Boston

- Cleveland Cavaliers guard Wes Person came into last night's game at the FleetCenter on a blaze.

Person is 22-of-31 from the field in his last two games, and he's second in the league with a .512 (43-84) 3-point shooting percentage. He's second in the league behind Steve Smith .580 (40-69). Person is averaging 14 points per game.

Cavs coach John Lucas is impressed.

"That's amazing that Wes is still in second behind Steve Smith with those kind of numbers," Lucas said. "But Wes will be there at the end. Let's hope Steve Smith won't be there at the end."

Person said he's been on track since the beginning of the season because of more determination.

"I'm back on track," Person said. "A lot of guys don't get a second chance to revamp their career, and I'm getting my chance now. This is a blessing. I'm getting a lot of minutes and I'm being productive. I'm not letting this chance go by and I'm taking advantage of it."

Last year, Person didn't see eye-to-eye with former coach Randy Wittman. Person averaged under double-digits in scoring for the past two seasons.

"This is one of the years where I've improved," Person said. "I'm playing with a lot of confidence. I'm getting plays called for me. When things aren't going well for me during the course of a game, I'll get a chance to make it up."

Best in the league:

Boston guard Paul Pierce is second in the league in scoring behind Sixers guard Allen Iverson, and Pierce scored a career-high 48 points against the Nets on Dec. 1. Lucas said Pierce is one of the best shooting guards in the league.

"He may be the best player in the league because he can do so many things," Lucas said. "He can shoot the ball, rebound and go inside. He plays well in so many areas."

Slighted:

The first returns from the NBA All-Star fan voting are in and the biggest surprise is that Cavs guard Andre Miller didn't make the top 10 for guards.

Iverson is the leader among guards with 284,368 votes. Michael Jordan, who has played forward all season, is listed as a guard and is second behind Iverson in points. Reggie Miller (Indiana) rounds out the top 10 at the position.

"I don't want to call out any names, but Andre is playing better if not as well as some of these players listed," Person said. "But being in Cleveland and not consistently winning plays a big part in the fan voting. Andre has great numbers. He does so many things for us. There's not too many players that do so much for his team like Andre does for us."

Back in the saddle:

Center Michael Doleac remains on the injured list with a stress fracture in his ankle, but he made the trip to Boston and Miami with the Cavs.

"This is good for me because I was about to lose my mind when they were on the last road trip," Doleac said. "It's bad getting around on crutches, but it beats sitting at home."

Not long ago:

The Cavs and Celtics haven't met since the season-opener at Gund Arena on Oct. 30. Boston defeated the Cavs, 108-89, behind Pierce's 29 points. Trajan Langdon led the Cavs with 13 points and Doleac had eight rebounds.