Should Scal Start Against the Magic (to guard Rashard Lewis)? (merged)

[Change]

Great point. We basically have no bench player to cover Howard. BBD can relief Perk. Just hope that shoulder is OK

[bruinsandceltics]

The thread title makes it seem like we have Rashard Lewis.

According to CelticsThug we should have him (we'd have to have Gerald too).

I edited the title...Does that make it more clear?

I like the idea I guess. 

Scal hit some biggies tonight

Now it sounds like Rashard Lewis is still on the team, but Scal is the coach   

HAHAHAHA!

I lol'd 

[nickagneta]

Title edited once again. Happy? 

[bruinsandceltics]

Title edited once again. Happy? 

TP for getting it right!


AND all the heckling.

[nickagneta]

Good points about Baby being needed for Howard because as we saw in this last series versus Chicago, the refs can certainly give out star fouls and also they like to pick on Perk. Howard is going to get his fair share of star calls and Perk will make some dumb fouls because he still hasn't mastered the fact that its better to try to box out with his legs and not his arms.

That said, I would have Rondo, Ray(especially if Reddick is guarding him) and Pierce taking it into the paint on drives all series because if the C's can get Howard in foul trouble, that team has zero other inside presence. Battie is alright but, Orlando without Howard is a jump shooting team  that can't rebound.

[Who]

Yeah, reluctantly ... but yeah I think so.

I think the C's are much better when Scal starts. I think he's a far superior defender at power forward and does a much better job alongside Perkins than Davis does. The whole team's defense looks a lot sharper with Scal at power forward versus Davis. Then add the bonus of Scal being a matchup for Lewis, and that's a nice thing.

The one thing I worry about, like a few others, is disrupting BBD's rhythm. He's playing his best basketball and being in the starting lineup as really helped him. I worry about his performance level dropping off to some degree if he returns to the bench.

I liked the points made of BBD being a good substitute for Perkins, so that he can defend Dwight. I hadn't thought of that, and I agree, I think he'd do a better job than anyone else in that role. Having Moore has the backup to guard Howard terrifies me, and I don't think Scal can do it either. That'd be a good advantage to having Davis come off the bench.

[davemonsterband]

That said, I would have Rondo, Ray(especially if Reddick is guarding him) and Pierce taking it into the paint on drives all series because if the C's can get Howard in foul trouble, that team has zero other inside presence. Battie is alright but, Orlando without Howard is a jump shooting team  that can't rebound.

Isn't that the everybody's intention against Orlando Nick? That's an actual question btw, lol.

[nickagneta]

That said, I would have Rondo, Ray(especially if Reddick is guarding him) and Pierce taking it into the paint on drives all series because if the C's can get Howard in foul trouble, that team has zero other inside presence. Battie is alright but, Orlando without Howard is a jump shooting team  that can't rebound.

Isn't that the everybody's intention against Orlando Nick? That's an actual question btw, lol.

Of course it is but few teams have three players the caliber of Ray, Pierce and Rondo that can get past their men and take it to the hole and finish or pass like the C's do. Rondo just finished proving that he might be the fastest guy in the league and that he can get by anyone and score. Ray vs Reddick and Paul vs Hedo are huge speed and offensive advantages that go the Celtics way.

Most teams just don't have the distinct advantages at those positions that the Celtics have. With a good offensive game plan and proper use of this Howard is either going to block a ton of shots or get some early fouls and be forced to back off which suddenly makes driving to the basket an easy proposition for Boston.

[Who]

That said, I would have Rondo, Ray(especially if Reddick is guarding him) and Pierce taking it into the paint on drives all series because if the C's can get Howard in foul trouble, that team has zero other inside presence. Battie is alright but, Orlando without Howard is a jump shooting team  that can't rebound.

Don't dismiss Gortat -- he's a quality player and a terrific rebounder. He'll provide nearly all the rebounding Howard does, and a healthy chunk of the defense too. A limited offensive player, but he knows this and plays within himself, so he's fairly solid there(very efficient, gets garbage buckets, makes few mistakes).

Gortat is, by a large margin, the second best rebounder in this series. Second best in the East playoffs overall? Behind Howard. Out of remaining teams in the East playoffs? Jeez ... he has a good case.

Gortat is largely hidden in the shadows, playing behind Howard, down there in Orlando but he is a seriously talented player. I can't wait to see which GM has the foresight and backbone to make a very aggressive play for him this summer.


I loved how Phily defended Dwight Howard. They defended him straight up, stayed at home on the shooters, made Orlando play through the low post and took away their drive and kick game in the process, and tried to see if Howard is a prolific enough scorer to punish them for it .... which he rarely is. I'd like to see the C's do the same thing.

I think that is the best, or one of the best, strategies to stopping Orlando's offense. All you need is a solid post defender, and in Perkins, the C's have one of the best post defenders in the NBA.

[MattD]

Nevermind my original post, Nick beat me to it -- sorry, mods, I looked at today's posts but didn't look too far back yesterday!

Suffice to say I agree with Nick (TP for posting the idea first), for the reasons I listed below.

1) Scal is a better defensive match-up against Orlando's perimeter-oriented bigs, Lewis and Turkoglu, 2) we can't afford to have both Perk and BBD get into early foul trouble since either may be called on to defend Howard, 3) Scal stretches the floor on offense even more than BBD does, and 4) BBD would bring more offense to the second unit, which despite last night's House party was our bugbear in the previous six games.

[Quinn]

With the way Doc thinks of Scal, I could easily see this happening.
When KG was out the first time; who was starting? B-Scal.
Doc seems to trust him, and I expect the Magic to laugh, but Scal to shut them up with a few key 3's.

[CoachBo]

Having thought about it and looked at a couple of things on the DVR, I'm totally down with this, Nick. Scal should start.

[EJPLAYA]

I would be on board for this 100%. Scal is a much better defender on the outside, has fresher legs at this point, and gives us a legitimate outside threat as he once again proved last night. BBD for some reason has seemed to have lost his confidence in his outside shot this series. He's been on and off this series missing all 5 of them last night. I think teams are starting to adjust and not letting him get wide open on them like before. Battie should provide a much easier matchup for him off the bench in stretches, and he can body with Howard when he is in there. Nice idea Nick.

[Greg]

No thanks.

I'll stick with the guy averaging 18 and 8.

Fact of the matter is, Big Baby is very nimble and is faster than Scals.  And while Scal is obviously the better perimeter defender, having Scal start would kill Big Baby's confidence.

And if we go speed to counter Lewis, I would expect a smaller, quicker lineup like the one we used against the Bulls when they played John Salmons at power forward.

Run Rondo, Eddie/Steph/TA, Ray Ray, The Captain, and Perk.

I think TA might be a good matchup for Courtney Lee, and I think Ray could handle Hedo.  I guess we'll just have to see tomorrow.

[CoachBo]

A few points:

1. If Doc's making starting decisions based on "confidence," then he needs to go back to junior high. The best matchups play. Davis isn't quick enough to keep Lewis from going off on the perimeter, and he's going to be essential inside at the 5 to help Perkins. We cannot count on Mikki Moore. I fear Davis won't have any problems finding minutes at the 5.

2. House and Steph will be asked to play quality defense, but Orlando doesn't have the perimeter quickness overall that Chicago does. I'm OK - fine is a word that should never be used here - with Tony Allen in SHORT defensive doses, but I want no part of leaving him and his hideous basketball judgment on the floor for multiple minutes at a time.