The plan in case Rondo gets injured during the regular season?

[crownsy]

i dont even want to think about this happening 

Unfortunately, neither did Danny and Doc, apparently.  With respect to the PG issue, they're in full ostrich mode.

What journeyman PG available this offseason do you think does a consistently better job than eddie house and friends? marbury  ?

There weren't a whole lot of PG's worth the minimum contract around to sign this off season, to be honest.

We could have pursued other people than sheed and daniels i guess, but i like what both of them bring to the team alot more than an emergency PG backup for those exception slots.

[moiso]

I realize he's a huge downgrade from Rondo, but I think we'd still have an awesome team with Daniels at the point.  The fact that he can't shoot well won't seem like that big of a deal since Rondo can't either.  In my opinion, Daniels is the second best pg we've had in years.  Better than Telfair, Pruitt, Cassell, House, Hudson, Dickau, etc.  Granted, some on that list suck, but IMO Daniels is solid.

[RAcker]

If Rondo goes down for a short period, I think Eddie and Daniels can pick up the slack, with Lester Hudson playing Gabe Pruitt-like minutes.

If it's a long term injury, I guess you need to see who's out there on the NBA scrap heap.  Maybe try to trade for Rafer Alston, like the Magic did last season.  However, if Rondo suffers a major injury that keeps him out of the playoffs, I don't think it will matter who his backup is; we won't win a title without him, in my opinion.

Ditto and TP to Mr. Hobbs.

[Roy Hobbs]

i dont even want to think about this happening 

Unfortunately, neither did Danny and Doc, apparently.  With respect to the PG issue, they're in full ostrich mode.

What journeyman PG available this offseason do you think does a consistently better job than eddie house and friends? marbury  ?

There weren't a whole lot of PG's worth the minimum contract around to sign this off season, to be honest.

We could have pursued other people than sheed and daniels i guess, but i like what both of them bring to the team alot more than an emergency PG backup for those exception slots.

That's how I see it.  I might have taken a run at Anthony Carter, but he's happy in Denver (and isn't that great to begin with).  Other than that, the veteran PGs who signed contracts were terrible.

[BudweiserCeltic]

We have so many playmakers on this team that Rondo getting injured is not catastrophic. What you do is change your game plan, and that's it. You give Pierce and Daniels more ball handling responsibilities. Throw the ball more often to KG and Sheed to the post, and you're pretty much set. It's a different tactic, that's all.

During our championship run, one of our most effective lineups during the playoffs was having House as our PG, but Pierce doing all the ballhandling. The addition of Sheed will make that unit even more effective.

[BrickJames]

The plan if Rondo is hurt: duck and cover.

If he goes down, we are in trouble.

[Chris]

The plan if Rondo is hurt: duck and cover.

If he goes down, we are in trouble.

I agree.  I think they have enough of a talent cushion to handle a handful of games without him, but if he goes down for an extended period of time, particularly in the playoffs, they are in trouble. 

Although I will say that I don't think any of the available options this offseason would have made much of a difference if Rondo did miss significant time (or playoff time).  They are going to be really relying on Rondo this year more than ever, and losing him would be as devastating as losing KG was last year.

[Tai]

I'm just gonna say it outright; this topic's too cynical for my tastes. If Lebron goes down, Cleveland's done too. What if Kobe goes down?

It's not realistic for us to fill this gap adequately, so I don't see the point in biting your teeth over it as if Ainge couldn't do anything. Some people seem to think Marbury's insane, Lue's not the answer, clearly Mike Taylor was passed over, and I'm not sure if the Rockets are willing to give up Alston for what the Celtics would give them.

Someone said that if the Celtics win this year, that Rondo would be our MVP. If anyone even close to agrees with that, then who can we get that would make you feel better as far as insurance? Either way, the Celtics can probably change the game plan around anyways. We do have enough ball handlers, even if they're not as good as Rondo.

[feckless]

The way I see it is Eddie cannot play point against many of the starting PG's--can't even get the ball up the floor.  daniels and he combine well maybe very well for a 2nd unit against 2nd unit talent.  A smart physically diminished veteran PG with the 1st unit leaves our 2nd unit intact.  That lineup with the offense on the 1st unit from the big 3, they may have to step up a little, but we are still a strong 1st 5 and a top of the league 2nd unit.  We need that back-up point familiar, smart and waiting in the wings--doesn't have to be Rondo quality but someone who can get the ball up the floor, feed PP, KG & RA and adequate on D.  Most of those names like TY Lue can do this and some would fit better than others.  But who knows maybe Lester is a prodigy.

[Jon]

If Rondo goes down for a short period, I think Eddie and Daniels can pick up the slack, with Lester Hudson playing Gabe Pruitt-like minutes.

If it's a long term injury, I guess you need to see who's out there on the NBA scrap heap.  Maybe try to trade for Rafer Alston, like the Magic did last season.  However, if Rondo suffers a major injury that keeps him out of the playoffs, I don't think it will matter who his backup is; we won't win a title without him, in my opinion.

Yeah.  That's exactly it.  Short term really isn't a big deal.  This team could beat the scrubs of the NBA with Vitaly Potapenko running the point.  However, if Rondo's done for the year, so are the C's.

And that's why the backup PG isn't as big of a deal as some might think. 

[Brickowski]

I think they could win #18 without Rondo if they had a decent backup.  He wouldn't have to be a star, just steady, e.g. Steve Blake.   

[fanofgreen]

Simple:

Tony Allen to Golden State for Acie Law.

Plain and simple

#1-we get rid of Tony Allen (which automatically strengthens our bench)
#2-we get a natural point guard with Tony Allen-like size
#3-the money matches for this deal to go down
#4-Acie Law would have been stuck behind Monta, Curry, CJ Watson
#5-Acie is not a ball dominant pg with a scorers mentality (like Sam I am and Steph)
#6-Acie is not used to playing big minutes, and so doesn't need big min. (like Sam and Steph)
#7-It puts Marquis back at his NATURAL POSITION of 3 small forward
#8-it still leaves the possibility for other trade oppurtunities with(Scal, Bill, JR. & Hudson)

[HomeRunBaker]

They need a backup pg.  Plain and simple.  A backup is not only there in case of injury, he helps prevent injury by keeping Ronbdo's minutes down and reducing the wear and tear on Rondo's body over a 100+ game season (82 games plus the playoffs).

Isn't this precisely why Marquis Daniels was acquired? Bell is a combo guard like Daniels except he isn't nearly as good an NBA player as Marquis.  Daniels has played the point in the past and has the necessary skills to do so particularly with this team.

One guy who could make sense in a trade is Raymond Felton as a rental since he is an expiring deal that Charlotte will never be able to sign this summer nor would they want to with a cheaper alternative at the point in Augustin.

[Brickowski]

Marquis Daniels is a wing player with some point guard skills.  He was acquired as a solid backup for Pierce and Ray Allen.  It's complete BS to call him a long term solution at point guard.  That's just Rivers-speak.  I'll say it for the 17th time.  They need a decent backup point guard, and neither Marquis Daniels, Eddie House or Lester Hudson is the answer.

[Roy Hobbs]

Marquis Daniels is a wing player with some point guard skills.  He was acquired as a solid backup for Pierce and Ray Allen.  It's complete BS to call him a long term solution at point guard.  That's just Rivers-speak.  I'll say it for the 17th time.  They need a decent backup point guard, and neither Marquis Daniels, Eddie House or Lester Hudson is the answer.

Why is backup point guard so crucial?

Look at the last ten NBA champions:

- Lakers
- Celtics 
- Spurs 
- Heat
- Spurs
- Pistons
- Spurs
- Lakers
- Lakers
- Lakers

Not a single one of those teams had an impact "true" point guard off the bench.  Indeed, in terms of playoff statistics, only Brian Shaw for the Lakers averaged as many as 2.5 assists per game among bench guards.  Eight of the ten teams had backup guards averaging 2.4 assists or less.

It's just not that huge of a need, especially with a good passer and ball-handler like Daniels.