The Official BOSTON CELTICS thread

ozballer23 said:
odds of starbury coming back?
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Not flash I don't think - especially after his looney online 24 hr live tv extravaganza!!! Some prize quotes on the net from that!

TBH it wasn't a raving success anyway, why not take a hunch on Hudson and if it doesn't work out try and sign a cheap vet later on, sure there'll be a few lined up to fed the ball into Perk, Wallace, KG, BBD etc!!!!
I know I've got my hand up!!!:woot::woot::woot:
 
Hudson looked ok in the summer league but looks to be more in the Eddie House scorer vein than dish it out PG. I'm hoping some trade goes down where we get a better back up PG.
 
officially re-signs !
davis-williams-presser500414.jpg


Celtics Re-sign Glen Davis | Celtics.com
 
chadjaja said:
Baby sure looks happy now he is a millionaire. Lets hope he doesn't suffer the dreaded non contract year level of play curse ;-)
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Think he'd end up crying on the bench again if he started to slide!!!

Tell u what - Shelden Williams makes Baby look like a good looking man:lol::lol:
 
Just saw Rondo's playoff stats: Link

PPG 16.9 RPG 9.70 APG 9.8 :eek:

Not a fan of him after the Brad Miller incident but still, a near play-off triple double is just plain scary.
 
FINALLY! Couldn't work out a three way sign and trade to get it done and the Pacers lose out. Ainge at least tried to get it done and move a contract we didn't want as well freeing up space for another FA.

A decent signing for us!

BOSTON, MA - The Boston Celtics announced today that the club has signed free agent guard Marquis Daniels to a contract. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"We feel that Marquis' ability to play multiple positions will add great versatility and athleticism to our team," said Danny Ainge, Celtics President of Basketball Operations.

Daniels spent last season with the Indiana Pacers and averaged a career-high 13.6 points and a career-high 4.6 rebounds per game. The former Auburn Tiger scored 20-or-more points 12 times during the 2008-09 season. Daniels would also post career-highs in points (733), rebounds (248), field goals made (311) and attempted (689). The 6'6, 200lbs guard posted all of these career-highs while appearing in just 54 games (43 starts). During his rookie campaign with Dallas in 2003-04, Daniels was named to the All-Rookie Second Team. Despite playing limited time until March, Daniels impressed over the final 24 games of the season averaging 14.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.50 steals in 30.7 minutes per game. Daniels ranked eighth among rookies in scoring (8.5 ppg) and led all rookies in field goal percentage (.494). Daniels has made three trips to the postseason and has posted career averages of 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in 36 career games. Daniels' best postseason came during his rookie campaign when he averaged 15.8 points in five games.
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LOL not only do the Pacers lose out but so does Daniels! In no way is he only worth $1.9M good to see that he doesnt care about the money and wants to contend for a championship! Im now a fan of the Celtics after his joined...still Dallas is #1 for me but Celt's a close 2nd now!
 
Last season, the Celtics officially replaced the Detroit Pistons as the East's answer to the San Antonio Spurs: The Celtics were a team greater than the sum of its parts, with execution and cohesion allowing them to soldier on with backups and limited players getting big minutes. Then this summer, they even messed with young point guard Rajon Rondo's head by dangling him in trade talks, the same way San Antonio was ready to ship off Tony Parker for Jason Kidd once upon a time. So can the C's replicate the Spurs in the every-other-year title rhythm as well? The No. 1 question, of course, is how much Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, both of whom will have more than 40,000 minutes on their legs by Christmas, have left. If new additions Marquis Daniels and Rasheed Wallace are luxury items off the bench to spell those two, the Celtics are formidable. If Daniels and Wallace have to be staples of the Green diet, well, look to the Spurs' leaning too heavily on newcomers for that answer, too.


Trending up: Rajon Rondo

Last season: 18.82 PER
2009-10 projection: 19.21 PER

Upside versus Upset -- that is the question. Despite his play, the Celtics were discussing trading Rondo after the season because he'd become such a handful in the locker room. It's too early to know whether these are just growing pains or the sign of a more serious problem, but based on his age (23) and performance to date, Rondo appears to have a very bright future.

As his two-way play for one of the league's premier teams gets more recognition, he has a good shot at receiving his first All-Star berth this season -- an honor he should have been accorded last year instead of teammate Ray Allen. Rondo won't compile nightly triple-doubles like he did in the playoffs, but averages of 13 points, nine assists and five boards seem within reach. -- Hollinger


Trending down: Eddie House

Last season: 15.44 PER
2009-10 projection: 13.55 PER

House opted to pick up the final year of his contract at $2.3 million, so he will be the primary backup to Rondo while occasionally swinging to the 2 when Boston goes small. Look for him to pair with Daniels off the bench: Daniels will handle the ball while House spots up on the wing, and the two will trade assignments on defense.

House is unlikely to keep his True Shooting Percentage (TS%) at the lofty heights of a year ago, especially without any layups or free throws to supplement the jump shots. But as long as his 3-point percentage stays around 40, he'll be a valuable contributor with his scoring and floor-spacing ability off the bench. -- Hollinger


Bucher's name to know: Paul Pierce

He has -- or should have -- the most tread left of the Big Three, but he had their same worn-down look in the playoffs, simply unable to summon the necessary energy every game to get the job done. Granted, he played a staggering 44 minutes a game to get the Celtics past the Bulls, and Rondo's role will continue to expand, but at 31 with barely more than 30,000 minutes played, Pierce should've had more in the tank. Could it be that one ring was validation enough, that the hunger which drove him two seasons ago was a greater missing element than KG?

Whatever the case, the Celtics can't win another title without the Pierce of two seasons ago. For all the growth in Rondo's game, nothing Boston did in the offseason changes its dependence on Pierce offensively when a game is on the line. (As opposed to getting Sheed, who should lighten KG's load considerably.) If there's a saving grace, it's that neither Orlando nor Cleveland appreciably upgraded its ability to defend Pierce.

But for all the questions about Garnett's health -- whispers continue that his knee is still not 100 percent -- Pierce is the Celtics' most indispensable element as their go-to guy and most difficult matchup. They will go as he goes. Whether that's a comfort or a curse might not be clear until spring. -- Bucher
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From ESPN.com
 
Well training camp is here.

Good news is.
Former Providence coach Tim Welsh said on CSN that Rondo went to Atlanta and worked with Mark Price on his shooting all summer. Welsh said before Rondo was a bad shooter and now he is an average shooter. Apparently Rondo has corrected the flaw in his shooting form.

Welsh said Rondo worked out every day all summer with Price and that he's keeping his elbow in now. Welsh expects him to take many jumpers in preseason to get his confidence [up].
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Rondo with a jump shot puts him in the top three PG's in the league imo. A walking tripple double as both KG and Sheed don't dominate the paint.

The second unit is getting a lot of praise so far and looks good. A VERY high IQ second unit out there and looks like Sheed is coming of the bench like he should. Perk has earnt the starting C spot on this team.

Hudson signed to a contract and we are one player over the team max so someone.... will be traded or bought out.

Pierce has been vocal and the leader out there not KG.

Baby has leaned up even more, Sweetney is twice the player Baby is LOL

KG will play pre season games.
 
Time to revive Ozcards all time greatest and largest thread ever in sports chat section! :wave:

Just shows how love and hated we are :D

Well I take what I see in pre season games with a grain of salt, what I do pay attention to is the demenor of the guys and how the unit looks as a whole.

Rondo has looked disinterested most of the pre season game and even sulking at times when the ball hasn't come his way. He looks a lot more determined to be more offenisively minded this year and when he pushes the ball we pretty much don't get beat.

KG looks to have the fire back and is running the floor very well, lifting Perks game even more and creating more defensive matchup problems for teams. I still rate Perk a better defender than KG though. Sheed has just cruzed thru the pre season as anticipated but has been vocal on the bench and looks to be pretty happy with his niche in this side.

The bench is the key though as both units are dam strong! How people have said ON PAPER the Cavs look better is beyond me:blink:

Big Babby is lean but looks to not lost any of his boxing out hussle as a result of mass loss, House lit it up yesterday and just waits his turn and number to be called, Daniels can play a number of spots and his slashing play with basketball IQ should be an example to Tony Allen who doesn't get it.

Most of all I've been impressed with Ray Allen. Most expected him to drop off dramtically over the last few years but out of the big three he just might outlast them all. He is class with a capital T :worthy::worthy:

This is a team where there will be no infighting, no egos and all focused on one goal. The inevitable goal for this team...Banner number 18! =D>=D>=D>

Can we read anything into yesterdays game in Cleveland and the comfortable win? Probably not but the numbers looked great in hindsight.

No KG and Ray Allen. Pierce with 13 mins.

Cavs starters playing mainly 30 mins each.

I'm sure its still a game that the Cavs wanted to get in their own building ahead of game one of the new season but teams just chuck games in when its the pre season.

All I want is the title and Perks defensive player of the year award he continually gets snubbed at. :whistle:

A few more Celts fan around here I notice so lets paint this thread green and enjoy the ride, this is quite simply the best team we have had since 1986. Its destiny!
 
2009-10 Forecast: Boston Celtics

2008-09 Recap

In some ways, Celtics fans probably have more appreciation for the championship they won in 2008, because 2009 demonstrated just how many things have to go right for a team -- even a very good team -- to win a title in a 30-team league.

The Celtics kicked off the year as if they'd put their 2008 championship squad to shame, blasting out of the gate at 27-2 to post the best record through 29 games in league history. From there, however, a series of small misfortunes eventually drove them to a second-round exit in the postseason.

For starters, the 27-2 start probably overstated Boston's strength somewhat. Even at that time the Cavaliers had a better scoring margin, with the Celtics' 7-0 record in games decided by five points or fewer giving them the momentary advantage in the standings.

But the Celtics also played much worse after that torrid 27-2 start. Boston went just 24-16 in the ensuing 40 games, and though they hung on to the East's second seed by riding Paul Pierce to a strong final month, they were a greatly diminished team from the one that dominated the first third of the season.

While the midyear lull had them concerned, things really started going badly for Boston when Kevin Garnett hurt his knee in a February game in Utah. Garnett hopped off with what was originally thought to be a minor tweak; nobody realized it would become essentially a season-ending injury that would require serious surgery.

Boston's dip into the barrel for replacements also had a negative impact. A year earlier, the Celtics received a major boost by plucking veterans P.J. Brown and Sam Cassell at midseason, with Brown in particular contributing heavily in the playoffs.

This time around, the opposite happened. First the Celtics jumped the gun by leaping to grab Mikki Moore instead of waiting to see if Joe Smith would become available. Moore had been awful in Sacramento, so there was little urgency to pick him up. It wasn't a big shock that he also performed horrendously as a Celtic, and by the end of the playoffs, Boston had sidelined him and given his minutes to little-used Brian Scalabrine.

In the backcourt, the Celtics encountered a similar problem. An injury to Tony Allen took him out of the mix, and in his place Boston signed Stephon Marbury. Adding Marbury to the locker room required a tremendous faith in the Celtics' team chemistry, and on that front it worked -- Marbury wasn't a problem or distraction in his time with Boston. The unexpected problem was that he couldn't play, shooting 34.2 percent in his 23 games as a Celtic while routinely declining to take wide-open jumpers.

With the bench help wanting, the strain on the Celtics' starters became obvious in the postseason. Boston struggled to dismiss a 41-win Chicago team and then ran out of gas on its home court in Game 7 against Orlando.

In spite of that, and even without Garnett, Boston's defensive intensity was something to behold. After leading the league in defensive efficiency a year earlier, the Celtics were a close second this time around, with center Kendrick Perkins in particular stepping up his game in Garnett's absence.

The Celtics led the NBA in opponent field goal percentage at 43.1 percent and finished a close second in 2-point field goal defense as well (45.4 percent). Plus, Boston magnified the impact of all those bricks they forced by ranking third in defensive rebounding rate at 75.6 percent. The fact Boston didn't lead the league in overall efficiency owes largely to its propensity for fouling -- Celtics' opponents averaged .329 free throw attempts per field goal attempt, ranking Boston's D 24th among the league's 30 teams.

Offensively, the combination of Pierce, Ray Allen and Eddie House made Boston the best outside shooting team in the league. Boston led the NBA in 3-point shooting at 39.7 percent, ranked second in 2-point shooting at 51 percent, and landed second in true shooting percentage at 57.1 percent.

So how the heck did they finish only sixth in offensive efficiency? The answer was that Boston shot less often than any other team in the league (see chart). For a jump-shooting team, the Celtics amassed a shockingly high turnover rate, giving the ball away on 16.7 percent of their possessions; only the Bobcats coughed it up more frequently.

As a result, the Celtics took fewer shots per possession than any team in the league, where "shots" are defined to include trips to the free throw line. If you're looking for causes, Boston had a turnover-prone point guard in Rajon Rondo (who had a breakout year otherwise), piled up offensive fouls setting screens off the ball for Ray Allen and House, and didn't accumulate a particularly high offensive rebound rate.

While the Celtics can lament the late injuries to Garnett, Tony Allen and Leon Powe -- subtractions that all but ended their title defense before the playoffs even began -- they were one of the league's healthiest teams for most of the regular season. Pierce, Ray Allen, Rondo and Perkins missed only two games between them, and reserves Powe, House and Glen Davis stayed healthy the entire regular season, as well.

Offseason Moves

Garnett's knee surgery was complicated and the extent to which he'll recover isn't totally certain, which is why the Celtics doubled down on insurance for his position in the offseason. Otherwise, Boston must still settle whether to grant contract extensions for Rondo and Ray Allen. The Celtics reportedly shopped Rondo early in the summer, creating some tension between the team and its best young player, while an extension for Ray Allen would eliminate the cap flexibility offered by his $17 million expiring contract.

Money issues also could come into play if the team disappoints. With the salaries of just three players (Garnett, Ray Allen and Pierce) taking up nearly the entire cap, the Celtics will likely owe about $15 million in luxury tax this season. That's all well and good as long as they keep winning, but if they don't, it could produce some interesting discussions about their future.

Signed Rasheed Wallace to a three-year, $18 million deal. Boston moved aggressively to import another long, mobile defender it can use interchangeably with Garnett by offering Wallace the team's entire midlevel exception. Wallace brings a few negatives to the table -- he's a notorious hothead and looked out of shape last season, plus he's 35 and has pretty much abandoned the low post as a source of offense.

Nonetheless, he's a selfless player who should mesh well in the Celtics' locker room. Plus, his ability to play both frontcourt positions gives Boston lineup flexibility with or without Garnett. It's possible he'll have greater motivation than he did on a jaded Pistons team a year ago, and if so that might translate into a bounce-back season.

That said, three years at this price is a fairly large risk at Wallace's age, even allowing for the fact players of his size and shooting ability tend to age well. He'll be 38 by the time it's done and make nearly $7 million, making him a potential cap-killer right when Boston likely needs to start rebuilding.

Re-signed Glen Davis to a two-year, $6 million deal. Davis's regular-season numbers from last season are misleading -- he improved dramatically in the second half of the season and came up huge as Garnett's replacement in the playoffs. As such, keeping him as a restricted free agent gives the Celtics a great fallback position in the frontcourt, particularly if he can keep refining his midrange jumper.

Waived Gabe Pruitt, drafted Lester Hudson. Boston took Hudson with the third-to-last pick in the draft and it's not clear if he'll even make the team. If he does, he'll spend most of the year with the Celtics' D-League affiliate in Portland, Maine.

Let Leon Powe leave, signed Shelden Williams to a one-year deal for the minimum. Powe was a major contributor but blew out his knee in the first round of the playoffs, and Boston's frontcourt needs were too acute to wait a year for him to recover. Instead the Celtics nabbed Williams, a limited banger but one who will rebound and defend. For a fifth big man on a minimum salary, you could do quite a bit worse.

Signed Marquis Daniels to a one-year deal for $1.99 million. Signing Daniels with the biannual exception was Boston's only remaining card for improving the backcourt after the Celtics used their entire midlevel exception on Wallace. Daniels is a good fit for this team because he can play point guard offensively but can defend shooting guards, which allows House to play off the ball and search out jump shots when the second unit is on the court. He'll likely take over most of the minutes Tony Allen played a year ago, as the latter had a very disappointing campaign even before his injury.

Biggest Strength: Defense

Even without Garnett, this is what carried the Celtics a year ago, and it will again if they're going to get back into the title hunt. Under Doc Rivers, Boston has shown a unique ability to assimilate players without great defensive reputations and get them to play quality defense -- most notably Ray Allen, but also Davis, House and even Marbury.

This year they shouldn't have to do as much cajoling, as both Wallace and Daniels arrive with solid defensive reputations. Wallace in particular makes for an interesting arrangement in the frontcourt, as he could team with Garnett at times to give the Celtics a pair of mobile, aggressive 7-footers who can switch pick-and-rolls and smother drivers from the weak side.

Perkins and Davis, meanwhile, provide the muscle up front. Perkins showed his elite post defense in the second round against Orlando when he neutralized the Magic's Dwight Howard, while Davis' short stature can prove to his advantage when he gets underneath opposing post players and forklifts them out of prime real estate.

The backcourt should remain a strength on defense, too. Rondo is the league's best defender at his position, Pierce is vastly underrated as a defensive stopper and if Tony Allen can eliminate his offensive mistakes, his quickness and athleticism make him a tremendously disruptive force on D.

Biggest Weakness: Age

News flash: The Celtics are old, and the age problems are most acute with their best players. Garnett is 33 and has 1,055 games of mileage on his odometer, which would be a concern even if he weren't hurt a year ago. Entering training camp, it's not clear how well or how often he'll be able to play this year following a tricky knee operation.

Pierce turns 32 in preseason, and while he played very well at the end of the regular season, his numbers as a whole dipped sharply for the second straight season. Ray Allen is 34, and while he keeps himself in exquisite shape and doesn't expend a lot of energy shooting jump shots, he isn't immune to the ravages of aging, either.

Boston made itself older in the offseason with the addition of 35-year-old Wallace, while in the backcourt Daniels (28) and House (31) aren't spring chickens, either. The Celtics do have some quality young players with Rondo, Perkins and Davis, but they may need to show quite a bit of improvement to offset the age-related decline around them.

Outlook

Plotting expectations for the Celtics this year depends first on what one expects from Garnett. If he's fully healthy and can resume playing with his usual ferocity, then it's pretty easy to project Boston returning to its standing among the East's elite and rivaling Orlando and Cleveland for the conference championship. In that scenario, the addition of Wallace is pure gravy and the age concerns are softened by what appears to be superior depth.

But if Garnett comes back in any way diminished, the whole picture changes. Boston has some insurance in the form of Wallace and Davis, but that's to cover themselves against short-term absences, not to replace the production of one of the all-time great power forwards. Throw in the concerns about the other two primary scorers also getting up in years, and one would expect them to slide in the standings considerably.

Even if Garnett doesn't play a single game, Boston will be a playoff team and likely finish no worse than third given the lack of credible contenders in the East. But the Celtics didn't bring their three stars together and pay luxury tax through the nose so they could lose in the second round of the playoffs. Unfortunately, if Garnett's knee doesn't bounce back at full strength, that appears to be where they're headed.
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From espn.com
 
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