Marbury To Start Tonight vs. Miami

[arctic 3.0]

For the same reason that it made sense the other night, I think this is the right move. Throw the guy into the fire. If he doesn't perform then be quicker to insert Eddie. We need Eddie's offense with that second unit. I might even give Gabe some of his minutes if Starbury struggles.

I'd put Mikki in for BBD. That leaves Powe with that second unit.

id do that two, i think leon is too important to the bench unit to start. not a knock against him, i just think he's that important.

as for starbury, fine with me, just like to see a quicker leash if he's struggling this time. and not the typical "your out for the half, moron" pull, just yank him for 3 minutes and work with him on the sideline, then re-insert.

Treat him like first year rondo for the next few games.

I would do this too.  Not because Leon is so important to the bench, but because Doc likes to start a PF that can spread the floor.  But I'm not sure he would want 2 new players in the starting lineup.

man our bench is thin.

we start marbury, allen, pierce, moore and perk.
we have one big on the bench, an undersized 2 guard, and three completely unproven kids.

we may be looking at .500 ball for a stretch.

go c's

[Mr October]

Good luck Steph! I can understand the logic behind him or House starting. Might as well give him some more starter burn. Get well Rondo.

Go Celtics!

[celts4life]

Yeah, I tend to agree that starting Marbury is the right decision.  And I personally believe that starting Mikki Moore over Leon would be a smart move.  Not necessarily because it will make the first unit better, but because I'm more concerned with the play of the bench.

A few people have mentioned that they don't like the idea of putting two new players into the starting lineup.  I don't necessarily agree due to the fact that they're playing with three veterans.  I'd be more worried about the two of them playing with the second unit and Gabe Pruitt/Bill Walker.  Let Eddie and Leon stay in their current roles and keep the bench as strong as possible.

To those wanting to start both House and Powe, what would happen if, say, Marbury, Pruitt, Ray/Paul, Walker and Moore were on the court?  This basically erases Doc's desire to give Ray and Paul fewer minutes.  And where does the offense come from?  Just trying to play devil's advocate here.

[steelbos]

I'd be all in for Walker getting the start at PF as he could be a mismatch for Haslem to handle. Walker can guard Haslem and is a pretty good rebounder. Start the game running and then bring either Moore or Powe in at the 6 minute mark so Walker can spell Pierce in the second quarter.

[xmuscularghandix]

I'd be all in for Walker getting the start at PF as he could be a mismatch for Haslem to handle. Walker can guard Haslem and is a pretty good rebounder. Start the game running and then bring either Moore or Powe in at the 6 minute mark so Walker can spell Pierce in the second quarter.

agreed and TP.

[Mr October]

I'd be all in for Walker getting the start at PF as he could be a mismatch for Haslem to handle. Walker can guard Haslem and is a pretty good rebounder. Start the game running and then bring either Moore or Powe in at the 6 minute mark so Walker can spell Pierce in the second quarter.

Walker is going to have to get some burn at the 4, and we will have to run. There's no way Perkins, Powe and Moore are all going to avoid foul trouble. 

[CelticsWhat35]

I'd be all in for Walker getting the start at PF as he could be a mismatch for Haslem to handle. Walker can guard Haslem and is a pretty good rebounder. Start the game running and then bring either Moore or Powe in at the 6 minute mark so Walker can spell Pierce in the second quarter.

You might be in the minority, but I actually don't think that's a bad idea.  Initially, I would think that Powe should start.  But since neither he or Perk have much of an outside game, it would clog the lanes a bit.  Also, since Perk is our best rebounder, it might be better to have him with the undersized power forward in Walker, who also would be able to stretch the floor a bit more, which Doc likes out of the 4 spot.

[LB3533]

Antoine would have been perfect to start right now.

[celticinorlando]

reps reps reps

[Mr October]

Antoine would have been perfect to start right now.

Hahaha! Awesome. TP

I can't believe how thin the team is right now! 

[MattD]

I'd start Pruitt at point, because a) Pruitt is so much better defensively than Marbury, b) he's been with the team longer and may (I emphasize may) know the plays better, c) he may (see last point) be a better outside shooter than Marbury at this point, and d) I think/hope that in the playoffs Marbury will continue to be playing mainly with the 2nd unit players, and I'd like to see him continue to develop chemistry with them.  House was completely neutralized by playing PG against Orlando...he made a big 3, then the next 5-6 times up the floor he brought the ball up the floor, passed it off, and never got it back.  He's just so much better playing off the ball, with a PG like Marbury looking for him.

The PF position is a tough call...the Perk/Powe combo is so good defensively at cutting off the paint (important when playing with Wade and JO), and I like Powe matched up against Haslem, at least compared to a 3pt shooter like Beasley.  But who plays for Miami's 2nd unit, who would he match up with?  Powe against Joel Anthony is fine with me, and have Pierce and/or Walker cover Beasley.  So I'm not sure there's a clear advantage to Powe or Moore here.

[ScoobyDoo]

Yes, start Marbury. Start him, play him, exhaust him. Best way to get the rust off. He needs major brun to get up to speed, this is the best way. Once he gets up to speed, which I think will be sometime in early April, he will be a huge benefit to us because he will be able to let it rip with the second unit and that second unit needs that person who can create their own and for everyone else.

Pruitt may be the guy next year. This year we need Marbury to do it.

I'm less concerend about the starting Power Forward spot, but I'd probably go with Powe. 

[Scalablob990]

Someone is going to need to have a break out game tonight if we want to win. Out of Moore/Powe/Walker/Pruitt/House/Giddens/Marbury,  one of them should at least light up Miami for 20+.

[BudweiserCeltic]

I really could care less if it's House or Marbury starting. There are valid reasons to do one or the other, I won't lose sleep over it. Now, let's kick Wade's ass and hopefully Perk can knock a tooth off from O'neal.

[EJPLAYA]

If we don't start Marbury then we are wasting the guy for the playoffs, and then why did we bother?! The big difference in Marbury this year and Sam last year was that at least Marbury is coming in and trying to fit in and not force things. Maybe even too much. I'd like to see him be a little more aggressive with his shot. He might know his legs aren't there to allow him to get past his defender so is waiting with this though. He'll get there though, as long as we give him this burn.