Full Court Press 11/10/04
It has been a week since opening night, but were it not for the 16 championship banners in the rafters, I am not sure the captive television audience knew that in fact the 2004-2005 Celtics season had begun. Not only did the somber crowd seem as if it Xanax Night at the Fleet, but the scores of empty seats made this game seem much more like just another exhibition game. Unfortunately, our Boston Celtics played as if they were still scrimmaging in Burlington, only without the breathtaking foliage or Howard Dean’s absurd yelps.
After that frustrating opening night loss to Jim O’Brien Sixers, the hometown team laid yet another egg on Friday night against Indiana. Finally on Saturday, the Celtics team many of us had been looking forward to since the June draft, appeared and dominated a fraudulent Knicks team from start to finish. Now while this is a great sign, it makes the job of analyzing this team much more difficult. Nevertheless, the gang at the Full Court Press have put together our thoughts on the battles for playing time at each position, and we hope to offer some measure of insight on what, at this point, is a Jekyll and Hyde team. So, without further ado…
Kevin
Point Guard: Obviously, Gary Payton is the main man at the point this season, with Jiri Welsch and Marcus Banks (in that order) providing some brief spots of relief while he rests his 36-year-old legs on the bench. Thus far, Payton has dispelled legitimate concerns surrounding his age and commitment to this seemingly non-contending team. Although three games is far too small a sample to conclude much of anything, Payton has most definitely looked the part of a man who has built an exceptional career runrunning NBA offenses (his disappointing performance last year under the point guard unfriendly triangle offense notwithstanding). Right now, I知 thinking we値l see 12 points and 8 assists from Payton on a regular basis. If that痴 what happens, then call me a happy Celtics fan. Unfortunately, when Payton sits on the bench, the Celticsoffense seems to falter. Although Jiri Welsch is generally a nice passer, he lacks the ability to push the fast break. Also, on his watch you can see the plays in a half-court offense visibly slow down, which allows the opposing team to dig in on defense. Marcus Banks, on the other hand, is a one-trick pony. His game revolves around his considerable speed and not much else besides. Every time I see Banks hurl himself into three-man coverage on the break, I think of Jeff Goldblum describing Chaos Theory in Jurassic Park. As for solutions, some out there profess to see great potential in current injury list resident Delonte West as a quality backup to Payton. Although I remain skeptical, let痴 hope they池e right.
Tom
Shooting Guard: The 2nd and 3rd quarters of all three games so far has brought out the best of this group.
Ricky Davis has been playing well so far. He seems to be the one that is benefiting the most from the Payton acquisition. This could change at any time, especially considering that the odds of GP coming to blows with Ricky this season are roughly the same as Kevin Millar granting another interview request from the Best Damn Sport Show Period. So far he has done a good job on both ends of the floor and has been consistent with his mid range game.
Jiri Welsch has struggled with his jumper. He is getting good looks but has struggled with his release point. To his credit, he has not let this affect the rest of his game. He still digs in on the defensive end and is making good decisions with the ball. The big question with this position is who will still be here playing the bulk of the minutes in March. Welsch is a more attractive prospect but Davis is the better scorer. The bet here is that it is Jiri that stays and Ricky will be sent out of town (with Yogi Stewart once again getting stuffed in his suitcase).
Tony Allen will then rotate between small forward and shooting guard depending on matchups. This is of course assuming that he does not come down with the Stacey Augmon Syndrome which would prohibit him from being able to shoot past 8 feet.
Bob
Small Forward
When you talk about the small forward spot, it really begins and ends with the tremendous play thus far of Paul Pierce. First of all, he is no longer trying to force the ball into double and triple teams. This could be for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is that he has some better perimeter shooters to distribute the ball too. I thought the greatest shortcoming of this team in close games last year was what will forever be known as the Jim O’Brien/John Carroll filibuster. IE, the stubborn insistence on running iso plays for Pierce at the end of game even though the entire building knew he would end up trying to spin into the lane. The result was least likely to be a hoop, and more likely to be an offensive foul or a 20 foot off balance jumper from Brandon Hunter as the shot clock expired. Thus far, Pierce has far greater confidence in his teammates’ offensive capabilities, and it is showing in his decision making.
The second part of his game that has been off the charts this year is his rebounding. He has been flat out TENACIOUS on the boards. He seems to have come up with every big rebound (and their have been precious few of them) the team needs, and it’s because he is following the age old key to rebounding of wanting the *&%$& ball more than anyone else does.
Walter McCarty has followed his seven year habit of making me want to smash him over the head with one of his smooth-sounding CD’s until he hits a big three or forces a key turnover, and then I remember why he’s on the team. Walter is what he is at this point, and I will be more confident in the Celts long term success this year if his role is a limited one. As for Tony Allen, I am laying in wait to make him my binky. I mailed in a write in vote for the Hall of Fame the other night when he blocked a Ron Artest jump shot and managed to secure the ball to start a fast break. As soon as he finds a way to fit into the offensive flow, he will probably start spending more time swinging between forward and guard and make someone in that log jam expendable (just in time for the trading deadline according to my crystal ball…).
Mark
Power Forward As the slowest white 6-foot power forward ever to come off the playgrounds of the Adams Street School, I am uniquely qualified to write the piece on the Celtics Power Forwards. We’re three games in, and to be frank it’s not looking great. LaFrentz is shooting OK (8PPG) but his rebounding is weak. Googs appears confused and out of position a lot. Jefferson is playing with great energy, but that has yet to translate into meaningful rebounding (2.3 RPG).
That said it is clear to this observer that LaFrentz needs to start, and that Jefferson needs to be the 1st PF off the bench. The dynamic of the team changes when he comes in. Energy and effort are infectous, and Jefferson brings that in spades. He’s tenacious, and seems destined to be a consistent Tommy Award winner. Now, will that translate into wins any time soon?
Jon
Center: In my mind, Robert Parish is the gold standard of centers. Players who have the desire of Cowens or the otherworldly ability of Russell are once in a lifetime players. Chief, on the other hand, busted his bong to become a top flight center in the NBA. Now I am not going to say that Mark Blount is the second coming of Parish, but the similarities are remarkable right down to the intense conditioning. That said, Blount has the hands of Jeter (notice I didn’t say the eyes), and he rebounds at a below average clip for a center of his caliber. Still, Blount is a top 10 center in the NBA, and one that can be counted on for 38 minutes a night. Where does that leave the other 10 minutes?
Raef “The Fragile Frenchman” fills much of this void when either Googs or Wheezie fill the power forward slot, but this switch hurts the team defense tremendously and also gives a hit to toughness needed on the boards. Now there are also times that Doc prefers to go with Googs and Jefferson, in a “dual 4″ front court, but if a cat had kittens in the oven, you don’t call them biscuits. Googs and Al are power forwards who may guard centers, nothing more.
Now we come to the biggest beef I have with Doc’s rotation through 3 games, Kendrick Perkins. I’ll openly admit that Perk is weak on D, and doesn’t have the wheels that Blount posesses. That said, Kendrick can bang the boards with the best of them and has a mean streak that won’t quit. Now when your team is outrebounded by 20+ boards, I’d start to think about getting players in who can clean the glass and start our fast break. Apparently this didn’t occur to the Good Doctor, but Perk’s appearance in Saturday’s game may signal an awakening to this blatant fact by Rivers. Kendrick is the future center of this franchise, you need to play him at some point. Particularly when his strengths are the team’s weakness.
Last, and certainly least, is Stojko Vrankovic Memorial Award winner Yogi Stewart. The “Vranky” is given to the Celtics big man who best showcases a healthy amount of rigor mortis and a complete lack of basketball skill. That said, Yogi could have some value as an expiring contract, which is the only reason Ainge has not cut him loose in favor of a player like Marcus Fizer, Marcus Haislip or Troy Bell. Though it still may happen, as Yogi is incredibly deserving of this year’s “Vranky”.
