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RETRIEVING CONTENT...PLEASE WAIT
Pierce is Hurting, Considers Shutting Down - Doc Says No
Saturday, March 17, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 4:49 PM
March 17, 2007
Today's Herald had an interesting article about Pierce. He is hurting and has considered possibly shutting down for the season.
‘‘I think about it,’’ Pierce said about the possibility of shutting his season down early. ‘‘I think about it definitely with the way my body’s been feeling since I’ve been back. I mean, it’s crossed my mind, especially with these remaining games and whether I should just take the rest and come back strong next season. But it’s a tough situation. I’m such a competitive person, I want to be out there. The foot’s been OK, but I think I’ve hurt other parts of my body because of it. When I first came back I really didn’t want to jump as much or put as much pounding on it. That ended up hurting other parts of my body.
‘‘I’ll probably have to sit down and talk with Doc. I know I’ve been having problems with my elbow and other parts. So I’ll probably sit down with coach some time after this road trip and talk to him about it and see what he thinks.’’
Pierce is hurting. His elbow is once again red and swollen and leaking. He played quite a while with it last season before finally shutting down for the season. He gave it rest over the summer and then had surgery and it is once again a problem. You have to wonder if this is something that is going to be an ongoing problem late in every season. There is no reason for Pierce to be playing with an injury right now. We are not in a playoff race. We are playing for next year and it seems the best thing for next year would be to sit Pierce, allow him to get healthy, and play the kids to give them more experience.
This quote from Doc bothers me:
At this point, Rivers doesn’t think much of the theory that something can be gained by Pierce beginning his offseason early.
‘‘I don’t buy into that,’’ Rivers said. ‘‘I think you get paid to play, and if you’re healthy enough to play, you play. He’s not hurting himself. If he had an injury, then that’s a whole different ballgame. But he doesn’t have an injury that’s going to hurt him. To me, you play. . . . No would be my answer right now. I think you should want to play, and I think Paul does. I think he set a great example when he pushed hard to come back.’’
Is Doc letting his nickname go to his head? He knows that Pierce is not hurting himself by playing? How does he know that? Do the Doctors even know this? Doc was told to keep Wally's minutes down last season and he constantly played him way over the doctors' orders. When Pierce first came back, the orders were to keep him under 20 mpg and no back to backs. Pierce is averaging 35+ mpg and playing back to backs and he has been ever since he came back. Why take chances with the 20 million dollar man? If Pierce is hurting and his elbow is swollen and leaking for the second straight year, I say let him sit and get healthy. Does Doc have a personal agenda for wanting Pierce to play through pain? Is he afraid that if we don't make a run down the stretch that his job will be in jeopardy? He may have good reason to believe so.
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Oden or Durant?
by FLCeltsFan 10:57 AM
March 17, 2007
 
by Derrenmatts
Here's the scenario. You are Danny Ainge and David Stern is at the podium in front of a wild Sacaucas, NY crowd for the 2007 Draft. You have been awarded the 1st overall pick, courtesy of the ping pong balls falling your way. The million dollar question is this: Will it be Greg Oden or Kevin Durant?
Both are going to be stars in the NBA for years to come. Both are franchise type players who will be among the NBA's premiere players. Either one you take, you will be assured of getting a high caliber player added to your team who will pay dividends in the very near future.
But take your time and weigh your options because this is a very crucial judgment pick. More than any other time in recent memory, these are two future heavy weights who will change the dynamics of your team and possibly set a new course of travel.
If I can slip into Danny's role in this scenario, I'm taking Oden without another thought. No doubt about it. No second guessing myself. No monday morning quarterbacking for me. I will make this pick and stick with it. This is not Joe Dumars taking Darko Milicic with the 2nd pick instead of going for Carmelo Anthony (though I still claim that Darko will turn heads, and possibly soon). This is taking a long awaited golden child who plays at premium position that is arguably the least star filled.
Kevin Durant is an incredible player and there's little doubt that he won't be a big star. He may actually attain a higher level of success faster than Oden because 6'9" SF's with his height and wingspan and shooting ability don't really exist. He may be a 20 ppg scorer right off the bat if he plays for a team that allows him the freedom to take shots at will. But offensive minded SF's aren't necessary ingredients to build a championship team around. Look at any championship team in the past 2 decades and you will see that the common denominator for nearly all of them is who they have playing in the trenches (the Bulls being the exception). High caliber big men are the X-factors in the equation--and for this reason alone, I would take Greg Oden.
But there are other reasons. Take a look at our team and you'll see that, when healthy, we don't need any more offense, and we especially don't need more offense from our wings. We have Pierce--one of the league's top scorers, Sczcerbiak--a solid midlevel scorer, Green--a potentially high powered scorer, Delonte--a solid role scorer, Gomes--a tweener who is expanding his range out to the 3pt arc, Allan Ray--a sleeper candidate for offense off the bench, and the dark horse player of them all; Tony Allen. If he can make a successful comeback from his dramatic knee injury and return to the form he was at before going down, we may have our starting SG already pegged (with either Pierce or Green starting at SF). We aren't desperate for more offense at the wings.
Another reason is that wing players are easier to find than big men. Generally, if wing players can knock down open jumpers, your team is in good shape. You don't need to have great offensive wing players taking 25 shots per game to have aspirations of a championship title. But having standout big men is important--maybe even vital.
Kendrick Perkins is currently our hope for our future Center position. He's strong, got a rugged body that likes to get rough, and he doesn't mind messing it up in the trenches. But he's not a complete Center--he leaves things to be desired. I am not bashing on him, but hoping for an upgrade at Center is not a bad thing. Greg Oden will open our eyes and show us what we've been missing. He's got potential on both ends of the court (of course, much more on the defensive end).
Jefferson gives us an advantage at PF versus most teams. Pierce gives us an advantage at SF/SG versus most teams. Rajon is emerging as a difficult PG to contain, and in time, he should give us an advantage as well. Our bench has a lot of quality parts and could become one of the league's best--if not the deepest. Our best bet to pencil in our next Dynasty will be to land Oden and let him dominate the Center position. That would be the final piece that collapses the scale in our favor.
source:Derrenmatts - Celtics Green
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Celtics Give Mavs All They Can Handle
by FLCeltsFan 12:09 AM
March 16, 2007
There was every reason that the Celtics would get blown out in this game. The Mavs are best team in the league right now. They lost the last 2 games and listed this as a must win game for them. They came at us strong but the Celtics played them even most of the game, giving the Mavs all they could handle and making them work hard for the 106-101 victory.
There were bright spots all around. Pierce scored 29 points on 11-20 shooting and had 5 rebounds, 8 assists and 1 steal. Green had a new career high with 25 points with 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals and played some good defense. Scal didn't play as he left to be with his wife who is having a baby.
Al had a very strong game and finished with a double double, 20 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks. Perk played great defense in the paint and finished with 2 points, 10 rebounds and 1 assist. Powe played 19 minutes and pulled down 2 rebounds and had 1 assist and 1 steal. But he played great defense on Dirk and pretty much shut him down in the first half when he was covering him. But for some reason, Doc went away from both Perk and Powe in the second half and Dirk was able to pick up his game. I have to think that Doc should have gone to Powe and Perk more in the second half to try to guard Dirk since he did such a good job on him in the first half.
Rondo started at the point but played only 14 minutes. He finished with 2 points, 2 assists, 1 steal and 4 turnovers that included a couple of travels. Telfair came in for 12 minutes and finished with 5 points, 1 assist and 1 steal. West played the point for most of the 4th quarter. He had an off shooting night hitting just 3-12 shots and finished with 10 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists and 1 steal. Ray played 22 minutes, a few of which were at the point and finished with 8 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist.
This win was nothing to be ashamed of. The Celtics played hard and gave the Mavs all they could handle and made them earn this win. We led by 10 at the half and were in the game all the way through. We saw some good play from our young players and the Mavs announcers were very impressed with Perk, Al, Powe, and Green. Hopefully we can keep this intensity up tomorrow night and if so, we may have a chance to finally break the streak in San Antonio.
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Celtics Fined for Contact with Durant's Family
Friday, March 16, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 8:18 PM
March 16, 2007
SI.com reports that 3 teams, including the Celtics, were fined for having contact with Oden, Durant, or their families.
• The Boston Celtics were fined $30,000 as a result of contact that took place between executive director Danny Ainge and Durant's family members at a Big 12 tournament game on March 10.
Even though Danny said he was seated next to them by accident and later, Durant's mom would say that she didn't know who the nice man was who was seated next to them, it made no difference in the fine being levied. The Bobcats and Warriors were the other two teams that were fined.
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Thoughts on Doc, Perk, Powe and the Team
by FLCeltsFan 9:49 AM
March 3, 2007
I read in an article on ESPN.com that Larry Krystkowiak will be preaching defense in Milwaukee and was almost envious. The biggest problem I have had with Doc stems back to a statement he made last season. At the time he said that he was working on offense in practice because that was the hardest to get. He said the defense would take care of itself because after all, while they worked on the offense, half the team was playing defense. That statement has really bothered me and still does. In spite of his statements that he is always telling the guys to play defense, he didn't feel it was important enough to actually work on it. That may explain why we still can't defend the pick and roll and why our defense is still a weak point for this team. Defense is what wins championships and I don't think Doc takes defense seriously enough. I want a coach who will come in and work on our defense and not just micromanage the offense. We would be a much better team if we had a coach who would emphasize defense instead of insisting on running set plays every time down the court and letting the defense take care of itself.
Perk is starting to show signs of playing like I have always believed he could. He is still hampered with the plantar fasciitis and is just willing himself to play through it so he may still be up and down this season, but I believe the Perk we saw over the past 2 games is the real Perk. If he can come back healthy next season, and I don't see any reason why he can't, he will be averaging a double double, just as Al is this season. People wrote off Al as a bust last season because he wasn't playing well due to injuries and this season he is proving all those critics wrong. Perk is going to do the same thing next season. He works too hard not to. This kid is what Celtics Pride is all about!
Leon Powe is another kid who works too hard not to make it. This is from the Patriot Ledger:
Rivers on Leon Powe: ‘‘I just like him on the floor. He’s been up and down. I lost my cool with him (Tuesday) night because I don’t think Leon should ever play a game and have zero fouls. Leon is a physical player, and it’s tough to be physical with zero fouls.’’ Rivers said, though, that Powe ‘‘does exactly what you say. We were talking on the plane and someone said, ‘Man, Leon’s going to kill someone tomorrow.’’’ Powe scored eight points with four rebounds - and four personal fouls... A couple of things caught my attention in this quote. First, Doc says he just likes Powe on the floor. So, why does he keep him on the bench so much? And, second, He was getting on Leon for not fouling? The kid only played 5 minutes on Tuesday. How many fouls should he get in 5 minutes? Earlier he was saying that he wasn't playing Perk and Al because they fouled too much. Now he isn't playing Powe because he doesn't foul enough? What is a player to do? Third, Powe does exactly as they say. What a coachable kid. To know that you have a player who will go out and do exactly what you tell him to has to be a joy for a coach to work with. Dickerson has said a couple of times that he doesn't know how long Leon will be in a Celtics uniform and his contract isn't guaranteed for next season, but he is one player I really think they need to keep. He plays with such intensity and energy and brings toughness inside that this team very much needs.
Finally, I love this team. I am hoping that Danny will stay the course and keep this group together next season. We will have a high lottery pick to bring in, which can only help. But I like the chemistry that this team is building. I feel that many of these players are making a leap in their play and several more will make an even bigger leap next season. Danny has stuck with them this long and I would like to see him be patient a little longer and give this group a chance to mature together. We have already suffered through their growing pains and it doesn't make sense to me to trade them now that they are poised to get to that next level.
We have the pieces. A very exciting point guard in Rondo. A tough shooting guard in Delonte. A tough low post player in Al. A tough defensive center in Perk. A very good veteran presence in Pierce. And a deep bench with A very athletic and exciting wing in Green, a tough enforcer in Powe, a microwave type scorer in Wally and Ray, a very solid player in Gomes, a promising point guard in Telfair, an exciting lock down defender in Allen, and an energy guy and all around good locker room presence in Scal. Perk and Al are playing very well off of each other and so are West and Rondo. Every one of these players is a hard worker and are dedicated to becoming better and playing team ball. I would hate to see any of them traded disrupting the chemistry and great attitude of this team. We have something really special starting here and we will see the benefits of it next season and for many years to come if Danny just keeps them together.
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Perk and Rondo Shine in Celtics 109-88 Win Over the Hawks
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 11:24 PM
March 15, 2007
Tonight's game was a glimpse of what the future will be for this team. I know that we were playing against a Hawks team missing Joe Johnson, but they had won 4 in a row. And I also know that at least for now, this team is going to be maddeningly inconsistent. But the glimpses we get of the way they can play is enough to get any Celtics fan excited.
Perk showed tonight (and in the last game) that he can be a force in the middle when he is healthy. He is still playing in pain but is gaining some conditioning and learning to play with the pain and is producing. I still say when this kid is healthy and gets the minutes he is going to take a leap, just as Al has. Last night he had 12 points on 4-5 shooting and 12 rebounds along with 1 assist and 1 block. At one point took a pass near mid court and drove to the basket drawing a foul on Pachulia. He powered in for several dunks and fought for every rebound. I love the chemistry between Perk and Al. After the game Dickerson was interviewing Perk and Al came in and joked that Perk got the rebounds because he was on the floor. But there may be something to that as they play off each other very well.
Leon Powe also had a great game scoring 8 points and pulling down 4 rebounds in 18 minutes. He also had 4 fouls which is a key stat since after the Bulls game, Doc got on Leon for not being aggressive enough. The Green Room reported on it like this:
Celtics coach Doc Rivers chewed into rookie Leon Powe for not playing aggressively during the Chicago game Tuesday night.
“I didn’t like that,” said Rivers. “I think Leon is a physical player. And you can’t be physical with zero fouls.”
Rivers joked that the team was worried Powe would come out and tackle the first Hawk he saw tonight. Thankfully for Atlanta, that didn’t happen.
“That’s the theory because he does exactly what you say,” said Rivers. “We were laughing about that on the plane because one of my coaches said ‘Man Leon’s going to kill someone tomorrow night.’ We were going to make sure that didn’t happen. But he has to use what he has. He has a gift of being physical.” I love Powe as a player and love the fact that they say that he does exacly what you say. He is tough, coachable, a hard worker and gives 110% every minute on the court. You have to love what he brings to the team and I believe that he is going to be a great player. He works too hard not to.
Al once again impressed with 23 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist and 2 steals in just 3 quarters of play. He and Perk play very well off of each other and they are showing that chemistry on the court. I believe that Al and Perk are our front court of the future. Scal played 23 minutes and scored 2 points with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. I still would rather see Powe get more minutes than Scal. Scal is what he is but Powe is going to continue to get better.
Doc started Rondo and West in the back court again and I really like this lineup. West plays very well off Rondo and having 2 defensive playmakers in the starting lineup creates match up problems. Rondo was the catalyst in last night's win, notching his first double double with 13 points (5-8 from the field), 10 assists, 4 rebounds and 3 steals. Rondo is our PG of the future as well as the present. This kid just has such amazing court sense and is showing enough offense now to keep the defenses honest. And he is just going to get better. West had a great game with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. Just as Perk and Al play well off of each other, West and Rondo do as well.
Green again struggled with his shot going 3-9 from the field with 7 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 steal. He seems to be over thinking and trying to create rather than shooting off the catch. He passed up several open 3's trying to drive with mixed results. He needs to get back to shooting off the catch and not think about it so much and he will be fine. Allan Ray came off the bench to hit some big shots in the Celtics run finishing with 10 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist. Telfair played most of the last quarter finishing with 7 points, 1 assist and 1 steal.
We are seeing some good things from these kids. They are taking big steps in their development but are still inconsistent but as they gain experience and develop chemistry from playing together, the ups are going to come more and more often and the downs are going to be fewer and fewer. A good win for this team, but more importantly, another big step toward our future.
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Bulls Bigs Dominate as Celtics Lose
Some Thoughts on the Team from an Eternal Optimist
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 12:52 PM
March 13, 2007
I am officially a koolaid drinker and ever the optimist. I admit it. I love this team and see good things happening next year. I really would like to see this team stay together for the most part. Yes, we are currently are 18 and 44 for the year. Yes, I know that this team is young and very inconsistent still. But I see seeds of something special developing on this team in spite of all the injuries and in spite of all the losses. I am definitely not in the tank for ping pong balls camp. The chemistry and confidence that the team is building by winning is worth it.
I have said it many times but chemistry is often underrated in building a team. The 2003/04 Lakers are poster children for why chemistry is important. They assembled a roster full of stars that on paper should have dominated the league. Shaq, Kobe, Payton, Malone, and Grant along with a Hall of Fame coach. They should have dominated, but they didn't because they couldn't build any chemistry and they dissolved into bickering and infighting as the season wore on. On the other side, there are the Spurs, Pistons, and Mavericks who have built rosters that have great chemistry and they have kept them together for several years and all three teams have dominated. The Celtics have built great chemistry on this team. The players all get along on and off the court and the more they play together, the more they will get to know each other's tendencies on the court.
Just as Al took a huge leap forward in his development this season, I expect more of our young players to do the same next season. We have players who are among the hardest workers in the league. Perk, Powe, Al, West, Allen, Rondo, Telfair, Green, Gomes all spend extra hours in the gym working on their games. They are all willing to do whatever it takes to improve. The majority of them will work together this summer just as they did last summer to improve individually and as a team and every one of them will come back much improved in areas they had problems this season. They just work too hard not to.
So far, Danny has kept this group together in spite of saying that he has been trying to trade for a veteran. I feel that this is a good move and we have seen these kids developing before our eyes. Every night one of them will step up and have a great game. The problem is that they haven't been consistent. But that will come with experience as they build their confidence. After the Bulls game, Dickerson said twice that he didn't know how long Powe would be a Celtic. I sure hope they keep this kid because I truly believe he is going to be special. He has impressed every time he has gotten into a game and with a summer working with Clifford Ray, I see him making a huge leap forward. If we had a better coach who had a clue how to use bigs in a game, I think he would be seeing regular time and making an even bigger impression.
I am not banking on getting a top 2 pick. The lottery is too fickle. The team with the worst record rarely gets the #1 pick. The team with the second worst record gets it even fewer times. Having Oden or Durant would be nice to add to this group, but we should be fine even if we don't get the first or second pick. We can get a player who can help with the 3rd or 4th pick, either by picking one of the other strong big men coming into the draft, or trading it for veteran help.
There is a cloud hanging over this team though and that is in the coaching area. I really hope we keep Clifford Ray forever. The guy is amazing in the way that he develops bigs. But other than Ray, I have big doubts about the abilities of our coaching staff. I have tried to look at both sides of the Doc Rivers debate and even posted an article from Eja as to why he should stay. But I don't think this team will reach their potential with Doc at the helm. We are hearing Doc say that he is working on stuff for next year and talking about working on an extension over the summer. If Isaiah can get an extension, it is entirely possible that Doc could get one and that really worries me because I just feel that this team would do much better with a different coach. We need a coach who is defensive minded but yet can coach a fast break team.
With another summer of work from our young players, a high draft pick, and hopefully a new coach, I honestly feel that this team will surprise a lot of people next season. The '78-79 Celtics won 29 games. The 79-80 Celtics won 61 games. Granted they added a rookie named Larry Bird who was a one of a kind player. But if our players stay healthy and we see improvement from all our players along with a high draft pick and a new coach, this team could make just as dramatic a change. We have so much talent but it just needs to mature and several players are poised to make that leap next season. I, for one, am optimistic that it will happen.
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West Set to Return Tuesday
Monday, March 12, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 8:17 PM
March 12, 2007
Celtics.com reports that Delonte is set to return tomorrow night against the Bulls.
Rivers wouldn't say if West would start on Tuesday or not, but given that West worked out with the first unit, as well as Rivers' assessment of Rajon Rondo's two games as a starter suggested that West would likely step back into the starting five.
"[Rondo] is giving you good numbers, but numbers at the point guard position never does a lot for me. It's more about wins and leading. I thought [Friday vs. Seattle] he was great. I felt like yesterday his number were great, but the team didn't get involved," Rivers said. "[But] I love his energy and the little things he does."
I expect West to be back in the starting lineup tomorrow. The question is whether Telfair will go back to DNP's and whether Rondo will continue to get enough playing time to keep his confidence up.
Also mentioned is that Gomes will be out at least the rest of the week and may be re-evaluated later in the week. The team practiced today before flying out to Chicago, trying to make adjustments to stop the Bulls offense.
source: Celtics.com
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Celtics Fall to Bulls 94-78
Sunday, March 11, 2007
by FLCeltsFan 9:53 PM
March 11, 2007
The Celtics stayed with the Bulls in the first half but struggled offensively in the second half and allowed the Bulls to get some easy baskets and came up short, losing to the Bulls 94-78. The Celtics turned the ball over 17 times and shot only 38% from the field while allowing the Bulls to shoot 51%. The Bulls won the battle of the boards and outrebounded the Celtics 43-39.
Leon Powe was a bright spot tonight, making the most of his playing time as always. he played 17 minutes and scored a career high 11 points on 4-5 shooting to go with 7 rebounds and 1 block. He was the player of the game and also won the Tommy Award. In his post game press conference Doc said that Powe doesn't always get the offensive sets but he plays so hard he makes up for it. He also said that he loves having Leon on the floor which makes me wonder why Powe gets so few minutes. Perk also played well defensively and finished with 2 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks.
Al had an off night and finished with only 10 points on 5-10 shooting, 6 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block. Scal played 20 minutes and had 6 points, 0 rebounds and 2 steal. I still think Powe should be getting more minutes than Scal.
Rondo started at the point for the second straight game and played very well. He wasn't as strong offensively as he was in the last game shooting only 5-15 from the field. But he had 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals. Telfair played well off the bench finishing with 7 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 24 minutes. Ray was solid off the bench with 7 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal in 13 minutes.
Pierce had an off game hitting only 2-14 shots for 8 points to go with 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal. He held the ball too much trying to beat double teams, resorting to old bad habits. Green also had an off night shooting 5-14 for 15 points with 3 rebounds and 1 assist. He tried to do too much and instead of shooting off the catch that is his strength, he either held the ball or tried to dribble in closer, which often resulted in a turnover. Although, Gerald did have a dunk that should make the top 10 plays of the night where he came up under the basket and slammed it with authority.
We face the Bulls in Chicago on Tuesday night. We will probably have West back by then. With the way Rondo has been playing, I would much rather see him continue to start at the point and have West start at the 2 as we need his offense and Rondo has been running the point very well. The Bulls play terrific defense and we will have to play much better if we expect to get a win there.
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