Celtics captain Paul Pierce was named to the All-NBA second team in a vote of sportswriters and broadcasters released yesterday.

The first team included center Dwight Howard (Orlando), forwards LeBron James (Cleveland) and Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas), and guards Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) and Dwyane Wade (Miami). James, the league's most valuable player, was named to the first team on all 122 ballots.

Pierce, a three-time member of the third team (2002, '03, and '08), received 27 first-team votes. The Celtics' Kevin Garnett, a first-team choice last year, was 17th in the balloting. Celtics guards Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo also received votes.

Only four Eastern Conference players - Howard, James, Pierce, and Wade - were named to the first, second or third teams. Four Western Conference players - center Yao Ming (Houston), forward Tim Duncan (San Antonio), and guards Chris Paul (New Orleans) and Brandon Roy (Portland) - joined Pierce on the second team.

All five third-teamers were from the Western Conference: center Shaquille O'Neal (Phoenix), forwards Carmelo Anthony (Denver) and Pau Gasol (Los Angeles Lakers), and guards Chauncey Billups (Denver) and Tony Parker (San Antonio).

KG on Smith's mind

Cleveland forward Joe Smith, who played with Garnett for four seasons in Minnesota, feels for his former teammate during a playoff run that could feature a Cavaliers- Celtics showdown.

``I'm quite sure the further they go, the healthier he'll get. KG is a good friend of mine,'' Smith said. ``I played with him, and I understand how tough it is for him to sit down and watch his team. I feel for him, and hopefully he can get back. ''

Smith has not been in touch with Garnett since the injury.

``Our history together, me knowing him and how much he loves this game, I can sense and feel from afar it's real tough on him right now. When he first got injured, I sent him a text message and wished him the best with his injury, hoping he could get back out there. But I don't know too much about it.''

Giving mood

Orlando is not the only team that has had difficulting protecting late leads in the playoffs. The Magic squandered a 10-point advantage in the final 4:30 as the Celtics took a 92-88 victory in Game 5 of their second-round series Tuesday night.

The Celtics had a similar experience in the first round against Chicago. In Game 6 against the Bulls, the Celtics went on an 18-0 run late in the fourth quarter, but Chicago rallied from an 8-point deficit in the final 3:39 of regulation time and won, 128-127, in triple overtime.

At the time, Celtics coach Doc Rivers said his team ``quit playing.'' And Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy made similar comments about the Magic Tuesday. The Celtics responded to Rivers's evaluation with a strong performance in Game 7 against Chicago. The Magic will have a chance to respond to Van Gundy in tonight's Game 6 in Orlando.

``I thought we played really well for 44 minutes, but we just quit playing,'' Van Gundy said. ``We quit playing the game that had got us here. We looked like we were trying to run the clock out - walking the ball up the floor, playing half-court. Whether it was fatigue or we just decided to run down the clock.''

After the Celtics lost Game 6 in Chicago, Rivers said they had not needed to score another point in the final 3:39 if they had just concentrated on defending. Van Gundy, though, believed the Magic had to continue playing uptempo offense.

``You've got to make baskets,'' he said. ``Up 8 with four minutes - if you don't score, that's not really enough.''

Just saying no

Orlando is exhibiting stifling defense on Allen and Rondo. Allen is shooting 32.8 percent from the field in the series and is 5 for 29 on 3-pointers. Rondo is shooting 36 percent from the field and is 0 for 10 on 3-pointers.

Allen and Rondo launched key 3-pointers late in Game 5, Allen's three giving the Celtics an 86-85 lead with 1:20 remaining, and Rondo's miss leading to a controversial call with 36 seconds remaining. Rondo's shot was rebounded by Kendrick Perkins, with a shot-clock violation ruling being overturned by officials, despite the ball appearing to miss the rim.

``Obviously, being a game that can send them home, you can't go in lightly,'' Allen said of tonight's Game 6. ``They're not going to lay down. Game 7s against Chicago and Cleveland last year - these teams want to take it back and take it to a Game 7. We have to play the game of our lives, play every possession like we know how. They are going to go on runs and make plays, but for the most part we're sticking together and that's what makes us better throughout this series and the last series.''

Playing in pain

Perkins is recovering from a left shoulder strain.

``It's all right, it's not 100 percent,'' Perkins said. ``But a lot of guys aren't 100 percent. There's nothing I can do about it. Nothing I can complain about. I've just got to go out there and play.''

Marc J. Spears of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Frank Dell'Apa can be reached at f_dellapa @globe.com.