Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

Jared Sullinger told us before last night’s game he’s lost 20 pounds, which is a step in the right direction. But, by any measure, he’s still a heavyweight, which means he went about one round last night — 3:12, to be precise — in his rather dramatic return from a left foot stress fracture.

[…] “I felt good,” he said afterward. “I was a little late on things, but I felt good overall.

“I just thought, you know, when you go out there, it’s like, who am I playing with almost. It’s kind of awkward. And I was just half a second late.”

Herald: Weight’s over for Sullinger

He reluctantly acknowledged he lost the 20 pounds in the past seven weeks, which is considerable given he has seemingly always been comfortable with his size.

“I made a lot of changes. When you make a lot of changes you feel better about yourself,” he said. “You feel better about your self-esteem, all that stuff. As time goes on, it’s only going to be a better Jared when it comes to off the court, on the court, just everything.”

Globe: It’s time for Sullinger to dedicate himself to the Celtics

Scrolling through all of today’s articles and all anyone seemingly wants to write about is Jared Sullinger’s return and his weight loss (as you’ll see by the number of related links below).

I wrote about this a lot when the issue of his weight came up as a potential reason for his departure from Boston. I stand by all of that… I think this kid has had a life-long issue that is part hereditary, part habit… and he’s got to make some serious changes to his habits to fight what his genetics are doing to him.

Losing 20 pounds in seven weeks is a lot, but it’s definitely possible for someone who’s got a lot of weight to lose and who puts in serious work to lose it. A good diet and exercise regimen should result in a healthy weight loss of about one to two pounds a week. Three pounds a week happens when you have nutritionists and trainers at your disposal, and it becomes your job to lose weight.

So that’s good news for Sullinger who has seemingly taken good first steps in re-creating his body. Of course, we’re taking 20 pounds at his word… and having struggled with some weight issues of my own over the years, I know I’ve sometimes said “oh, I’ve lost 20 pounds” when I’m really kind of rounding up from 16 or 17.

Regardless, he needs to keep it up. He’ll always have the, ummm, ample backside… but taking legitimate steps to be healthier will not only extend his career, they’ll extend his life.

As for the basketball…

But before Friday, he hadn’t played since Feb. 11. In his absence, the team was a couple of ticks better defensively, with a formula that has resulted in staying competitive almost every night. The second unit has thrived with shooting big men to spread the court for Isaiah Thomas. Though Sullinger sometimes goes on hot streaks, he’s not a good outside shooter — opponents can and do sag off him routinely. The more pressing concern might be at the other end of the court, where his lack of conditioning and athleticism too often gets exposed.

For this weekend, Stevens said he will play Sullinger in short stints, if at all. But if and when Sullinger regains his timing, whose minutes should he take? Jonas Jerbebo has provided an energetic charge, and Kelly Olynyk might fit better with the free-flowing, screen-switching bench. Is Sullinger better off taking some of Brandon Bass or Tyler Zeller’s minutes with the starters? Would that hurt the defense? Is Sullinger in good enough basketball shape to make a difference? Where does he fit? After such a long layoff, does he fit?

As much as this playoff run has been fun, I think the Celtics have an obligation to figure out an answer to that last question while there are still games left. Sullinger was hurt before the All Star break, and he’s never had a chance to play with Isaiah Thomas or, to a lesser degree of importance, Jonas Jerebko. The Celtics are entering an offseason where some hard decisions will be made, and getting some kind, any kind, of  glimpse into how Sullinger fits with these new acquisitions is important.

If that comes at the expense of a game, so be it. Figuring out how key pieces to your team’s future fit is more important, and the Celtics have an opportunity to at least gather some data over the last week or so of the season. You never know what you might find out with some of these pairings.

Related links: Globe: After surprise return, Sullinger says he feels good  |  Herald: Fractured foot heals ahead of time  |  CSNNE: Welsh “perplexed” by Sullinger situation | Sullinger on return: “felt good overall”  |  Sullinger just as shocked about return to C’s  |  ESPN Boston: Slimmed-down Sullinger returns in loss  |  Sullinger tries to shake cobwebs  |  Boston.com: Sullinger returns, but Celtics suffer costly loss

Page 2:  Celtics show some zone to protect Isaiah Thomas

The Bucks were destroying Boston in man-to-man coverage by using their size to post up Thomas. Matched up with Thomas in the post, Milwaukee had the option of either attacking the basket or dishing to the perimeter if the Celtics sent a double team. Running the zone took pressure off Thomas — instead of guarding a bigger player who wanted to post him up, Thomas simply needed to cover his area of the court.

As the centerpiece of the defense, Zeller needed his teammates to contain their areas. With his attention divided between avoiding three-second calls and defending his man, rotations needed to be perfect.

“That’s kind of one of those things you always have to rely on,” Zeller said. “You have to rely on every one of your teammates to be in the right places. It’s more a guarding-your-area type of thing rather than man-to-man, but you still have to rely on everyone to be in their place.”

MassLive: 2-3 zone proves effective against Milwaukee Bucks

The Celtics shat themselves in the third quarter last night, but I’d argue that Milwaukee really won the game in the second quarter, when OJ Mayo just lit up Isaiah Thomas en route to 20 points on 80% shooting for the half. The Celtics had pushed their lead up to double-digits and were threatening to put some distance between themselves and Milwaukee, but then Jason Kidd made the game-winning adjustment.

That enabled the Bucks to win the second quarter, go into the half down 2, and then pull away when they got hot.

The Celtics adjusted in the third by going to a zone, and eliminating the post-ups when Thomas was in the game. That adjustment kept Milwaukee from running away with the game, and it also gave the Celtics a game plan for when other teams decide to employ the post-up offense against Thomas.

When a big guard gets Thomas down low, the Celtics HAVE to send a guy over to double team, and that triggers the rotations that can break down and lead to easy baskets. By going to the zone, the Celtics take Thomas out of that situation. They do, however, open themselves up to a barrage of 3’s against good shooting teams, so it’s going to be interesting to see the chess matches that go on when Thomas is on the floor moving forward.

I expect to see a lot more zone when Thomas is in the game. For all the great things he’s done on offense, the Celtics have to find ways to eliminate that defensive mismatch.

And Finally…

… The Kings & Nik Stauskas have hit on something fun

If you’re out of the loop and wondering WTF “Sauce Castillo” has to do with Stauskas, it’s a nickname inadvertently given to him by the closed captioning operator during a recent game against the Sixers.

The name caught on immediately, leading to the Kings to come up with a specially labeled hot sauce for this special promotion.

So to recap: A Canadian kid of Lithuanian lineage (who went to high school in Southborough, Massachusetts, by the way) now has the nickname “Sauce Castillo” because someone trying to type out what broadcasters were saying didn’t hear it right. And now everyone is running with it.

I love it.

The rest of the links

Globe:  Stevens’ fears realized in loss to Bucks  |  Herald: Bucks seem to give the Celtics problems  |  CSNNE: After loss to Bucks, Celtics fall in playoff race  |  Thomas looks like old self again  |  Deep Green: Isaiah Thomas  |  Bradley wins Red Auerbach award  |  ESPN Boston: playoff pushed: C’s lose ground to pack  |  WEEI: 5 things we learned as Bucks trampled Celtics  |  MassLive: Revisiting sloppy stretch where Celtics threw away chance to beat Bucks  |  Olynyk no longer allowed to play Randolph 1-on-1  |  Jerebko on awful no-call: “we all make mistakes”