Green party

Celtics set to begin title defense

 Short summers are like a badge of honor in the NBA, and the Celtics’ brief vacation comes to a close tomorrow when they open training camp in Newport, R.I.

Just 105 days after the Celtics beat the Lakers to win their 17th world championship, they’ll begin to work on becoming the first team to repeat in seven years.

Here are three things to look for through camp and the preseason:

Rookie watch
Doc Rivers seldom gives playing time to rookies unless they earn it in practice, but the Celtics drafted two hard-nosed, energy-driven players in J.R. Giddens and Billy Walker.

While neither one could make up for the loss of James Posey’s production, Giddens and Walker fit the Posey mold, and their ability to learn Tom Thibodeau’s defensive system will directly relate to their time on the court this season. Both rookies have an explosive scoring ability that will emerge at the NBA level over time, but their defensive intensity will be important if the Celtics are to remain at a championship level.

Point guard play
Rajon Rondo has developed into one of the league’s elite point guards, but Rivers is hoping to get more efficiency out of the offense when Rondo is on the bench. Eddie House was a fine fill-in last season, but the offense often stalled with the second unit.

Enter Gabe Pruitt. The second-year combo guard has been working out all summer to become Rondo’s primary backup. Pruitt is a smooth shooter and talented scorer, but he needs to improve his skills as a floor general to keep the offense running at a consistent pace.

Making the leap
Leon Powe and Glen Davis emerged as vital energy players last season, and their roles could increase without Posey this year. Davis stayed local in the offseason to work out at the team’s practice facility, and there’s no reason to think there would be a drop-off in Powe’s game. It’d be a nice luxury if one of these players could emerge as a sixth-man type.