Blow Up The Celtics

Last year at the trading deadline, GM Danny Ainge made a controversial move in trading Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic. This trade was intended to help the Celtics for both the future and the present, yet it backfired horribly. Point guard Rajon Rondo went into a deep mental funk that he could not escape from, and the Celtics appeared to have lost their heart.

This offseason, Ainge attempted to make a major move for the Celtics, in his efforts to deal Rondo in a package deal for Chris Paul. This inevitably did not happen, and it was discovered that the rest of the NBA regards Rondo as some sort of head case, someone who, despite his obvious talent, will never reach his potential as a player. As such, the Celtics were stuck with an emotionally fragile Rondo, which may have ended up as an unmitigated disaster on all sides.

Ironically, Rondo is the one of the two players on the Celtics, along with Greg Stiemsma, who appear to care about this season. Kevin Garnett has emotionally and mentally checked out on this year, knowing that he is in the final year of his contract and is not coming back. Ray Allen just does not have the same quickness any longer, and would be better off as a bench scorer at this point in his career. Paul Pierce has been injured off and on all season, and just does not look the same. The Celtics have an aging roster, which does not bode well for playing 66 games in 120 days, especially when younger, more athletic teams will have the advantage with this type of schedule.

So, what should the Celtics do at this point? Presently, they sit at 5-9 in a weak Eastern Conference. With the talent on their roster, they should be able to make the playoffs, where the theory is that they would turn on the competitive juices. Yet, the Celtics have yet to defeat a good opponent, their victories coming against the Detroit, Washington twice, New Jersey, and Toronto. Not exactly the best teams the NBA has to offer.

Given the present mindset of future free agents, where they want to play in cities like New York, LA, or Dallas for endorsements and/or marketability, the Celtics would seem to be on the outside when it comes to signing marquee players. As such, the Celtics need to make trades to acquire players for the long term. Given the value of the expiring contract, the Celtics actually have two trade pieces in both Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. Both veterans would help a contending team that would be able to put talent around them. Garnett needs a change of scenery as of yesterday. Suppose, hypothetically, he ends up with the Clippers. Being matched up with Blake Griffin and Chris Paul would reignite the spark for him, as he would see the possibility of getting a second championship. Or picture Ray Allen on a team like the Bulls, where he would be an upgrade over Kyle Korver. Both teams mentioned have pieces that would allow the Celtics to build for the future, and possibly even make a run at this year’s playoffs.

At any rate, the Celtics need to make some moves, and they need to make them now. Find a couple of pieces that, with Rajon Rondo, they can form a legitimate nucleus for long-term success. Otherwise, they will find themselves perpetually stuck in mediocrity, which is the worst place to be in the NBA.

The Value Of A Point Guard

With the Celtics rumored to be open to moving Rajon Rondo, there has been some speculation as to why they would be willing to move such an up and coming star, especially when the Big Three are on their last ride. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are both in the final year of their contracts, and will not be returning unless they accept a lot less than they are currently making. Paul Pierce is a free agent in a couple of seasons, and exactly how much will he have left by that point? All signs point to Rondo being the guy that the Celtics try to build their future around.

But what value does a superstar point guard actually have? Over the past thirty years, only Isaiah Thomas and Magic Johnson have won championships while falling under the superstar classification. More often than not, the point guard is nothing more than a veteran presence who knows how to distribute the basketball, can hit the occasional shot, and can sink free throws. The point guard does not really need to be a scoring threat – just someone that knows how to play the game fundamentally well.

The point guard position, at least over the past thirty years, has thusly been grotesquely overvalued. Look at players like Deron Williams, Derrick Rose, and Chris Paul, or even John Stockton. What exactly have they won, aside from individual accolades? Meanwhile, such luminaries as a past his prime Jason Kidd, Derek Fisher, and Ron Harper have all won championships.

In fact, Tony Parker is the third best point guard to win over the last thirty years. However, he fits the concept of what winning teams need the point guard to do in terms of his passing ability, ability to hit free throws, and knowledge of the game. A ‘name’ point guard tries to take over. A solid point guard that plays the position correctly moves the ball to the best options, and puts the team in position to win. Rarely does a superstar point guard have the awareness to do just that; but when they do, you get an Isaiah Thomas or a Magic Johnson.

Trading Rajon Rondo to bring in another scoring option makes sense. Meanwhile, the Celtics will be able to replace him with a smart, court savvy veteran who will do what the superstar point guards cannot do – help a team win a championship.

Doc Rivers' Curious Crunch Time Rotation

Prior to the trade deadline, the crunch time rotation for the Boston Celtics had been Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Glen 'Big Baby' Davis. Davis was on the court at that time mainly because the starting center, Kendrick Perkins, is an offensive liability. While a solid defender, Perkins is painful to watch on the offensive end.

Then came the trade of Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green. Green was thought to be the centerpiece of this trade, as he is capable of playing small forward and power forward, thus providing a legitimate scorer off the bench that could help to keep Pierce and Garnett fresh for the playoffs. Also, Green's offensive capabilities (he was averaging approximately 15 points per game at the time of the trade), would theoretically provide them with another scorer in games where they were down by two or three points late.

However, this has not proven to be the case. Doc Rivers has continued to use the same rotation as he has in close and late situations as he had previously. Wednesday night, down by three to the Memphis Grizzlies, Glen Davis is on the court while Green is on the bench. To make matters worse, Davis launched a three pointer that, predictably, missed. While Green may not have made that shot, he would have been a better option. Yes, Green did finally get on the floor at the end of that game - albeit with four seconds left. Sort of pointless at that juncture.

Last night, against the Charlotte Bobcats, the same situation appears to be coming. The game is close, there is under three minutes remaining, and the typical grouping is on the floor. Then, with roughly 2:30 left in the game, Davis fouled out. This would seemingly provide Rivers with the perfect opportunity to put in Jeff Green for his scoring ability. Yet, Nenad Krstic enters the game instead. Green did finally get into the game, with thirty seconds left to go. While not a great time to bring him in, it was a marked improvement over the four second mark from the previous game.

While Krstic is not a bad player, his entering the game at that point, and the continual usage of Davis in these situations, makes the trade that much more curious. The Celtics, as they had been constructed, were the clear cut favorites in the Eastern Conference. They were playing with swagger. They were confident, to the point of being thoroughly bored with the regular season. Yes, there were injury concerns at the center position with Kendrick's knee, Shaq being old, and Jermaine O'Neil being fat and useless, so getting Krstic was not a bad move. The part that makes it look worse was the secondary trade of Luke Harangody and Semih Erden to the Cavaliers for a 2013 second round draft choice. Both of those players, while very raw and not great defensively, provided viable backups at center. Their roster spots were then filled by Carlos Arroyo, a decent point guard, and Troy Murphy, who has done the best impersonation of a corpse this side of Weekend at Bernie's.

So what was the point of acquiring Jeff Green? Is he that far behind in the playbook and knowing the defensive rotations where he is chained to the bench while Glen Davis plays late in games? In the limited time Green has played, he has managed 10.8 points for the Celtics in roughly 20 minutes per game, so he hasn't been terrible. Is Doc Rivers just playing around, knowing that the regular season just doesn't matter in the NBA, especially for his team?

Jeff Green is a much better option on the court than Glen Davis is when the Celtics are down by a basket in a late game situation. Now they just need Doc Rivers to realize that.

Man up LeBron James

For the third time in as many meetings, the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat yesterday. Despite a game where Paul Pierce scored only one point and missed all of his field goal attempts, the Celtics managed to find a way to win. This follows a pattern that has come into play since the trio of Pierce, Allen, and Garnett were put together three years ago, where, despite the situation, they fight and claw to the last moment.

Meanwhile, Miami does not have the same killer, or championship, mentality that the Celtics have. With an opportunity to tie the game, LeBron missed his first free throw. As soon as the pressure was off, he promptly sank the second shot. Granted, it is just one free throw attempt, but this is a microcosm of what LeBron has become. At this point, he looks for excuses as to why the losses happen, instead of taking charge and trying to will his teams to victory.

From the moment LeBron and Chris Bosh signed in Miami, they were anointed as the NBA Champions, even though a game had yet to be played. They staged a 'meeting' with the players, where they came out on a smoke filled stage and preened for the adoring crowds. They expected that all they would have to do would be to show up, and they would win not just one championship, but the multiples that LeBron promised. Well, it's not so easy when other teams stand up.

Thus far, LeBron has claimed that Miami "doesn't have the chemistry that the Celtics have."  When the Big Three in Boston first came together, they won 29 of their first 32 games. They deferred to each other. They worked hard at all aspects of the game. They would not back down to anyone. LeBron and the Heat? It's just excuse after excuse as they try to disguise how mentally soft they really are.

After the game, Dwayne Wade attempted to compare the Heat's struggles against the Celtics to how Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls had issues with the Detroit Pistons in the late 1980's. There are, however, several major differences. First, Jordan had nowhere near the supporting cast that LeBron has in Miami. Scottie Pippen was a good player, but he was not in the class of a Dwayne Wade. Those Bulls teams never had a player the caliber of Chris Bosh. They had solid players supporting an all time great, not three perennial All-Stars.

Second, Jordan refused to let up. He would win, or he would go to the last second trying to get that victory. Nothing mattered more to him than to win at everything he tried. With LeBron, it's about image. It's about his brand. It's about having fun. Then maybe basketball factors in after those three things.

Third, Jordan loved the pressure. He created some of the most memorable moments in NBA history during the playoffs. LeBron, meanwhile, shrinks from the pressure. He passes up shots. He commits turnovers he normally wouldn't make. The shots he does take, he misses more than he hits. LeBron simply does not have the mental fortitude required to be the leader of a championship team.

As such, it is time for LeBron James to man up. He needs to realize that nothing is being handed to him in Miami, and that he needs to work at getting championships. Otherwise, his legacy is going to be about unfulfilled potential and all the excuses made for him.

Ray Allen's Fraudulent Record

Last night, Ray Allen passed Reggie Miller's mark for most three point shots hit in a career, with 2561. Over his illustrious career, Allen has been a remarkable shooter. From pure aesthetics and touch, there have been few equals. For his fifteen year career, he has hit on roughly 40% of his three point attempts, 89% of his free throws, and 45% of his shots in general.

Of the shots taken by Allen over his career thus far, roughly 38% of them have come from beyond the three point arc. This is a player who, despite his obvious skills shooting the ball, has made his livelihood from over twenty feet from the rim. Breaking down his three point attempts per game, Allen averages just a shade under six (5.98) three point attempts per.

Now, he obviously has done his part to reach this record, by not only attempting the second most three point shots in NBA history, but also by hitting at a prodigious rate. His 39.8% success rate ranks 38th all time amongst those with a minimum of 250 three pointers attempted. However, there is a major flaw with this 'record' - namely that the three point shot didn't even exist in the NBA until the 1979-80 season.

For the first few years, the three point shot was not a major staple of a team's offense. From 1979-80 until 1986-87, the most three pointers attempted in a season was 257 by Darrell Griffith in 1984-85. In fact, he also had the second most attempts during that era as well, with 252 the previous season. However, in the late 1980's and the early part of the 1990's, teams began to use the shot with more frequency, leading to a time now where players are routinely taking 500 or more three pointers over a season. In fact, Allen had taken 653 three pointers during the 2005-06 season alone.

Also, the distance of the three point line has been subject to change. From 1994 until 1997, the line was set to be 22' feet from the basket at every point, as opposed to the 22' feet from the corners and 23'9" that it had been previously at the top of the key. The original dimensions were restored during the 1997-98 season, but several 'records' for three point shots had been established by the line change: George McCloud attempted 678 threes during the 1995-96 season, and Dennis Scott hit 267 threes that year as well. Allen broke Scott's record during his 2005-06 year.

When thinking back on some of the players who were in the NBA prior to the three point shot, it's interesting to think what they would have done had it existed. For example, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Elvin Hayes, and Pete Maravich didn't get to play their entire careers with this shot, and all were excellent shooters. Would the record be the same if they had the three point line back then?

Yes, this is a great feat that Ray Allen has accomplished. But it cannot truly be considered a record without having everyone on the same playing field.