Ok fine, i'll be the first to bring it up... (BBD starting over KG, merged)

[muddy02]

Deep down, i know we're better with KG on the floor.  

However...  i can't help but think that against certain teams, he's not always the best option on the floor.  I will back this up with my observations, especially from Game 2 last night.

1. We can RUN!!  with rondo pushing the ball after every stop (or even made basket) we got much better offense.  I feel like with Davis in there over KG, he gets down the floor much quicker than KG can at this stage.  Although KG has a better outside shot, i think the running overshadows benefits in a half court set.

2. We have enough defense when we put in the effort.  So to say you need KG in there defensively is not entirely true.  Perkins was a beast last night, and with solid team defense that davis was talking about post game, i think having KG in there is not mandatory.

3. Davis is way more aggressive than KG.  He was moving to get in position for some charges that i've never seen KG do.  He was on the floor every other play, which with KG's legs, is harder for him to do.

So i know not everyone will agree, but i know some of you were thinking these things during the game.  And this thought is not entirely based on the fact that we won, that would be stupid.  It was based on HOW we won, and what i saw during the game.

Thoughts?

[looseball]

I'd be happy if they split the game.

[connerhenry43]

we are not better without kg, but i will say this.

we played great last night, and the best game we played late in the regular season was that saturday night game in Milwaukee.

long term, no, we are not better without kg, however. good post, and funny title, but i do not think we are better without kg.

[moiso]

I don't really agree.  We are better with KG.  Some players played beyond their means last night to pick up the slack.  There is no way to expect that to continue long term.

[muddy02]

I'd be happy if they split the game.

That pretty much sums up my feeling, is that instead of seeing KG in for 30 mins, against teams we want to run on, we should see Davis for 25 mins at least.

[BudweiserCeltic]

I'll ignore this thread for now.

[Fafnir]

The numbers don't support you. Over the course of the season we're better offensively and defensively with KG on the court instead of BBD. We're even a better rebounding team with KG as he's a much better defensive rebounder.

BBD's energy and hustle is very useful to the team, but it isn't always productive hustle. KG still needs to start and play the most minutes of our big men.

BBD has shown that he deserves the rest of the minutes at the 4, and probably some at the 5 with KG.

[jdpapa3]

Here's what I saw. Miami was really focused on Pierce, Rondo, and Ray and dared Perk and Davis to beat them. Davis is JUST good enough to hurt you if you don't gameplan for him because he has a great feel of where to be on offense and that goes back to his rookie year where he had a similar impact in a Detroit regular season game. He is great at finding the seams in the defense.

[Fafnir]

I'd be happy if they split the game.

That pretty much sums up my feeling, is that instead of seeing KG in for 30 mins, against teams we want to run on, we should see Davis for 25 mins at least.

KG needs to play 36 or so minutes a game, he's still our best defensive big man by a good margin.

Also KG runs pretty well, he's not like Perkins/Sheed in that he never runs.

[Fafnir]

Here's what I saw. Miami was really focused on Pierce, Rondo, and Ray and dared Perk and Davis to beat them. Davis is JUST good enough to hurt you if you don't gameplan for him because he has a great feel of where to be on offense and that goes back to his rookie year where he had a similar impact in a Detroit regular season game. He is great at finding the seams in the defense.

Plus its not like BBD has been able to consistently perform at this level even when given big minutes. He usually doesn't make so many FTs, draw so many fouls, or shoot with such accuracy.

He averaged 16 last year in the play offs, but rebounded like crap....

[Donoghus]

They need an effective KG for extended minutes if this team is going to have any success in the playoffs.  

If this team advances, we are going to start facing some big and versatile frontcourts where KG's defense is going to be key.  BBD doesn't have that same skill set.  

[Chris]

Deep down, i know we're better with KG on the floor.  

However...  i can't help but think that against certain teams, he's not always the best option on the floor.  I will back this up with my observations, especially from Game 2 last night.

1. We can RUN!!  with rondo pushing the ball after every stop (or even made basket) we got much better offense.  I feel like with Davis in there over KG, he gets down the floor much quicker than KG can at this stage.  Although KG has a better outside shot, i think the running overshadows benefits in a half court set.

2. We have enough defense when we put in the effort.  So to say you need KG in there defensively is not entirely true.  Perkins was a beast last night, and with solid team defense that davis was talking about post game, i think having KG in there is not mandatory.

3. Davis is way more aggressive than KG.  He was moving to get in position for some charges that i've never seen KG do.  He was on the floor every other play, which with KG's legs, is harder for him to do.

So i know not everyone will agree, but i know some of you were thinking these things during the game.  And this thought is not entirely based on the fact that we won, that would be stupid.  It was based on HOW we won, and what i saw during the game.

Thoughts?

I strongly disagree with this.

First of all, I felt that KG was one of the few guys who showed up for game 1.  Yes, he made a boneheaded mistake, but before that, he looked as close to his old self as we have seen all season.  He was making plays on defense, grabbing rebound, and scoring inside.  

The problem with game 1 is that Perkins, Rondo (well, for the first 2 1/2 quarters), Allen, and Pierce to some extent did not show up.  If they were playing at the level they did in game 2, I would not be surprised if KG finished with 25/12 in game 1.  

If they were getting stops, and Rondo was pushing the pace in game 1, like they were in game 2, KG (who is still one of the fastest big men in the league) would have been just as effective, if not moreso than Davis on the break.

The other issue is that while Davis is more aggressive than KG offensively, we are a much better team with that coming off the bench.  The bench needs that aggressiveness, if only to offset Wallaces lethargy.

I love Davis, and think he is an incredibly important part of this team, but to suggest he was the difference in game 2, and ignore the dramatic difference in performance by the other key players does not make sense to me.

...Now, if we want to go to a 3-man big rotation, upping the minutes of Davis and KG, and cutting Wallace out, then we are talking.

[2short]

kg getting the t and firing up everyone is maybe why the celtics finally FINALLY played like they are capable
davis miami rightly so slacked off of but this past game we just had everything work, messed up plays meant points etc
kg even injured is far far better than davis who by the way did a great job

[Roy Hobbs]

I love BBD's hustle.  However, I don't think that the difference between his defense and KG's can be made up for simply with energy.  KG's size, instincts, and skills allow him to do things on defense that BBD just can't do.  Because of that, the team will always be better with KG in there.

What I do want to see is more BBD, and less Rasheed.  Rasheed has a place on this team, but I want to see BBD eat up most of his minutes except when size is essential.

[muddy02]

i think some of you missed the global argument.  I'm not backtracking by emphasizing that we are better with KG.

My point was that we are a better running team with BBD in there over KG.  I don't know how to quantify that, maybe someone can look up fast break points in games BBD started over KG.

I'm NOT comparing the two players straight up.  I just think that we outran Miami last night, and we can do that to some other teams, and i believe BBD is a better option FOR THAT STYLE OF PLAY.