Doc, have we finally seen the last of 0-14 Cassell?

[EJPLAYA]

Let this be very clear. When Sam steps out on that floor I hope he kills them every time. I don't cheer for him to do poorly. It just happens most of the time. If you go back and look at House's stat lines though from the entire year, House plays well most of the time. He is a better all around player also, so even if he misses the same amount of shots Sam does, then he still brings something to the floor. Sam brings nothing if he isn't hot.

If House missed 21 in a row I'd be saying the same thing. No one should be allowed to do that out there.

There is absolutely no reason though that Rondo can't play 48 minutes out there. It's playoff time. If it is a crucial game and the game is tight then he shouldn't be resting much at all.

[wdleehi]

Someone has to give Rondo a break.


I think it will probably still be Cassell.

But unless Cassell is hot and Rondo is cold, I don't think we will see 15+ minutes of Cassell anymore.

[indeedproceed]

If we only looked at the numbers produced, esp on the road, everyone including KG would sit right now. How quickly we forget the Sam Cassell that was one of the top 3 reasons we won game 1. Cassell is streaky, shoot first, and he kills ball movement but he's got 2 rings, as much experience as anyone under 50 years old in the garden (including the coaching staff) and a very close bond with Kevin Garnett, No way does he sit and the numbers, while they don't lie, don't tell the whole story.

[winsomme]

Even though I would have liked to see House get more than 6 seconds in that game, Doc did made a great move in not putting him back out there on the floor. Rondo was hot which necessitated his staying our there, but there was a stretch he could have put him back in. Props to Doc for not doing it.

Sam has missed 21 straight shots. With his supposed great offense being the only thing he brings to the table, it is time for him to sit there unless Rondo gets in foul trouble or he or House get injured. Hopefully the Sam I Was ordeal is over.

EJ, i think you are writing Sam off too quickly.

CLE is just not a good matchup for him, but if we are able to continue on in the playoffs, he will come in handy again.

we need someone to stay in the shorts of CLE's shooters and Sam is not that guy.

Rondo had a defining second half for the team, but he can't play 48  minutes on Fri...so hopefully we will see Eddie in CLE....

#1 - I have been writing Sam off since before the guy even came to Boston. I have always maintained he was a terrible pickup and a detriment to our team game. There is no "too quickly" about it.

#2 - He is shooting the exact same shots he has taken his whole career. He just has missed the last 21 in a row. He has abut 3-4 games since he has been here that he has been decently hot out there. All the rest of them he hurts this team. He isn't a bad defender against Cleveland. He is a bad defender against everyone. If we slip through Cleveland do you rally think he can play with Chauncey, or Stuckey or Hunter?! He's matched up against Delonte and Gibson. Not exactly the cream of the NBA's PG's.

Sam has already contributed to the Cs winning games in this series, so all i'm doing is pointing out that this is not the last you will see of Sam if we are able to continue in these playoffs...

i'm certainly not going to get back in that interminable debate with you about the Cassell signing....

the playoffs are all about matchups. this series is a bad one for him, but future series may prove different..

[EJPLAYA]

lol how Sam becomes the scapegoat of all the C's problems is beyond me. Is everyone forgetting how terrible House shot in the 2nd half of the year? How he cant even bring the ball up? How he hasnt made the big shots Cassell has made for this team?

Get a gripe. Sam is struggling but we needed him in February and we need him to win our 17th. I like Rondo for 38-43 min a game but when hes struggling, Cassell is valuable.

Sam isn't the scapegoat for all the problems, but he definitely has been. I'm sitting there trying to think back to all those Celtic games where Sam Cassell has made the big shots for us...  Hmm... Can't think of more than a couple games that he actually played at the level he was brought in here to do.

House on the other hand has had a huge amount of games this year where he helped us break the back of other teams and blow teams out. You must not have watched many games this year, but as I have seen every minute of every game (thanks TIVO and NBA league Pass) I can promise you it isn't even close.

I will never understand how with the body of work that Sam has out there as a Celtic how the Sam supporters can be so rabidly behind the guy. We are a worse team since he took over as the backup PG spot. That is a fact.

[wdleehi]

If we only looked at the numbers produced, esp on the road, everyone including KG would sit right now. How quickly we forget the Sam Cassell that was one of the top 3 reasons we won game 1. Cassell is streaky, shoot first, and he kills ball movement but he's got 2 rings, as much experience as anyone under 50 years old in the garden (including the coaching staff) and a very close bond with Kevin Garnett, No way does he sit and the numbers, while they don't lie, don't tell the whole story.

He was hot.  When he is like that, and Rondo is having an off night, we will see Cassell get the run.

But the way Cassell has been in most playoff games, is very off.  At that point, he doesn't help the team.  He sets them back. 

[winsomme]

Someone has to give Rondo a break.


I think it will probably still be Cassell.

But unless Cassell is hot and Rondo is cold, I don't think we will see 15+ minutes of Cassell anymore.

i think watching the postgame that Doc knows that Sam just can't keep up with DWest and Gibson running off all those screens and that is the biggest reason to not play him in this series at this point...

[Frontierboy]

Doc finally made a good move by benching Cassell at the middle of the 2nd quarter for the rest of the game.....

Finally!!!!!!!!!!  This is what everyone has been saying for the past 2 weeks!!!!!!!

[nickagneta]

Let this be very clear. When Sam steps out on that floor I hope he kills them every time. I don't cheer for him to do poorly. It just happens most of the time. If you go back and look at House's stat lines though from the entire year, House plays well most of the time. He is a better all around player also, so even if he misses the same amount of shots Sam does, then he still brings something to the floor. Sam brings nothing if he isn't hot.

If House missed 21 in a row I'd be saying the same thing. No one should be allowed to do that out there.

There is absolutely no reason though that Rondo can't play 48 minutes out there. It's playoff time. If it is a crucial game and the game is tight then he shouldn't be resting much at all.

Well, you already know that I don't think that Eddie brings more to the table than Sam. Besides, put a fork in House, he's done as far as this coach and team is concerned and no amount of complaining about him not playing is going to do anything about it at this point in time, but that's not what I want to comment on.

Rondo can and should play as many minutes as humanly possible. And that goes for some of the other starters as well.

If Kobe, LeBron, DHoward, CP3, Pau, and Deron Williams can play over 40, there's no reason to think that a 22 year old Rondo, a genetic freak like KG, and a warrior like Paul Pierce can't do the same thing. They are our three most important players and need to be on the floor for extended minutes for every game from here on out.

[EJPLAYA]

Even though I would have liked to see House get more than 6 seconds in that game, Doc did made a great move in not putting him back out there on the floor. Rondo was hot which necessitated his staying our there, but there was a stretch he could have put him back in. Props to Doc for not doing it.

Sam has missed 21 straight shots. With his supposed great offense being the only thing he brings to the table, it is time for him to sit there unless Rondo gets in foul trouble or he or House get injured. Hopefully the Sam I Was ordeal is over.

EJ, i think you are writing Sam off too quickly.

CLE is just not a good matchup for him, but if we are able to continue on in the playoffs, he will come in handy again.

we need someone to stay in the shorts of CLE's shooters and Sam is not that guy.

Rondo had a defining second half for the team, but he can't play 48  minutes on Fri...so hopefully we will see Eddie in CLE....

#1 - I have been writing Sam off since before the guy even came to Boston. I have always maintained he was a terrible pickup and a detriment to our team game. There is no "too quickly" about it.

#2 - He is shooting the exact same shots he has taken his whole career. He just has missed the last 21 in a row. He has abut 3-4 games since he has been here that he has been decently hot out there. All the rest of them he hurts this team. He isn't a bad defender against Cleveland. He is a bad defender against everyone. If we slip through Cleveland do you rally think he can play with Chauncey, or Stuckey or Hunter?! He's matched up against Delonte and Gibson. Not exactly the cream of the NBA's PG's.

Sam has already contributed to the Cs winning games in this series, so all i'm doing is pointing out that this is not the last you will see of Sam if we are able to continue in these playoffs...

i'm certainly not going to get back in that interminable debate with you about the Cassell signing....

the playoffs are all about matchups. this series is a bad one for him, but future series may prove different..

That's fine. Then address it solely as a matchup issue. Future series are pretty much set. He can't match up with the Pistons guards any better than Cleveland's. He sure can't match up with the Quickness of Deron Williams and Ronnie Price of the Jazz. He sure can't matchup with Derek Fisher or stay with Jordan Farmar. He can't match up with Chris Paul or Pargo. He can't stay with Parker.

This is probably the easiest matchup that he will have the rest of the way defensively. It will only get worse... We need a PG that is either quick enough to create a mismatch on offense (Rondo) or one that can spread the floor and let the other guys do their thing and hit the open shot if needed. House is the better backup the rest of the way for that.

[EJPLAYA]

Let this be very clear. When Sam steps out on that floor I hope he kills them every time. I don't cheer for him to do poorly. It just happens most of the time. If you go back and look at House's stat lines though from the entire year, House plays well most of the time. He is a better all around player also, so even if he misses the same amount of shots Sam does, then he still brings something to the floor. Sam brings nothing if he isn't hot.

If House missed 21 in a row I'd be saying the same thing. No one should be allowed to do that out there.

There is absolutely no reason though that Rondo can't play 48 minutes out there. It's playoff time. If it is a crucial game and the game is tight then he shouldn't be resting much at all.

Well, you already know that I don't think that Eddie brings more to the table than Sam. Besides, put a fork in House, he's done as far as this coach and team is concerned and no amount of complaining about him not playing is going to do anything about it at this point in time, but that's not what I want to comment on.

Rondo can and should play as many minutes as humanly possible. And that goes for some of the other starters as well.

If Kobe, LeBron, DHoward, CP3, Pau, and Deron Williams can play over 40, there's no reason to think that a 22 year old Rondo, a genetic freak like KG, and a warrior like Paul Pierce can't do the same thing. They are our three most important players and need to be on the floor for extended minutes for every game from here on out.

 I agree. I still can not understand how he shouldn't be playing 42-44 minutes a night. I am fine with House sitting if it means Rondo is out there.

It doesn't make any sense however why House is not playing though. It's almost as if he got in their dog house. Right before he stopped playing at the end of the year he was getting big minutes and playing very well. Enough so that many people felt the rest that he got at years end was because Doc had seen enough to know he was the backup... Crazy.

[winsomme]

Even though I would have liked to see House get more than 6 seconds in that game, Doc did made a great move in not putting him back out there on the floor. Rondo was hot which necessitated his staying our there, but there was a stretch he could have put him back in. Props to Doc for not doing it.

Sam has missed 21 straight shots. With his supposed great offense being the only thing he brings to the table, it is time for him to sit there unless Rondo gets in foul trouble or he or House get injured. Hopefully the Sam I Was ordeal is over.

EJ, i think you are writing Sam off too quickly.

CLE is just not a good matchup for him, but if we are able to continue on in the playoffs, he will come in handy again.

we need someone to stay in the shorts of CLE's shooters and Sam is not that guy.

Rondo had a defining second half for the team, but he can't play 48  minutes on Fri...so hopefully we will see Eddie in CLE....

#1 - I have been writing Sam off since before the guy even came to Boston. I have always maintained he was a terrible pickup and a detriment to our team game. There is no "too quickly" about it.

#2 - He is shooting the exact same shots he has taken his whole career. He just has missed the last 21 in a row. He has abut 3-4 games since he has been here that he has been decently hot out there. All the rest of them he hurts this team. He isn't a bad defender against Cleveland. He is a bad defender against everyone. If we slip through Cleveland do you rally think he can play with Chauncey, or Stuckey or Hunter?! He's matched up against Delonte and Gibson. Not exactly the cream of the NBA's PG's.

Sam has already contributed to the Cs winning games in this series, so all i'm doing is pointing out that this is not the last you will see of Sam if we are able to continue in these playoffs...

i'm certainly not going to get back in that interminable debate with you about the Cassell signing....

the playoffs are all about matchups. this series is a bad one for him, but future series may prove different..

That's fine. Then address it solely as a matchup issue. Future series are pretty much set. He can't match up with the Pistons guards any better than Cleveland's. He sure can't match up with the Quickness of Deron Williams and Ronnie Price of the Jazz. He sure can't matchup with Derek Fisher or stay with Jordan Farmar. He can't match up with Chris Paul or Pargo. He can't stay with Parker.

This is probably the easiest matchup that he will have the rest of the way defensively. It will only get worse... We need a PG that is either quick enough to create a mismatch on offense (Rondo) or one that can spread the floor and let the other guys do their thing and hit the open shot if needed. House is the better backup the rest of the way for that.

i don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves here because we are still in a very tense series, but i think Sam could be big in a DET series where ball control will be very important.....

[Who]

That's fine. Then address it solely as a matchup issue. Future series are pretty much set. He can't match up with the Pistons guards any better than Cleveland's. He sure can't match up with the Quickness of Deron Williams and Ronnie Price of the Jazz. He sure can't matchup with Derek Fisher or stay with Jordan Farmar. He can't match up with Chris Paul or Pargo. He can't stay with Parker.

This is probably the easiest matchup that he will have the rest of the way defensively. It will only get worse... We need a PG that is either quick enough to create a mismatch on offense (Rondo) or one that can spread the floor and let the other guys do their thing and hit the open shot if needed. House is the better backup the rest of the way for that.

I agree. Cleveland is by far the best matchup for Sam Cassell. Life is only going to get more difficult for him.

[Who]

I think Doc has to handle Sam the exact way he did tonight every game. Sam missed his shots but they were in the offensive flow and he was moving the ball and not delaying the offense. Not even once. But if Sam doesn't hit his shots, he needs to get out quick.

I don't want Doc pulling Sam every time he misses two shots. It's a recipe for further unneccessary difficulties. I don't want Sam thinking about being pulled every second on the court, I want him playing freely.

[EJPLAYA]

I think Doc has to handle Sam the exact way he did tonight every game. Sam missed his shots but they were in the offensive flow and he was moving the ball and not delaying the offense. Not even once. But if Sam doesn't hit his shots, he needs to get out quick.

I don't want Doc pulling Sam every time he misses two shots. It's a recipe for further unneccessary difficulties. I don't want Sam thinking about being pulled every second on the court, I want him playing freely.

I don't want Rondo looking over at Sam every time he makes a bad play. The only thing that Sam should be playing freely with is his warm up sweats wondering why he hasn't played the rest of the year...