It's gonna be a Garden party!

It's time for the "Not Big Three" to make their debut in front of the home crowd tonight, as the Celtics return to the TD Banknorth Garden at 7:30 with a matchup against the hated New York Knickerbockers ...

While Garnett, Allen, and Pierce should be out in full force (at least for the first three quarters or so), don't expect to see the following men in green:

• Scott Pollard, who is still unable to practice due to his ankle issues (bostonherald.com)
• Tony Allen, who took an elbow to the right eye during practice and is "doubtful" to suit up tonight (nba.com)
• Estaban Batista, the first casualty as Boston tries to trim its roster down to 15 (or less) players before the start of the regular season (boston.com)

As for New York, they're hoping that big man Eddy Curry has a "realistic chance" of playing after a right shoulder injury (sports.yahoo.com), while blast-from-the-past Allan Houston just might make his first appearance in a Knicks uniform in over two years (allanhouston.com).