# Allen, Pierce and Garnett



## LamarButler (Apr 16, 2005)

What will these guys' roles be? I think this is a tough question because all 3 are versatile and can play both on the ball and off the ball. They are all pretty good playmakers too. 

What's each guy gonna concentrate on the most? Who's gonna be the #1,#2 and #3 option?

And what statline could you see for each one?

Here's what I think.

Allen will live off of Pierce and Garnett. He'll mainly play off the ball and hit jumpshots, what he's best at. I see him going off for a ton of points because of all the open looks he'll get and because Pierce and Garnett are stronger at other parts of the game so Allen will need to put in points. But besides for just spotting up, he will create off the dribble sometimes because Pierce and Garnett can play well off the ball too. He'll play a lot of point, since I don't expect Rondo's shooting to be quite there yet. Garnett and Pierce will get the ball more, but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll always score more-it depends if teams are doubling them or playing them 1 on 1. Lastly, I think he'll make a conscious effort to become a solid defender, but I don't expect him to be much more than that. So, I can see 22 ppg, 3 rpg, 4 apg, 1.3 spg, 46% FG, 42% 3P and 90% FT.

Pierce will be a total beast this year. I wouldn't sleep on a motivated, hungry and most of all rejuvenated Paul Pierce. I can't imagine how hyped he is from getting two All-Stars after having crap these past few years. He 'll be the main scoring option and go-to guy in the clutch, the only 2 things that Garnett isn't capable of. The way Pierce will get his points will be mainly through penetration and postups, since Garnett likes to play high post and hit midrange jumpshots. I also expect him to take less of a role in distributing since he has guys who can do that and also defense and rebounding. I can see 26 ppg on 48% FG, 38& 3P, and 80% FT, 6 rpg, 4 apg, 2 spg.

Garnett will do what he is best at and that is give an all around game. No pressure to carry the scoring load or post up. I predict he'll be a terror on D, better than ever in his career. He could be DPOY. Just like Pierce, he'll be motivated like crazy. And we've seen what kind of intensity he plays with. We'll see a lot more of his playmaking too. I think he'll get 18 ppg on 53% FG and 83% FT, 14 rpg, 7 apg, 2 spg and bpg.


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## hollywood476 (Aug 20, 2005)

Ya'll need to realize something, Kevin Garnett won't be scoring in the 25 point range, the closest will be I would say 23 points per game, with about 10 rebounds a game. Now that Kevin Garnett has Ray Allen and Paul Pierce he will not be needing to score to keep his team in the game. He will have a lesser role when it comes to scoring, maybe Kevin will only get 20 points per game.

Ray Allen with around 23 points per game and Paul Pierce with 25 points per game. Thats how I see it going, with very few minutes and stats for anyone else.


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## LamarButler (Apr 16, 2005)

hollywood476 said:


> Ya'll need to realize something, Kevin Garnett won't be scoring in the 25 point range, the closest will be I would say 23 points per game, with about 10 rebounds a game. Now that Kevin Garnett has Ray Allen and Paul Pierce he will not be needing to score to keep his team in the game. He will have a lesser role when it comes to scoring, maybe Kevin will only get 20 points per game.
> 
> Ray Allen with around 23 points per game and Paul Pierce with 25 points per game. Thats how I see it going, with very few minutes and stats for anyone else.


I agree but you don't think Garnett will rebound more?


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

LamarButler said:


> I agree but you don't think Garnett will rebound more?


If garnett plays the same minutes he has been (which is obviously likely) im expecting 13ish rpg


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## hollywood476 (Aug 20, 2005)

No you see when he was in Minnesota he had no one else to help him rebound, but now he has Pierce and Allen who will go hard just like Kevin. So KG may just relax a little bit with the rebounding and save some of that energy for something else he needs to do. Because it will take some energy to guard the other centers...he is going to be a center now right? I thought Bill Walton said something like that


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## Mateo (Sep 23, 2006)

I don't expect the drastic decline in Garnett's scoring like a lot of people have predicted. His scoring has been more or less the same no matter who he plays with; and he's played with a couple of good teams in addition to all the mediocre ones.


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## hollywood476 (Aug 20, 2005)

Mateo said:


> I don't expect the drastic decline in Garnett's scoring like a lot of people have predicted. His scoring has been more or less the same no matter who he plays with; and he's played with a couple of good teams in addition to all the mediocre ones.



Other than the Olympics and all the western Conference teams, Kevin Garnett hasn't been on any other team than the timberwolves. Every team has basically sucked...except the 2004 timberwolves, I think that was the year Minnesota made it to the Western Conference Finals. But Kevin Garnett will probably score in the 21 point per game with 11 rebounds a game, I don't think he'll hit 13 or anything.


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

i wouldnt be surprised if garnett averages in th 19 pt range with 13-14 rebs and 5 assists...he wont be asked to score too much with pierce and allen on the team...what the c's need out of him is rebounds defense and passing when rondo isnt in there...garnett will fill up stat sheets this year but his scoring should be down with pierce and allen each going for around 25 ppg


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## Kuskid (Aug 18, 2004)

If there's one thing I've learned watching the Nuggets this season after AI came to town, it's that the whole "who's going to defer to who?" deal is usually blown out of proportion. Iverson and Melo are both (obviously) primarily scorers. They do other things well, but they're scorers. When the Nuggets were struggling was when AI was going out of his way to defer to Melo and get other guys shots. Pierce, Allen, and Garnett are all experienced, heady basketball players, and their positions on the floor will allow them some space to work. They'll all get their shots and stay out of each others' way just fine, and I think you guys are in for a fun season. Best of luck to you guys this year, I'll be watching quietly.


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## mrsister (Sep 9, 2002)

Garnett's production will go way down across the board because he'll be playing in the shadow of Scalabrine. Poor guy.


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## nbanoitall (May 21, 2004)

i dont think the iverson melo deal compares to this at all. at least i was worried about AIs shot selection and how he was not nearly as efficient in scoring in philly as melo was in denver. 
with garnett he is basically your bigman scoring threat. you gotta double him. feed him the rock and force a double team. and then you got pierce and allen that can play off that. and when garnett takes a breather pierce becomes the primary scoring guy.
allen iverson's game really just doesnt work like that. he needs to dominate the ball and get up a lot of shot attempts to lead the league in scoring. i think the celtics can shoot a very high field goal percentage as a team. I all three of these stars dont care about stats just a championship. this is great for boston.
if ainge finishes the job in recruiting vets. supposedly he passed on hudson when he just should have put him on hold to see whats up with bell in milwaukee. 
imo boston still needs a big and a pg. like bell and brown or webber and hudson.
maybe garnett doesnt want to play with hudson?


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## mqtcelticsfan (Apr 2, 2006)

mrsister said:


> Garnett's production will go way down across the board because he'll be playing in the shadow of Scalabrine. Poor guy.


I predict a triple-double a night from Scalabrine.


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## nbanoitall (May 21, 2004)

mqtcelticsfan said:


> I predict a triple-double a night from Scalabrine.


i can see the two points and two rebounds but he's never averaged 2 assists for a season. who knows though this could be his breakout year. :biggrin:


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## aquaitious (Jun 11, 2002)

So why does everyone think KG will drop everywhere and Allen and Pierce will just be bombing away scoring 45 a game each?

Why will KG and Allen not score 26 a piece and Pierce takes a back seat? 

Or maybe Pierce and KG and Allen taking a back seat?


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

aquaitious said:


> So why does everyone think KG will drop everywhere and Allen and Pierce will just be bombing away scoring 45 a game each?
> 
> Why will KG and Allen not score 26 a piece and Pierce takes a back seat?
> 
> Or maybe Pierce and KG and Allen taking a back seat?


i think the last option is the most likely personally, Allen is off an injury, a little bit older and really would be most useful playing a rip hamilton type off the ball role or occasionally bringing the ball up the floor at back up PG.
KG will have similar numbers with a slight rebounding increase... and if this team makes a top 3 finish look for a close to mvp finish.

Pierce will put up similar numbers too, just with a little bit more intensity


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## agoo (Jun 1, 2003)

I think the three guys will all average about the same amount. Something in the 18-22 range. That's about the same for KG and a bit down for Allen and Pierce, who will be sharing shots.


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## hollywood476 (Aug 20, 2005)

The reason why people look at KG to score less and not up in the 26 points per game area is because...

1.) He's never scored that much before so he probably won't now

2.) He won't be taking nearly as many shots with Pierce and Allen on his team

Also I think KG will be first option however, until the C's get to the fourth quarter, than its game time for Allen and Pierce. Kevin has always been known to get a team to the final minutes but he's always needed someone to close it out for him. Now KG has two players who can do it...


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## Aznboi812 (Nov 9, 2005)

nbanoitall said:


> i can see the two points and two rebounds but he's never averaged 2 assists for a season. who knows though this could be his breakout year. :biggrin:


maybe his "brain" will start to kick in when the season starts


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

hollywood476 said:


> The reason why people look at KG to score less and not up in the 26 points per game area is because...
> 
> 1.) He's never scored that much before so he probably won't now
> 
> ...


His biggest problem is that with the exception of one year he's been playing with one of the biggest choke artists in league history as a second option and no third option to speak of. Garnett got to the ends of games to find himself fighting through triple teams with teammates that didn't convert wide open shots. When he played with Sprewell & Cassell that wasn't a problem. Now in the closing moments of games Garnett will be playing with killers who handle and pass as well as he does. There's no way to effectively double all three. With Eddie House they'll even have a guy that should easily convert the wide open shots he'll get as fourth option.


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## arhie (Jul 4, 2006)

THis could be scary.


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

ehmunro said:


> His biggest problem is that with the exception of one year he's been playing with one of the biggest choke artists in league history as a second option and no third option to speak of. Garnett got to the ends of games to find himself fighting through triple teams with teammates that didn't convert wide open shots. When he played with Sprewell & Cassell that wasn't a problem. Now in the closing moments of games Garnett will be playing with killers who handle and pass as well as he does. There's no way to effectively double all three. With Eddie House they'll even have a guy that should easily convert the wide open shots he'll get as fourth option.


exactly!
all the talk of Garnett not being able to hit the clutch shots is rediculous, on those wolves teams he was ALWAYS going to be the one taking the shot so he would end up with 3 defenders on him.
and he would still make a fair share of them (against portland, pheonix etc).

with Ray and Paul out there aswell there should be a very high percentage of clutch shots going in the hole.


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

aquaitious said:


> So why does everyone think KG will drop everywhere and Allen and Pierce will just be bombing away scoring 45 a game each?
> 
> Why will KG and Allen not score 26 a piece and Pierce takes a back seat?
> 
> Or maybe Pierce and KG and Allen taking a back seat?




garnett was not brought here to score points...he was brought here for his defense and his rebounding and his ability to facilitate the game for pierce and allen...he will not be concentrating on his shots...we all know allen cant play D and pierce only does when he wants to so we have to have KG focusing most of his energy on the defensive end and his scoring will take a hit for that but his assists rebounds blocks etc should all go up


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## aquaitious (Jun 11, 2002)

#1AntoineWalkerFan said:


> garnett was not brought here to score points...he was brought here for his defense and his rebounding and his ability to facilitate the game for pierce and allen...he will not be concentrating on his shots...we all know allen cant play D and pierce only does when he wants to so we have to have KG focusing most of his energy on the defensive end and his scoring will take a hit for that but his assists rebounds blocks etc should all go up


Garnett was most difintely not brought here to play defense, he was brought here because his name is Keving freaking Garnett and he is one of the elite players in all of basketball.


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

aquaitious said:


> Garnett was most difintely not brought here to play defense, he was brought here because his name is Keving freaking Garnett and he is one of the elite players in all of basketball.


**** yeah!:cheers:


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

hmm...



ehmunro said:


> There's no way to effectively double all three.





ehmunro said:


> I think Premier pointed out that Rondo's man would be able to double the ball at will.


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## agoo (Jun 1, 2003)

Causeway said:


> hmm...


That's still just doubling one guy. Two of the three would be one on one. Rondo's man can't be everywhere.


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

#1AntoineWalkerFan said:


> garnett was not brought here to score points...he was brought here for his defense and his rebounding and his ability to facilitate the game for pierce and allen...he will not be concentrating on his shots...we all know allen cant play D and pierce only does when he wants to so we have to have KG focusing most of his energy on the defensive end and his scoring will take a hit for that but his assists rebounds blocks etc should all go up


They brought Garnett here because he's a top 10 player in the NBA, not as a defensive roleplayer, They sure as hell can't rely on Rondo or Perkins to score the points, so they have to come from somewhere. 



agoo101284 said:


> That's still just doubling one guy. Two of the three would be one on one. Rondo's man can't be everywhere.


Rondo won't be on the floor at all in the final minutes. House will be replacing him when the game's on the line to stretch the defense. Rondo will most likely be watching from the bench. Once Pruitt's ready or the Celtics sign Bell or Duhon then Rondo can slide into a back-up role that he's suited for.


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## agoo (Jun 1, 2003)

That's probably for the best. The other PF/C will be doubling on Garnett, which is nice because he can pass, he does pass and now he has someone to pass to.


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

agoo101284 said:


> That's still just doubling one guy. Two of the three would be one on one. Rondo's man can't be everywhere.


That was exactly my point in the "Rondo" thread. But I was told I was not being realistic on the negative impact Rondo is going to have on our team.


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## silverpaw1786 (Mar 11, 2004)

mrsister said:


> Garnett's production will go way down across the board because he'll be playing in the shadow of Scalabrine. Poor guy.


Thank you.


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## whiterhino (Jun 15, 2003)

They will all do just fine I don't expect to see a steep drop in scoring from any of the BIG 3


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

ehmunro said:


> They brought Garnett here because he's a top 10 player in the NBA, not as a defensive roleplayer, They sure as hell can't rely on Rondo or Perkins to score the points, so they have to come from somewhere.
> 
> 
> Rondo won't be on the floor at all in the final minutes. House will be replacing him when the game's on the line to stretch the defense. Rondo will most likely be watching from the bench. Once Pruitt's ready or the Celtics sign Bell or Duhon then Rondo can slide into a back-up role that he's suited for.



oy...i didnt say they brought garnett here because he was a defensive role player...i said that on THIS team he will not be asked to score 30 a night as he has done for his career...tell me would you rather garnett use all his energy on the offensive side of the ball and have ray allen need to focus on D or vice versa? we cant have all 3 guys focusing on scoring 30 every game becuase thats not goign to happen...so all im saying is garnetts going to be the one who doesnt average 25-27 a game but he will be a guy who averages aout 19-20 ppg, 14 rebs 6 asts couple blocks and steals...is it crazy to say that all 3 arent averaging 27 a game each? if so then call me crazy


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

#1AntoineWalkerFan said:


> oy...i didnt say they brought garnett here because he was a defensive role player...i said that on THIS team he will not be asked to score 30 a night as he has done for his career...tell me would you rather garnett use all his energy on the offensive side of the ball and have ray allen need to focus on D or vice versa? we cant have all 3 guys focusing on scoring 30 every game becuase thats not goign to happen...so all im saying is garnetts going to be the one who doesnt average 25-27 a game but he will be a guy who averages aout 19-20 ppg, 14 rebs 6 asts couple blocks and steals...is it crazy to say that all 3 arent averaging 27 a game each? if so then call me crazy


I think all three players will be lower than their career bests. I expect Pierce and Allen to expend more energy on defense now that they aren't asked to carry the offensive load. The one thing I don't want is them conserving energy on defense to plump up their scoring. The team is better off with all three guys scoring an efficient 20-22 p/g and playing defense.


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## Sliccat (Oct 16, 2004)

and when has kg ever scored 30 ppg?


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## aquaitious (Jun 11, 2002)

Sliccat said:


> and when has kg ever scored 30 ppg?


I think the point flew by you as fast as Germany invaded Poland.


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## Sliccat (Oct 16, 2004)

aquaitious said:


> I think the point flew by you as fast as Germany invaded Poland.





> i said that on THIS team he will not be asked to score 30 a night *as he has done for his career*


Edit by myself. -aqua.


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

Sliccat said:


> you should probably just keep your foot in your mouth.




wow...garnett has never AVERAGED 30 but in order for his sorry teams to win he has had to get 30...if he didnt hit 30+ his teams had no shot, outside of the cassell-spree team...better?


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## aquaitious (Jun 11, 2002)

Sliccat said:


> *Edit*


No, not at all. I believe you've re-read it and the whole point still went past your head.


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## ChosenFEW (Jun 23, 2005)

the key for the celtics is how well the PG plays.....if rondo has a soph slump i think they will be underachievers


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## veve130 (Aug 29, 2007)

ChosenFEW said:


> the key for the celtics is how well the PG plays.....if rondo has a soph slump i think they will be underachievers



yea i agree i think all this talk of the big three career stats dropping is true one dominant scorer will emerge and the other 2 will average over 20ppg but for this team to be truly succesful there will have to be some offense off the bench which they dont have at all at the moment


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

ChosenFEW said:


> the key for the celtics is how well the PG plays.....if rondo has a soph slump i think they will be underachievers


The team doesn't need a traditional point guard. A ball-dominating point guard would actually reduce the effectiveness of this team.


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## Celtics_Fan (Sep 1, 2007)

Pierce's teams have played better alongside other scorers and a PG dominating the ball like when he played with Ricky Davis/Gary Payton/ 1/2 season of Antoine Walker. When he had Kenny Anderson and Walker, he was at his best scoring. I think Pierce will score and be effective offensively this season having the weapons around him, and he in particular should do very well with a big man that knows how to find people, and a PG that can really move the ball and get them in transition. They should be defending and rebounding better in the past, and with Rondo out there to push the ball, they should get some easy buckets in transition with him out there. I guess we'll have to see how it goes. One of the main reasons I feel the C's haven't been able to score a high level of transition baskets was their lack of defense (from the perspective of holding opponents to a low FG% and low point-per-possession number), lack of good outlet passing on the boards, and a lack of rebounding overall. That should change, but it's all theory right now.

Ray Allen as well has played alongside other high-scoring players like Glenn Robinson, Sam Cassell, and Rashard Lewis, and their teams played well when they had healthy rosters. He's played alongside PGs that like the ball in their hands in Cassell and Ridnour. Unlike Rondo, those guys can shoot. Rondo is more about slashing, dishing/penetrating to make up for his lack of shot. To me, that type of PG should do well with Ray and Pierce on the outside, not to mention if they pair him up with House and Posey, who are also good shooters. Opposing PGs theoretically, are going to lay off him to stop his penetration, but until it actually happens on a consistent basis with this roster, it's more likely opposing teams will have trouble stopping it. 

KG also played very well with offensively gifted players like Wally, Sprewell, and a PG that handled the rock a lot like Cassell. I think he more than the other two will thrive in this lineup, because I think his mentality as an unselfish superstar will come out. Garnett comes across to me as someone who's happy being the focus of the offense to set others up while taking 10-12 shots per game while maximizing his defensive and rebounding energy on the other end. I could be wrong on that, but I do feel that he will be able to let the scoring load go to Pierce and Allen while he dominates the game in a more all around fashion, as he has always shown. I'll be surprised if the other two aren't scoring more than he, and I'll actually be surprised if his numbers aren't more in the 16-18ppg/13-15rpg/6-8apg/2blks range, while Allen and Pierce go more towards the 23-26ppg range.


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## Premier (Oct 30, 2003)

The offense runs through the high post, not the perimeter. The Celtics need shooters and defenders.


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

veve130 said:


> yea i agree i think all this talk of the big three career stats dropping is true one dominant scorer will emerge and the other 2 will average over 20ppg but for this team to be truly succesful there will have to be some offense off the bench which they dont have at all at the moment



eddie house is about as "instant offense" as you can possibly get...along with james posey who isnt shabby on either end of the floor...theyll be fine with scoring off the bench


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## Premier (Oct 30, 2003)

Disregarding the last thirty seconds of the first three quarters, two of the Celtics' three main scoring options will be on the floor at the same time. Scoring from the bench is a luxury; not a necessity. House is a nice option, as he will hit his shots, but the Celtics really need to add players that will defend, rebound, and shoot well when needed.


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

Let's be honest here, the Celtics aren't investing $60 million a year in three players to see if Rondo can do the job. They'd benefit from someone that can get the ball over halfcourt, hand it off to one of the big three, and then move over to the weakside and effectively bury the odd jumper that comes his way (for floor spacing). Using Ray Allen as the weakside shooter is a criminal underuse of his abilities. You sure as heck can't leave that role in Pierce, Garnett or Perkins' hands. But not Rondo either. Come the regular season the Celtics are going to see an awful lot of congestion around the paint as Rondo's man sags off him when he has the ball (to cut off his passing lanes and his angles to the rim). If Rondo holds the ball and runs the offense the offense is going to be less efficient. At this stage Eddie House might actually be a better fit. If Gabe Pruitt's working his *** off he's going to get a shot to win the spot from Rondo. Tony Allen's probably another guy that will get a chance to cut into Rondo's minutes.


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

ehmunro said:


> Let's be honest here, the Celtics aren't investing $60 million a year in three players to see if Rondo can do the job. They'd benefit from someone that can get the ball over halfcourt, hand it off to one of the big three, and then move over to the weakside and effectively bury the odd jumper that comes his way (for floor spacing). Using Ray Allen as the weakside shooter is a criminal underuse of his abilities. You sure as heck can't leave that role in Pierce, Garnett or Perkins' hands. But not Rondo either. Come the regular season the Celtics are going to see an awful lot of congestion around the paint as Rondo's man sags off him when he has the ball (to cut off his passing lanes and his angles to the rim). If Rondo holds the ball and runs the offense the offense is going to be less efficient. At this stage Eddie House might actually be a better fit. If Gabe Pruitt's working his *** off he's going to get a shot to win the spot from Rondo. Tony Allen's probably another guy that will get a chance to cut into Rondo's minutes.


because of that exact reason i see Eddie House getting the majority of back up PG minutes.
hes not ideal obviously but he can do all of the above, get the ball over the half, make a pass to KG/Pierce to start the offense and then go weakside to bury a jumper/3 if needed.

Hopefully there is SOME improvement in Rondos shooting this season though


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## Celtics_Fan (Sep 1, 2007)

ehmunro, They should feature the big 3 for as much as they possibly can without injury or overexertion, but to think Rondo as a featured PG is going to have an overall negative effect on this team to me is silly. To think the team isn't expecting a big contribution out of him is nieve. I think you're one of the Rondo-critics letting your bias against him get in the way of your judgement. 

Or maybe I'm the one who is biased, and you're right that he'll be the disaster to this team that you're describing.... I guess we'll find out soon.

They should be totally be looking to utilize Ray Allen's shooting abilities by finding him in open spots with penetration and dishing, IMO. It would also be great to see him coming off picks. IMO, it's good to have guys like KG and Pierce with him... he's the oldest and coming off ankle surgery. I'm sure he's healthy and ready to go, but if you can get 20ppg out of him without exerting him too much, that would be a very ideal situation, IMO. They should be looking to utilize his shooting abilities in that manner.

And if this team is better rebounding and defending, I feel he'll the best option to get the team in transition in the open court. I really don't think TA is a good PG option at all, nor Eddie House. Allen can defend very well and a great rebounding guard, but he's poor with his handle, vision, and decision-making when it comes to playing PG, and he's not exactly a good shooter either. House also lacks the handle and vision. Not sure about Pruitt, but I doubt he's the defender/rebounder that Rondo is, nor has the handle and vision. Again, I guess we'll see. I'm new to these boards but it's easy to see the Rondo-criticism here. But what I'm seeing from some--and I don't think it's a coincidence that some of them are Rondo-critics-- is the belief that the function of PG on this team is not, or should not be significant. Things like handling the ball and finding others aren't as important as simply getting it over halfcourt and finding one of the big 3 and getting out of their way... I just don't see it that way. All of these three have had better team success with a PG that can handle and create (Kenny Anderson, Gary Payton, Cassell, Ridnour), and I think Rondo has the best shot at being that type of player for them. Granted, he DOES need to shoot better, so we'll see.


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

Celtics_Fan said:


> ehmunro, They should feature the big 3 for as much as they possibly can without injury or overexertion, but to think Rondo as a featured PG is going to have an overall negative effect on this team to me is silly. To think the team isn't expecting a big contribution out of him is nieve. I think you're one of the Rondo-critics letting your bias against him get in the way of your judgement.


He can't shoot the ball more than 10' from the basket. That isn't a bias, it's a statistically verified fact.



Celtics_Fan said:


> But what I'm seeing from some--and I don't think it's a coincidence that some of them are Rondo-critics-- is the belief that the function of PG on this team is not, or should not be significant. Things like handling the ball and finding others aren't as important as simply getting it over halfcourt and finding one of the big 3 and getting out of their way... I just don't see it that way. All of these three have had better team success with a PG that can handle and create (Kenny Anderson, Gary Payton, Cassell, Ridnour), and I think Rondo has the best shot at being that type of player for them. Granted, he DOES need to shoot better, so we'll see.


Are you really trying to tell us that motion offenses are inefficient and don't work well because the point guard doesn't dominate the ball but instead plays off the shot creation of of the high post player? I mean, _really_? When you have players that can pass and handle like Garnett, Allen, and Pierce the ball absolutely shouldn't be in any one players hands. It's far easier to defend an offense where one player dominates the ball than one where the handling is distributed among several players.


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## Celtics_Fan (Sep 1, 2007)

"Are you really trying to tell us that motion offenses are inefficient and don't work well because the point guard doesn't dominate the ball but instead plays off the shot creation of of the high post player? I mean, really? When you have players that can pass and handle like Garnett, Allen, and Pierce the ball absolutely shouldn't be in any one players hands. It's far easier to defend an offense where one player dominates the ball than one where the handling is distributed among several players."

I really don't think anyone should really dominate the ball, but I do think that Rondo has the best ability on the team to set up others with penetration and dishing, and I think he's the best option to handle pressure bringing the ball up the floor, which will serve the other big 3 better to have him being that player rather than exerting themselves unneccessarily, or having someone with lesser handling ability being that player. In the half-court set, I don't believe the PG NEEDS to be a guy that stands off to the side waiting for a shot, although I do agree that it would be effective at times. That he cannot shoot well is not a newsflash. It does not mean he's going to overall be a negative to this team because of it. He can score in other ways, it's not like he's going to average zero points or shoot an overall poor percentage from the field because of his lack of a jumper. It's not like he cannot contribute in a positive manner overall because he lacks a jumper. I don't feel that a lesser PG like House, TA or Pruitt should in his place just because they can shoot better. Taking minutes away from the better ball handler, slasher, passer, rebounder, and defensive player because he lacks the jumper is not a good move, and I don't think he will have an overall negative effect in the motion offense if they use him with that starting unit. Shooting alone is not the only way the PG can or should contribute to this team, IMO.


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## ChosenFEW (Jun 23, 2005)

i truly believe rondo will be the X factor....

most of the celts losses will be when he has a bad game.....

remember guys the stuff you do in the regular season doesnt matter when playoff time comes.....its a whole nother ball game....im mostly thinking about this team in the playoffs


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## #1AntoineWalkerFan (Mar 10, 2005)

if rondo has a bad game, and garnett pierce and allen have good games, the celtics will not lose...the only way the celts lose is if 2 out of the 3 are out of sync in any particular game...or if they are playing the spurs


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## Sliccat (Oct 16, 2004)

#1AntoineWalkerFan said:


> wow...garnett has never AVERAGED 30 but in order for his sorry teams to win he has had to get 30...if he didnt hit 30+ his teams had no shot, outside of the cassell-spree team...better?


no, because that's not true either, in any way you take it. they didn't need it for individual wins, because they obviously won some, and they wouldn't have won a championship even if he had avg. 30, because scoring was never their biggest problem.


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

ChosenFEW said:


> i truly believe rondo will be the X factor....
> 
> most of the celts losses will be when he has a bad game.....
> 
> remember guys the stuff you do in the regular season doesnt matter when playoff time comes.....its a whole nother ball game....im mostly thinking about this team in the playoffs


This team is built for the playoffs right now, during the regular season depth and the bench can play a part, expecially if (knock on wood) some injuries occur, however once teams get to the post season and cut their rosters down to 8-9 guys this team really shines


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## cgcatsfan (Jun 10, 2005)

I still say Rondo will do great. 
Statistically, he gradually improved all year last year with a team that more resembled the walking wounded than a pro team. 
He didn't lose his head then, I really don't see it happening now. 
(Bracing myself for flaming).


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

I agree cqcat.


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## KingHandles (Mar 19, 2005)

Rondo seemed pretty comfortable with his shot in the summer league. As long as he hits half the shots he takes he should be fine. He won't be seeing very many attempts not being one of the go-to guys, so why does he have to be anything special. As long as he is running the point and doing what the point does, directing and distributing he's good.


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## agoo (Jun 1, 2003)

Asking a guy who can't shoot jumpers to hit 50% of jumpers is really asking a lot.

Michael Redd hits 46% of his.


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

The season can not start fast enough to put the "Rondo is our teams biggest offense liability" stuff to rest. He'll be more than fine.


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## E.H. Munro (Jun 22, 2004)

KingHandles said:


> Rondo seemed pretty comfortable with his shot in the summer league. As long as he hits half the shots he takes he should be fine. He won't be seeing very many attempts not being one of the go-to guys, so why does he have to be anything special. As long as he is running the point and doing what the point does, directing and distributing he's good.


Because he won't be "distributing the ball". The team doesn't need a point guard to dominate the ball and run the offense. And that's pretty much Rondo's game. He'd probably be OK on a lot of teams, this probably isn't one of them. Besides, Doc's other binky is still here, and I suspect that we'll be seeing too much of Tony at the 1 unless Danny can trade him for someone like Luther Head (who'd be ideal for Doc's set) or Charlie Bell.


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

It's very unlikely - with Pierce, Allen and Garnett on our team - that Rondo will "dominate the ball".


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## Premier (Oct 30, 2003)

Sliccat said:


> no, because that's not true either, in any way you take it. they didn't need it for individual wins, because they obviously won some, and they wouldn't have won a championship even if he had avg. 30, because scoring was never their biggest problem.


 Scoring, actually, was the Celtics' biggest problem. Even last season, they were an average defensive team, but they also were one of the worst offensive teams in the league.


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## Causeway (May 18, 2005)

Premier said:


> Scoring, actually, was the Celtics' biggest problem. Even last season, they were an average defensive team, but they also were one of the worst offensive teams in the league.


Scoring *was *a problem. Should no longer be the case.


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## Sliccat (Oct 16, 2004)

Premier said:


> Scoring, actually, was the Celtics' biggest problem. Even last season, they were an average defensive team, but they also were one of the worst offensive teams in the league.


we're talking about garnett's career. could've sworn that happened somewhere out west...


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## Avalanche (Nov 17, 2005)

> Garnett embraces role as chemistry teacher


http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1031211&format=text



> Gabe Pruitt and Glen Davis, dutiful rookies that they are, were in the locker room getting ready for informal workouts yesterday morning when the biggest ray of sunshine either had ever witnessed broke through the door.
> 
> “Let’s go,” said Kevin Garnett, who, unlike some NBA A-listers, doesn’t believe in staying home when the workouts aren’t mandatory.
> 
> ...


hells yeah


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