NBA | Celtics will maintain course for Game 2

BOSTON — If Paul Pierce is sidelined or ineffective in Game 2 of the NBA Finals tonight, don't expect the remainder of the Big Three to go hunting for big nights.

That's not the way the Boston Celtics do things.

Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett said they will play as they always do, counting on their teammates to help carry the load, rather than trying to carry them.

"No, that doesn't mean I score more. That definitely doesn't," Allen said Saturday. "I just have to play the same, attack. The ball might be in my hands more if that was the case. It might not be, who knows."

Allen said players can get in trouble when they feel a need to do too much, reminding teammates there are other ways to pick up the slack besides scoring.

"I've always told guys when somebody's out, I said, 'You should be flirting with triple-doubles. Try to get more rebounds, you have more opportunities to pass the ball,' " he said.

Pierce, the Celtics' leading scorer, expects to play tonight when Boston tries to take a 2-0 lead over the Los Angeles Lakers. He has been getting treatment on the right knee he injured during the third quarter of the Celtics' 98-88 victory Thursday night.

Pierce returned less than two minutes after his injury to make two big three-pointers and finish with 22 points. There is no guarantee he would be that effective even if he does play tonight, but Celtics coach Doc Rivers said there would be no pressure on Garnett or Allen to revert to their pre-Boston days in that case.

Suns hire Porter

PHOENIX — Terry Porter will be the Phoenix Suns' next coach, ending the club's monthlong search for a successor to Mike D'Antoni.

Phoenix general manager Steve Kerr said Saturday he had agreed to terms with Porter, who was an assistant with the Detroit Pistons.

The 45-year-old Porter played in the NBA for 17 seasons and teamed with Kerr in San Antonio.

"He's got a great combination of leadership skills," Kerr said in a telephone interview. "He's a great communicator. And his coaching experience, two years as a head coach [with Milwaukee], is important to me. The fact that he's sat in that chair, that was a key factor. He's very tough-minded."

Porter is expected to sign a three-year deal worth about $7 million, and he likely will be introduced at a news conference early next week. His hiring was first reported by ESPN.

"I'm very excited," Porter said in a telephone interview. "I'm looking forward to getting started."

Note

• Chuck Person, Dwane Casey and Vinny Del Negro have been told a decision on the Bulls' coaching job is imminent, according to sources close to all three candidates. Those three interviewed this week as general manager John Paxson prepared for what he likely sensed was inevitable: the mutual decision of Doug Collins and chairman Jerry Reinsdorf to end Collins' candidacy. Sources said the Bulls talked Saturday with Del Negro, who has no previous coaching experience.