By A.Sherrod Blakely
CSNNE.com
BOSTONWell, so much for the Boston Celtics having to look up in the Eastern Conference standings.
After falling behind the Chicago Bulls for the best record in the Eastern Conference by half a game, the Celtics are once again at the top following Wednesday's 92-80 win over Indiana.
Both Boston and Chicago have identical 48-18 records.
The C's currently have the tiebreaker because they won two of the three regular-season matchups.
If the Celtics lose to Chicago when the teams meet on April 7, that would result in the series being even and the tiebreaker would then go to the Bulls because they have the better division record.
That's why this upcoming road trip, which includes games at Houston, New Orleans and New York, is so vital to Boston's chances of getting back home-court advantage throughout the playoffs in the East.
Boston Celtics
"We need all these games," said Boston's Paul Pierce. "This is the time of the year, this is an exciting time of the year. You smell the end coming. We smell the playoffs coming, so guys are really starting to buckle down, trying to finish the season off on a good note."
While Rajon Rondo didn't exactly dominate on Wednesday, it was clear that he was making strides in the right direction. He didn't score against the Pacers, but he did have eight assists with just two turnovers. It was a good showing for Rondo, who has been in a bit of a slump lately.
"I thought he played terrific," coach Doc Rivers said. "He played with great energy and you that third quarter, that one stretch, and even when he came back in the second quarter, I thought he played with great speed, I thought he created a lot of problems. So I was happy."
Rondo is one of the fastest players in the NBA. Jeff Green is surprisingly faster than you would think for a 6-foot-9 forward.
When asked who would win a race between himself and Rondo, Green responded, "I would win. I would definitely win."
Green quipped about running 40 yards in 4.2 seconds. "I'm pretty fast. It would be a tight match."
Moments later, Green was told about Rondo challenging world class sprinter Usain Bolt to a race a couple years ago.
"He did?" Green said when told of Rondo's challenge. "I ain't gonna do that."
Troy Murphy is a work in progress.
So far, he's progressing quite well of late.
In about 18 minutes, Murphy had six points which included an unexpected reverse dunk.
When asked if he was surprised by Murphy's dunk, Rivers said, "Yeah, yeah. I think he Murphy was surprised. I was worried about him getting hurt coming down, because I don't think he's jumped quite that high in quite some time. It was a slow-motion-reverse dunk. It was terrific."
A. Sherrod Blakely can be reached atsblakely@comcastsportsnet.com.Follow Sherrod on Twitter at http:twitter.comsherrodbcsn