Tom Thibodeau appreciated the warm welcome from the Celtics and their fans. (AP)

During the first timeout of Friday night’s 110-105 overtime victory over the Chicago Bulls, the Celtics played a video tribute to current Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau and forward Brian Scalabrine, thanking them for their contributions to the C’s 2008 NBA championship.

Touched by the gesture, Scalabrine raised a hand to the crowd. Meanwhile, Thibodeau stood stoically on the sideline, ready to guide his new team against his former team.

After the game, though, the former Celtics assistant and defensive guru was clearly touched by the gesture.

“It’s great coming back here,” Thibodeau said following his team’s loss. “I wouldn’t be in this position without everything that this organization did for me. From ownership to Danny (Ainge) and, of course, Doc (Rivers), they treated me great. It was a lot of fun.”

It’s not every city that would recognize the contributions of an assistant coach to a team’s success with a pair of standing ovations (one to start the game and one throughout the video), but Thibodeau knows Boston is no ordinary fan base.

“This is a great sports town,” said Thibodeau. “Certainly, the history and the tradition of the Celtics is what makes this organization so special. It’s the fans, the people that run the team, the players. They’re leadership is off the charts. Doc and Danny — you’re not going to find two guys better than that. They’re just top-of-the-line guys. They’re smart. They know what they’re doing.

“The team is special,” he added. “You’ve got an unbelievable group of guys — not only talented, but great competitors. Those guys are going to fight and fight and fight. There’s no quit in that team. To beat them, you’ve got to beat them. They never quit.”

Thibodeau admitted after the game that while his new team may have the potential, the Bulls just don’t have the level of understanding of each other yet that his old team enjoys now.

“They’ve got a lot of weapons, they’re experienced, they know how to work the game and their hard to guard,” said Thibodeau. “I think the thing that often gets overlooked with them is not only their individual greatness but their collective greatness and willingness to hsare with each other. … It puts enormous pressure on your defense. Your defense can’t get set, and that’s something we’re striving for.”

 Marilyn Monroe. Princess Diana. Brian Scalabrine. Three of the most tragic losses of the past 50 years. Elton John memorialized Norma Jeane in his classic ballad “Candle in the Wind,” then re-recorded the tune following Lady Di’s death. Now? The Rocket Man has re-re-recorded the song to pay tribute to Scal’s free-agent departure to the Chicago Bulls …

Goodbye old friend Scal
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to warm the bench
While those around you played
They sat you in your warmups
As the crowd was chanting your name
They kept you on the treadmill
Until the end of the game

And it seems to me you lived your life
As the last man on the pine
Never knowing if they’ll play you
When you’re up twenty nine
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a fan
Your contract ran out long before
Your legend ever can

Benchwarming was tough
The toughest role you ever played
The Garden created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you left
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Scalabrine signed with the Bulls

Goodbye old friend Scal
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to warm the bench
While those around you played
Goodbye old friend Scal
From the young man in the upper balcony
Who sees you as something more than abysmal
More than just Brian Scalabrine

After five seasons with the Celtics, Brian Scalabrine has agreed to a contract with the Bulls, according to a report from Yahoo! Sports. In Chicago, Scalabrine would be reunited with Tom Thibodeau, the former C’s assistant who is now the Bulls head coach.

Scalabrine, 32, has averaged 3.3 points per game in nine NBA seasons (his first four in New Jersey). His best season with Boston was 2006-07, when he averaged 4.0 points and 1.9 rebounds in 19 minutes per game. He averaged just nine minutes in 52 games last season, scoring 1.5 points.

Scalabrine is still unsigned

Unsigned free agent Brian Scalabrine hasn’t had a lot of play this summer. The Celtics have turned their attention elsewhere and this past week they brought in a number of forwards for workouts.

Scalabrine has made numerous charitable appearances for the Celtics this summer and maintained that he still wants to play, but there don’t appear to be many offers for his services, either here or elsewhere.

NBA.com’s Sam Smith cracks the door open for Scal a little when he mentioned in a chat that the Bulls have had interest in bringing him aboard. Smith writes in answer to a question about Scalabrine and Michael Finley:

I think Finley is too old at this point, but Scalabrine is a guy the Bulls have talked with a lot this summer and especially with [Tom] Thibodeau I can see him as possible depending on what goes on regarding [Rudy] Fernandez. You need a good team guy willing to root a lot and Scalabrine would be that.

New coaches often bring former players with them to help implement their system and Scalabrine wouldn’t be a bad resource for Tom Thibodeau. The Bulls also have roster spots available.

Still, the Bulls have also been linked to rumors for the likes of Carmelo Anthony and Rudy Fernandez, which would make Scal, at best, a fallback option.

Avery Bradley helped local families with the Feed the Children program. (Celtics photo)

This week the Celtics took some time out from preparing for next season to give back to the Boston community.

Rookie Avery Bradley was on hand at the State House to help the Celtics and Massachusetts State Lottery honor the 2009-10 Heroes Among Us recipients. Celtics legend Satch Sanders, team co-owner Robert Epstein and Massachusetts State Treasurer Tim Cahill also recognized the recipients, whose acts range from saving lives to helping the less fortunate. Over 550 individuals have been presented with the Heroes Among Us award since the program was established by the Celtics 12 years ago.

Later in the week, Bradley, Brian Scalabrine, members of the Celtics organization, and a group of volunteers distributed approximately 40,000 pounds of food and essentials to help local families through Feed The Children (FTC) at the Harborside Community Center in East Boston and the Holland Community Center in Dorchester. FTC’s Americans Feeding Americans Caravan has helped more than 120,000 families in cities affected by the economy.

“I feel very fortunate to be in the position where I can come out into the Boston community and help these families in need,” said Bradley. “Whenever I have the opportunity to donate my time to a great cause like this, I plan on doing it.”

See below for more photos, courtesy of the Celtics.

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Glen Davis and Kendrick Perkins snap photos with fans on the Celtics Harbor Cruise (courtesy of the Celtics)

Earlier this week, the Celtics and Xfinity hosted a harbor cruise on the Spirit of Boston and raised over $50,000 to benefit the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation.

Kendrick Perkins, Glen Davis, and Brian Scalabrine joined over 100 Celtics fans on the two-hour Boston Celtics Harbor Cruise. C’s legends Cedric Maxwell, Dana Barros, and former “American Idol” finalist Ayla Brown also attended.

“It’s always great to come out and support the Shamrock Foundation because it’s all about giving back to the kids,” Perkins said. “It’s fun to have the opportunity to spend some time with the fans away from the court.”

The Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation benefits children directly through programs that provide education and support, including partners Perkins School for the Blind, Children’s Hospital Boston, Horizons for Homeless Children, and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC). More information on the Shamrock Foundation is available at www.celtics.com.

LOS ANGELES -  It has only been two years since the Celtics suited up for Game 1 of the 2008 NBA finals. The majority of the faces are the same, but what about the feeling?

“I wasn’t really nervous Game 1 of the Finals. I’m not really nervous right now,“ said Rajon Rondo. “It’s kind of hard to tell right now until the lights actually go on and there’s two minutes left ticking down. Right now it’s no big deal, it’s the same thing.”

The emotions are different this time around. In 2008, the Celtics were suddenly thrust from the lottery to the finals after acquiring Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. This season, they know what it takes to win it all and are trying to recreate the success they achieved two years earlier.

“I think we’re more poised than we were last time. I think that’s the biggest difference. I don’t think the stage is as big a deal as the game plan. We’re more focused on the game plan than the finals,” said Brian Scalabrine.

“It’s the second time around, we’ve been there. We’ve done it before and there’s nothing really that surprises you. We know it’s going to be crowded out there, we know media day is going to be crazy, we didn’t know any of that. The intensity of this team in ’08 was different. It was a more high-strung team, we’re much more laidback. That’s not a bad thing. We can compartmentalize better than we did in ’08.”

Doc Rivers is prepared either way.

“In some ways we have the same starters, but the bench is completely different,” he said. “For some of the guys, this is their first time around. So you have to kind of watch their emotions. And even some of the guys who were on the bench last year, the last time when they were not in the rotation as much. Then in a lot of ways, it’s their first time. … We’ve got a veteran group, so we know what we’re in store for.”