All this talk about trading Ray Allen, or any of the starters, seems way over the top. But it did get me thinking, wondering what has gone wrong since the Celtics great start of the season.
I think that the bench and the bench rotation is the biggest problem, and if that is fixed then the rest will fall into place.
I was looking at the difference between last years team and this years. The C's have essentially the same bench rotation as last year with the exception of Posey.
The problem is that none of the offseason acquisitions have contributed so essentially we have reduced the rotation by one man and redistributed the mins. Last year Posey played 1821 min in 74 games. 318 of those min were with only 1 starter (either Allen or Pierce)
Last year the starters played together for 1052 min, already this year they have 740 min. With the big three's age, this additional pressure on the starting 5 is a cause for concern. We have already seen Ray Allen struggle at times, possibly due to fatigue.
Where are the additional bench min going to come from?
Tony Allen? He played 1373 in 75 games. I don't see him getting much more than that
Powe? 809 min last year Davis? 940 min last year. These 2 will play more this year, but last year they were on the floor together for 91 min. They have been together on the floor 251 min already this season. Powe has shown improvement this year, but Davis appears to have taken a step back (3.9 pts 2.9 reb). I am not sure the Celtics have replaced Posey's 4.4 rebounds, back side defense or 3pt shooting with this combo.
Scal? He actually is contributing much more than I anticipated this year. I don't think that this is what Doc wanted 1/2 way through the season.
The only player that looks like they may earn some additional min is Gabe Pruitt. Even if he plays well, I am not sure a 6-4 G solves the Celtics line up issues.
The sky is not falling, but the Celtics are in desperate need of an additional to provide some length off the bench. This would take much of the pressure off of the starters and also allow Powe and Davis to play in a better rotation to take advantage of their skills. (Deke would have been nice).
The more I think about it, I become more depressed at our poor off-season. I understand not wanting to sign bad contracts that hurt the team in the future, but as I watch these games and the terrible bench rotations that the Celtics have been forced to use, I MISS POSEY. If POB or Bill Walker, were playing like every hoped we would be all praising Danny Ainge as a genius. Now we just have to hope for a veteran that wants a chance at a ring, and becomes that late season addition we need.
Also, How many freaking different jerseys is Cleveland going to wear this year??
Topic: Celtic Bench Issues (Read 863 times)