Celtics

[Toro]

My expert analysis is that this group of young very athletic players could be a very good team except for one tiny little problem.

THEY CAN'T [censored] ING SHOOT.

[chev9]

...or play defense

On top of that, their coach is about 3 levels over his head. He could probably coach an AAU team, maybe a lower level HS team.

[MafiaPrince]

I really get the impression Danny Ainge has absolutely no idea what he is doing...He makes trades just to make them and he doesn't seem to have any direction at all

[mosdef]

[ QUOTE ]
I really get the impression Danny Ainge has absolutely no idea what he is doing...He makes trades just to make them and he doesn't seem to have any direction at all

[/ QUOTE ]

You just don't have the right brain type to think at his level.

[kidcolin]

Doc is the #1 problem on this team, hands down.

Most of their defensive problems come from poor switching (there was a sequence in last night's Magic game that was just AWFUL).. with a young team like this, that's a coach's duty.

As for shooting, they have some work to do, but they aren't terrible. Delonte is off to a bad start, I think he's really lost in his new role. PP has had a couple of bad shooting games in a row. Gomes would do well to raise his % a couple points. The rest are at pretty much their norms.

Fire Doc, start Rondo, play Delonte more, and Kandi-Man and Scalabrine should never have 13+ combined MPG each, ever. Play Gerald more than you play Tony Allen.

Honestly, without even physically being in Boston, that advice would score them 2 more wins. With a good coach they could still squeak out 35+ wins, even after this trainwreck start.

EDIT: and who the F is this Powe kid? He was completely off my radar. Looked very athletic with a good nose for the ball in the minutes I saw him. Further justification that Scal and Kandi should never get that many minutes.

[ThaSaltCracka]

Boston fans finally get to enjoy Seabass! Have fun with that, and kidcollin you are right, kandi-man should never, ever, ever be on the court.

[Ser William]

If possible, this team has regressed from last year.

They have no point guard. Rondo can penetrate and dish, but can't shoot. Opposing guards don't even bother defending his outside shot. Telfair can drive and score, but he can't pass. When he gets an assist, it usually is by accident.


They have no bigs. Jefferson is hurt but he was nothing more than a decent offensive force inside. Between him and Perkins they haven't met a foul they couldn't cause. Powe showed signs of life last night but that was just one game, and he is still undersized, just like Gomes.

Wally can't defend and is nothing more than a decent spot shooter. Paul Pierce is obviously very good, but eventually having to continuously play with young kids who make mistake after mistake after mistake on both ends of the floor has to sap his will.

Opposing point guards light the Celts up. It is a fact, they cannot stop a good guard, hell even a mediocre guard. They made Jameer Nelson look like Chris Paul last night.

I like Doc and have tried to give him the benefit of the doubt but I'm about ready to jump off the bandwagon and so are all Celts fans. They fans boo him before every game and mock his substitution pattern. Someone called in on the postgame show after the game last night and said Doc wasn't a coach, he was a personality. Meaning, he could manage other teams with good talent, but he can't coach young players, and I agree with that assessment based on what I've seen so far. Even Doc on his postgame interview last night started to crack, you can hear the tension in his voice.

Even worse, it is getting ugly at the Garden. The boos started early last night and I almost felt bad for Scalabrine when he entered the game to a chorus of boos and left a few minutes later while his sub, Powe (who hadn't played a minute yet this year, or very few), got a standing ovation for replacing him. Then I realized that Scalabrine was getting 5 mil this year for sitting on the bench and looking like Michael Rappaport so I stopped feeling so bad.

I have a 12 game pass to Celts games and I'm not sure they can win a single game left on my schedule. 0-12 here I come.

[Kneel B4 Zod]

this thread is great

[Green Kool Aid]

everyone blames danny and doc, but this team doesn't protect the basketball (turnovers) and they play atrocious defense.
as much as i hate to say it, playing brian scalabrine DOES address both issues.

paul pierce has fallen into vince carter mode the last two games. this is not good.

the other problem is that their only legitimate wing defender (tony allen) is the worst offensive player i have ever seen.

they are beyond a mess right now, and im so sick of going to games and hearing the fans boo. its just disgusting.

if doc had any balls he would bench pierce. the guy is playing with zero intensity on either end of the floor.

[kidcolin]

[ QUOTE ]
Paul Pierce is obviously very good, but eventually having to continuously play with young kids who make mistake after mistake after mistake on both ends of the floor has to sap his will.


[/ QUOTE ]

He's been looking a bit dejected already. I'm just speculating here, but I think he knows this team is under-performing and the talent is mismanaged. Last year, he was drinking the company Kool Aid and saying the right things. He expected them to be a sub-par team, but he liked what he was seeing in terms of talent and development. Now his team has taken a large step back when they should have improved, possibly fighting for a playoff spot.

Again, I'm putting this on coaching/mngt/team philosophy. First, some of the players (namely Big Al and Perk) are coming along too slowly. Some (if not most) is their fault, and I always thought Perk's ceiling was overrated anyway. But Doc has had a really short fuse with Big Al the past couple of years, after his great rookie season. I know he's had injury issues, but the kid needs minutes, and you need to ride out the highs and the lows. Playing is the best way for young guys to learn.

This brings me to the team philosophy complaint: At some point, they need to decide whether they're developing or trying to win. You can't be in the middle of that and take the worst of both worlds. If you're developing for the future, get guys like Al and Green the minutes they need. Hell, I think they need to do that even to attempt winning. Right now, the minutes everyone is playing is WAY too balanced. Too many mediocre/bad players getting 15-20 a night, sharing minutes with guys like Gomes and Delonte. F that. Scale those minutes back and make sure those guys are on the floor 30+.