"Al Jefferson was warming up at the east-end basket of the Garden when Kendrick Perkins walked to midcourt, smiled and made fun of his nose.

Later, the Utah center was walking by as Doc Rivers was holding his early press conference in the hallway outside the Celtics [team stats] dressing room.

"That Al Jefferson is the ugliest .?.?.," said Rivers, letting his sentence trail off into laughter.

Yes, Big Al was "home."

He arrived in Boston from Prentiss (Miss.) High in 2004, and spent his first three NBA seasons in green and white, averaging 16 points and 11 rebounds in his last season. He then made Celts fans happy by being the key bait that hooked Kevin Garnett from Minnesota.

Almost everywhere he turned last night, he saw familiar faces and greeted the owners warmly."