Marquis out Tuesday, Tony in?

[nickagneta]

More impressive from Tony was the play where he got the rebound with just a few seconds left before the end of the third quarter, I think, ran in somewhat good control up the court dribbling the whole time with a man on him trying to prevent him up court, drove the lane, drew the defense into him, dished off to Sheed and Sheed hit the easy buzzer beating basket.

That's a play I have never seen him do. He did everything mentally correct in that play and yes, I fully expected him to lose the dribble but he didn't. That's a really good basketball play. Better than the dunk by far as it took brains and control to make that play and not just ups.

[GreenFaith1819]

I'm happy for TA. He's had some solid contributions lately. I'm even more happy for him that it seems as if he's healthy (Finally).

I really believe that the knee brace was affecting him mentally. Seemed like he had that thing on all of last year.

As good as TA has been lately, I believe he can get even better, even with him being in the league for 6 yrs now. Just stay healthy, man. And keep your focus.

At this rate, TA makes us an even more formidable team once Glen and Marquis come back. We're talking 10+ deep, even into the playoffs, IMO. I'll take our healthy bench over ORL, ATL, CLE or even LA's any day.

[KungPoweChicken]

When Tony averages TOs at his normal (and high) rate, Doc has no problem playing him, as has been demonstrated by the consistent playing time TA has had under Doc's tenure.

I'm not sure this is true.  Doc may play him in regular season games, especially when we're short-handed, but he certainly wasn't inclined to play him during our championship run, when Tony averaged 4.3 minutes per game (predominantly in garbage time).  Last year, when we were extremely short-handed and Ray and Paul were exhausted, Tony saw 6.0 minutes per game.

Doc knows Tony can't be counted on in high-leverage minutes.  He's a fringe NBA player, and this will be his last season in Boston.

Tony wasn't included because of badly timed injuries, not because he is "a fringe NBA player."

[Roy Hobbs]

When Tony averages TOs at his normal (and high) rate, Doc has no problem playing him, as has been demonstrated by the consistent playing time TA has had under Doc's tenure.

I'm not sure this is true.  Doc may play him in regular season games, especially when we're short-handed, but he certainly wasn't inclined to play him during our championship run, when Tony averaged 4.3 minutes per game (predominantly in garbage time).  Last year, when we were extremely short-handed and Ray and Paul were exhausted, Tony saw 6.0 minutes per game.

Doc knows Tony can't be counted on in high-leverage minutes.  He's a fringe NBA player, and this will be his last season in Boston.

Tony wasn't included because of badly timed injuries, not because he is "a fringe NBA player."

Yeah, that's really not true at all.  In 2007-08, Tony was healthy leading up to the playoffs, before injuring his Achilles on May 27.  Prior to that point, he'd been averaging less than five minutes per game in the playoffs.  That wasn't due to injury, it's because Doc knew that Tony couldn't be counted on.

[KungPoweChicken]

When Tony averages TOs at his normal (and high) rate, Doc has no problem playing him, as has been demonstrated by the consistent playing time TA has had under Doc's tenure.

I'm not sure this is true.  Doc may play him in regular season games, especially when we're short-handed, but he certainly wasn't inclined to play him during our championship run, when Tony averaged 4.3 minutes per game (predominantly in garbage time).  Last year, when we were extremely short-handed and Ray and Paul were exhausted, Tony saw 6.0 minutes per game.

Doc knows Tony can't be counted on in high-leverage minutes.  He's a fringe NBA player, and this will be his last season in Boston.

Tony wasn't included because of badly timed injuries, not because he is "a fringe NBA player."

Yeah, that's really not true at all.  In 2007-08, Tony was healthy leading up to the playoffs, before injuring his Achilles on May 27.  Prior to that point, he'd been averaging less than five minutes per game in the playoffs.  That wasn't due to injury, it's because Doc knew that Tony couldn't be counted on.

While what you say has some truth, I don't know if it's all of the truth. Tony was banged up a good portion of that year with injuries here and there. Furthermore, that was the year he came back from knee surgery, and he didn't necessarily fill a need with the shortened playoff rotation and with Posey on the bench.

[nickagneta]

Can we please stop using the injury excuse for Tony. It got 18 months ago. Now it's just taken on urban legend status. Tony was healthy enough to play in the 2008 playoffs and was as well during last year's playoffs. That time of year no one is 100% healthy. Everyone was beat up and hurt. Both years Perk played through shoulder problems. Ray fought through hamstring problems last year. Pierce through extreme fatigue last year and knee problems the year before.

They all played and played admirably. They played big minutes. Tony didn't. And the reason is because of his play, not because of his health. Doc shortens his rotations during the playoffs and Tony is on the outside looking in because he has never proven to Doc that in critical situations he can perform to the level needed. Not because of injuries but because he just can't do it. Hence his shortened minutes during the playoffs.

[Chris]

Can we please stop using the injury excuse for Tony. It got 18 months ago. Now it's just taken on urban legend status. Tony was healthy enough to play in the 2008 playoffs and was as well during last year's playoffs. That time of year no one is 100% healthy. Everyone was beat up and hurt. Both years Perk played through shoulder problems. Ray fought through hamstring problems last year. Pierce through extreme fatigue last year and knee problems the year before.

They all played and played admirably. They played big minutes. Tony didn't. And the reason is because of his play, not because of his health. Doc shortens his rotations during the playoffs and Tony is on the outside looking in because he has never proven to Doc that in critical situations he can perform to the level needed. Not because of injuries but because he just can't do it. Hence his shortened minutes during the playoffs.

Yup, unless we are talking about some brain injury, then injuries are not what has been holding Tony Allen back.  From the second he stepped on the court to right now, the reason he has never been more than a borderline rotation player who loses his spot in the rotation at least a couple times of year, despite his exceptional physical gifts is that he has the BBIQ of a drunk monkey, and wishes he had that good of an attention span.  So unless he can learn to focus consistently, he is always going to be the same old Tony.

[GreenFaith1819]

Well...I wouldn't go as far as comparing his IQ to that of a Drunk Monkey....

TA is certainly an X-Man here, huh? Sorta like Marbury..

If I'm not mistaken (please correct me if I'm wrong), didn't he have that knee brace on all of last year? Even into the playoffs?

Reason I ask this is to try to tie in my "Knee Brace affecting him mentally" belief. Even if he took that thing off towards the end of the season last year, by that time his focus had to have been shot from having to deal with it.

And say if he took the brace off in March of 08...well by that time the season was almost over.

And didn't it take KG several months to get back? And he is just now starting to make me believe that he is back from his Knee issue.

I don't know if comparing KG to TA as far as injury recovery is the right analogy, but I'm just trying to give a decent argument for TA.

[nickagneta]

Well...I wouldn't go as far as comparing his IQ to that of a Drunk Monkey....

TA is certainly an X-Man here, huh? Sorta like Marbury..

If I'm not mistaken (please correct me if I'm wrong), didn't he have that knee brace on all of last year? Even into the playoffs?

Reason I ask this is to try to tie in my "Knee Brace affecting him mentally" belief. Even if he took that thing off towards the end of the season last year, by that time his focus had to have been shot from having to deal with it.

And say if he took the brace off in March of 08...well by that time the season was almost over.

And didn't it take KG several months to get back? And he is just now starting to make me believe that he is back from his Knee issue.

I don't know if comparing KG to TA as far as injury recovery is the right analogy, but I'm just trying to give a decent argument for TA.

It took KG from the beginning of the season, last week of October, until the first week of December to go from 60% capacity according to some and questionable to ever be the same to NBA Player of the Week for the first week of December. So about a month of playing time to get back to himself.

Tony got injured in January 2007. People are still giving us the excuse that he's coming back from that. Almost three years later. Please don't compare KG to Tony regarding recovery time. The notion is extremely off.

[GreenFaith1819]

Well...I wouldn't go as far as comparing his IQ to that of a Drunk Monkey....

TA is certainly an X-Man here, huh? Sorta like Marbury..

If I'm not mistaken (please correct me if I'm wrong), didn't he have that knee brace on all of last year? Even into the playoffs?

Reason I ask this is to try to tie in my "Knee Brace affecting him mentally" belief. Even if he took that thing off towards the end of the season last year, by that time his focus had to have been shot from having to deal with it.

And say if he took the brace off in March of 08...well by that time the season was almost over.

And didn't it take KG several months to get back? And he is just now starting to make me believe that he is back from his Knee issue.

I don't know if comparing KG to TA as far as injury recovery is the right analogy, but I'm just trying to give a decent argument for TA.

It took KG from the beginning of the season, last week of October, until the first week of December to go from 60% capacity according to some and questionable to ever be the same to NBA Player of the Week for the first week of December. So about a month of playing time to get back to himself.

Tony got injured in January 2007. People are still giving us the excuse that he's coming back from that. Almost three years later. Please don't compare KG to Tony regarding recovery time. The notion is extremely off.

I see what you are saying, but I thought (if my memory serves me correctly) that TA had that brace on his knee for most of last year.

[SalmonAndMashedPotatoes]

Well...I wouldn't go as far as comparing his IQ to that of a Drunk Monkey....

TA is certainly an X-Man here, huh? Sorta like Marbury..

If I'm not mistaken (please correct me if I'm wrong), didn't he have that knee brace on all of last year? Even into the playoffs?

Reason I ask this is to try to tie in my "Knee Brace affecting him mentally" belief. Even if he took that thing off towards the end of the season last year, by that time his focus had to have been shot from having to deal with it.

And say if he took the brace off in March of 08...well by that time the season was almost over.

And didn't it take KG several months to get back? And he is just now starting to make me believe that he is back from his Knee issue.

I don't know if comparing KG to TA as far as injury recovery is the right analogy, but I'm just trying to give a decent argument for TA.

It took KG from the beginning of the season, last week of October, until the first week of December to go from 60% capacity according to some and questionable to ever be the same to NBA Player of the Week for the first week of December. So about a month of playing time to get back to himself.

Tony got injured in January 2007. People are still giving us the excuse that he's coming back from that. Almost three years later. Please don't compare KG to Tony regarding recovery time. The notion is extremely off.

So, I guess all the other injuries don't count, huh?  The sprained ankles, the torn ligaments in both the ankle and the thumb, the calf injury, etc?  TA's been injured A LOT since he came back from the catastrophic knee injury.  For almost all of 2007-2008, TA was either without a role in the rotation or coming back from this or that ticky-tack injury.  Without a role and without health, he's never performed very well.

Last year's injuries are pretty well-documented.  Best player off the bench until Dec. 1st, when he suffers his first ankle injury.  Comes back, but is limited.  Injures it again in January, sits out a month.  Comes back in February, plays 7-10 games, starts to round into shape, then tears thumb ligaments, then comes back at the end of the season, predicatably rusty and unable to earn Doc's trust come playoff time.  Has offseason ankle surgery to repair ligament damage. 

TA's hasn't had good stable health where he's been consistently available since 2006.  Ever since then it's been one thing or another.  Availability is a skill, and TA hasn't shown it for a while.  But, when healthy, he's always produced--it's just that those periods have been few and far between.  To ignore those injuries and his overall injury history just isn't prudent.  It's been more than the knee injury, though that was the one that started all the rest of these other injuries...

[Roy Hobbs]

TA's been injured A LOT since he came back from the catastrophic knee injury.

I definitely agree with that.  That's one of the reasons he can't be relied upon.

For almost all of 2007-2008, TA was either without a role in the rotation or coming back from this or that ticky-tack injury.

I disagree with this, though.  In 2007-08, Tony played in 75 games and averaged 20.1 minutes in both December and January, 19.6 minutes in February, 16.9 minutes in March, and 21.0 minutes in April. In other words, he was getting Rasheed minutes. How much more of a consistent role in the rotation do you want for him?  I mean, this is blatant excuse-making.