48 hours later - what are you expecting?

[fairweatherfan]

Ok, so the shock has worn off, the dust has cleared, tears have been shed and keyboards set aflame with anger.  For better or worse, the deal is done and we've got 2 new Cs and are still very much in the middle of a title chase. 

What are you hoping to see out of Krstic and Green over these next few games?  How do you think they'll will look and what would you see as a good sign moving forward?

For me, first - tonight is more or less a mulligan as far as I'm concerned.  They'll be picked apart by the fans and media regardless, but the first game with a new team I don't think you can expect much.  It'd be nice to see a little chemistry but I don't think even a terrible game is much to be alarmed about.

Moving forward, over the next couple of weeks I want to see Green and Krstic learn our plays but more importantly our defensive rotations.  It'd be nice to see the team welcoming them too, but I think that'll take care of itself.

I want to see Green develop chemistry with Rondo, and learn to find open 3-pt spot ups on the fly like Ray and Pierce do.  I want to see him putting the ball on the floor and slashing a bit, and learning to finish or find our bigs around the rim.  Finding space and knowing where the next pass will be will be huge in how Green fits in with this team.

Krstic I think mostly needs to hold down the fort until at least Shaq gets back.  I just want him to stay out of foul trouble, play solid D around the rim, get a few boards, and hit short jumpers.  Some chemistry with KG around the rim would help us moving forward too.  Basically a more efficient, savvier Semih. 

[dpaps]

I think Jeff Green is going to be the best, and one of the most versatile, bench players in the league, along with Odom. Having Green off the bench, someone who can go for 20 on any given night (He scored 40 earlier this year), and can play the 2,3, or 4 should make our bench the best in the league and gives Doc so much flexibility. Green knows he isn't the first, second, or third option on the team, and so he shouldn't be taken as many bad shots as he used to. He also will have Rondo getting him the ball. I look for his percentages to go way up.

I think Krstic is going to show that he's a very capable center, a decent starter, but a great backup once Shaq returns. He'll show he can really bring a new dimension to this team offensively, while not being a big liability defensively. Even when we have Shaq in there, our offense is better (compared to when KP43 is in there), but Shaq still clogs the lane. Krstic has a great mid range game and is a really crafty player around the rim. All of a sudden, when Rondo, Ray, and PP drive the lane, both KG and Krstic can pop out for that mid range J and the game opens up. Lawrence Frank knows how to use Krstic, who was very productive when Frank coached him in NJ. I have very high hopes for both additions.

[birdwatcher]

I'm not concerned about offense from either one of them-that's the big upgrade we got out of this trade. I hope they learn the defensive rotations quickly, learning where they need to be on switches and where their help will be. Kristic may actually flourish in our offense and be more of what we were hoping Sheed would be, and Green is gonna score in any offense on any team.

[wdleehi]

I expect Green to be the good player that he is.  I expect him to help the bench.



I also expect the middle to be soft on defense until one of the O'Neals return. 



I have little in terms of expectations for Kristic. 

[Drucci]

I expect Krstic to hit the midrange jumper on a consistent basis and do an average job on the boards. I'm confident for the jumper part but less for the boards. I don't think he is a great defender but I don't think he is that bad either.

As for Green I just hope he doesn't get affected by the "I'm new and I want to fit so I'm going to make only passes and take terrible decisions because I don't want to hurt the team" like it happened with Marbury.

I'm looking forward to Green developing a nice connection with Rondo. I hope he shoots the ball well too to space the floor (especially from three, that's my concern since it appears his percentage has dropped over the years). I don't expect much either of Krstic and Green for their first game, however I do think Rondo will make their lives easier from the get go and improving from then on.

[celticinorlando]

I expect krstic to hit the out shot off Rondo penetration....I expect green to play good minutes off the bench as well as with the starters

[barefacedmonk]

I expect Green to be the good player that he is.  I expect him to help the bench.

I have little in terms of expectations for Krstic.  

This.

[CoachBo]

The first night means nothing.

I'll be looking for the quality of shots Green gets in the Celtics ball movement offense. They should be infinitely better than the ones he got playing out of position in the Thunder's two-man game.

I want to see how Krstic opens up the paint with his ability to hit the 18 footer. I'll be watching the effort on the glass out of both of them.

But as for tonight, the first night is merely a baseline from which the contributions of the new players will improve.

[indeedproceed]

I'm expecting to stop thinking about the trade. I may be expecting too much.

[vinnie]

I expect the Celtics to lose tonight to a pretty weak Clippers team. After that, I really don't know.

[fairweatherfan]

I expect the Celtics to lose tonight to a pretty weak Clippers team. After that, I really don't know.

After that I predict you'll expect to lose the next game too.  Just a hunch. 

[vinnie]

I expect the Celtics to lose tonight to a pretty weak Clippers team. After that, I really don't know.

After that I predict you'll expect to lose the next game too.  Just a hunch. 

Depends what I see from Green and Krstic tonight given that they still won't have another center for the next game. If I don't see much, then yes, I will expect them to lose the next game. I also now expect the team to finish with the third seed. Thought I would throw that out there because I enjoy getting my head beaten in on CB 

[mmbaby]

I'm expecting first night jitters and bursts of attempted big plays from the new guys.

Chris Johnson looked good on his first night (though I know he's not here permanently). He looked interesting to me and I think he'll turn out to be a great player.

It's going to be a very exciting game.

[KobeShesNotConsenting!]

I expect Jeff Green to benefit a ton from getting out of an iso-heavy system, from finally getting to regularly play his natural position, and finally getting to play with a pass first point guard.

[footey]

Doc's mantra for Jeff will be: just hustle, play hard d, and crash the boards. Don't worry about your offense right now. 

That is how he will get a lot of minutes from coach.