I am sorry but I still don't get it

[Bossco]

Maybe it is just my pet peeve, but I still do not understand why doc plays his starters late in blowout games. Whatever happened to garbage time? Would the sky start to fall if Lester Hudson got more than a 2 min stint in a blowout?

If I am coaching I rest all the starters in the fourth (especially with a date with Tim Duncan in 2 days). Show some faith in your bench as well as develop/find out if some of the youngsters can play. 

We are up big late in the 4th and Pierce and Garnett are still in the game? One question - WHY?!

[nickagneta]

Here's the box score for the game:

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=291201030

Player         Minutes Played
Garnett                  26
Pierce                    34
Perkins                 30
Allen                      36
Rondo                   32

House                   17
Wallace                16
Daniels                 22
Williams               21
Hudson                02
Giddens               02
Scalabrine           03


I really don't see any player that was player too many minutes. I think it is pretty obvious that Doc is going to go with a 9 or 10 player rotation(ten when Baby returns) and that his philosophy is going to be to try to get those players the regular minutes they would otherwise play game in and game out so that they get to best prepare themselves both physically and mentally to be their best during the time they will be playing.

I don't see anything wrong with that nor do I have a problem with the way Doc has managed the teams' minutes either tonight or any other night all year long. The averages speak for themselves. No one is averaging more than 36 MPG. KG's minutes are about 30, Rondo's about 33, Perk's about 27, Allen and Pierce around 35, Daniels about 20 and Wallace about 23. Everyone else is putting up much smaller amounts of minutes on average.

[Rondo_is_better]

Maybe it is just my pet peeve, but I still do not understand why doc plays his starters late in blowout games. Whatever happened to garbage time? Would the sky start to fall if Lester Hudson got more than a 2 min stint in a blowout?

If I am coaching I rest all the starters in the fourth (especially with a date with Tim Duncan in 2 days). Show some faith in your bench as well as develop/find out if some of the youngsters can play. 

We are up big late in the 4th and Pierce and Garnett are still in the game? One question - WHY?!

Donny Marshall calls guys like you "armchair coaches".

[PosImpos]

The only starter whose minutes I am concerned about is Perk.  27 minutes per game seems too low for him as long as he stays out of foul trouble (and I'm pretty sure he has in most of the games).

Still, I wouldn't play Perk more than 30-32 minutes per game.

[Greenbean]

The first game in a while where the Celts looked dominant. I mean really dominant. Yeah the coach must have done something wrong. Enjoy the win and dont forget that for the team to get better they have to play! The more they develop rythym ON the floor, the better off they will be at the end of the year.

Most of the starters sat for a whole quarter's worth of time. Look at every team's top 3 players, even the older one's and look at their MPG. They all average more than the C's big 3 I bet.

You know what I still dont get? How someone could actually come across as sounding agry and frustrated after the C's just dismantled a team that has been playing really well lately.

[shiggins]

Maybe it is just my pet peeve, but I still do not understand why doc plays his starters late in blowout games. Whatever happened to garbage time? Would the sky start to fall if Lester Hudson got more than a 2 min stint in a blowout?

If I am coaching I rest all the starters in the fourth (especially with a date with Tim Duncan in 2 days). Show some faith in your bench as well as develop/find out if some of the youngsters can play. 

We are up big late in the 4th and Pierce and Garnett are still in the game? One question - WHY?!

Donny Marshall calls guys like you "armchair coaches".

And we call guys like Donny Marshall overmatched and unqualified

[jdpapa3]

Well, I see 20 pt fourth quarter comebacks a few times a week so I see where Doc was coming from. Charlotte is a formidable opponent and it was on the road. Better to put the starters back in when the lead is 20 than to look ridiculous putting them back in with 2 minutes left when Charlotte knocks it down to 6 points. I thought the lead was still in danger, so I respect Doc's decision last night.

[hpantazo]

I agree, don't underestimate NBA teams, they can score in bunches and refs tend to help them catch up. Good call by Doc.

[fairweatherfan]

Man, I'd forgotten how much I've missed the "too many minutes in blowouts" threads, because they mean there's officially nothing better to complain about!  TPs all around!

[Fafnir]

I'd be more sympathetic if we had been blowing out teams regularly for a stretch. But we're on a tough road trip, I want this team to stay in rhythm and keep rolling through it...

[liam]

I think that only Ray Allen is playing too many minutes. I've heard he likes to play a lot of minutes so maybe Doc over plays him.  all the other minutes look fine.

[Kiorrik]

I think that only Ray Allen is playing too many minutes. I've heard he likes to play a lot of minutes so maybe Doc over plays him.  all the other minutes look fine.

Imo, as far as I know Rayray, and that's not much further than any of you, I think he just loves the minutes. And honestly, he's quite possibly the healthiest person out there.

[Prof. Clutch]

Here's the box score for the game:

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=291201030

Player         Minutes Played
Garnett                  26
Pierce                    34
Perkins                 30
Allen                      36
Rondo                   32

House                   17
Wallace                16
Daniels                 22
Williams               21
Hudson                02
Giddens               02
Scalabrine           03


I really don't see any player that was player too many minutes. I think it is pretty obvious that Doc is going to go with a 9 or 10 player rotation(ten when Baby returns) and that his philosophy is going to be to try to get those players the regular minutes they would otherwise play game in and game out so that they get to best prepare themselves both physically and mentally to be their best during the time they will be playing.

I don't see anything wrong with that nor do I have a problem with the way Doc has managed the teams' minutes either tonight or any other night all year long. The averages speak for themselves. No one is averaging more than 36 MPG. KG's minutes are about 30, Rondo's about 33, Perk's about 27, Allen and Pierce around 35, Daniels about 20 and Wallace about 23. Everyone else is putting up much smaller amounts of minutes on average.

Nick, I think you said this perfectly.  I do think that 36 minutes in a blow out for a 34 year old Ray Allen might not be necessary, but that being said, I don't think its a big deal at all.

TP.

[pearljammer10]

the team needs to keep their rhythm going. sitting the starters in the 4th quarter of a blowout isnt going to sustain their rhythm in the 4th quarter when they really need it.

[guava_wrench]

Maybe it is just my pet peeve, but I still do not understand why doc plays his starters late in blowout games. Whatever happened to garbage time? Would the sky start to fall if Lester Hudson got more than a 2 min stint in a blowout?

If I am coaching I rest all the starters in the fourth (especially with a date with Tim Duncan in 2 days). Show some faith in your bench as well as develop/find out if some of the youngsters can play. 

We are up big late in the 4th and Pierce and Garnett are still in the game? One question - WHY?!

Were you watching the game? The Celtics started to stink it up.

This is not complicated, so I would think it would be easy to get. There's this thing called a comeback, where teams who were down by a large margin go on a run to get back into the game. You don't want those happening. It is good to throw water on the sparks.