Author Topic: Semi to Maine?  (Read 7174 times)

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Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #30 on: July 16, 2018, 09:12:18 AM »

Offline pearljammer10

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No.

He proved as a rookie he could get minutes here and there and serve a role. No reason for him to play in Maine. We need his skill set on defense in certain matchups.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #31 on: July 16, 2018, 02:59:28 PM »

Offline Hoopvortex

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After reading part 1 of the summer league notebook, I wonder if Semi will see some time in Maine this year. Here is a quote from the article:

"6. On Semi Ojeleye: “He was in over his head last year. We never planned to play him as much as we did. When Gordon (Hayward) went down, it changed our entire plan. He more than held his own on defense, but offense needs work. He had to think his way through things. By the playoffs, it was finally all coming together. He really could have used some time in Maine (with the NBAGL Red Claws).”

It would certainly be unusual for a second year player who got as many minutes as Semi did last year to go to the G-league, but with the number of guys ahead of him on the depth chart and the fact that his three point shooting has not improved it might give him a better chance to grow offensively.

I wonder who the quotation is from, and why it's anonymous. In any case, obviously Brad and Danny thought otherwise; he got rotation minutes all year, even after Morris came back, even after Morris came back the second time, even after Moose was signed.

As for his 3-pt shooting improving or not - he shot .440 after the all-star break. That looks like "improvement", I'd say.

It’s not an insult. He showed he can play defense in the NBA, but he also showed he cannot contribute on offense.

Even your anonymous source says, "By the playoffs, it was finally all coming together".

Left and right handed dribbles, changing hands to avoid the defender, getting his shoulder down and into the defender's chest to get around him, finishing through contact, eurosteps... he shows a range of skills, though we didn't get to see a whole lot last year.

But for me the finest moment was in the playoffs: gets the ball at the arc at "2pm", fakes the pass to Rozier in the left corner to get the first defender going that way, fakes the shot to draw the closeout from the second defender, then delivers the simple pass to a wide-open Jaylen at "12 o'clock" for the game winner. I'd call that a nice "contribution": unselfish, well timed, skilled.

Of course if there are injuries that changes things, but if the Celts stay healthy it's hard to see where serious minutes come from. Sure, they can find a few here and there, but I have a hard time seeing Semi playing 10 plus minutes a game unless someone is hurt.

"If there are injuries..." - there will be injuries.  It is rare, in fact, for any NBA player to play 82 games in a season.

'I was proud of Marcus Smart. He did a great job of keeping us together. He might not get credit for this game, but the pace that he played at, and his playcalling, some of the plays that he called were great. We obviously have to rely on him, so I’m definitely looking forward to Marcus leading this team in that role.' - Jaylen Brown, January 2021

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #32 on: July 16, 2018, 03:11:05 PM »

Offline greece66

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@Hoopvortex


Had a look at your comment history, wish you wrote more often.


And yes, psychology was a bummer.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #33 on: July 16, 2018, 03:18:02 PM »

Offline bellerephon

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It's not my source, it's from the article right here on Celticsblog. As for his shooting after the break, guys get hot and cold, you can't look at one stretch, you need to consider the whole season. Besides, if we want to play that game we could note he shot 27% in the playoffs. He got worse when it mattered most.

As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games. And that is all that matters. It does not matter what he did in college in a lesser conference against lesser competition as a 4 year player. It only matters what he does in the NBA. So far that is play good defense, and be useless on offense. That makes him a defensive sub at the end of the bench and no more.

I agree there will be injuries, and when that happens he will play some. And when the injured player comes back, Semi will go back to the bench. But if the team stays relatively healthy, his minutes will, I expect, be fairly limited. I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #34 on: July 16, 2018, 03:19:33 PM »

Offline Hoopvortex

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@Hoopvortex


Had a look at your comment history, wish you wrote more often.


And yes, psychology was a bummer.

Many thanks, my friend. I'll be watching for your posts.
'I was proud of Marcus Smart. He did a great job of keeping us together. He might not get credit for this game, but the pace that he played at, and his playcalling, some of the plays that he called were great. We obviously have to rely on him, so I’m definitely looking forward to Marcus leading this team in that role.' - Jaylen Brown, January 2021

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #35 on: July 16, 2018, 10:14:04 PM »

Offline Hoopvortex

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As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games

In that case, two pieces of advice:

1) Make the rewind button your best friend;

2) Pay attention to what coaches say, and assume that they know better than you. And remember: one good observation is worth more than all of your judgments!

.
I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Maybe the third thing would be to test yourself by making real-world predictions. Bravo!
« Last Edit: July 16, 2018, 10:24:12 PM by Hoopvortex »
'I was proud of Marcus Smart. He did a great job of keeping us together. He might not get credit for this game, but the pace that he played at, and his playcalling, some of the plays that he called were great. We obviously have to rely on him, so I’m definitely looking forward to Marcus leading this team in that role.' - Jaylen Brown, January 2021

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #36 on: July 16, 2018, 10:26:32 PM »

Offline Eddie20

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As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games

In that case, two pieces of advice:

1) Make the rewind button your best friend;

2) Pay attention to what coaches say, and assume that they know better than you. And one good observation is worth more than all of your judgments!

.
I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Maybe the third thing would be to test yourself by making real-world predictions. Bravo!

What coaches say, particularly Stevens, is usually coach speak and should be taken with a giant grain of salt. Unless you can find evidence of Stevens not being complimentary of all his players and criticizing them in the media, then I'll chalk it up as just that.  For example, don't your remember Stevens saying he was Rondo's biggest fan and couldn't wait to coach him?

Here are some other gems...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw3LDbhXw2U

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #37 on: July 16, 2018, 10:38:27 PM »

Offline bellerephon

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This. I don't think anyone here is suggesting that they know more than the coaches. But it is well known that coaches often try to build up their players confidence and say positive things. It is important not to take such statements at face value.

The evidence is clear that Semi really struggled offensively last year. He had some good moments to be sure, but overall he had a poor year on offense. He was the worst offensive rotation player on the team last year (excluding guys like Nader and Yabu who were not rotation players). That is not an outlandish claim, the stats back it up. Teams would literally leave him unguarded at the three point line and drop his defender almost into the paint. They had no fear of him shooting the three or attacking the rim.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #38 on: July 16, 2018, 10:46:42 PM »

Offline Hoopvortex

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As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games

In that case, two pieces of advice:

1) Make the rewind button your best friend;

2) Pay attention to what coaches say, and assume that they know better than you. And one good observation is worth more than all of your judgments!

.
I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Maybe the third thing would be to test yourself by making real-world predictions. Bravo!

What coaches say, particularly Stevens, is usually coach speak and should be taken with a giant grain of salt. Unless you can find evidence of Stevens not being complimentary of all his players and criticizing them in the media, then I'll chalk it up as just that.  For example, don't your remember Stevens saying he was Rondo's biggest fan and couldn't wait to coach him?

Here are some other gems...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw3LDbhXw2U

How about you? Would you care to make a minutes prediction for Semi Ojeleye?
'I was proud of Marcus Smart. He did a great job of keeping us together. He might not get credit for this game, but the pace that he played at, and his playcalling, some of the plays that he called were great. We obviously have to rely on him, so I’m definitely looking forward to Marcus leading this team in that role.' - Jaylen Brown, January 2021

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #39 on: July 16, 2018, 10:51:52 PM »

Offline bogg

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As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games

In that case, two pieces of advice:

1) Make the rewind button your best friend;

2) Pay attention to what coaches say, and assume that they know better than you. And one good observation is worth more than all of your judgments!

.
I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Maybe the third thing would be to test yourself by making real-world predictions. Bravo!

What coaches say, particularly Stevens, is usually coach speak and should be taken with a giant grain of salt. Unless you can find evidence of Stevens not being complimentary of all his players and criticizing them in the media, then I'll chalk it up as just that.  For example, don't your remember Stevens saying he was Rondo's biggest fan and couldn't wait to coach him?

Here are some other gems...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw3LDbhXw2U

How about you? Would you care to make a minutes prediction for Semi Ojeleye?


I think it's tough to say until we see what the final version of the roster looks like. If Smart returns, Morris isn't moved, and no other major trades are made I think you'll see a period to open the season, maybe the first 6-8 weeks, where Semi doesn't see very much time on the court. Once you start to have some injuries and the team starts to selectively rest players I think Semi's going to be the guy who moves from the very fringe of the rotation into something looking more like a traditional bench role.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #40 on: July 16, 2018, 10:51:53 PM »

Offline tarheelsxxiii

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@Hoopvortex


Had a look at your comment history, wish you wrote more often.


And yes, psychology was a bummer.

 >:(
The Tarstradamus Group, LLC

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #41 on: July 16, 2018, 10:53:21 PM »

Offline Hoopvortex

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This. I don't think anyone here is suggesting that they know more than the coaches. But it is well known that coaches often try to build up their players confidence and say positive things. It is important not to take such statements at face value.


I meant coaches explaining the game. Brad is brilliant at it, of course, but who I had in mind especially was guys like Jeff van Gundy, Mike Fratello, Hubie, and others.

What you need, my young friend, is patient study.
'I was proud of Marcus Smart. He did a great job of keeping us together. He might not get credit for this game, but the pace that he played at, and his playcalling, some of the plays that he called were great. We obviously have to rely on him, so I’m definitely looking forward to Marcus leading this team in that role.' - Jaylen Brown, January 2021

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #42 on: July 16, 2018, 10:56:57 PM »

Offline Beat LA

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@Hoopvortex


Had a look at your comment history, wish you wrote more often.


And yes, psychology was a bummer.

Nah.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #43 on: July 16, 2018, 10:57:17 PM »

Offline bellerephon

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As far as the moves you note, I did not see him do any of those things well in games

In that case, two pieces of advice:

1) Make the rewind button your best friend;

2) Pay attention to what coaches say, and assume that they know better than you. And one good observation is worth more than all of your judgments!

.
I do not expect him to be part of the rotation.

Maybe the third thing would be to test yourself by making real-world predictions. Bravo!

What coaches say, particularly Stevens, is usually coach speak and should be taken with a giant grain of salt. Unless you can find evidence of Stevens not being complimentary of all his players and criticizing them in the media, then I'll chalk it up as just that.  For example, don't your remember Stevens saying he was Rondo's biggest fan and couldn't wait to coach him?

Here are some other gems...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw3LDbhXw2U

How about you? Would you care to make a minutes prediction for Semi Ojeleye?


I think it's tough to say until we see what the final version of the roster looks like. If Smart returns, Morris isn't moved, and no other major trades are made I think you'll see a period to open the season, maybe the first 6-8 weeks, where Semi doesn't see very much time on the court. Once you start to have some injuries and the team starts to selectively rest players I think Semi's going to be the guy who moves from the very fringe of the rotation into something looking more like a traditional bench role.

I would agree with this. Whenever there is an injury, unless it's one of the ball handlers, Semi is a guy the Celtics will look to. If there is a season-ending or long term injury, then I think he would see significant time. When everyone is healthy I don't think he will play much. Of course all of this could change if the roster is different that we expect.

Re: Semi to Maine?
« Reply #44 on: July 16, 2018, 11:00:04 PM »

Offline bellerephon

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This. I don't think anyone here is suggesting that they know more than the coaches. But it is well known that coaches often try to build up their players confidence and say positive things. It is important not to take such statements at face value.


I meant coaches explaining the game. Brad is brilliant at it, of course, but who I had in mind especially was guys like Jeff van Gundy, Mike Fratello, Hubie, and others.

What you need, my young friend, is patient study.
I'll freely admit that I don't pay much attention to what they say. Do you have quotes from these coaches stating that Semi is a high quality offensive player?