Too bad we don't have a 7 footer on the bench to cover Gasol..!

[D Dub]

This (along with DHoward and BigZ) is exactly the reason why I have been saying our biggest need on this team is another legit Big off the bench.  I just don't understand the logic of wanting another pg or sf instead.

I am still holding out hope for PJ, despite the reports.

[Spfldkid]

Gasol does not "back down" anyone, he is an opportunist, he gets by because people rotate to kobe, losing there man....Gasol is a taller anderson varajo....gasol is soft and we all know that. POB can stuff him..... They are saying the same thing right now on Celtics tv....!

[Atzar]

I hate this "but Perk used to foul out in five minutes four years ago, look at him now!" argument for POB.  Perk was playing for teams that were irrelevant - any cup of coffee in the playoffs they got was because Paul Pierce dragged them there by the neck.  POB is 'playing' for a team that can and in my opinion should win the NBA title this year.  It's one thing to experiment on a team headed nowhere, it's another thing entirely when the team wants and shows every indication of needing home court advantage in the playoffs.

[Roy Hobbs]

Gasol does not "back down" anyone, he is an opportunist, he gets by because people rotate to kobe, losing there man....Gasol is a taller anderson varajo....gasol is soft and we all know that. POB can stuff him..... They are saying the same thing right now on Celtics tv....!

I try to give the benefit of the doubt to our newer posters, but you obviously haven't watched Gasol play a lot, have you?  What do you credit his pre-Kobe success to, then?  Throughout his career, he has routinely shots around 55% on shots in the post (excluding dunks and tips, which push his percentage well over 60%).

[footey]

I hate this "but Perk used to foul out in five minutes four years ago, look at him now!" argument for POB.  Perk was playing for teams that were irrelevant - any cup of coffee in the playoffs they got was because Paul Pierce dragged them there by the neck.  POB is 'playing' for a team that can and in my opinion should win the NBA title this year.  It's one thing to experiment on a team headed nowhere, it's another thing entirely when the team wants and shows every indication of needing home court advantage in the playoffs.

I think that those who feel that we should still win the championship with our current rotation (your camp) are less inclined to entertain the POB experiment.  If I felt that strongly about our current rotation, I would agree. But I have serious doubts that we can pull off another championship with this rotation. Just not feelin' it.

[Spfldkid]

You do not like experiments..what about starting Scal......BBD shooting all the time...? Also, Gasol is soft...I maybe new here, but hardly new to basketball. I know a soft player when I see one. Gasol is a Dirk Nowitski/Varajo......See the way Haslem from Miami shut nowitski down a few years back in the playoffs, some East coast physical play. Barcley backed people down, Shaq.....Gasol, hahaha, come on...! Everyone pulls over, out of position to "help" on Kobe, leaving  Gasol to get those cheesey dunks. Then also, he shoots those outside 6-1o footers over usually shorter players, or that hook if no one puts a body on him.....what game did you watch?

[Atzar]

Scal started because Perk was hurt, Baby shot because he was wide open with a shot that he should make, frequently when nobody else was open or at the end of the shot clock - the Lakers played some great defense last night.  Gasol is soft, but that doesn't make him a poor post player.  You don't have to be stronger than everybody else to be good in the post.  I love how you mention that jumpshot and hookshot like everybody can do them.  Those are moves that some big men never learn.  Dwight Howard, widely considered the best 5 in the league, can't shoot, and his hook is far from consistent.  Shaq never developed a jumpshot. 

Comparing Gasol to Varejao is absolutely wrong.  Varejao is a scrappy defensive big with little offensive game.  Gasol is one of the better 4's in the league.  Also, watch Dirk play and then watch Pau play.  They're both seven feet tall and white, but the similarities end there - they don't have similar games at all. 

What game did you watch?

[Spfldkid]

You just said it, but looked right past it..."Scal started" and you don't have a problem with that...? Scal starts over POB.....at center....maybe I am crazy for continuing this.....! The similarities I want to highlight are that Gasol and Dirk are both soft, and can be stopped with some strong "D"...Gasol does have some good game, but i hate him......and he isn't THAT good, to torch the Celtics like that, that is what i mean.....i don't want to get personal with you on this, we, just like everyone here want the C's to win....! I just would play POB, on the bigs, like gasol, until he failed me....hey, they started Scal, over POB, Scal is not a center, I have watched POB play as much as possible and I haven't seen anything to bench him...his mistakes are the same as everyone elses....and on Perk, i meant only his time on the C's, he used to be a foul a minute, mostly because of the refs, but also due to his own mistakes!

[cornbreadsmart]

HUH? varejao if nothing else is a rugged pain in the arse defensive big man. is there any other way to describe him?? way off, dude. oh and o'bryant playing against gasol is  not a good idea.  nobody  is hating on the guy. he simply does not have the leg strength to hold him off. gasol is soft to us because we have crazy kg and a fdrankenstein monster in perk down low. when compared to the rest of the league i would'nt call pau soft. he's not a bull by any means but he absolutely would back obryant down until he fell over. pau is way stronger and would patiently back him down for a slam. oh and i am not in the camp thinking we are the favorites to win it. i think this celtics team is better than this laker team but with bynum the lakers are clearly better. that doesn't mean the c's CAN'T win it. OF COURSE NOT. but they are a little outmatched in my opinion. cleveland (if they can land marion or carter) will also have an edge on us(again my opinion).

[Spfldkid]

Well, you don't know what gasol would do, because doc would rather sit the big man than give him aq chance. All I say is give him a chance. And gasol gets a lot of easy points due to the Kobe rotation, just like varajo gets it due to the Lebron rotation. Didn't you see gasol get 4 open, easy dunks, with no one on him last night..? No one. you cannot leave a guy like that salone 3-4 times in the paint...!

[Scalablob990]

If Gasol wasn't given his cheap foul calls he would be a nothing. In Memphis I rarely really heard about him since he was the whole team. Gasol can't really make his won shot, but when Kobe arrives that problem is solved. Take away Kobe and the Foul calls and you get a whiny womanly walking Spaniard who is 7ft tall.

[Jon]

While I totally disagree with the notion that we should play POB, I do think we absolutely need a seven footer.  While I comment Ainge for nabbing Davis and Powe in the second round because he looked at their talent and heart rather than height, that only gets you so far.  And while you can talk all you want about the team not gelling or not taking the first couple rounds seriously, I blame much of their struggles with Atlanta and Cleveland on a lot of our smaller players like Powe, Davis, and even Rondo, having trouble getting their shot off under the basket.  We should have an even bigger problem with that this year as we no longer have P.J. to add size or Posey to spread the floor, and mitigate the need to go low.  

Another way to look at it is that last drive that LeBron made on the C's in game 7 last year.  He penetrated and found P.J. with his arms up near the basket and missed.  If that was Davis or Baby, he probably puts that over them.  

Not good.

[Steve Weinman]

Take away Kobe and the Foul calls and you get a whiny womanly walking Spaniard who is 7ft tall.

Sure, that and a guy who averaged 18.8 points and 8.6 boards per game during his Memphis career, made an All-Star team, scored 20-plus points per game in each of his last two full seasons in town and was the best player on each of the three playoff teams in franchise history, which won 50, 45 and 49 games.

-sw

[StartOrien]

This certainly wasn't the night to experiment with Patrick O'Bryant....

Getting him a few  minutes against Dirk Nowitzki during a blow out, maybe. But not last night.

[moiso]

Pau may be a little soft but he's pretty good in a lot of areas.  He's one of the most skilled 7 footers in the league.  And I love how he's aware and looking to pass even while in the process of making his move.  He's a skinny guy, you can't expect him to be knocking people out of the way.  Kind of like KG in that regard.  Everyone likes picking on LA but Pau is a very good player.