Shaq to start at Center as of now

[Jon]

There are pros and cons to both options.  On one hand, the second unit could use Shaq's scoring presence.  However, on the other hand, the second unit looks to run more than the first (despite Rondo, I don't see a ton of running going on with the Big Three), so JO might be a better fit with them.  

Regardless, I expect JO will probably play a few more minutes per game than Shaq, so JO will probably get time with the starters as well.  

[moiso]

Good News: I am very excited about Shaq playing alongside the Big Three. That combination will be monstrous.

Bad News: Not so much with Rondo. Shaq will make his life more difficult like he did to Steve Nash.

Good News: Also happy that Shaq gets to play alongside KG defensively. That will help him immensely.

Bad News: Unhappy thinking about Jermaine O'Neal's offensive duties in that second unit. Worried about him creating his own offense, being inefficient and a ball-stopper and hurting the team's offense.

Good post.  Yeah, I'm not thrilled with JO on the second unit.  I see too many offbalance 15 ft jumpers in his future.

[KobeGotRondoD]

Good News: I am very excited about Shaq playing alongside the Big Three. That combination will be monstrous.

Bad News: Not so much with Rondo. Shaq will make his life more difficult like he did to Steve Nash.

Good News: Also happy that Shaq gets to play alongside KG defensively. That will help him immensely.

Bad News: Unhappy thinking about Jermaine O'Neal's offensive duties in that second unit. Worried about him creating his own offense, being inefficient and a ball-stopper and hurting the team's offense.

Good post.  Yeah, I'm not thrilled with JO on the second unit.  I see too many offbalance 15 ft jumpers in his future.

]]

Exactly. With JO on the 2nd Unit, it would become primarily shooters that's all.

Switch it up and create some balance in the offense.

[wdleehi]

I have not issue with JO on the 2nd unit.



One, he will never be the number one option on the floor as it is likely that KG, Pierce or Ray will be out there. 

Two, he will be a low post threat against the other teams backup PF/C. 


Three, he provides the defense we want next to Davis.

[clover]

I agree with ya guys it can change but whatevers working, the point you bring up of Jermaine does worry me a little also with Shaq in the middle where is Rondo going to operate?  

First of all, first post, Hi yall. Second, can you explain the reasonin behind sayin that shaq bein inside will somehow hurt rondo's game? I ask because ive seen it a few times on here and dont really understand it. how is havin shaq in the middle any different from havin perk in the middle? both have limited range, and if anyting it should HELP. no more dropped passes and more assists for rondo. That bein said, i was likin the idea of shaq on the bench as our go-to, but not because it would somehow help rondo...

I'm a little surprised no one mentioned the pick and roll issue with shaq.  he's not athletic, fit, or agile enough to replace perk. JO is a much younger, more athletic, and defensive minded player who will help rondo because of this athleticism. shaq is slow which will hurt rondo's game because he likes to run more and more now. our transition defense/game is what allows us to score a lot of points...(this is was kind of lacking last  yr which we could see at the offensive end of the floor a lot)  the game would slow down with shaq as a starter. definite no

Shaq may be slow, but he's looking more fit to me than he has in years, maybe--accounting for age--more fit than ever.

[SalmonAndMashedPotatoes]

Shaq a Big surprise

Rivers said that his two biggest surprises in camp were Shaquille O’Neal and Nate Robinson. He said that each had a “phenomenal” camp, and then spoke quickly about each player.

You could tell that Rivers was overly pleased by the Shaq’s performance by listening to one simple sentence: “The last two days he’s been with the first team. Yup, that means Shaq has, at least to this point, supplanted Jermaine O'Neal as the team's starting center.

http://www.nba.com/celtics/news/sidebar/100210-camp-closes-high.html

Thoughts?

This is a good discussion to have, but let's clear up some things first.

1.  Doc's quote got mangled.  He only said "The last two days he’s been with the first team."  The rest of attributed material above was actually Stringer's conclusion that Shaq had supplanted Jermaine as the team's starter at center.  In fact, he's has not.

2.  Jermaine O'Neal didn't practice on Saturday because of a sore hamstring.  

So, as it turns out, Jermaine's been hampered by a sore hamstring for 2 days and Shaq's been filing in for him with the 1st team.  Shaq has not supplanted anyone, all this is just another example of lazy reporting.  Jermaine is still the starter until Perk comes back....

[diehard celtic]

http://www.bostoncelticsreport.com/2010/10/boston-celtics-shaq-is-the-starting-center.html/ That may explain a few questions.

[jsingh1699]

even if shaq won the starting center job. how many minutes is he really expected to play during the season? except when they play the lakers, heat, and magic, i dont see him playing more than 24 min per game. i mean against teams like the clippers and raptors, he'll prob only play 15-20 min. jermaine is gonna be playing 20-30 min ago simply because he is younger and has more left in the tank. and depending on matchups and sometimes how he plays, BBD steps up and closes out games. doc is gonna conserve shaq as much as he can until the playoffs. and then in the playoffs, we've seen how things are. people get into foul trouble early and often. so i really dont think it matters who starts then because foul trouble will really dictate whos gonna play the big minutes.

on a side note, i say we dump erdin around february and bring wallace back for the sole purpose of guarding dwight howard and bynum. him, shaq, jo, and even a 75% perk will be terrible news for howard, bynum, gasol, or the entire heat big man core.

[diehard celtic]

I hope to we dump semih, and maybe pick up a small forward.

[moiso]

Shaq a Big surprise

Rivers said that his two biggest surprises in camp were Shaquille O’Neal and Nate Robinson. He said that each had a “phenomenal” camp, and then spoke quickly about each player.

You could tell that Rivers was overly pleased by the Shaq’s performance by listening to one simple sentence: “The last two days he’s been with the first team. Yup, that means Shaq has, at least to this point, supplanted Jermaine O'Neal as the team's starting center.

http://www.nba.com/celtics/news/sidebar/100210-camp-closes-high.html

Thoughts?

This is a good discussion to have, but let's clear up some things first.

1.  Doc's quote got mangled.  He only said "The last two days he’s been with the first team."  The rest of attributed material above was actually Stringer's conclusion that Shaq had supplanted Jermaine as the team's starter at center.  In fact, he's has not.

2.  Jermaine O'Neal didn't practice on Saturday because of a sore hamstring.  

So, as it turns out, Jermaine's been hampered by a sore hamstring for 2 days and Shaq's been filing in for him with the 1st team.  Shaq has not supplanted anyone, all this is just another example of lazy reporting.  Jermaine is still the starter until Perk comes back....

Didn't take long for JO to get hurt.  It's his pattern so we better get used to it.

[bucknersrevenge]

http://www.bostoncelticsreport.com/2010/10/boston-celtics-shaq-is-the-starting-center.html/ That may explain a few questions.

That sounds like opinion. Correct me if I'm wrong but did I read anything there that was substantiated by any legit source at all? Especially Doc?? All I heard was Shaq had a great camp. That's it. Now Shaq certainly does clog the paint. And with Rondo, Ray and Paul's experience along with KG once again playing at a high level hopefully they may be better equipped to help for Shaq's mobility questions regarding the pick n roll. On the perimeter they can close off penetration and help out a little better than the BBM could. And if a truly motivate Shaq is what we have it's hard to argue not allowing him to make his presence felt early and often in a game to set the tone. And as for JO being the primary post option off the bench I don't think nearly as bad of his post offense as some people do. Last year he shot a respectable 45% on jumpshots and 58% on in close shots and post-ups so there's no reason Nate and/or Delonte can't run pick n roll, pick n pop or straight postups with him.

That said there's certain positives to trotting out JO to start as well. I expect both JO and KG to beat most opponent bigs up the floor. There's no reason they can't. And obviously there is no answer for motivated Shaq coming off the bench.

[bucknersrevenge]

I hope to we dump semih, and maybe pick up a small forward.

I see Erden spending most of his time down in the D but if during the season Daniels is not cutting it again and we need another 3 then so be it. Before we go on with our attempt to pick up another 3 I think Daniels deserves the chance to lose that spot first before we go actively searching because we know Delonte and Nate are in the backcourt. I say our 1th spot goes to Mario West as well to be the emergency backup 3.

[GreenEnvy]

Did Doc say he moved past JO on the depth chart, or just that he was running sets with the first team?

I still think JO will start and we see Shaq to end games with the the Big Three Plus One.

As I have obviously not seen them in action yet, I would rather Shaq come off the bench with the second unit. His defense would be masked with the first team because of three other excellent defenders, but he would also be going against the best in the league, starters. Put him on the second unit, and there aren't many guys who you really have to worry about. He would significantly upgrade the usually stagnant second-team offense, but that may change anyway with Nate, Delonte/Wafer and Daniels. Either way, he would be able to dominate against second units.

I can't wait to see this team in action, I hope I get to catch a few preseason games.

[xmuscularghandix]

Him getting time with the first team really isn’t a huge shock, It’s not like Shaq is only gonna be playing with the backups.

Plus, didn’t the reports say that we spent 2 ours just on half court defense? Maybe Doc just feels that Shaq can use all the reps he can get.

[gar]

I think Shaq likes the idea of playing with Delonte and of course he knows BDD and is getting his fill of Nate these days; but I think he likes being the big dawg on the court rather than deferring to KG or PP.