play Jeff Green (mostly) at the 3

[csfansince60s]

I agree with Drucci and Brendan's sentiments of a Green/Pierce 2/3 combo. This is especially deadly and versatile offensively, and that would be with either Rondo or Dwest at the 1, it wouldn't matter even if Arroyo was the 1.

On defense, Green, with his foot-speed and mobility will better be able to cover the 2 than the 3, and those attributes, combined with his length should make him a real effective defender of SGs where he can bother shots on the perimeter, and if they get by him, block shots from behind.

If he keeps playing like he played last night, I think he should be first off the bench for both Ray and PP.

[Jeff]

looks like Doc knows this (hey, he's a smart guy)

http://greenstreet.weei.com/sports/boston/basketball/celtics/2011/04/06/doc-rivers-on-dc-jeff-green-could-be-a-good-defensive-player/

Green was supposed to give the Celtics a defensive boost, but Rivers said he may have been hampered by being forced to guard at two positions. “He could be a good defensive player,” Rivers said. “Is he a 3 or a 4? He’s a 3. He’s played 4 his whole career thus far. With Oklahoma he had no choice. They put [Kevin] Durant on the 3s and they put him on the 4s. … I think he’s a better 3 than 4 defensively just from the power standpoint. But I do think he can be a good defender. I think right now he’s an OK defender.”

[celts55]

I guess Doc is in both a good and bad place at the same time. If he only plays Green at the 3 the only way to get him minutes is to use him with Pierce at the 2 some of the time, but than you have to take thoughs minutes from West, who's been playing better lately. Sure West is the back up for Rondo, but Rondo plays a lot of minutes and I'm sure will continue to in the playoffs.

I guess it will depend on match ups, but it's a nice delema to have.

[GreenNote]

On a separate note Jeff Green always looks like he has bags under his eyes. I hope he's not losing sleep over worrying.

[KeepBigAl]

....agreed - to me, he plays more like a 2 than a 4 - and he's obviously a 3

as far as the bags under his eyes - it never bothered the late great Dennis Johnson

[Green Hell]

I guess Doc is in both a good and bad place at the same time. If he only plays Green at the 3 the only way to get him minutes is to use him with Pierce at the 2 some of the time, but than you have to take thoughs minutes from West, who's been playing better lately. Sure West is the back up for Rondo, but Rondo plays a lot of minutes and I'm sure will continue to in the playoffs.

I guess it will depend on match ups, but it's a nice delema to have.

Rondo should be playing a lot less minutes in the playoffs rather than having his minutes ramped up. The 2nd unit NEEDS to be able to play their part and DWest needs as many minutes as Baby and Green. Even if Rondo is on the floor, West and Green  and Baby should be able to hold down the 2, 3 and 4 spot as they make for a very well rounded unit no matter which center is in the game.

You could even play Green at the 2 and Pierce at the 3 with West at the point because Pierce is a more than capable ball handlers and for whatever reason West loses control of the offense. Krstic can back up baby at the 4 which is really what he should be used for. He has that same 18 footer and he'd be a lot better defensively guarding 4s like Pau and Bosh than 5s that'll bully him around. Leave JO and Shaq at 5 with Krstic filling for them at spot minutes.

The point is we have a lot versatility.

[Fafnir]

I guess Doc is in both a good and bad place at the same time. If he only plays Green at the 3 the only way to get him minutes is to use him with Pierce at the 2 some of the time, but than you have to take thoughs minutes from West, who's been playing better lately. Sure West is the back up for Rondo, but Rondo plays a lot of minutes and I'm sure will continue to in the playoffs.

I guess it will depend on match ups, but it's a nice delema to have.

Rondo should be playing a lot less minutes in the playoffs rather than having his minutes ramped up. The 2nd unit NEEDS to be able to play their part and DWest needs as many minutes as Baby and Green. Even if Rondo is on the floor, West and Green  and Baby should be able to hold down the 2, 3 and 4 spot as they make for a very well rounded unit no matter which center is in the game.

You could even play Green at the 2 and Pierce at the 3 with West at the point because Pierce is a more than capable ball handlers and for whatever reason West loses control of the offense. Krstic can back up baby at the 4 which is really what he should be used for. He has that same 18 footer and he'd be a lot better defensively guarding 4s like Pau and Bosh than 5s that'll bully him around. Leave JO and Shaq at 5 with Krstic filling for them at spot minutes.

The point is we have a lot versatility.

What? Why would we play our best PG less in the playoffs? I don't like playing him too much because you get diminishing returns but he's a better player than West.

[Green Hell]

Because we have no need to work him to the bone like we have had to these past two years. I expect this team to preform a lot more like the 2008 team than the 2009-2010 incarnations because for the first time in two years we actually have a bench! Why not use it?

Rondo should be playing around 38-42 minutes a game like he is now with the Big3 around 35-40. They need energy for the Finals more than Rondo will but what we don't need is any more injuries do to overworking people.

[Chris]

I guess Doc is in both a good and bad place at the same time. If he only plays Green at the 3 the only way to get him minutes is to use him with Pierce at the 2 some of the time, but than you have to take thoughs minutes from West, who's been playing better lately. Sure West is the back up for Rondo, but Rondo plays a lot of minutes and I'm sure will continue to in the playoffs.

I guess it will depend on match ups, but it's a nice delema to have.

Rondo should be playing a lot less minutes in the playoffs rather than having his minutes ramped up. The 2nd unit NEEDS to be able to play their part and DWest needs as many minutes as Baby and Green. Even if Rondo is on the floor, West and Green  and Baby should be able to hold down the 2, 3 and 4 spot as they make for a very well rounded unit no matter which center is in the game.

You could even play Green at the 2 and Pierce at the 3 with West at the point because Pierce is a more than capable ball handlers and for whatever reason West loses control of the offense. Krstic can back up baby at the 4 which is really what he should be used for. He has that same 18 footer and he'd be a lot better defensively guarding 4s like Pau and Bosh than 5s that'll bully him around. Leave JO and Shaq at 5 with Krstic filling for them at spot minutes.

The point is we have a lot versatility.

What? Why would we play our best PG less in the playoffs? I don't like playing him too much because you get diminishing returns but he's a better player than West.

I agree.  Although I do think Doc should get a little more creative with Rondo's minutes, so he can play shorter stretches, interspersed with short rests on the bench.  Doc has done this at times before, and it seems to have worked well, because it has kept Rondo from pacing himself. 

[Fafnir]

Because we have no need to work him to the bone like we have had to these past two years. I expect this team to preform a lot more like the 2008 team than the 2009-2010 incarnations because for the first time in two years we actually have a bench! Why not use it?

Rondo should be playing around 38-42 minutes a game like he is now with the Big3 around 35-40. They need energy for the Finals more than Rondo will but what we don't need is any more injuries do to overworking people.

He's playing 37.2 MPG this season, so cutting his minutes would mean you're taking him down from that. So your 38-42 MPG claim is the exact opposite of what you said that I underlined and responded to.

Our starting five is one of the best units in the NBA, maximizing its floor time is one of the key reasons we can expect/hope to see better quality play in the playoffs.

[TradeProposalDude]

Jeff Green is a special player because of his length and athleticism. When the Celtics are in transition, he is someone you must look for to complete a high percentage play like a dunk. We've all seen how effective Green can be in a high paced game. As for position - I agree that Green should be a 3. But he shouldn't be relegated to spot up shots and outside jumpers, because the bread and butter of his game is driving to the rim. He is one of the better players in the league in terms of finishing a play after driving to the rim. He makes a lot of bank shots and layups when he utilizes that part of his game effectively.

I think Doc or one of the members of the coaching staff said that they want Green to be more selfish. The key is application though... I agree that it is not wise to play Green at the 4 (unless the opposing lineup is really small, or if BOS thinks they can manipulate a lack of footspeed issue) and restrict him to post up bunny hooks, but then again, that's also a part of his game. Green has to be versatile and importantly use his basketball sense to pick his spots.