CELTICS GREEN BLOG by and for boston celtics fans: What will it take for the Celts to be a top team?

by FLCeltsFan 7:52 PM

August 12, 2006

Esco33 posted this on Celtics Green. He makes excellent points. I think this team will have excellent chemistry. They had great chemistry last year and I believe that the new players will fit right in. I believe that the bench will be much stronger this year and should be able to provide scoring, something that they couldn't do last year. Perk is going to take another step forward and will be very solid. I agree with Esco also that the Power Forward position is the dark horse. Will Jefferson finally begin to play up to the hype? Will his ankles hold up? Will Gomes outplay him for the starting position? I think the biggest question mark about this team will be whether they play defense or not and that rests for the most part with Doc. Here is Esco's post...

Well, having been inspired by DM's post about Bassy, and what he needs to do to be a top 12 PG, I will pose the question what will it take for the Celtics "number/stat wise" for them to be a top team in the East?

If we are talking about numbers, (the only way to measure a team's success on paper) then I will post my thoughts on this. Obviously no matter how the good the numbers are, a team will not go anywhere without chemistry, teamwork, cohesion passion/determination, etc. (See the Yankees 2002-present)

Assuming that the 2006-2007 Celtics will be a cohesive, energetic, positive, and passionate group of players that play as a team and worry about the name in front of the jersey rather than the name in the back, let's see what numbers need to be produced for us to be successful in the East.

Danny acquired 2 pure point guards during the offseason, in hopes of getting everyone to run. This will hopefully lead to more easy baskets for everyone so even Scals can score on the break. (Scary thought though) Just kidding Scals. I like you.

Whoever starts at point guard, or combination thereof needs to rack up some serious assists for our team to be competitive the way it has been set up right now with DA.

Here is my projected lineup:

Point Guard
Telfair: 10-12 points, 7 assists, 2 steals

These are basic solid point guard numbers. The 7 assists are key. If Bassy puts up 7 assists a game, we will be in a much better position in the East and it will mean that the ball is being spread around most likely giving different players the opportunity to score, and making our offense more unpredictable. No more Pierce isolations and running down the clock.

Shooting Guard
Pierce: 25 points, 7 boards, 4-5 assists would be enough from him.

Wally may play here but I'll just say Pierce. Paul just needs to keep on doing what he has been doing. Continuing to play at a high level and within the running system. He does not need to score 30 points a game for this team to be successful, just make clutch shots late in the game and continue being our go-to-guy. I would not even mind if he plays 2-3 minutes less a game to give him a rest and to let younger type players like G $, TA, and AR a chance to play a little more.

Small Forward
Wally: 18-19 points, 5 boards, 5 assists

I think Wally is really key here. DA acquired him to be that complementary scorer for Pierce. He needs to stay healthy and NOT play 40 minutes a game. If he does his knee will fall off. He needs to play within the running system which he seemed to like doing last year, play tough tenacious D, stay in front of his man, and just keep hitting those deep 2's and 3's as well as posting up his smaller defender on offense. I would like to see Wally average 5 assists a game as well. It is very possible for him to do that in our offense if he moves the ball around, which he does very well. (Last year he had 10 assists in a game.)

Power Forward
Big Al/Gomes????: 16 points, 8 boards 1.5 blocks (and be able to play offense smoothly within the running game)

This is the real dark horse position on our roster, the starting power forward spot. I think everyone all wants it to be Big Al’s but Gomes proved himself last year that he was WAY more ready than Big Al. Ideally, this is Big Al’s spot to lose. With the surgery on his ankle being completed, I am HOPING that his ankle injuries are gone, or at least won’t be a huge issue anymore. Time will tell that story. We need BIG production from our power forward spot. We do not have the luxury of having a center who can demand a double team, although Perk (I love this kid) made great strides last year on offense, so our PF needs to make baskets.

I will assume Big Al will start, and he will need to control the low block as well as keep defenses honest with a little jump shot. So far he hasn’t shown me that he can make this shot. Derren seems to think that he can. I am not so sure yet. He needs to play better D and REBOUND. Perk needs some help on the glass unless we all expect Perk to average 16 boards a game.

Center
Perkins: 11 points, 11 boards, 3 blocks
(Nowadays, these numbers are All-Star numbers for a center, but I believe Perk is up to the challenge)

The center position I am not worried about, only depth. I really believe that Perk will lock it down this year and cement himself as one of the better young defensive centers in the league. I expect double-double Jamaal Magloire type numbers from him easily, as long as that shoulder stays in there. His number one concern is staying out of foul trouble. If he does that, I think that these types of numbers could very easily be put up from the center spot.

These are just the numbers for the starters. No sports team, especially basketball, will be competitive without a good bench that provides depth, flexibility, and versatility. I will assess the bench's stats later.....
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source: Esco33 - Celtics Green

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