Of course he should play - that is why they traded for him. doc said all along that Nate would help us win a playoff game. My question is how many games could he have helped us win if doc had only let him play?
When things are going well doc's coaching is great, but when we hit a few bumps in the road and there are personnel adjustments to be made they are often made for him by injuries and foul trouble. = Nate only gets in the game because Rondo got hurt.
Dude...they're 12-5 in their last 17 games playing Miami 5 times, Cleveland 6 times and Orlando 6 times and your complaining because Doc didn't use Nate more to win lose less games? They couldn't have won more, it's impossible. After three series the max they could win is 12. Doc has coached this team fabulously through 17 games.
It's not time to take a swipe at the coach because you love Nate and want to see him play. What is important is the final result and Doc has been masterful at getting these guys playing at the level they did while simultaneously bringing out the best in Baby, Tony, Nate and rasheed just when the Celtics needed them most.
Dude doc only put Nate into the game because Rondo went down. That's masterful?
Was it masterful to not take a time out with 16 seconds to go in regulation in game 4 and we didn't even get a shot off?
Is it masterful to play your starters when you are up 30 points?
doc is good at motivating, but our team didn't play great defense until Thibs and KG got here.
I don't consider it taking a swipe at doc - I think it is fair to ask the question why trade for a talented player that it seems that you need and then not play him.
Don't forget it wasn't very long ago that Rondo wasn't considered starting point guard material because they said he couldn't shoot.
In the playoffs all coach's limit their rotations to the players they trust the most and are performing the best. This year that meant the starts Tony, Rasheed and Baby would be playing and everyone else would have to maintain themselves to be ready at a moments notice if called upon. How anyone can argue with the results given the level of competition. They are 12-5 against Miami, Cleveland and Orlando which means they are in the Finals while having to play the hardest schedule of anyone to get there.
Besides, Doc already predicted that Nate would play and win the team a playoff game. Does that sound like a coach that only uses people off his bench when other people get hurt? He could have used Tony at the point and played Ray and Paul 48 minutes. He didn't. He went to Nate. He wasn't forced to. He chose to. Like he said he would when he made his prediction.
You complain about the results of a last minute decision that didn't work out in game 4 but I don't think the decision not to call a timeout bad. Orlando had Nelson, Redick, Bass, Gortat and Carter in the game with Carter guarding Pierce. If the decision is to call a timeout and allow Orlando to bring in Howard, Lewis, Pietrus and Barnes(to guard Pierce) or not call a timeout and let Pierce go iso on Carter, I'll take the latter. The decision was sound. The execution poor.
Who cares who's playing when up 30 points. It's the playoffs. You have to win and there's no tomorrow. I have zero problem with playing the starters when they are up big. What are you going to do, rest them for the off season?
This is Doc's defensive system, not Coach Thibodeau's. It started showing dividends when Danny finally got players that could play it. Yes it wasn't good before KG and Ray and Posey and Thibodeau got here but is that a slight on Doc's system and Doc as a coach or is that a slight on the players that were here before who, as it just so happens, have been atrocious defensive players in the teams they have played for since?
And thank you you prove my point with the Rondo comment. Rondo was developed into a better player by Doc. Rondo is who he is today because of Doc's tutelage and abilities as a great coach. It's through Doc's confidence in Rondo and handling of Rondo that has made him the player he is today.
And it's the same with Nate. As Van Gundy and Jackson said last night, Nate is a better player now than when he got here because of the atmosphere and coaching that he has gotten here. In NY he was wild and made stupid decisions and was undisciplined. Well, Doc, through discipline and making him understand that you have to play a certain way to earn your minutes has made Nate a better player. NOT PLAYING NATE MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE BEST THING DOC EVER DID FOR NATE. Nate fans just don't seem and never will seem to grasp that concept.
