NEW YORK — Doc Rivers knows that talk about Ray Allen's departure is not going to go away any time soon — particularly with the Celtics' season opener in Miami looming in the near future.

The coach admits he harbors some hurt feelings, but he's very much focused on getting his basketball house in order.

Asked when he got over Allen's decline of the Celtic offer and his free agent move to the Heat, Rivers said, “Oh, I embraced the challenge right away, so I moved past that part.

“I'll always be disappointed with that because of the way it went down. But it is what it is, so I'm over it, but, you know, you're always disappointed about stuff. But as far as our team, I moved on the next day.

“We were trying to build our team. We already had Jason Terry; we knew that. So my next move was Courtney (Lee).”

At this point in the preseason, Rivers is still trying to figure out how best to configure his new and extremely deep roster, but, clearly, he's liking his options.

As for what you'll see from the Celtics between now and Oct. 30th in Miami, don't expect much in the way of regulars. Rivers said Thursday night's game against the Nets will be the last significant time the veteran starters see in the preseason.