Perk mentioned several times before signing his contract last off season that he was grateful to the Celtics for giving him a chance and he felt he owed it to them to do the best he could. When details of his contract came out, many Celtics fans were saying what a bargain he is at that price. Looking at Nene's contract of $10 million a year after sitting out the entire year before signing with an injury and he certainly hasn't proved much more than Perk that he will be a dominant center and Mark Blount's contract of almost 7 million a year, you have to realize what a bargain he really is.
"I'm happy to be a Celtic. They've been loyal to me since I got here. Everything has been good. I love the coaches. I love the organization. This is not rehearsed. This is really coming from my heart. I'm just happy we got this out of the way. It's not like I'm stopping here and I'm satisfied with this contract," It's really just motivation to keep working.
Above all, Perkins doesn't want to take his current situation for granted and hopes his teammates think about a team loaded with talent the same way. Perkins plans to be an integral part of what he believes should be a run to the NBA Finals.
"I've got to be able to give my best every night," said Perkins, fully recovered from the left foot plantar fasciitis that sidelined him for a spell and prevented him from playing at top form during the second half of last season. "I'm excited about this season and I'm trying to put my all into it. This is a blessed opportunity to be on a team with Paul [Pierce], Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen."
This kid has such a great attitude. The best thing in the above quote is reading that he has fully recovered from the plantar fasciitis. There have been a lot of athletes who have been hampered for years by this and it is great to hear that Perk's has healed. He only sat out 10 games last season and played in pain for much of the season because his team needed him and many of us worried that he would do more damage because of it.
Perk is incredibly dedicated and incredibly loyal to the Celtics. Whatever it takes to be a better player and help the team win, he does. He is always looking to improve. Perk has said that he watches himself on tape after every game, looking for ways he can improve. He checks to make sure he saw cutters, set good screens and was in proper position on set plays. He sees improvement in his overall game on a daily basis, and he points to his post moves, an improved jump hook and the way he runs the floor as the biggest strides in his development.
Some may wonder how Perk and Garnett will get along and mesh but I believe that they will be great teammtes. KG has to respect Perk's work ethic and commitment to defense and Perk is already thinking about what he can do to help KG:
“But it’s not how my defense can benefit,” Perkins said. “It’s what I’m going to be able to do to help his defense that is on my mind right now. I have some elements to contribute that I hope can help what he does. To win in this league, your 5’s have to be able to defend the whole game. We have to be able to stop pick-and-rolls, everything.”
Also, KG is a very loyal guy and he will see that same characteristic in Perk. Unlike a lot of players who get a contract and then slack off, Perk has worked even harder to improve his game. He plays hurt, plays hard, and puts the needs of the team and his teammates before his own stats. After playing with Blount, I have a feeling that KG is going to absolutely love playing with Perk. Today's Globe has this:
While Perkins may sound slightly in awe of the newest Celtics, he feels comfortable with the prospect of playing beside them. He has designed some of his workouts to develop skills that will complement the trio.
In addition to making 15-footers, Perkins has practiced "finishing quick." He knows when he receives the ball around the basket from Garnett, Pierce, or Allen, he must make the most of his opportunities and score quickly. But he also understands that the Celtics care more about his defensive productivity, and that's the way it should be.
"[Defense] is what gives me playing time," said Perkins. "That's my role. I don't care if I shoot the ball one time. I've got Paul, Ray Allen, and KG on the court with me. If I go the whole game and have zero points and we win, I don't care. Why should I care? That's called selfish. If we're winning, everybody's going to get the same publicity and everything else. That all comes with losing yourself within the team.
"I want to win too much to care about anything else. I don't care about my stats. I don't care about how people view me as a basketball player. I just care about getting wins. Anything else is irrelevant to me. I don't care about somebody telling me to shoot the ball or do this more. I'm going to do what my team wants me to do. It's as simple as that."
While playing alongside Pierce and Allen may have Garnett excited, I can guarantee that never played alongside an enforcer like Perk, either. It's all about losing yourself within the team. That reminds me of Celtics teams of old where it was all about team and you don't see that much anymore. Yes, I think KG and Perk are going to get along just fine!!
The last few weeks of the NBA off-season have been ripe with the rumors of former NBA greats mulling a return to the hardwood. From Anfernee Hardaway and Reggie Miller to Charles Oakley and Allen Houston, multiple NBA greats of the 90s may be gracing an NBA court near you. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Candlebox and Collective Soul co-headlining the halftime show at the 2008 NBA all-star game.
And even though you may not admit it, I’m sure many of you have been curious about other former NBA stars returning to your former glory. Is Mark Agguire hit the gym on a regular basis? Is Sidney Moncreif still a lockdown defender in his men’s 50+ Monday night game? Has Jack Sikma ditched the gentleman’s perm for a more streamline ‘do?
But I think it’s time to look past the NBA for bargain basement free agents. Why limit ourselves to former NBA players when we have an entire planet of (semi)able bodied men to choose from? Here are just a few people that, in my humble opinion, have serious NBA potential.
1) Wesley Snipes.
How has no team giving this guy a try out yet? He was lights out in White Men Can’t Jump. He could run. He could shoot. He could play D. All that and a Gary Payton-like swagger to boot? Sounds like the perfect back-up PG for Rondo if you ask me. Sure, that was 15 years ago, but hey, the guy is still in primo shape. You’ve seen him on the tube hawking those Total Gyms with Chuck Norris. The guy is cut. And while we’re at it, it wouldn’t hurt to invite Woody Harrelson to camp. We could use a guy that can nail top of the key jumpers.
2) Kent Hrbek.
OK, so he’s been removed from professional sports for well over a decade, and he was never the epitome of fitness when was with the Minnesota Twins. But any baseball nerd that followed the MLB in the late 80s/early 90s will tell there wasn’t a more nimble first basemen that the ‘bek. And anyone that saw him throw Ron Gant off of first base in 1991 World Series knows that he would be a beast in the paint. Throw in that he’s a legit 6’5”, and you’ve got a pasty, 40-something Reggie Evens coming off of the edge.
3) Mohawk
OK, you’re going to have to jump in the way-back machine for this one. Think back to the golden ages of NES and a magical little game called Arch Rivals. While there were many superlative players on the Arch Rivals roster, none of them compare to Mohawk. In the games liner notes Mohawk is described as “tough and mean.” Tough AND mean? Hell, his signature move on the game was punching. Rueben Patterson couldn’t carry Mohawk’s poorly pixilated jock.
4) Hulk Hogan
Stay with me folks. I know he is in his approaching 60. And it’s been over twenty years since he was at the top of his game, and to top it off, that game was pretend to begin with. But the guy is 6’9”, and he is still flipping huge. And remember, the C’s division rival New York Knicks will be sporting two low post scorers in the form of Eddie Curry and Zach Randolf. Do you think either of these two will be able to tear us up in the middle if Hulkamania is running loose in the paint? I don’t.
5) Jabberjaw
Everyone knows what the knocks against the Jabberjaw are. He’s fictional. He’s a shark. He has hasn’t been seen since the late 70s. But let’s look at the overwhelming upside he has. First off, I don’t have any official measurements, but I would guess he is around eleven feet tall and I bet he weighs in at around four tons. And it’s not all seal blubber in license plates inside him either. The guy can move. Many a time I saw Jabberjaw scamper at high speeds to evade the treacherous grasp of some undersea villain. My only concern with Jabberjaw is if he can concentrate fully on basketball and leave his musical work for the off-season.
That’s it. We all know Danny Ainge loves to think outside the box, so don’t be surprised to see at least one of these guys in camp this fall.
Danny has taken his share of abuse for the Celtics fortunes over the past 3 years. When he came to the job he said that he had a 5 year plan to rebuild the Celtics and get them back to contention. His plan was to gather "chips" and then trade them for established stars. Many fans were disillusioned with the "youth movement" and felt that the Celtics were years away from contending, if ever. But what most of us forgot was Danny's initial vision of gathering trading chips. Some of his moves were lateral but others were trading one chip for another just slightly more valuable financially or on the court or that would give us a draft pick he could parlay into a player or use as a chip. Here is a look at Danny's road to building the team that has everyone so excited now.
Danny traded Darius Songaila to Sacramento and received 2 second round pics in return. These picks were used to draft Brandon Hunter in 2003 and Orien Greene in 2005. This move didn't really amount to much as Hunter was taken in the expansion draft and Greene was placed on waivers so it was more or less a dead end move.
In Danny's first draft, he picked Troy Bell at #16 and Dahntay Jones at #20. He then traded these two players for Marcus Banks, who was picked 13th and Kendrick Perkins, who was picked 27th. Obviously, Banks was a mistake because he didn't work out in Boston and now isn't working out in Phoenix. Perk, on the other hand, is poised to become a top center in the NBA and is key to the Celtics hopes for this season.
In 2003, Danny signed Mike James as a free agent to a one year contact worth $640,000. James averaged 10.7 points and 4.4 assists while he was with the Celtics.
Danny traded J.R. Bremer, who had been with the Celtics for 2 seasons, and Bruno Sundov, who had played 23 games with the Celtics, to Cavs for Jumaine Jones and a second round pick. This pick was later traded back to the Celtics as part of the Ricky Davis deal and was used to take Ryan Gomes. Jones was injured and only played in 42 games for the Celtics in the 2003-04 season.
Before the 2003-04 season, Danny made the biggest move of his tenure so far when he traded Antoine Walker and Tony Delk to the Mavericks for Raef LaFrentz, Jiri Welsch, Chris Mills and a first round pick that Danny would use to take Delonte West. Raef's knees gave out and he played in only 17 games that season before having knee surgery but he would go on to be the only Celtic who played in all 82 games the next season. Jiri Welsh didn't work out as Danny had hoped and would later be traded for a draft pick that would be traded to Phoenix for Rajon Rondo.
In the middle of the 2003-04 season Danny once again made a major trade when he sent Tony Battie, Eric Williams and Kedrick Brown to the Cavs for Ricky Davis, Chris Mihm, Michael Stewart, and that second round pick that I mentioned earlier. Ricky played some solid basketball for the Celtics and although there were rumors that he caused some problems in the locker room, he always played all out, giving 110% out on the court.
Also in the 2003-04 season, Danny traded Chris Mills and Mike James to Detroit for Chucky Atkins and a first round pick that would be used to take Tony Allen. Chucky paid dividends in that he led the Celtics into the playoffs that season.
After the season, Danny traded Chucky Atkins, Chris Mihm, and Jumaine Jones for Gary Payton, Rick Fox (who chose to retire rather than play that season with the Celtics), a first round pick and cash considerations. Payton at first didn't want to come to the Celtics, but when he finally reported, he gave us a very good year and helped to mentor our young point guards.
Mark Blount had a great season in his contract year and at the end of the season, Danny signed him to a six year deal at over 6 million a year. At the time, this looked like a good deal because Blount had a great season previous to the signing and looked like he was going to be a very good offensively minded center. No one could envision the cancerous malcontent that Blount would become.
In the 2004 draft, Danny hit the jackpot when he picked Al Jefferson with the 15th pick, Delonte West with the 24th pick and Tony Allen with the 25th pick along with Justin Reed in the second round. Delonte was key in bringing Ray Allen to Boston and Al Jefferson was the key to the Garnett trade. Tony Allen could be very crucial to this season for the Celtics if he can bounce back from his injury to get back to where he was last season before going down.
During the 2004-05 season, Danny traded Walter McCarty to Phoenix for a second round pick. This pick would later be traded to Denver for the rights to Leon Powe who I believe is going to be a very good player.
During the 2004-05 season, Danny traded Gary Payton, Tom Gugliotta, Michael Stewart, and a first round pick to bring Antoine Walker back to Boston for a second run. In an ironic twist, this pick was traded by Atlanta to Phoenix and would be used to take Rondo for whom we would trade the Cleveland pick. Payton was waived by Atlanta and resigned with Boston and the Celtics made the playoffs but Rick Carlisle out-coached Doc and the Celtics didn't make it out of the first round.
At the end of that season, Walker was looking for a long term contract that Boston didn't want to give so they arranged a sign and trade with Miami that brought back a trade exception, a 2006 second round draft pick, a future second round draft pick, cash considerations, forward Qyntel Woods, the draft rights to Albert Miralles and center Curtis Borchardt. We waived Woods and Borchardt, Miralles is still in Spain and we used the trade exception to sign free agent Dan Dickau
In the 2005 draft, Danny picked Gerald Green with the 18th pick and nabbed Ryan Gomes with the 50th pick along with Orien Greene at 51. Ryan was the steal of that draft. Gerald has not yet realized the promise that everyone has expected of him. He may or may not become a star but was another key to bringing Kevin Garnett to Boston.
Before the 2005-06 season, Danny signed Brian Scalabrine to a 5 year 15 million dollar contract. So far, Scal hasn't paid many dividends other than being a great locker room guy and driving Tony to the hospital after his knee injury, but with a veteran cast in place, he may very well be a valuable member of thise season's bench (or a trade chip to bring in that veteran PG that we need).
During the 2005-06 season, Danny pulled off the first blockbuster trade with Minnesota. Danny traded Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, Justin Reed and two second round draft picks for Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones, and a conditional first round pick (which returned to Minny in the Garnett trade). The biggest bonus in this trade was getting rid of Blount who had become a cancer and a malcontent on this team.
On draft night last year, Danny traded Raef LaFrentz, Dan Dickau, and the 7th pick in the draft for Theo Ratliff and Sebastian Telfair. This may have been the key to the trade for Garnett because without Ratliff's expiring contract, the Wolves may not have gone for the trade. We gave up Brandon Roy, last season's rookie of the year, but financially, this was a very good move for the Celtics and in the end was a brilliant move in that it netted us Garnett.
Last offseason, Danny traded Dwayne Jones, who came over from Minnesota with Wally and Kandi, for Luke Jackson and cash considerations. Jackson was waived after training camp but the Celtics did make a little money on the deal. Danny also got the deal done to re-sign Paul Pierce to a three-year extension at max money and signed Perk to an extension at approximately 4 million per year, which is an absolute bargain considering what bigs in the league are demanding these days.
On draft night this year, we had the 5th pick, the highest we have picked since 1997 when we lost out on Duncan. Everyone in the Celtics nation was hoping for the first or second pick and when that happened most fans were prepared for several more years of mediocrity while our young players grew and learned and blossomed. But Danny started trading in his chips and traded Delonte, Wally and the #5 pick for Ray Allen and the draft pick that he used to pick Big Baby Davis. This move was crucial, because it was the key to getting Garnett to agree to come to Boston.
The biggest move came when Danny used most of his other "chips" to bring Garnett to Boston. He has been trying to get Garnett for a couple of years and finally had enough chips that McHale wanted to get the deal done. With those 2 moves, the Celtics went from the second to last team in the league to a contender. Danny is going into his 5th season as GM and it seems as though his plan is working out quite well. Now, Danny is trying to get Reggie Miller to come back to help replenish the bench after all we had to give up in the Garnett trade. This is a very smart move as Reggie should fit seamlessly with the other 3 stars on the team and will give us firepower off the bench and a veteran leader in the locker room. Like Garnett said, this could be the difference between stucco and cement. Danny still has at least one more move to make to finish the team and that is to bring in a veteran point guard to back up Rondo.
Danny's one move that has yet to be scrutinized is his choice of Doc as coach. Danny has stood behind Doc and supported him all the way. He has given him the players who could make any coach successful. If Doc doesn't lead us to the finals, Danny's next move will be to bring in a coach who can.
Paul Pierce was on FSN Sports Tonight for an interview from his basketball camp. He is very happy and upbeat about this coming season. He feels, as I do, that Danny still needs to bring in a veteran PG to make this team complete. It is a very good interview. You can watch it here.
The big news today is Reggie's probable comeback. The Herald and MetroWest Daily both have articles based on Reggie's interview with Dan Patrick and subsequent call in with KG. The Indy Star also has a little article talking about KG wooing Reggie. It sounds as though Reggie definitely wants to come back and is testing his body to see if it will be possible. With KG pushing for the comeback, I would say that the odds of it happening are pretty good.
Hoopsworld has a good article on Clifford Ray and Robert Parish and their big man's camp. If the big man is back, then the Celtics are in very good shape with Perk at center. Suite 101 has an article very similar to the one I posted about Perk being the key to the Celtics success this season. I expect to see a lot more people coming around to realize that Perk is going to be a key to the season and seeing what the big guy is capable of.
Even though no Celtics are involved, every American and every baskeball fan should be following the progress of the USA team. NBA.com has a USA team blog. Bosh has pulled out of training because of plantar fasciitis. This injury seems to be becoming very prevalent in the NBA these days. ESPN has the scrimmage squad as the USA team's guinea pigs.
Finally, Full Court Press has a fun look at the bandwagon fans who will soon be flocking to the Celtics. Personally, I don't see the fun in jumping around to the teams that are winning. I feel a great sense of satisfaction from being a die hard Celtics fan through the Pitino and ML Carr years. I loved them then and I love them just as much now. It feels good to be justified for all those years that I took abuse from Lakers and Bulls fans. The Celtics are back and it sure feels good.
I have been reading a lot of books on the history of the Celtics. In all of them, one thing has stood out to me. Red's approach to the game was "Keep it simple."
“He always thought the simpler you keep things the easier for the players to remember,” Bird said. “Especially in tight situations, they knew exactly what they were going to do. He never believed in drawing up a special play at the end of games or the end of a half. He just wanted to keep it simple."
Red's philosophy was to keep it simple and make sure that players knew their roles. Maybe this is what made his teams so great. Red's players didn't have to deal with multiple offensive and defensive sets and knew exactly what their roles were. They could just go out and play ball and that is what they did, championship after championship. Red would tell his players "Just do what you do best."
The one thing that always surprised me was how he could get players off another team and they would perform better for the Celtics than they did for their previous team. He had a talent for this and he did it year after year.
Could it be that players don't do well in systems that micromanage and where players don't know their roles? When they got to Red's teams, where they knew exactly what was expected of them and where they got to just play basketball, they excelled. The Celtics played as a team. Everyone had their role but they were a team and everyone knew they were a Celtic and that meant something.
The Celtics now have 3 All Star players (and possibly 4 if Reggie joins the team). Maybe this season, Doc should take a page from Red's playbook. Keep it simple. Instead of instituting 3 new defensive schemes 4 days before the first game as he did last season, maybe he should just give the players their roles, and set a rotation. Teach them one or two offensive sets and let them just play ball instead of having to remember a multitude of different offensive and defensive sets. "Just do what you do best." For Perk, that would be to play inside and for Rajon it would be to run. I believe that if Doc does this, he can get the most out of this team. In the past I believe that our young players were bogged down with learning all the plays and defensive sets that Doc was trying to institute. If Doc tries to make things too complicated again, even this veteran team may have trouble meshing.
Red's philosophy was to keep it simple and his teams were always successful with this approach, whether it was a young team or a veteran team. This season, keeping it simple and giving each player a role might be the best thing Doc could do. Doc needs to go back to basics and borrow a page from Red's playbook and just keep it simple.
This afternoon, Reggie Miller was on the Dan Patrick show on ESPN radio. First, Reggie was on and Patrick was asking if he decided and Reggie said that he doesn't know what he is going to do yet, but he is working out hard and doing 2 a days trying to see if his body can do it. He said that it wasn't going to be like when Jordan came back where he had to play 35 minutes a night. He said that is not going to be his role on the Celtics. Patrick called him on this and said that he was talking like he was already on the team. He also admitted that if he joined the Celtics they would be the team to beat. Patrick asked him if he would be slower in green and Reggie laughed and said "Slower than I am at 42 years old?" He was asked if he had any problems with KG, Ray Allen or Pierce and he said no, he didn't have any problems with them. He lit them all up. He said he even lit up Danny and Doc. He said his role will be to space the floor and hit the open shot and the focus would be on the big 3.
Patrick asked him how close KG lived and he said about a mile and that he had talked to KG. He said the only reason he would come back would be to win a ring. Someone was at Reggie's gate and they joked around that maybe it was KG and then they ended the interview. It was very light hearted with a lot of joking and laughing.
Then after the break, Reggie had called back and it WAS KG at his gate. At first KG and Reggie were joking about Dan's mustache and his acting. Dan asked KG what number Reggie would wear and he said "any number he wants." Patrick was asking if green would make him look slower and he said no that green makes you look faster and that green is the new white.
Dan asked him what kind of pep talk he could give Reggie to get him to come aboard and KG said he just needed to explain what he was coming in to and the potential they would have. He said it was like stucco and concrete. Stucco is strong and but sometimes there is leaks and concrete is much solider and that is what Reggie would bring to the team. KG said he is in full out "get Reggie" mode. If Ray Allen didn't come to the Celtics KG wouldn't have considered it because he didn't want to be part of a rebuilding program again. He wanted a new start with a veteran team that would give him a chance and this team gives him the best chance. They were both teasing Dan Patrick about his mustache throughout the conversation. Dan told KG that if he passes out to Reggie he wouldn't get the ball back and KG said it was ok because his assists would go through the roof. Reggie said that KG looks to be 7'2" but KG said he is 6'10.5" without shoes and 6'11.5" with his shoes. Patrick said he had it on good authority that KG was 6'14" and KG was sure he got that from Flip. Dan ended the call by telling KG to be gentle with Reggie and that it was up to him to get Reggie a ring since he couldn't get one on his own. To which, Reggie said that was a shot to the ribs.
KG and Reggie sounded like good friends and already like teammates. I have a feeling that Reggie is going to say yes to the Celtics, at least if KG has anything to say about it.
The Herald reports today that Tim Donaghy will plead guilty to betting on games. Pro Basketball News has a good article with interviews from the original Dream team on the USA Olympic team.
Celtics Blog gives us 5 reasons to kool it on the koolaid. I don't think I can back off of the koolaid. I am one who was still thinking postive in the Pitino years. I just love this team so much that I always expect them to do well. Of course, I have been disappointed a lot in the past 21 years but I have always been excited going into a new season. I see no reason to change now.
Hoopsworld has the Celtics growing from boys to men. I do miss our young players but am very excited about the upcoming season for the Celtics. Celtics 24/7 takes a look at why Doc's leash just got shorter. JB has an article on CelticStuff live about the still mighty pen.
By far, one of the best articles today is in the Hartford Courant on Ray Allen. Ray Allen is one of the classiest guys in the NBA and will be an asset to the community but he talks about some of the incidents that have happened to him that aren't so good. The story about the health club just amazes me. That owner is a real jerk.
The Bradenton Herald has an article about the Big Man's camp that Clifford Ray and Robert Parish run. To think, the coaches that big men from all over the league come to in order to improve their games are the Celtics assistants and who work with our bigs year around. This is pretty exciting. Have I mentioned today that I expect Perk to break out this season?
The NBA has unveiled their new ad campaign that includes the slogan "Where Amazing Happens." Stern is going to have to work some to wipe off the tarnish that the ref scandal has caused.
Today I want to continue with the defensive theme I started yesterday. In a basketball game, two factors determine who wins: how many points you score and how many points the other team scores. The game is becoming a wing oriented game with very few dominant centers in the league. In an era when it's easier to score than to defend, a guy who can stop the other team from scoring is more valuable than someone who can put the ball in the basket. This past season, the Celtics proved that they could put up points, but they couldn't stop the other team from scoring.
Offense may get the ooh's and ahh's from the crowd, but defense is what wins games and ultimately, championships. Defensive minded players who aren't afraid to do the dirty work are at a premium in this league. Good defense doesn't always show up on the stat sheet and so a player has to be unselfish if they commit to playing tough in your face defense. Every team needs at least one lock down perimeter defender on the team as well as a good defender in the paint. The Celtics have 2 great perimeter defenders in Rondo and Tony Allen. We also may have another in Brandon Wallace, who showed that he is a very good defensive player capable of guarding the bigger 3's. Perk has proved that he can be a defensive factor in the paint. Powe has shown that he is also a good defender in the paint and Big Baby may be a good defender as well as he showed flashes of very good defense in Summer League. Last but not least, we now have one of the best inside defenders in the game in Kevin Garnett.
But, even with good individual defenders, there has to be good team defense and that has to come from the coach. The Mavericks didn't make it to the top tier of teams until Avery Johnson took over and made them a defensive minded team. Detroit won its championships with defense. San Antonio is known for its defense and won it's championships by concentrating on good team defense.
The Celtics have great offensive players in Pierce, Garnett and Ray Allen and we have shooters coming off the bench in Eddie House and possibly Reggie Miller. Defense has been one of our biggest weaknesses in the past and in spite of the big three and a great offense, how the defense develops is going to be what determines how far this team goes. There have been some good signs that this season our defensive fortunes may turn around.
‘‘I’m focusing on my defense, being able to guard all three positions. The stuff I think about is if I have to go to shooting guard and defend and take pressure off Ray [Allen]. I don’t need that much extra weight. I just want the footwork and quickness to guard shooting guards.’’
Pierce has committed to getting his weight down to 230, where he was in college. He has also committed to working on his defense. One of the concerns I have seen from fans is Pierce's ability to defend and with this renewed commitment to defense, I think that will answer these concerns.
Second, Doc is planning to focus on defense this season. In the past he has said that he worked on offense in practice and figured that the defense would come along since half the team is playing defense when they practice the offensive sets. He seems to have done a 180 on this. From the MetroWest Daily:
Doc Rivers has an answer to critics who say that his teams in Boston have been indifferent to the concept of defense since he arrived three years ago. He's taking over. After guiding the offensive play his first three seasons, while top assistant Tony Brown oversaw the defense, Rivers revealed he will be the main person handling the defensive scheme now that Brown has left the Celtics for an assistant's job with the Bucks. "Right now it's with me and I don't mind that," the coach said after watching his team play a second straight spirited defensive game in the summer league on Monday. "My first year as a coach (in Orlando), when I won Coach of the Year, I didn't let anybody but me deal with defense. Since then I've tried to focus on offense and have always hired a defensive coach. It's been Tony here. "Offensively, we've run the same system and we know that now," he continued, "so I am going to give that to one of the other coaches. I will have (summer league coach) Armond (Hill) run the offense this year and I will take over the defense, along with whomever I hire (as another assistant). That will be my focus."
For the first time since he came, I believe that Doc is ready to focus on defense. Another key is the assistant that Doc hired, Tom Thibodeau. Thibodeau has coached in the league for 17 years and of those 17 years, his teams have finished among the top 10 in fewest points allowed 14 times. That is impressive. In his last position as an assistant in Houston, Thibodeau guided the Rockets to a top five ranking in the NBA in both opponents’ scoring defense and field goal percentage in each of the past four seasons. Between Doc's commitment to defense and Thibodeau's excellent record coaching defense, we should have a very good team defense this season.
Finally, our defense will be greatly improved with the addition of Kevin Garnett. KG is one of the top defenders in the league who can block shots and rebound along with intimidating players in the paint. Perk and KG will be a formidable team to greet opposing players when they venture to the basket.
I love that movie "The Air Up There" with Kevin Bacon. My favorite line in the movie is where he is teaching the natives to play ball and he tells them that "defense is more important than breathing." While I wouldn't go quite that far, I would say that defense will determine the success or failure of this team in winning a championship.
The Celtics have announced their preseason schedule. The eight game schedule includes 2 games in Europe, one against the Raptors and one against the Timberwolves. They will return to the US and play 6 more games before the season begins.
The preseason schedule is as follows: Oct. 6 Raptors Pala Lottomatica (Rome, Italy) 2:30 PM ET Oct. 10 Timberwolves London 2:30 PM ET Oct. 17 Knicks TD Banknorth Garden (Boston, MA) 7:30 PM ET Oct. 19 Nets DCU Center (Worcester, MA) 7:30 PM ET Oct. 20 76ers Mohegan Sun Arena (Uncasville, CT) 7:30 PM ET Oct. 22 at Knicks 7:30 PM ET Oct. 23 at Nets 7:30 PM ET Oct. 26 Cavaliers TD Banknorth Garden (Boston, MA) 7:30 PM ET
I included this in the Fiddlin' and Diddlin' section, but the more I thought about it, the more I thought is needed to be in a separate post. In the Herald's report on Pierce's interview, Pierce singles out Perk for some praise.
“This is going to make Perk (Kendrick Perkins [stats]) a better player, too. But I thought he was starting to show his improvement late in the year. His fouls were down, and that’s him really starting to understand the NBA game in his fourth year.”
I have been on the Kendrick Perkins bandwagon since we got him and have been telling anyone who would listen that this kid is going to break out this season.
Perk got off to a slow start because he was still rehabbing from that shoulder injury in the beginning of the season. Then he was hampered by the plantar fasciitis for much of the season. A lot of people forgot about the fact that he was playing in pain because he was out there every game giving his all and never complained about it. You have to love that in a player. He is as tough as they come.
As Pierce notes, he showed a lot of improvement late in the year because his foot was starting to heal and he could move without being in excruciating pain. He was fouling less and playing some great defense in the paint. Perk never got to work with Clifford Ray in the offseason last year because of the shoulder injury but will have this entire summer to work with him along with Tom Thibodeau who is responsible for Yao Ming's emergence. I love that Pierce is giving Perk some love because he is going to surprise a lot of people this year. Better jump on the bandwagon now because it is going to get very crowded by the end of the season. Just remember - I was there first.
In the Herald, Mark Murphy goes one on one with Paul Pierce. He sounds almost giddy. My favorite quote is where he gives Perk some love:
“This is going to make Perk (Kendrick Perkins [stats]) a better player, too. But I thought he was starting to show his improvement late in the year. His fouls were down, and that’s him really starting to understand the NBA game in his fourth year.”
The Herald also had articles on Pierce's charity game, US Training camp and Pat Riley's decision to coach the Heat for 3 more years. The Globe also has an interview with Pierce. He is coming to camp at his college playing weight and focusing on defense. He is also back in Boston already hoping to work out with RA and KG before the season. This has to make any Celtics fan excited for the season to start. I know I am.
The old adage that Offense sells tickets but defense wins championships is very true. Everyone wants to see the high flying dunks and the run and gun offense because it is exciting. But it takes tough defense if you are going to win a championship.
I remember the Pistons/Spurs series from a couple of years back where both teams played very tough defense and we were seeing final scores in the 60's and 70's and everyone was saying what a boring series it was. I really enjoyed those games because I love defense and when it is played the right way, is absolutely exciting. I mean, it is the equivalent of a no hitter in baseball.
A couple of seasons ago, the league adopted a dramatic shift in how it interpreted the rules of the game. The new rules no longer allow for a defensive player on the perimeter to use his hand, arm, or any sort of physical contact to impede or block the movement of a player who is cutting or handling the ball. Gone are the defensive battles like we used to see in the old days of Dumars guarding Jordan or the battles between DJ and Magic.
The new rules give an advantage to the quicker wing players. Because of this, Danny's decision to move toward a fast break team makes a lot of sense. It is no surprise that the quicker wings last season, Lebron, Vince Carter, Gilbert Arenas, and Dwayne Wade were a lot more prominent in their team's offense and why they went to the line a lot more. These quicker wing players have a distinct advantage in that defenses have to give them leeway under the new rules.
Pierce's comments in Shira's article in the Globe will bode well for this new style of play.
If all goes as planned, Pierce will start the season at close to his college playing weight of 230 pounds in an effort to improve his quickness and ability to guard players at different positions.
‘‘The last couple years, I played at 240, 245, but I think I’m going to go back down to my college weight and play at 230,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m at, like, 238 now. Playing at 240 or 245 is not bad, but I want to come in lighter and faster.
‘‘I’m focusing on my defense, being able to guard all three positions. The stuff I think about is if I have to go to shooting guard and defend and take pressure off Ray [Allen]. I don’t need that much extra weight. I just want the footwork and quickness to guard shooting guards.’’
Pierce is focusing on defense and planning to come in lighter so as to be quicker. This should make him much more effective in the new wing oriented defenses that the league have insituted.
In the 2006 playoffs, it was very evident that the way the game is being officiated made a difference in the outcome. Wade drove to the basket time after time and was able to draw touch fouls each time and if he couldn't finish, he went to the line. There was nothing Dallas could do to stop him and when they tried, they put him on the line. Last year, Parker and Ginobili both benefitted from the new rules.
While the new rules have changed the way defense is played on the perimeter, defense under the basket is still played the same way. Centers and bigs can still be physical under the basket. If we can funnel the offenses toward the center, we will have Perk and KG there to greet them. We have players who can be physical in the paint and who will block shots and alter plays by their size and willingness to play tough physical basketball.
The new rules do seem to benefit the Celtics as they are currently built. We have some quick wing players and a point guard who can quickly bring the ball up the court and other teams will be unable to employ the hand check or physical defense that players could previously. Rondo's defense is made for this type of play as well. He is so quick and has such quick hands that he easily can strip a ball without touching the opposing player.
The bottom line is that defense as we once knew it is no more. We will see teams struggling to run more as that gives them an advantage on the wing. The Celtics seem well suited to playing under the new rules with quick wing players, a very fast point guard, and tough physical players in the paint. We will run more and get past defenses on the perimeter and use our shooters on the wings to open up things inside for our bigs.
With the advantage going to the offensive player in the open court, we need to play a team defense and that is where Tom Thibodeau comes in. Every team that he has worked with has been at the top of the league defensively. Doc also seems committed to defense this season which is why he pushed for Thibodeau to come in as an assistant. With Pierce committing himself to playing defense and Tom Thibodeau and Clifford Ray working with our bigs on defense along with Doc's recent committment to defense, we should see very good things from this team. Offense may put bodies in the seats, and we should have plenty of firepower on this team, but it is the defense that will put #17 in the rafters.
Well, I guess the honeymoon is over. After the KG trade, there were so many links I could hardly get them all and it was taking 4 hours or more to get them all. Today there was nothing in any of the Boston papers this morning about the Celtics. Thank goodness for the blogs. I also plan to continue to follow Big Al and the former Celtics because I still think of them as Celtics and I want to watch their careers to see what we have given up because until they develop or fail to, we can't really judge this trade.
NBA.com has posted the schedule for the preseason in Europe. According to what is posted, the Celtics have only 2 games: October 6 against the Raptors in Rome and October 10 against the Timberwolves in London. It doesn't come as much of a surprise that that one is sold out. The TV schedule indicates that the training camp October 1-5 is going to be televised. I imagine that the games will be as well. But it is puzzling that we only have 2 games. Is that all of the preseason? We usually have at least 6 games in the preseason. It will put us at a disadvantage going into the regular season if we only play 2 preseason games since we will be searching for chemistry and putting an entire new cast of players together. Hopefully we will play a few more when we get back from Europe.
Green Bandwagon has the 5 Stages of Rondo Fandom. I love it, although I have been on the Rondo bandwagon since the first time I saw him play. Here is step 5... I love the part about the car and I get giddy every time I hear the commercial: Experience Giddyupidness....
Acceptance - Rajon Rondo is the starting point guard for the Boston Celtics. And yes he cannot shoot. I admit it. Rondo cannot shoot. Thank you John Hollinger, Kelly Dwyer, Marc Stein, Ric Bucher, Bill Simmons and everybody else who has made that point. I got it. At the same time how many people actually watched Rondo play during his rookie season? Last time I checked the C's did not play on national television once. And the by the time Rondo got consistent burn people had written off Boston, for good reason. Did I imagine Rondo's penchant for steals and ability to stuff a stat sheet? Granted he is not Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Tony Parker or even Sam Cassell. But he's also not Tyron Lue, Smush Parker or what has become of Jason Williams. Maybe Rondo is not as good as Celtics fans think but he is also not as bad as some people believe.
Bonus Point - Rondo has his own freaking car. Although I like to think KIA did not consult him on the whole rainbow motif.
Only 10 Things does some numbers crunching to prove that Rondo's shooting isn't as bad as it is made out to be. TwinCities.com has an interview with Al Jefferson. I love Big Al and really wish he could have stayed with the Celtics. I still have the feeling that we are going to regret trading him away.
Dennis and Callahan have been locked out on WEEI because of contract issues. This could be good or bad depending on whether you really like them or not. From what I have read, the sentiment is about half and half. On SI.com, Chris Mannix answers his mail and there are a lot of questions about the Celtics.
The Celtics are still waiting on Reggie Miller's decision about joining the team. He is reportedly working out twice a day as he tries to decide if he can handle the rigors of the NBA season. Seacoast Online suggests that the Celtics don't need his veteran presence while Clutch 3 feels that if he comes back, it will be in a big way.
20 Second Time Out discusses 10 players who have returned to the NBA after retirement. ABC News talks about the Geriatric Dream Team. Hoopsworld sees Reggie in purple rather than green.
50 days until training camp. Things have slowed down since the Garnett trade and not much else is happening at the moment. When Reggie makes his decision or if Danny makes the move he REALLY needs to make and signs a veteran back up point guard, then there may be another spike in media coverage. Until then, thank goodness for the abundance of Celtics blogs [Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!]
Thinking over some of the elite teams in the NBA over the years, we can point to a dominant big man on most of them. The Lakers of the 80s had Kareem, the Celtics of the 80's had Parish, Pistons of the 80s had Laimbeer, the Rockets had Hakeem and Sampson, the Lakers of the 90s had Shaq and now the Heat have Shaq, the Spurs had Robinson and now Duncan. There does seem to be a trend whereas even fast break teams like today's Heat and the Showtime Lakers had a big man to anchor them in the middle.
Only 10 teams since 1975 have won it all without a Hall Of Fame center and six of those ten were Jordan's Bulls. The 76. Every team has has a strong center though: '74 and '76 Celtics, Cowens; '75 Warriors, Clifford Ray; '77 Blazers, Walton; '78 Bullets, Unseld; '79 Sonics, Sikma; '80,'82,'85,'87,'88 Lakers, Abdul Jabbar; '83 Sixers, Moses Malone; '81,'84 Celtics, Parish, '86 Celtics, Parish and Walton; '89 and '90 Pistons, Laimbeer; '91,'92,'93 Bulls Cartwright and Purdue; '94, '95 Rockets, Hakeem; '96,'97,'98 Bulls, Longly and Wennington; '99 Spurs, Robinson and Duncan; '00,'01,'02 Lakers, Shaq; '03,'05,'07, Duncan; '04 Pistons, Wallace; and '06 Heat, Shaq. In every case except the Bulls teams, the team had a very strong and dominant center.
It is no secret that the center position is one of the hardest to fill. It is also one of the most crucial spots to fill. Where do the Celtics stand as far as their big men? Do we have a center who has the ability to dominate in the middle? I believe we do.
Perk is entering his 5th year now. Coming directly from high school, it was expected that he would take longer to develop than if we had brought in a player with college experience. His first year can't be considered to be any experience at all. He played in only 10 games and averaged a paltry 3.5 minutes per game. But during that year, he worked very, very hard on getting his body into NBA shape and he has become a strong and muscular center that no one (not even Shaq) can push around. Since we we didn't see much of him in his first year, no one really knew what we had in Perk. Below are two pictures, taken over two years apart, one from a December 13, 2003 game against the Minnesota Timberwolves (left), and the second from a November 25, 2005 game against the Charlotte Bobcats. He is striking almost identical poses in the photographs with his hands on his hips and his elbows flared as he prepares to take a free throw. These pictures show the big difference in Perk as he worked very hard to remake his body from High School shape to NBA ready. And keep in mind that he had already started working out and had come aways already before the first picture was taken.
After his lost first year, he didn't fare much better in the second year. He played in only 60 games and averaged a shade over 9 minutes per game. By this time, the fans had begun to see what Perk could really do and on just about every board and blog you could read posts asking why Perk wasn't getting more time because he was producing when he was in the game. He still had a propensity to foul more than he should have, but he was rebounding and playing hard and was capable of changing the game by shutting down the middle. But still, he sat way more than he played. In December, Raef was out with an ankle injury and Perk got a chance to finally play some real minutes. He played a career high 25 minutes and showed what he is capable of by controlling the rebounds on both ends of the court and finished with 13 total. When he got the playing time, he produced, but for some reason, he was still kept on the bench most of the time.
The next year started out with much of the same. He racked up several DNP's and played sparing minutes behind Raef and Blount. After the trade that sent Blount to Minnesota, Perk was moved into the starting lineup and he produced. He had 25 games that season where he got close to a starter's minutes of 24 mpg or more. In those games he averaged 9.1 ppg on 54% shooting, 8.5 rpg, 2.2 bpg and 1.2 apg. Keep in mind that he did this with very little playing time previous to this. With regular playing time, he can easily be a double double player night in and night out.
At the end of that season, he injured his shoulder and had shoulder surgery in the off season. Because of this, he didn't get to work with Clifford Ray last summer like Al Jefferson did. We saw the difference Ray made in Al's game but Perk couldn't work out until almost training camp. Then, during the season, he developed plantar fasciitis. In spite of being in excruciating pain most of the time, Perk only sat out 10 games and played hurt most of the season because he was needed by the team. But the injury slowed him down and once again, we weren't able to see what Perk is truly capable of. Toward the end of the season, he started to feel better and we saw some solid play and got a hint of what we can expect from him.
One of the knocks on Perk is that he has a tendency to foul. Here is a quote from Dave Cowens' bio:
"One of the things Cowens did too much in his rookie year with the Celtics was foul other players; he committed a league-high 350 infractions. (He would foul out of 90 games by the end of his career, a total that ranks among the top 20 of all time.)"
Referees don't give young centers much respect and they don't get the foul calls that veterans do. Last season, Perk didn't get called for fouls near as much as he did in the previous seasons. If Dave Cowens could dominate in the league and get called for a large number of fouls, so can Perk. Fouling a lot also comes from their strong desire to win and going all out on the court to prevent the other team from scoring. With 4 seasons under his belt, Perk will start to get some of those calls that have previously gone against him. Also, having the offseason to work with Clifford Ray for the first time as well as getting to work with Tom Thibodeau, who is responsible for Yao Ming's development, I expect Perk to be much less foul prone.
Perk is a tough player in the mold of the centers of years ago. He is an intimidator. His motto is "No layups" and he does a good job of enforcing it. Even against Shaq, he is able to hold his own under the basket. Perk has one of the best work ethics in the league. He took 2 days off at the end of the season and then was back in the gym working hard on his game. He has been in Boston all summer working out and working on his game. I am sure that with Al gone, Clifford Ray can concentrate on working with Perk and I am execting this work to pay big dividends this season.
Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett may be the big three that everyone is talking about. We now have 3 all stars who will lead the team and get most of the media attention, but in my opinion, Perk is one of the keys to our making the playoffs and to the Celtics becoming a contender for the title once again. As history has shown, we need a dominant center to win a championship and I believe we have one. "No Layups."
The Gerbil News Network has broken the news of a new Celtics acquisition. If this doesn't give you a smile, I don't know what will.
Celtics assistant Armond Hill is in the news. First, there is a story about his speaking engagement and then there is an article with his thoughts on Doc and the players. Scott Souza discusses the Celtics Summer of Rebirth. Both the Globe and the Herald have articles covering a number of subjects including the Nets, brain typing, Green's dad's reaction to the trade, House's ability to play the point, O'Neal, Reggie and more.
Taking it to the Rack feels that we should try to get Tyrone Lue. He is KGs best friend and talked him into coming here and would fit one of our needs. Orlando Sentinel conjectures that the Celtics will pay later for the wins they get now. Club Celtics feels that Ainge is building a decent bench even though he has very little to work with.
Finally, don't miss Celtics Stuff Live tonight from 7-9 with their guest Kevin Henkin from BSMW. These guys are always great and you are really missing out if you aren't listening!!
Yesterday, I talked about the coaching question from the viewpoint of Doc's critics and his negatives. But in fairness, there is another side of the argument and Doc does have his supporters. As I was reading through message boards and blog posts, it seems that Celtics fans and writers are just about equally divided as to Doc's capabilities, with a slight edge going to those against Doc.
In the Globe, Doc had this to day about his situation compared to that of Greg Popovich.
Rivers has endured a lot of criticism this year, even before a wave of injuries decimated his team. Rivers said he takes the criticism in stride and evoked the name of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "I know [that] I know what I'm doing," said Rivers, who has a 101-142 record in three seasons with the Celtics. "You just wait for the day when you have the tools to prove that. I was laughing with someone the other day. I said, 'How did Gregg Popovich get Tim Duncan?' They had a terrible record and he was the coach. Could he coach that year or did he become a better coach all of a sudden?"
What he said has some merit. In the 1996-1997 season, Popovich coached 64 games for the Spurs and finished with 17 wins and 47 losses. The next season, after drafting Tim Duncan, the Spurs improved to 56 wins. Who knows, if those lottery balls had bounced differently, it would be Rick Pitino who would be coaching the Celtics to championships while Pop was an assistant somewhere. Talented players can make a coach look very good and mask a lot of weaknesses.
Another coach to look at would be Sam Mitchell. A year ago, Sam Mitchell was widely regarded as a lame duck coach, just a guy biding his time until Bryan Colangelo found his real head coach. Mitchell had combined for a paltry 60-104 record in his first two seasons. But then, in his third season, he surprised a lot of people by making the Raptors into a legitimate playoff team, leading them to a 47-35 record and an Atlantic Division title. Suddenly, he was a top coach in the league. Could Doc have a turn around like Mitchell? It is safe to say that just the personnel changes will account for at least a 45 win season, even without a coach. The key will be to manage the stars minutes so as not to wear them out before the playoffs, and to manage the bench to fill in around the 3 stars. Also a strong team defense will be crucial, but with Tom Thibodeau here, that should be taken care of. He has done it everywhere else and should be able to do it here. It will be to Doc's credit if he allows Thibodeau to run the defense since he specializes in that area.
Regarding Doc Rivers, Ryan has long been on the bandwagon. He states, Before the sixth game of the 1988 Hawks-Celtics playoff series, I went over to Doc (then a guard with Atlanta) and told him that he was one of the best guys I ever covered. I love Doc.
So, is being a former NBA player essential to being a successful NBA head coach? Ryan answers, You have to have credibility. Look at (Spurs coach) Gregg Popovich. He was in the military and that helps, but he never would have won without Tim Duncan. Popovich would have been an itinerant assistant sitting on the end of a bench.
Once again, the fact is mentioned that Popovich having Duncan to coach has made him a better coach. Having a veteran team will automatically make Doc look much better.
In the Eagle Tribune yesterday, Armand Hill, one of Doc's assistants had this to say about Doc.
"He is one of the smartest people I've ever met when it comes to basketball. He sees a play before it happens. Nobody can break down a play on the chalk board like he can. Not only that, but he always has a counter. He is always one step ahead. I can't tell you how much I've learned from him."
He obviously has the support of his assistants who feel that he is very capable. Many of the errors he has made in the games (like failing to foul when down 3 with just seconds to go in the game and one of the top 3 point shooters in the league on the other team) just seem so basic that I can't explain why he would make them but maybe I am missing something behind the scenes. I am willing to put all of the past mistakes behind to give him a chance with to show that he can coach with this team.
Dickerson: Doc Rivers can coach. He's a very good coach. But it hasn't shown up on the court because you have 21-22 year olds who don't always execute his game plan. It's different now. Tommy: Yeah it is. I think all the people who were rapping Doc last year, you gotta look and see what he did in developing all these young players to the point that we were able to enhance the value of the entire team.
Dickerson: And that team never quit on him once the entire season, even during that 18 game losing streak. Tommy: Absolutely. They just didn't have enough experience. I mean we got 5 guys. I mean we had Allan Ray having to score 20 points. He was the 15th guy on the roster at one point and he had to be the go to guy. Come on. I mean and they were still in the games. I think he did a great job. He created the value that made these guys tradable so they could end up with the 2 guys they did.
Yes, Al Jefferson was the centerpiece of the trade for KG and yes, Doc helped to develop him, but I would put more of the credit on Clifford Ray, who is the big man coach and who actually worked with Big Al on his moves, defense, footwork, etc. But yes, Doc did work with all of these players to help develop their value as players.
There were extenuating circumstances that hindered the team in each of the seasons that Doc coached. The most obvious is that we had a very young team with a core of players that jumped directly from high school to the NBA. These players needed to be taught much of the NBA game and it has taken time for them to develop. Secondly, the team has been decimated by injuries for two years in a row. Last season we lost a staggering 312 player games to injury. Combine youth and injuries and it would have been hard for any coach to win. This is from the Patriot Ledger:
In Boston, he was dealt a near death sentence by Director of Operations Danny Ainge, who came up with lots of youngsters and never did convert them into experienced assets - players who knew how to play the game. Rivers was left to spend 90 percent of his time teaching the game to kids who didn’t have a clue. This year it was Gerald Green, Allan Ray, Leon Powe, Sebastian Telfair and Rajon Rondo. He was forced to throw them into the mix while emerging players Al Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins, Delonte West and Ryan Gomes perhaps had their growth slowed because of the excess youth.
Every one of the experienced players Rivers was counting on eventually came up lame. The coach finished the season without Paul Pierce, Tony Allen, Wally Szczerbiak, Brian Scalabrine, Michael Olowokandi and Theo Ratliff. They lost 40 points alone when Pierce and Szczerbiak went out. He was handcuffed when Jefferson, Gomes and Perkins were hurt, and when they returned, there was little hope for solidifying.
Rotations? What rotations? Rivers was criticized for not establishing a solid rotation, for using 25 starting lineups. How could that happen with his players going down left and right? On the other hand, he had the guts to sit Telfair, who was a disaster. Telfair came to Boston pegged as a can’t-miss point guard, yet Rivers stuck to his principles and sat him in favor of the emerging Rondo. The coach never compromised himself by easing up on the youngsters. ‘‘Doc is a good coach,’’ Ainge said last night. ‘‘Doc did a good job, in my opinion, and that’s why we’d like to keep him coaching this team and give him a real opportunity and chance to coach. That doesn’t mean that he’s perfect, but I think he did a very good job coaching this team.’’
Danny has shown unwavering faith in Doc and Doc has followed the company line all the way. He has takent the criticism and never once gave up even when faced with tremendous odds. Doc is very confident in himself. From the Herald article:
He is a man very confident in his abilities. Some would call him cocky. When he looks you in the eye more than once and says, “Every time I’ve had a decent team, we’ve won,” he appears more than willing to put himself on the line. There should be more room for Rivers to operate, too, although that can be a double-edged sword. He can win more now, but he has to. He has this year and, after signing a one-year extension, another left on his deal - and the buyout for the latter is more than you’ve heard. But time is clearly of the essence with a nucleus of 30-somethings. If the Celtics lack cohesion a fair distance into the season, the club will likely not hesitate to change the staff. There is too much money invested in the three All-Stars to worry about coaching dough.
But Rivers believes in himself.
“I feel like I have a shot,” he said. “We feel like we have a shot, and that’s all you want. You want an opportunity. You want a chance to show up at the arena and feel that no matter what they put out on the floor that you have a chance to beat that - and without tricking the game up or anything else.”
Seated at the table Tuesday were Pierce, Allen and the newest Celtic, Garnett. With that triumvirate, Rivers has already become a better coach.
"Well, I become smarter, there's no doubt about that," he said afterward. "We'll draw up the same play that we drew up (before), but it will probably have a better chance of working, even if it's a bad play."
With the improved roster and with the addition of Tom Thibodeau as an assistant, we should have a shot at improving exponentially. If we don't, as the Herald article said, the owners won't think twice of making a coaching change. With Tom Thibodeau considered by many to be the assistant most likely to land a head coaching job, the ownership may have just lined up some assurance of continuity should Doc stumble and out of the gates this season. But Doc feels very confident that he can do the job and maybe, with the best roster he has had in his coaching career, he just may prove his doubters wrong.
When the conversation turned less serious, it was suggested that any abuse he takes is because he’s a bad coach. “That’s right,” he said with a laugh. “I get booed because I suck. But other than that, no.
After all he has been through with this team and all the abuse he has taken for his coaching, he can still laugh and that is a quality that may be his biggest strength in this league.
