BOSTON — Glen Davis was lost, and now he’s found.

If you’ll recall, at the start of the preseason, Big Baby told reporters:

“I’ve got to find out what my role is. With Rasheed Wallace last year, I had to become a center. Now? I don’t know. Do I go back to playing the 4? We’ll see.

“It’s difficult because, as a player, you kind of don’t understand where the Celtics are going or what they are doing. No matter what I do – I can play great – it’s still not enough. I’m just here to help the team wherever possible, any way I can. Whenever I find my role, I’ll do it to the max, the only way I can.”

Now? He wishes he could take it all back. He knows his role now, after Doc Rivers pulled him aside, telling him to “shut up and play,” and Danny Ainge helped define his role — as a versatile big man off the bench who can play the 4 and the 5.

“I don’t even know why I made that comment,” Davis told reporters after last night’s preseason win over the Nets. “You guys have to help me out when I make stupid comments.”

Davis went as far as saying, “I’m a lucky big man to be on this team,” citing the experience he’s gained in a few years alongside veterans like Kevin Garnett, Rasheed Wallace, Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal.

After a poor first half as a team that left the Celtics trailing 55-48 going into the locker room, Davis and Shaq had a pointed discussion at the bench.

“We were just communicating with each other, making sure we were on the same page,” said Davis. “We have to do it a lot, because he really doesn’t know our defensive system. Me being here for four years now, I know it. So, I’m just trying to help him out, making sure he’s there when the rotations need to made.”

Wake up with the Celtics and your daily dose of Irish Coffee …

Um, Ok, Big Baby, whatever you say. Is it just me, or is anybody else confused as to what Glen Davis is saying here to NBA TV …

“Everybody on the East Coast watch out. We’re coming. Working hard on the elliptical. Get a nice burn before practice. Get rid of some of this body fat. They ain’t gonna call me Big Baby no more. They gonna call me Big ‘Swoll’ Baby.”

I’m not gonna lie, I actually had to consult UrbanDictionary.com on this one. They define “swoll” as “to be muscular, jacked, strong, etc.” (I also love their use of it in a sentence: “Man, I’m mo swoll than AC Slater“).

So, to get this straight, Davis no longer wanted to be called Big Baby, so last season he suggested Uno Uno, and now he wants to be called Big Swoll Baby. I think I’ve got it now.

The buffer Davis led all Celtics scorers with 20 points in last night’s 96-92 preseason victory against the Nets. Once again, the C’s second unit looked sharp, as Nate Robinson added 17 points and Delonte West scored 12 before leaving in the third quarter with discomfort in his lower back.

If you’ll recall, West missed Monday’s practice with lower back spasms. Not to worry, he stressed.

“I came in at halftime and felt my lower back pinching,” West told ESPN.com. “It’s real minor, but the muscle back there was tightening up and I think the tension was pinching the nerve, maybe. It was real uncomfortable. You saw me out there stretching before I went in for the third quarter, I just couldn’t move the way I wanted to. It’s just precautionary.”

Will David Stern make the NBA go Euro? (AP)

LAKERS NO LONGER WORLD CHAMPIONS

NBA Commissioner David Stern made a bold prediction yesterday: “We’re going to have, really, our most successful season. … I think you’re going to be getting to see some of the greatest basketball ever played.” He made the statement prior to a game between Euroleague champ FC Barcelona and the NBA champion Lakers.

The Spanish team actually defeated the Lakers, 92-88, adding fire to the debate: Should the NBA champs face off against the Euroleague champs in a battle for world domination?

Stern: “I would guess that we will be in continued discussions with our friends at the Euroleague about an expansion of this possibility.”

Euroleague CEO Jordi Bertomeu: “To us, it is something we would like to happen. We would like it because that would mean that we would have met the circumstances, both sporting and economic, to make a game like that possible. We can only hope and expect, and I do, that with the work of our clubs and teams, those conditions will be met. In the event that those conditions are met, and continuing the same collaborations we have had so far between the Euroleague and the NBA, I am sure such a game would be a possibility.”

ESPN.com asked Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant if Barcelona could compete in the NBA over the course of an 82-game season, and their answers differed:

Jackson: “They’re not up to the competition that we face night in and night out. But that’s not taking anything away from them. The physicality of our game, the size of our players, those are things that night in and night out are very difficult to contest.”

Bryant: “I think they execute extremely well, they know each other extremely well, they move the ball extremely well and that’s what you’re looking for. In the NBA, teams that do that are few and far in between, teams that play together as a unit. You see a lot of isolation game; you see a lot of guys going one-on-one. They do a great job moving the ball, they do a great job helping each other defensively, so I disagree, but, what do I know?”

Bryant hit just 2-of-15 shots in the loss to Barcelona. As we all know, failing to perform in championship games is nothing new to Kobe. Remember his 6-for-24 performance in the final game of the 2010 NBA Finals? Of course. How could you forget?

Read the rest of this entry »

Glen Davis (AP)

Glen Davis returned to Baton Rouge to check out the new practice facility at his alma mater and took some time to chat with LSU Sports. Obviously one of the questions was about new Celtic, and former Tiger, Shaquille O’Neal.

“It’s crazy. I can remember days when I was just a little boy watching him play here at LSU. Shaq was everywhere in the city. To be in the NBA and play against him and now having him on the same team it’s unbelievable. I’m so glad he’s on our team and he can help us get back to that championship.”

Davis is a legend at LSU. He won SEC Rookie of the Year honors, SEC Player of the Year as a sophomore and led the Tigers to the Final Four.

Davis plays the drums during a tour of the Plummer Home for Boys (photo courtesy of the Boston Celtics)

Glen Davis has been visiting deserving children this week and presenting them with a new home basketball court as part of the RE/MAX of New England Home Court Program contest.

This year’s winners included the Plummer Home for Boys of Salem and the Cassidy family of Haverhill. A total of three winners were selected from hundreds of entrants who submitted letters explaining why they were in need of a home court makeover.

Davis, along with Cedric Maxwell, conducted community basketball clinics with the winners. The Plummer Home for Boys also received a donation from the Forever Young Foundation and the Cassidy family received a bedroom makeover.

For more information on the RE/MAX of New England Home Court Program contest, visit www.celtics.com.

LAS VEGAS — WEEI.com caught up with Glen Davis while he is training with Joe Abunassar at Impact Basketball in Las Vegas. He talked about the Celtics’ upcoming season, free agent moves, and a new trio in South Beach.

Optimistic Outlook: “I think we’re going to do well [next season]. We have a lot of pieces back. With Ray Allen being back, I’m really happy he came back. I’m also happy that Paul [Pierce] came back. We have KG and then we just added Jermaine O’Neal. There’s a lot of other pieces that we need to put together, but I think Danny [Ainge] and the front office are going to make sure we have the team, the players, and it’s all about just gelling together and making sure it happens.”

“Family” Reunion: “It was great. To see [Doc Rivers, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen] come back means a lot. Especially what it means to them, and that’s what it’s all about. We’re family. Everybody knows that. We’ve been together, we’ve been through the ups and downs. We’ve been through the trenches and we’ve just got to make sure we do what we have to do.”

Shrek and Donkey 2.0? “I love Nate [Robinson]. He brings a whole realm to the team that most players can’t bring. I just hope that he finds a place to play, and if it’s not with us, that [stinks], but if it’s with us that’s great. I would love to play with Nate.”

A Big Help: “I’ve known Jermaine [O’Neal] since I was in college. He’s a great player. He’s done a lot of things in the NBA, he’s an All-Star-caliber player, he’s been on that level before. He’s a great post up guy. You can always learn something from him, so I’m glad he’s on our team and he can definitely help us.”

No Sweating the Heat: “They have a Big Three, we have a Big Three. We have players that are capable of making big shots and playing big minutes; they have players that are capable of doing all that. So I’m not really worried about the Miami Heat. They still have to put the team together and make it gel. And that’s what it’s all about — chemistry — and it takes more than three players to win a championship. And everybody knows that. So there’s no worrying. We’re just ready to play.”

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 — Was the tank on empty? It was the same question asked after Game 7 against Orlando in 2009. And it’s a question that could linger with the Celtics all summer long after dropping the seventh and decisive game to the Lakers Thursday night at Staples Center.

The Celtics had built leads of 23-14 after one quarter, 40-34 at halftime and 57-53 going into the final period.

But the Celtics were outscored 30-22. And it’s the 30 points that most Celtics pointed to afterward as the real reason for the loss.

“Close is not enough,” summed up Glen Davis. “You’ve got to win it. This is the way it is. Someone else has to lose and it sucks. It’s how you look at it. It’s how you bounce back. I don’t know what’s going on with who’s coming back [next season]. But I’ll be ready when training camp comes around.”

Davis did acknowledge the play of one Laker in particular – Ron Artest. The forward burned the Celtics in Game 7 for 20 points, including a dagger of a 3 with just over a minute left that put the Lakers up six. He also ripped the ball from Davis’ own hands on a loose ball rebound with just under two minutes remaining and the Celtics down one possession.

“Artest was the difference in the game,” Davis said. “He wanted it. He took it from us.”

In the end, like everyone else in green, the next three months could be very difficult to stomach.

“It’s going to be a a long summer because of this. But, like I said, somebody has to lose and you have to take the approach in a positive way and look forward to next year.”