2012 NBA schedule: C's off til Wednesday before Wizards rematch

The Boston Celtics haven't had an ideal start to their season, but they'll have three full days off to work out the kinks before another game against the Washington Wizards.

The season is extremely young, but the C's first three games have been shaky. First, a loss to the Miami Heat - understandable, considering they're the defending champions, but the game wasn't close much of the way and the Heat went on to be blown out by the New York Knicks Friday night. Then, a team offensive effort from the Milwaukee Bucks resulted in a 99-88 loss for Boston. And Saturday night's win against the Wizards might have been the most disappointing game of all: although Boston escaped with the 89-86 win thanks to a late Paul Pierce three, Boston had led by a lot early and allowed the likely bottom-feeding Wizards back into the game.

Probably the biggest problem for Boston has been defense, as they've allowed 30 points or more in five of the 12 quarters they've played thus far. The post play of a small Celtics team is especially worrisome: against Washington, Kevin Seraphin had 19 points on nine shots and Trevor Booker managed a double-double.

Wednesday's redo should be easier for the Celtics: instead of a back-to-back for an aging team, they'll have their longest rest for nearly a month with no games between the Saturday matchup and Wednesday. And game, unlike the last, is at home. The Celtics should get a second win against a Wizards squad that seems somewhat hapless without John Wall or Nene.

Here's a look at Boston's schedule in the upcoming work week, which consists of just the one game:

Wednesday, Nov. 7

Washington Wizards vs. Boston Celtics, 7:30 p.m., CSN-New England