It was treated with little fanfare and rendered a relative afterthought in media circles, aside from the fact that it gave Boston a needed body off the bench. Who could be blamed for being less than enthused — Allen has struggled to be a regular contributor due to injuries that have caused him to miss 148 games in his five-plus NBA seasons.
Yet, it was impossible for the swingman to go unnoticed Sunday night.
Allen had a season-high 15 points and six rebounds in a 122-104 rout of Minnesota, which will be remembered in large part for an emphatic dunk he threw down in the second quarter that proved again he is suffering no ill effects of his offseason ailments.
Even Allen is becoming aware of what might be possible if he can just stay healthy.
"Well, actually, I kind of surprised myself," he said of the dunk, which saw Allen take a behind-the-back pass from Eddie House and ferociously stuff the ball through as he was fouled by Corey Brewer.
"I wanted to lay it up and I saw [Brewer] running so hard, so I just finished. I had to finish."
Allen had two other dunks in the game and has consistently shown no fear in taking the ball to the hoop, one of a few simple requests coach Doc Rivers has had of Allen.
"Tony was phenomenal. He's been terrific," Rivers said. "He's just doing all the things we need him to do."
Also on Rivers' short wish list for the 27-year-old Allen: keep the ball moving around the perimeter, and, as always, defend.
The passing has been crisp; Allen has zero turnovers in 45 minutes of playing time over his last two games. And he has put forth shut-down minutes against the likes of Philadelphia star Andre Iguodala on Friday and Brewer on Sunday.
While averaging nearly nine points a game on 55 percent shooting over his last five games, Allen has eight steals and numerous deflections, a prized category for the defensive-minded C's.
"He's been huge," Paul Pierce said. "We realize the value of Tony with Marquis being out. It's his defense. He has a steal and a fast-break layup right as he comes in [Sunday]."
Daniels will be out for another five weeks. Glen Davis won't be back until January. And with the streaky Eddie House and the mercurial Rasheed Wallace rounding out the Celtics' corps of key reserves, Allen's ability not only to return when he did but to play at a high level became a calming influence in a suddenly muddled second unit.
"This is the best stretch that we've had him, as far as with this group of guys," Rivers said. "He's playing his role."
