Chris Bosh is traveling with the Heat for the first time since sustaining his abdominal injury but will not play in Games 3 or 4 in Boston, coach Erik Spoelstra said Thursday.

Spoelstra said Bosh took the trip to continue doing rehabilitation and some on-court work with the team’s training staff and assistant coaches.

Asked when Bosh would be able to participate in contact practices, Spoelstra said, “That’s way …,” then stopped himself and said, “It’s too early to tell.”

But Spoelstra said he is encouraged by Bosh’s progress.

The Heat remains hopeful that Bosh will be ready for the NBA Finals, which will begin June 10 or 12. A return during the Eastern Conference finals has not been completely ruled out, though nobody is counting on that.

Bosh, who sustained the injury May 13 in Game 1 against Indiana, has done an on-court workout three consecutive days, which included some shooting. The Heat is 5-2 in the seven full games that Bosh has missed.

Rivers talks heat

• Celtics coach Doc Rivers said it has become clear that Heat players “trust each other better” than they previously did. He said it was easier to defend Miami in earlier matchups because “the ball is in Dwyane Wade’s and LeBron James’ hands. Now more guys are involved and it’s making it more difficult to guard them. Mario Chalmers is playing with far more confidence.”

Celtics guard Keyon Dooling said Chalmers is “extremely underrated, in my opinion.”

• Asked if he is OK with Chalmers, Udonis Haslem and players other than James and Wade getting their points, Rivers said, “That has to be taken away. Chalmers made shots and you have to give him credit. [But] 10 to 12 [of his 22 points] were our fault. Almost all of Haslem’s [13 points] were defensive breakdowns.”

• Rivers said the Celtics “did not involve” Kevin Garnett enough in the offense. He scored 18 points but shot 6 for 18, including 0 for 2 in overtime.

Former NBA guard Wally Szczerbiak, who works for CBS Sports Network, ripped Garnett, posting on his Twitter account: “KG is another one lacks the clutch gene; always has.” That tweet was later deleted by Szczerbiak, who reportedly didn’t have a good relationship with Garnett as Minnesota Timberwolves teammates.

elsewhere

• Wade said the way he handled the defensive assignment on Ray Allen’s open three-pointer that tied the score with 34 seconds left in regulation was “a bonehead play on my part. If I was going to rotate, I should have stayed with my body on Kevin Garnett, made the pass tougher. I had to make something happen in overtime to make up for it.”

• In its history, the Heat has won all nine previous series in which it won the first two games. The Celtics have rallied from being down 0-2 to win a series just once in 13 such scenarios (the 1969 NBA Finals against the Lakers).

• Rondo played the entire game for the first time in his career Wednesday. Orlando’s Dwight Howard did that twice in last year’s playoffs. “I felt fine,” Rondo said. “I wanted to play every minute.”