The Celtics insist that forward Kevin Garnett's surgically repaired right knee is just sore and nothing else.

"Kevin looked great tonight," coach Doc Rivers said following the team's loss to the Hawks on Friday night.

"You know, it's going to be this way for a while with him. He just came back, and (Thursday) he labored in the game, but it wasn't an injury. He just didn't have any rhythm. He was out of sync. And today he looked much better. For a while it's going to be hit or miss."

"It's an adjustment," Ray Allen added. "When you're playing the game, you have to learn to manage your body a little bit better. I don't think it hurts Kevin so much, but you do have to deal with some soreness when you're coming off surgery.

"And it doesn't really get better until you get rest. Most people who have surgery don't do what we do, so they get better faster."