This and that

A few notes on this off day for the Celtics:

* The Celtics have signed both Shavlik Randolph and D.J. White to another 10-day contract. Coach Doc Rivers has liked their work ethic and attitudes and lobbied Danny Ainge to keep them around.

* Paul Pierce was nominated for the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, but once again the Miami Heat took the honor home, only this time LeBron James let Dwyane Wade borrow the award. In four games this past week, Pierce led the Celtics to a 3-1 record while scoring 19.5 points on 49.1% from shooting along with grabbing 7.5 rebounds and handing out 6.0 assists. This was the sixth time -- the second for Pierce -- a Celtic has been nominated for the award, but none have taken home the honor.

* Looking ahead at the remainder of the regular season, the Celtics have 20 games to play in 37 days. They have 5 back-to-backs, and 12 of the 20 games come against teams under .500. Last stat: In the next 20 days, the Celtics only play 4 times against teams over .500. It's going to be interesting to see how Rivers and company handle things going forward. The Celtics have been known to favor health and rest over seeding. With Kevin Garnett reportedly dealing with minor maladies and Paul Pierce's neck continuing to give to him fits, it might be in Rivers's best interest to sacrifice a few games to ensure the health of his two most important -- not to mention best -- players.

* Some historical notes: Kevin Garnett (25,184) is 9 points away from passing Jerry West (25,192) for 15th on the NBA's all-time scoring list. His teammate Paul Pierce (23,748) is 10 points away from passing Charles Barkley (23,757) for 20th on that list. Also, Garnett has a chance to enter the top five in minutes played in NBA history by season's end. Garnett has played 47,633 minutes, which is good for seventh in league history. He's currently playing 30.4 minutes a game. Also, Rivers has said he will rest Garnett for one or two more games. Let's say Garnett plays 18 of the final 20 games at the same amount he's playing now. That would put him at 48,180 minutes, which would put him past Wilt Chamberlain (47,859) for fifth on the all-time list.