Start Green over KG or Pierce (merged thread)

[FanFromTheChedda]

You have been a starter your whole career and a great one at that but heres an idea, come off the bench for the Boston Celtics, get your run in and be ready to close each game out.  Let's get Jeff Green into the starting unit and acquire a Center either through free agency, or by trading our first round pick for an established big man.  Pierce is still a top tier Small Forward, Ray is in tremendous shape and Rondo is young but experienced.  I like Jeff Green's versatility and potential but he needs to be in the starting position to gain more confidence.

Marc Jaxson  

[chambers]

I like it.
Problem is I want KG guarding chumps like Chris Bosh for the entire game come playoff time and shutting them down.
See what he did vs Boozer today?

Who guards the number one 4 spot on the opposing team? ie: stoudemire, bosh etc...?

[wdleehi]

What is this desire to put the best players on the bench to start a guy that is weak defensively at that position and is not as good offensively?



So far we have seen benching both Pierce and KG to start Green.


Has Green shown anything that suggest he should start over these two players?

[Bahku]

KG: Please don't take this to heart ... we want you as a starter, not off the bench!! Ugh! Sorry, but that is a recipe for disaster ... the Big Three and Rondo need to remain starters ... period.

[MBz]

Let him start and just reduce his minutes so he'll be more effective at the end of games.  You don't need him to start on the bench.

[KGs Knee]

I really have to wonder why some people are so quick to dismiss not starting your 5 best players?  What is even more outlandish, is how merely suggesting bringing one of your starters off the bench is something to be mocked.  Do people not realize how important the 6th man role is.  There are plenty of players who have come of the bench and helped lead their team to success.

That being said,  KG does not fit the mold.  I'm begining to come around about the idea of Pierce coming off the bench, but still would be against that as well.  Ray seems to be the most likely candidate, but his shooting is too important to the starting unit.
Either way, the idea should not be so hastliy cast aside.  With this roster, creative ideas are going to be needed.

[wdleehi]

I really have to wonder why some people are so quick to dismiss not starting your 5 best players?  What is even more outlandish, is how merely suggesting bringing one of your starters off the bench is something to be mocked.  Do people not realize how important the 6th man role is.  There are plenty of players who have come of the bench and helped lead their team to success.

That being said,  KG does not fit the mold.  I'm begining to come around about the idea of Pierce coming off the bench, but still would be against that as well.  Ray seems to be the most likely candidate, but his shooting is too important to the starting unit.
Either way, the idea should not be so hastliy cast aside.  With this roster, creative ideas are going to be needed.

If the Celtics had a player that showed to be productive enough, but Pierce is still the go to guy. 

Green has not shown enough to warrant starting over Pierce or KG. 

[KGs Knee]

Green does make me leery of him starting, but I don't think giving him a shot at seeing if he can be effective in the role.

Of course, my favorite plan would be to sign & trade him for someone better/different.

[clover]

I really have to wonder why some people are so quick to dismiss not starting your 5 best players?  What is even more outlandish, is how merely suggesting bringing one of your starters off the bench is something to be mocked.  Do people not realize how important the 6th man role is.  There are plenty of players who have come of the bench and helped lead their team to success.

That being said,  KG does not fit the mold.  I'm begining to come around about the idea of Pierce coming off the bench, but still would be against that as well.  Ray seems to be the most likely candidate, but his shooting is too important to the starting unit.
Either way, the idea should not be so hastliy cast aside.  With this roster, creative ideas are going to be needed.

If the Celtics had a player that showed to be productive enough, but Pierce is still the go to guy. 

Green has not shown enough to warrant starting over Pierce or KG. 

That's entirely true if your criterion for a starting lineup is to reward your most valuable players.  I'd hope the C's look at it a bit differently.

[OsirusCeltics]

Jeff Green should start at the 3 instead

[wdleehi]

I really have to wonder why some people are so quick to dismiss not starting your 5 best players?  What is even more outlandish, is how merely suggesting bringing one of your starters off the bench is something to be mocked.  Do people not realize how important the 6th man role is.  There are plenty of players who have come of the bench and helped lead their team to success.

That being said,  KG does not fit the mold.  I'm begining to come around about the idea of Pierce coming off the bench, but still would be against that as well.  Ray seems to be the most likely candidate, but his shooting is too important to the starting unit.
Either way, the idea should not be so hastliy cast aside.  With this roster, creative ideas are going to be needed.

If the Celtics had a player that showed to be productive enough, but Pierce is still the go to guy. 

Green has not shown enough to warrant starting over Pierce or KG. 

That's entirely true if your criterion for a starting lineup is to reward your most valuable players.  I'd hope the C's look at it a bit differently.

How? 



Was the starting 4 the issue?  (the staring 5 is an issue)


Why take apart that which works?  Unless the team is making big changes, Rondo, Ray, Pierce and KG should start. 



This isn't like the 6th men of Celtics past.  Guys like Hondo and Mchale started out as 6th man before becoming starters.  Walton was an injury removed starter.


None of the Celtics starters fit that mode. 


Get a starting C.  Add an explosive scorer off the bench. 

[paulcowens]

Our problem with the starting unit is at Center, yet, strangely, it's everywhere else that folks want to make a change!  In fact, the most popular ideas seem to be trading Rondo and starting Green.  Isn't there something perverse about all this?  The basic rules of the game seem to be:

1) ignore our most pressing problem (center),

2)  get rid of our best player,

3) promote our least deserving player.


Without a doubt, the Big Three need to start transitioning to the bench at some point.  Should is start this year?  Mabye.  Maybe not.  It's hard to say right now.  Nobody on the bench has played well enough to claim a starting spot, except maybe Krstic, and that's only because JO and Shaq look like retiring.  In fact, the idea that anyone on the bench has been working their way into the starting lineup is to laugh, at this point, right?  The best case might be made for Delonte replacing Ray as the 2, but that's more because Allen seems to play well with the bench crew. 

My main concern this offseason is Rondo.  If Rondo can heal his body, while taking a significant step towards improving his shooting, he should become that much better at running the offense, which in turn should make whoever starts much better.

[chambers]

I really have to wonder why some people are so quick to dismiss not starting your 5 best players?  What is even more outlandish, is how merely suggesting bringing one of your starters off the bench is something to be mocked.  Do people not realize how important the 6th man role is.  There are plenty of players who have come of the bench and helped lead their team to success.

That being said,  KG does not fit the mold.  I'm begining to come around about the idea of Pierce coming off the bench, but still would be against that as well.  Ray seems to be the most likely candidate, but his shooting is too important to the starting unit.
Either way, the idea should not be so hastliy cast aside.  With this roster, creative ideas are going to be needed.

If the Celtics had a player that showed to be productive enough, but Pierce is still the go to guy. 

Green has not shown enough to warrant starting over Pierce or KG. 

Do you think that Green has been given enough of a chance to show his productivity? I don't think it's out of the question that he could average the same amount of points as Pierce if he was given the chance. It wouldn't be like the Thunder where he was the 3rd string scorer behind Durant and Westbrook.
I think it's very possible that he could average an efficient 18-20 ppg whilst running the floor much better than Pierce.

Pierce could provide that spark off the bench just like Manu Ginobli with his efficiency too.

I think that Pierce is the better player, but the current format of playing time isn't going to work as we saw this year on these old guys body's.
Why not try it out for a while?

[housecall]

At 35yr.of age KG finished #2 best defender in the NBA this yr.When has J.Green shown that he's a better defensive or offensive player that KG or Pierce?

I can see bringing Ray off the bench and using Jeff at the 3 and Pierce at the 2 in some instances.

[Marcus13]

Starting Jeff Green at the 4 would give us the worst interior defense in the NBA (along with whoever I below average Center is).  Terrible idea