Allen

BOSTON — The All-Star break has arrived for the Celtics, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

Boston needs a few days off so that it can recover from injuries to various players. But the injuries haven’t slowed down the Celtics.

They own the best record in the NBA — 41-9.

It took a few bold moves to get here.

In his first four seasons as the Celtics executive director of basketball operations, Danny Ainge said the Celtics would improve through a “youth movement.”

He was in it for the long haul.

Under Ainge, the Celtics drafted young and talented players to get better in the future.

He traded away popular All-Star Antoine Walker (but would later bring him back for a season in 2005) for younger players (Raef LaFrentz, Jiri Welsch, Chris Mills and a lottery pick), and while Ainge did trade for veterans Gary Payton (2004-05), Chuck Atkins (2003-04) and Lindsey Hunter (2003-04) to add leadership, the “youth moment” was not successful.

The Celtics compiled a woeful 138-190 record and failed to win a playoff series in Ainge’s first four seasons in charge.

Something needed to change.

After a season in which many NBA experts believed that the Celtics lost games on purpose to get a better chance at grabbing the No. 1 or 2 pick in the 2007 Draft, a season in which the Celtics broke the franchise record for consecutive losses in a season (18), the Celtics, who were a dismal 24-58 last year, which was the second-worst record in the NBA, managed to get only the fifth pick of the draft.

That meant no chance of getting center Greg Oden or shooting guard Kevin Durant — two players who are expected to be franchise players in the future.

So in an effort to get better sooner rather than later, Ainge changed his “youth movement” philosophy, and traded away the fifth pick, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West, to Seattle for All-Star guard Ray Allen. Then Ainge dealt Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Theo Ratliff, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Boston’s 2009 first-round pick, the return of Minnesota’s conditional first-round pick previously obtained by the Celtics in 2006 in the Ricky Davis-Szczerbiak trade and cash for All-Star forward Kevin Garnett.

The moves paid off.

The Celtics now have three All-Stars on their roster and they were clearly the best team in the NBA during the first half of the season.

Along with his talent (career average of 20.5 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game), Garnett has brought with him to Boston a fierce intensity on the court and exceptional leadership qualities.

“Kevin Garnett is a great player in our league, with a fierce and competitive spirit, who brings offensive scoring prowess and a defensive presence to our team,” Ainge said when the Celtics traded for Garnett.

“While it’s difficult to part ways with the young players we’ve worked hard to develop, Kevin has been the consummate professional player in the NBA and a player who I have marveled at over the years,” Rivers said at the time of the trade. “Kevin leaves everything he has out on the floor every game. He has drive, passion and a hunger to win that is unmatched across the league.”

Allen may be the best pure shooter in the NBA. He is averaging 18.5 points, 2.9 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game.

“We think Ray Allen is a great player and has a lot of basketball left in him,” Ainge said when the Celtics traded for him. “It’s really hard to acquire All-Star-caliber players. We couldn’t be more thrilled.”

Pierce, meanwhile, continues to play at an All-Star level. He is averaging 20.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.

The Celtics Big Three have turned Boston from one of the worst teams in the NBA last season, into instant contenders. Garnett (10), Pierce (6), and Allen (7) have played in a combined 23 All-Star games, and all three of them have been invited to play in the All-Star game this season.

Point guard Rajon Rondo (10.4 points, 4.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds) and center Kendrick Perkins (7.3 points, 5.6 rebounds) round out the Celtics starting five.

While the Celtics have an array of talented scorers, it’s their commitment to defense that has led to a lot of their victories.

The Celtics own the best defense in the NBA, limiting teams to a league-low 89.44 points per game while scoring 99.84 points per game — a differential of +10.40 points per game, which is also the best in the NBA.

The Celtics are currently banged up, with Garnett (abdominal strain), Glen Davis (twisted knee), Brian Scalabrine (pulled groin), Perkins (shoulder) and Scott Pollard (ankle) all injured, but Rivers hopes to have them all back after the All-Star break.

So what is the Celtics’ goal in the second half of the season?

“Getting us healthy, No. 1, and just not looking at anything but getting better every night and every practice,” Rivers said are the first two goals for the second half of the season. Rivers said that the main reason why the Celtics were so successful during the season’s first half is because the players sacrificed individual accolades for team success.

If that trend continues and if the Celtics get healthy, winning the NBA title this season is a real possibility for them.

roblee@projo.com