By Peter Stringer

He may have overslept a week or two, but Vin Baker has finally awoken.

It's not because he was hitting the snooze button, because you could tell he was out there trying. If anything, he was probably trying too hard.

"He is relaxing now. He's not forcing things, and he's letting it come to him," said Celtics teammate Paul Pierce.

Eight games into the NBA season, Baker finally looks like he's fitting in with his new team in Boston. Transitioning from being a pseudo-franchise player in Seattle to trying to fill his role as a sixth man, or maybe even a seventh or eighth man, Baker has struggled mightily.

And it's not just knowing his role and learning the defense that kept Baker down. On the rare occasions when it came his way, just keeping the basketball in his hands has been the issue. Catching the ball in the low post has been an adventure night after night, and if you can't secure the ball in this league, you're not going to have a chance to score it.

Despite averaging only 20 minutes, 6.8 points per game and getting few touches, Baker is third on the team in behind Pierce and Antoine Walker with 15 turnovers.

Still, he's made progress in each game. He chipped in 10 points Monday night, and 10 again Wednesday, and is showing signs of being the Vin Baker the Celtics envisioned when they made the offseason swap with the Sonics.

While some have pointed to Baker trying to regain his confidence, Coach Jim O'Brien says that's not the issue. After Wednesday night's 91-81 win over the Philadelphia 76ers, a victory keyed by a fourth quarter opening 7-0 run that featured with a pair of Baker post-up buckets, O'Brien was singing Baker's praises as he explained why the Celtics, now 6-2, turned to Baker for the first time in this young season.

"It's not a matter of getting his confidence up. I think that he's very, very hard to guard in the low post. We went to him because we thought he could score or do something positive," said O'Brien. "Vin is a multi-faceted offensive player, and it will be fun watching him grow into our system."

The process hasn't happened overnight, and that's probably the way O'Brien would prefer. He was slow to work Tony Delk and Rodney Rogers into his rotation last season when they were acquired at the trading deadline, and he admitted during the preseason that he hadn't even drawn up a play for Baker yet. He would later recant that statement and add that Baker's role was to make plays for himself within the offense. Either way, Wednesday night unofficially marked the first time that the Celtics went to him as a weapon.

A few possessions after the initial run in the fourth, the Celtics went back to Baker down low, and he found Shammond Williams for a wide open three. O'Brien says he's an underrated passer, and it showed on that play. Baker finished the game with 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and three turnovers in 18 productive minutes.

Baker says he feels like he's getting better with each game.

"I'm much more comfortable. I'm probably about 80 percent of the way there," said Baker. "I didn't want to take a step back coming from last game; I felt I made a stride last game, and I think I took another step tonight."

His teammates seem to be sensing it, too. On one of his possessions in the fourth quarter, Pierce actually turned down an open three to get the ball into Baker.

"We're finding different ways to get the ball to him in the offense. Once he gets more and more comfortable in the offense, he's going to be alright," said Pierce. "Guys are starting to get used to playing with him and where he likes the ball. It's a feeling out process. It's taking time, but it's coming along."

Walker feels that Baker needs touches to find his touch, so to speak.

"He's getting an opportunity to touch the ball when he gets in the game, and I think that's the best way to get him going, especially in his role of coming in off the bench," said Walker. "He's doing a great job of being a presence inside, and getting to the foul line, and that's a presence that we haven't had in a long time."

And after several games of meandering through the offensive sets while rarely getting a chance to make something happen, Baker's getting a feel for his game again.

"It felt great, it was a crucial time in the game, and it felt great that my teammates were looking for me. I was trying to run the floor as hard as I can to get some easy buckets for us," said Baker.

Pierce said afterward that "we know what he can do", and that stands for something with this team. Whereas in past seasons, Pierce and Walker at times seemed unwilling to get the ball to Vitaly Potapenko down low when he had position, they have started to look for Baker over the last few games, and it's giving the Celtics perimeter-oriented offense a new wrinkle.

And the Boston crowd, one that took almost six years to accept Walker, has gone out of its way to help Baker along. You can hear it moan and groan with every mishandle of the ball, yet, when Baker has put the ball in the basket, he's gotten a little extra love. It may be the local boy treatment for the Connecticut native and University of Hartford product, or it may just be that fans know that the Celtics' long-term success will hinge on what Baker can bring to the table. Whatever the reason, Baker appreciates it.

"Every time I score a basket I just want to jump out of the gym. I'm super-excited. It's fun," said Baker. "I'm very conscious of it, and this FleetCenter crowd is terrific. Every time I touch the ball, and even on the defensive end, I just want to do something good. To hear that roar, it's terrific. They're always urging me on."