Celtics at Atlanta Hawks Game 2: Game thread

• The Hawks feared Zaza Pachulia could miss up to another two weeks but word is they were encouraged by a recent test of his injured left foot. Pachulia could return to play as soon as Game 5 of this series.
• Ray Allen (ankle) is out for the Celtics and Doc Rivers didn’t sound very optimistic when asked if it was time to count out Allen for the series: “I don’t know. It’s frustrating, more for him than for us. We don’t know what to do. He looked great yesterday off the court running and shooting. Today he couldn’t walk. He couldn’t do his normal shooting before the game.”
• Avery Bradley slides to point guard and Mickael Pietrus will start at shooting guard. Pietrus draws Kirk Hinrich. Rivers: “We don’t want Paul chasing around little guards. When we change lineups, [Peitrus] will slide over to guard Joe at times.”
• Larry Drew: “We have played this team without Rondo before and they beat us. We have to play our ‘A’ game because our ‘B’ game is not going to get it done.”
• Josh Smith on the Celtics without Rondo: “We will get up and pressure the ball and make it hard for them to get into their sets. With Bradley, we have to cut him off early and take his confidence because when he gets confidence he’s tough.”
• Bradley: “They will probably try to speed me up. I feel like the regular season got me ready for this.”
• Drew on Bradley’s big game vs. Hawks in regular season: “We did not do a good job with him off the dribble. He was able to be just as elusive as Rondo. I think both guys are very capable of getting into the interior of your defense. Bradley is a little different. Rondo is more finesse; Bradley is more power getting in there. He got in there a few times against us where we did not do a good job of containing the basketball. We are going to have to be good defending him off the dribble.”
• Rivers: “If we feel the pressure it will take us out of our stuff. That’s why losing Rondo hurt us. He’s really our only true point guard.”
• Drew: “I expect Paul [Pierce] to get it a little more touches and things run through him. I expect [Kevin Garnett] to be even much more offensive minded.”
• Marvin Williams, on if the Hawks will avoid their tendency to have a letdown against a short-handed opponent now that it’s the playoffs: “I would like to think so. I think everybody understands what’s at stake at this point.”
• Charles Barkley last night on TNT: “Game 2 is more about the Atlanta Hawks. We always criticize them for their mental toughness and lack of focus. This is a game where they would normally let up. Doc Rivers’ guys are going to play and come out way more focused than they were in Game 1. But the Atlanta Hawks have a tendency to chill out…a lot.”

Drew on Joe Johnson’s poor Game 1: “He missed a lot of good shots. He had good looks. It’s not a situation where he gets discouraged or we do anything differently. We are still going to run things through him.”

• Joe: “As scorers and shooters, you have to have that short memory. I missed a lot of shots I normally make. I’m sure I’ll make them tonight.”

Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat