The defensive excellence of Daniel Theis

[Somebody]

A lot of fans here have been complaining about our big man rotation, and rightfully so - the dearth of proven big man talent in our squad makes our frontcourts one of the worst in the league on paper. However, games are played on the court, and our third year big man from Germany is putting on his best Theis Man impression on the court, albeit by swapping one dimensional offense for borderline elite defense. He's averaging 2.5 blocks per game so far with two 5 block games, tied for third in the league, and is fifth in the league in defensive box plus-minus with 5.9 points in that category, a number that All-Defensive centres post. And he's not hunting for blocks to post gaudy defensive numbers - his positioning is sound and he doesn't take too many ill-advised gambles. We might want a more proven centre to shore up our big man rotation, but let's appreciate how Theis is playing like an All-Defensive centre for us so far.

[18isGREATERthan72]

Add the defensive versatility with the rest of the starters.  He can guard on the perimeter and can swap with all the starters defensively.  In fact the only weak point on the starting lineup defensively is swapping a big onto Kemba but the team has been quick to quickly swap someone onto the big for Kemba in these situations.

I just wish they'd secure rebounds a little better to help boon the defense, because the starters have been great defensively,  just have been giving too many second and third chances on possessions.

[Somebody]

Add the defensive versatility with the rest of the starters.  He can guard on the perimeter and can swap with all the starters defensively.  In fact the only weak point on the starting lineup defensively is swapping a big onto Kemba but the team has been quick to quickly swap someone onto the big for Kemba in these situations.

I just wish they'd secure rebounds a little better to help boon the defense, because the starters have been great defensively,  just have been giving too many second and third chances on possessions.

That's the disadvantage of playing a small forward in the power forward position - the defensive rebounding will suffer when teams throw a trio of big men at us.

[18isGREATERthan72]

Add the defensive versatility with the rest of the starters.  He can guard on the perimeter and can swap with all the starters defensively.  In fact the only weak point on the starting lineup defensively is swapping a big onto Kemba but the team has been quick to quickly swap someone onto the big for Kemba in these situations.

I just wish they'd secure rebounds a little better to help boon the defense, because the starters have been great defensively,  just have been giving too many second and third chances on possessions.

That's the disadvantage of playing a small forward in the power forward position - the defensive rebounding will suffer when teams throw a trio of big men at us.

Of course,  of course.  I just feel like boxing out is still an issue at times.  The Celtics despite lacking a true big man in the starting lineup is still an above average rebounding team,  if you'd believe it.

[Fierce1]

If the Celts will only face one of the two elite east teams, Philly or Milwaukee, I think the Celts will advance.

But I don't think the Celts will get to the finals if they face both Philly and Milwaukee in the playoffs.

We've already seen of preview of what Theis can do against the Bucks in last season's east semis.
Theis was not very good in that series.

[zeitgeist49]

Theis has been a serviceable big against most teams. Thus far, he has outperformed expectations. However, he simply doesn't possess the athletism and hops to guard against the bigs of Philly and the Lakers. I have lots of confidence in R.Wil.  I'm hoping R.Wil. progresses to the point where he is our starting C and plays at least 20 mpg. If R.Wil.  continues to develop and Kanter, Theis, Poirier, and G. Wil. meet D.A.'s expectations, we won't need to trade for a big.   

[RPGenerate]

I think everyone was waaaay too low on Theis after last season. The dude was coming off an Achilles tear, of course he's gonna look rusty. In terms of defense, he's easily our best big man defender (with G. Williams being second).

[Fierce1]

I think everyone was waaaay too low on Theis after last season. The dude was coming off an Achilles tear, of course he's gonna look rusty. In terms of defense, he's easily our best big man defender (with G. Williams being second).

I agree.

It's when Theis has to defend Embiid or Anthony Davis that will be a problem.

[Somebody]

I think everyone was waaaay too low on Theis after last season. The dude was coming off an Achilles tear, of course he's gonna look rusty. In terms of defense, he's easily our best big man defender (with G. Williams being second).

Meniscus tear, but yes expectations for him were too low coming into this season. That doesn't change the fact that he was hot garbage last year though lol.

[RPGenerate]

I think everyone was waaaay too low on Theis after last season. The dude was coming off an Achilles tear, of course he's gonna look rusty. In terms of defense, he's easily our best big man defender (with G. Williams being second).

Meniscus tear, but yes expectations for him were too low coming into this season. That doesn't change the fact that he was hot garbage last year though lol.

Ah yes, it was a meniscus tear. My apologies. But still, that's a big injury to come back from, and people gave him no slack last year.

[apc]

It’s not easy being a big in this league this days.
You can easily get called for a foul for just standing with your hands up. Theis is handling it well but getting no love from the refs .

[Somebody]

I think everyone was waaaay too low on Theis after last season. The dude was coming off an Achilles tear, of course he's gonna look rusty. In terms of defense, he's easily our best big man defender (with G. Williams being second).

Meniscus tear, but yes expectations for him were too low coming into this season. That doesn't change the fact that he was hot garbage last year though lol.

Ah yes, it was a meniscus tear. My apologies. But still, that's a big injury to come back from, and people gave him no slack last year.

Absolutely. I was optimistic about him rounding back into form this offseason, but man last season was atrocious.

[Fierce1]

It’s not easy being a big in this league this days.
You can easily get called for a foul for just standing with your hands up. Theis is handling it well but getting no love from the refs .

Refs are not falling for Theis' great acting job.

Theis always has his hands up, but notice how he positions his body to slightly bump the opponent off-balance.

[Somebody]

It’s not easy being a big in this league this days.
You can easily get called for a foul for just standing with your hands up. Theis is handling it well but getting no love from the refs .

Refs are not falling for Theis' great acting job.

Theis always has his hands up, but notice how he positions his body to slightly bump the opponent off-balance.

That's what all great defensive centres do though lol. Theis will get the benefit of the doubt if he keeps his elite defense up, he'll get some buzz around the league in a month or two.

[nickagneta]

Theis was a DPOY in Europe and flashed the defense he is playing now, pretty often his first year here. That meniscus injury really did a job on Theis and made us forget how good a defender he is.

I think he makes for a great starting center against most teams in the league. Against those teams, maybe Kanter will need to start. We will see. But Theis with the starters or with the starters minus Walker plus Smart, makes for an excellent switch everything defense. They will only get better as the season goes on.