Poll: Bass at Center

[Inside-Out]

Watching Bass...quite a bruiser.  He might be the most physically powerful PF we've had since...I can only think of Brandon Hunter.  And he seems to like to use that muscle in the paint.

Despite being too short, could he play Center?  Short guys have succeeded in the role, mostly as backups, but quite a few top defenders at many positions have been shorter than most opponents, including guys like TA and Ben Wallace - strong, physical players.  Bass seems to have good hands and long reach, timing, etc.

Could he fill some time in the middle?

[bfrombleacher]

Watching Bass...quite a bruiser.  He might be the most physically powerful PF we've had since...I can only think of Brandon Hunter.  And he seems to like to use that muscle in the paint.

Despite being too short, could he play Center?  Short guys have succeeded in the role, mostly as backups, but quite a few top defenders at many positions have been shorter than most opponents, including guys like TA and Ben Wallace - strong, physical players.  Bass seems to have good hands and long reach, timing, etc.

Could he fill some time in the middle?

For some time for sure but he'll still have the same shortcomings of being undersized. I remember last year when we had Baby vs. Al Jefferson.

[CFAN38]

really KG needs to play center next to bass, C is the weakest postion in the NBA. There are very few post up centers left with the exception of dwight and bynum the rest KG should be able to handle.

[Eja117]

I want to see how Stiems does playing lots of minutes first

[slamtheking]

could he, probably.  should he, not really.  If he's on the court with KG, JO, Wilcox or Steimsma, he should be playing PF.  I don't see a positive scenario where he should be at C with someone else at PF based on this roster.

[thirstyboots18]

 I voted no.  He could play center for short (no pun intended) stretches, but it looks like Stiemsma is throwing his name into the hat to be the (backup?) center the Celts have been looking for.  Love the block...maybe he has been watching old tapes?

[Sketch5]

I'd rather see KG at center right now. The only center the C's have to really worry about in the season is Howard, but you could adjust to that. Then you start Bass at PF. Gets you some better offense. JO as back up C. Comes in for KG in 5 min. Then 5 Min later KG comes in for Bass. It could be a nice rotation.

But I don't really see that happening until Bass learns the team concepts first.

[Chris]

While I understand the team needs his shot creating and aggressiveness these last few games, I am already sick of Black Hole Bass, and miss Davis.  It is painful to watch a player who refuses to swing the ball within the offense.

With that said, he can absolutely play next to KG, and you can call whoever you want the center.  

[coco]

I voted "No" because he lacks team defense skills.  He can defend his own guy, but Centers are more like Center Fielders in the NBA now-a-days.  They need to cover lots of ground.

....on the same note, I think we should use a bit more of Stiesma and JJJ and less JO and perhaps a bit less of KG as heretic as it might sound.  

It's time to get the kids ready for primetime and the sooner the better.  Won't get it sitting on the bench or just playing 2 mins stints.  We'll need them in May and hopefully June, if we are planing to go deep.  

[Inside-Out]

While I understand the team needs his shot creating and aggressiveness these last few games, I am already sick of Black Hole Bass, and miss Davis.  It is painful to watch a player who refuses to swing the ball within the offense.

With that said, he can absolutely play next to KG, and you can call whoever you want the center.  

Completely agree on the Black Hole Bass thing.  We've really been spoiled on team ball for the past few years.  He reminds me of the 90's, when the whole NBA was running iso plays almost exclusively.

But I'm hoping that time is a factor in adjusting/learning to be a Celtic.  I'd guess that Doc is asking him to be a scorer off the bench, too, and this is likely the only way he knows how to do that.

I really love the physical play, though.

[Chris]

I voted "No" because he lacks team defense skills.  He can defend his own guy, but Centers are more like Center Fielders in the NBA now-a-days.  They need to cover lots of ground.

....on the same note, I think we should use a bit more of Stiesma and JJJ and less JO and perhaps a bit less of KG as heretic as it might sound.  

It's time to get the kids ready for primetime and the sooner the better.  Won't get it sitting on the bench or just playing 2 mins stints.  We'll need them in May and hopefully June, if we are planing to go deep.  

More Stiemsma...I think we need some patience with Johnson though.  Let him learn the system and get comfortable.  I think he could be good for this team later in the season, but Doc should be careful not to throw him in the deep-end too early, and hurt his confidence.

I think this homestand should be very good for guys like Johnson and Moore.  It will give them more chances to practice, without all the travel to worry about, so then can hopefully get up to speed after the short training camp.

[Brendan]

I get how you can call Bass a black hole, but not how BBD can be a better choice. I think Bass needs to settle in to the offense and take the first open J, or swing the ball. Problem is he's passing up the first J, then trying to create his own offense. Either shoot or pass.

It's going to take a while for things to gel, but I think we're headed for a rotation where KG and Bass are the starters. I'm not sure out of Wilcox, Steis, and JO how the minutes get doled out, but Bass and KG are light years ahead of the rest and need to get most of the minutes.

[Chris]

I get how you can call Bass a black hole, but not how BBD can be a better choice. I think Bass needs to settle in to the offense and take the first open J, or swing the ball. Problem is he's passing up the first J, then trying to create his own offense. Either shoot or pass.

It's going to take a while for things to gel, but I think we're headed for a rotation where KG and Bass are the starters. I'm not sure out of Wilcox, Steis, and JO how the minutes get doled out, but Bass and KG are light years ahead of the rest and need to get most of the minutes.

While I hope you are right, this has been Bass' MO his entire career.  Hopefully playing in the C's system will help him get better, but I am not counting on it.  He is who he is.  Which means when the ball gets in his hands, it is not going to be moving any further. 

As for Davis, he obviously had his own issues, but he was much better at swinging the ball (yeah, he shot too much too, but he was not the ball stopper that Bass was), and was WAY better at playing the pick and roll defense.

Don't get me wrong, I still think Bass is going to be huge for this team, and his aggressive rebounding and ability to finish is something they really needed.  I just have not enjoyed watching it so far, and think he will be frustrating to watch.

[Inside-Out]

I get how you can call Bass a black hole, but not how BBD can be a better choice. I think Bass needs to settle in to the offense and take the first open J, or swing the ball. Problem is he's passing up the first J, then trying to create his own offense. Either shoot or pass.

It's going to take a while for things to gel, but I think we're headed for a rotation where KG and Bass are the starters. I'm not sure out of Wilcox, Steis, and JO how the minutes get doled out, but Bass and KG are light years ahead of the rest and need to get most of the minutes.

I think the Bass/KG pairing is probably our best at the moment, but KG really doesn't look like he's playing strong inside.  We need more than 12/6 from our $21M man, regardless of where he's playing.

Wilcox is a huge wildcard in this.  He's a solid journeyman who could be a very valuable minutes sponge at the big spots this year.

Getting the most out of JO will be a key to winning this year.  KG, too.  Neither one is producing like they need to for us to be a serious contender, and they can't blame being new in the system or whatever.  They were both outplayed in key matchups that they should have gotten up for (Amare/Chandler, Bosh/Miami, Okafor/Kaman/Landry).

As far as Bass/Black Hole things go, his play at the moment is reminiscent of being the best player on a bad team.