The Offense Vs Defense debate

[ScoobyDoo]

I see alot of post claiming we will now be a horrible defensive team since Perk is gone and we will get chewed up in the paint during the playoffs. Couple questions:

1. Aren't we the #1 defensive team iun the league this year - without Perkins?

2. Havent' we beaten Orlando, the Bulls, the Lakers, Sanb Antonio and the Heat pretty handily without Perkins and while also missing a "slew" of other players as well?

3. Quick syllogism - that doesn't work...
A) We had the #1 defense with Perkins and without Semih
B) We have the #1 defense without Perkins and with Semih
C) Since Semih is gone, we will now suck on Defense...

So our defensive team prowess lies with Semih Erden?

By my count, when all hands are on deck:

1. Shaq / JO and even Nenad will provide all the hard hits / fouls the other team wants and they won't be bashful about it.

2. Meanwhile, in the past we struggled mightily on offense at times.

3. By adding Murphy, Nenad and Green, our offense should improve immensely.

If we end up adding Brewer for defense on the wing and either T.J Ford or Arroyo or any other vet point for insurance in case Delonte or Rondo misss a few games...

There is not a single weakness in this team and it is vastly, vastly improved from the pre Perkins trade team in terms of its chances of hanging #18.     

[Jon]

I think this is a good debate.  

I think it's silly for anyone to say that we're a better defensive team without Perkins (and I'm not accusing the OP of saying that).  However, I think the better question to ask is just how much the loss of Perkins matters from a points perspective.  

First off, Kendrick was averaging 26 mpg and 22 mpg for his career.  So he's only playing a little over half of the game.  So for the other half of the game, someone else is in the game at center and the Celtics are STILL the #1 defense in the league, even when he's healthy.  

What does that tell us?  It think that tells us that while he helps, a lot of the defense is predicated on the whole team playing well, especially the other 4 starters who are playing WAY more minutes.  

And to go back to my first question, if we're only giving up 91 ppg or so without Perkins, how much (point wise) is he really mattering?  One basket per game?  Maybe two?  

And to be honest, I think that's probably generous.  But even if it was a 2-4 points swing, can't that be made up other ways?  Can't Nenad Krstic get 2-4 more points than Kendrick could?  Can't the same be said about Troy Murphy, who could outscore and outrebound Kendrick?  

And for those who think that defense can't be made up through offensive production, how do you account for the fact that Doc has routinely opted for offense over defense at the end of games, first with Posey in '08, and now with BBD today? 

This is not me trying to knock Kendrick.  I love the guy and think he's one of the best post defenders in the league.  However, I think there are other ways we can make up for his absence and I think we have the tools to do it.  

[Celtics4ever]

I too liked Perk but think some people are acting like we traded Dave Cowens.  Solid defender and a tough guy no doubt but I will not allow emotions block my thought processes.  I was shocked as anyone and sought to rationalize this deal out in my head.

KG is the anchor of the defense not Perk.  He will make Murphy and Krstic better at D too.  This year we won more games without Perk sometimes with Erden in there folks.  I almost think his game will suffer in OKC without KG, I hope it doesn't and wish him well.

[manl_lui]

i rather take TJ Ford over Arroyo

[Who]

If Shaq and JO are healthy, the C's won't miss Perkins at all.

They have gained far more elsewhere than they have lost with Perk.

[droponov]

If Shaq and JO are healthy, the C's won't miss Perkins at all.

They have gained far more elsewhere than they have lost with Perk.

Agreed. In that case, I'd expect the Celtics defense to actually improve from where it was and is, with the additions of O'Neal, Delonte West and Jeff Green to the rotation. Especially Jermaine O'Neal, he's the key element in all this.

[Celtics4ever]

It takes both to win.   I think we lost the finals last year because we simply could not buy a basketball in the fourth.  Yes, we had a lead but we could not maintain it.   The refs sure piled on the FTA and even when LA missed they called fouls.  But make no mistake about we didn't score when we needed two.  It had nothing to do with Perk.   We've never been a good rebounding team because of our commmitment to the transition game.  Doc would rather take his chance on less possessions than unchallenged positions.

Krstic hasn't been horrible and will get better with some learning the system.  Green once he learns it should be an asset.  Murph should be the same way.  I think KG will really challenge these guys to play some D.  No one ever wants to be the GOAT (aka scapegoat reason you lost) on a good team.   Krstic already shown an effort not seen prior to his coming here.  One has to think that Frank endorsed him, perhaps.  He did average 16.4 PPG and 6.8 RPG on year under him shooting .52% from the field.

I've said it a lot to the chagrin of some, we are deeper more talented team today than we were one week ago.   We will improve with gel time.

[clover]

It's also a debate over perimeter D vs. D at the basket.  Danny's no slouch and the nature of the C's top competition has changed.

[toinewalka]

I love the moves.  We have been one of the top defending teams in the league since KG came, and our losses come when we struggle to score.  D is about the system and the desire.  No matter who we bring in, if KG and PP are on the team, they are going to make sure those guys play D and give it everything.  No we actually have some scoring in the mix too.

Another quick thought to leave you with.  We brought in Mikki Moore to be a shot blocking and defensive center behind Perkins to add more defense to the team.  He couldn't learn the system, didn't have the fire, and barely played a minute.  The guys we brought in are smart players and will isten to the KG and PP.  Our D won't lose anywhere near as much as our O will gain.

[greenpride32]

We've been #1 or #2 all year long on lowest points allowed per game.  But how much does this statistic really mean?  We slow the game down which helps keep the opponent's total lower.  It also keeps our total lower as we're in the bottom third as fas as points scored goes.  All that really matters is your differential is positive and we've been in the top 3 in that category all year long.  Maybe FG% allowed is a better statistic to go by?

At any rate, our style of play hasn't changed dramatically whether it's Shaq Perk Semih or Nenad getting the minutes.  Therefore our oppenents PPG averge is also not going to change.