lift, cushion pad to keep the pressure off my heal," he said. "I'm taking it one day at a time. I'm going to get on the bike for the first time. I ran in the pool (Thursday) for the first time."

  On Wednesday, Jim O'Brien also mentioned that Granger was dealing with an inner-ear infection.

• Bob Ryan offers his thoughts on Stephon Marbury's debut in Boston.

  Well, yes, we all know Marbury can shoot and pass and defend and do all the technical things at a high level. But he has made himself as welcome as toxic waste in his last two stops, and he would not have been available to the Celtics if he weren't the most bizarre piece of damaged goods the NBA has seen since, well, since it started 63 years ago.

  This is career redemption time for Stephon Marbury. The Celtics are getting a guy who, at 32, still has a chance for more big paydays, if only he can restore his reputation. They have come together because they are in a mutual time of great need. He needs to salvage his reputation and marketability. They need one more useful player in the backcourt.

  It's that simple.
• Frank Dell'Apa reports on a storybook start for Marbury in Boston.
• Celtics Blog maintains perspective despite the better than expected start of the Marbury Era. 
• Chad Ford has a nice early look at this year's NBA draft prospects. Sounds like Ricky Rubio could very well be in play this year. Wouldn't that be fun?