The Curious case of Avery Bradley

[cman88]

i think we can all agree that bradley had a really horrible rookie year. but im not really ready to give up on the kid. he missed training camp, was injured...and doc/danny were trying to transform him into a "playmaking point guard"

Bradley is more of a "scoring" point guard and IMO his real use is as an undersized shooting guard..along the lines of nate robinson(hopefully with better basketball IQ) etc. and I think danny/doc should realize that and play to it instead of trying to change him...

if he can work on his shot out to the 3 point range, work on freethrows and gain some confidence(as well as doc finding out how best to use him) I think he can be a valuable player for us as a backup 2 alongside Rondo/Delonte and breakout of sorts..and would help solve some issues that we're looking to solve:

1. youth/athleticism
2. scoring off the bench

I can just see him as a sort of JJ barea type player

[syfy9]

He has the ceiling of someone like Rose in the best scenario, minus footwork/explosiveness/finesse. He is similar in athleticism to Rose, which is very nice to have. 

[ManUp]

He has the ceiling of someone like Rose in the best scenario, minus footwork/explosiveness/finesse. He is similar in athleticism to Rose, which is very nice to have. 

Ceiling of Rose in what alternate reality?

I say Monta Ellis with less scoring better defense.

[mgent]

JJ Barea, Derrick Rose, lol.  The guy is the NBA for his defense, he'll never be the pure scorer those guys are.  He'll never have that type of penetration.

What has he shown to make anyone think he has that level of potential?  As of right now he looks like a JR Giddens-type scorer.

[2short]

So far he has the foot speed and lateral quickness to be an nba defender.  Other than that he is simply not ready to play at this level.
If he shows improvement to a point, I feel he's trade filler.  If he improves a lot he can be a good guard off the bench.  How long can the celtics hold a roster spot for the kid to show he can give the team minutes?

[bfrombleacher]

He doesn't need to be an amazing point guard. In fact I think Boston is a great place for him if he manages to learn the game.

We have Doc. He can draw up a lot of plays that decrease Bradley's need to make decisions.

We have three great playmakers D-West, the Truth and Rondo, the former two capable of doing so in complementary positions and with Rondo, Bradley can play SG.

A decent jumpshot, better handles and some PG skills.

[cman88]

JJ Barea, Derrick Rose, lol.  The guy is the NBA for his defense, he'll never be the pure scorer those guys are.  He'll never have that type of penetration.

What has he shown to make anyone think he has that level of potential?  As of right now he looks like a JR Giddens-type scorer.

the kid was a beast in college who was pretty good at getting to the rim....he didnt look like he was ready for the nba game last year...but he did breakout against the knicks bench

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrhcIrShZVo

[Coach]

Avery Bradley may or may not end up being a player in this league.  I can't really say because we haven't seen much of him, but this much is sure; after watching those clips again, it is clear that the Knicks defense is really, really bad.

[csfansince60s]

I don't think that he is a great pairing with Rondo. Defensively maybe, as long as it's not against a long SG who can post him up or shoot over him.

I think he could be an excellent pairing with DWest. Defensively, DWest is long and quick enough to cover most SGs. Bradley can pester the hell out of their PG, pressuring the ball coming up court. Offensively, DWest can bring the ball up and shoot and Bradley can shoot midrange and slash.

I think the DWEst and AB pairing has great potential. I say "potential" because DWest has to stay healthy and Bradley has to step it up a bit.

[ManUp]

JJ Barea, Derrick Rose, lol.  The guy is the NBA for his defense, he'll never be the pure scorer those guys are.  He'll never have that type of penetration.

What has he shown to make anyone think he has that level of potential?  As of right now he looks like a JR Giddens-type scorer.

Those are some pretty bold statements considering your talking about a 20yo rookie whos two biggest strengths are his speed and athleticism. He's probably not going to be anywhere near D.Rose, but let's not pretend JJ.Barea is a greyhound. Plus from what I've read and seen on AB says his biggest strength is his mid-range jumper. He is supposed to have a super deadly pull up. Raw Athleticism combined with shooting ability is always a good combo the question is does he have the brains to put it together.

I personally think AB will be a good NBA player. I just don't think he will be a NBA starter and I highly doubt he has a place in this teams future. He's to small to be a starting two guard and he's not a point(even if he was we've got that covered with Rondo). I just hope he does well enough this coming season to become a valuable trade piece.

[bfrombleacher]

JJ Barea, Derrick Rose, lol.  The guy is the NBA for his defense, he'll never be the pure scorer those guys are.  He'll never have that type of penetration.

What has he shown to make anyone think he has that level of potential?  As of right now he looks like a JR Giddens-type scorer.

Those are some pretty bold statements considering your talking about a 20yo rookie whos two biggest strengths are his speed and athleticism. He's probably not going to be anywhere near D.Rose, but let's not pretend JJ.Barea is a greyhound. Plus from what I've read and seen on AB says his biggest strength is his mid-range jumper. He is supposed to have a super deadly pull up. Raw Athleticism combined with shooting ability is always a good combo the question is does he have the brains to put it together.

I personally think AB will be a good NBA player. I just don't think he will be a NBA starter and I highly doubt he has a place in this teams future. He's to small to be a starting two guard and he's not a point(even if he was we've got that covered with Rondo). I just hope he does well enough this coming season to become a valuable trade piece.

If he's willing to, he could be a formidable sixth man for the Celtics. We still don't have a legit backup PG outside of Delonte West and he has the potential to become an explosive scorer with his skill set. He can be that spark off the bench that we have been needing and his defense would only add to that spark. He's 20 and he barely had any real NBA training so the point guard skills may come.

I'd even say there's a tiny chance that Bradley could become a starting SG. Eric Gordon is a 6'3 shooting guard with deficiencies in ball handling but has an awesome jumper. Bradley has is not as long as Gordon (his wingspan is about 1-2 inches less than Gordon's) so he'll have to work harder to gain a niche.

As long as Bradley works hard, I think there's a place for him in the Celtics. I would love to see more of his incredible defense, just makes me glow to see someone put effort on that end of the floor in this day and age.

[ballin]

This thread reminds me a lot of Gabe Pruitt's benefactors who claimed he was going to be a legit NBA player.

I thought Avery was going to be good, but he looked beyond terrible in his rookie season. His handles are some of the worst I've ever seen for a PG, and because of that he dribbles with his head down. This kid CAN'T be a point guard. Just not possible.

I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that he'll be out of the league in less than 2 years.

[greenhead85]

Avery has a lot of upside over Gabe Pruitt. AB is speedy, more athletic, better defender/scorer and has a good jumper. Although there is not as much at stake in the current games he is playing as the NBA level does, he has shown a lot of great moves/promise playing against young and great players he has played recently. The games he is currently playing in will help him build confidence. More importantly, he will be benefiting a lot playing alongside Rondo who will find ways to get the ball the to him in his comfort zone.

I still believe that he has a lot to offer to the team and to the game.

[slamtheking]

This thread reminds me a lot of Gabe Pruitt's benefactors who claimed he was going to be a legit NBA player.

I thought Avery was going to be good, but he looked beyond terrible in his rookie season. His handles are some of the worst I've ever seen for a PG, and because of that he dribbles with his head down. This kid CAN'T be a point guard. Just not possible.

I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that he'll be out of the league in less than 2 years.

I disagree that the 'benefactor' arguments are similar.  The Gabe situation was basically people seeing positive signs when he actually got some playing time but that he was too timid on the court.  Not enough drive in the kid to succeed.

Avery's benefactors can't lay claim to even that much to base their optimism on.  They can only point to his reputation from high school and college and use the ever-popular 'potential' label.

I'll take you up on that bet though for a TP.  For him to be out of the league before 2 years he'd have to be cut before the end of this season and that's including the fact he has a guaranteed contract.  I have no doubt he'll still be on the team when the season is finished.

[Chris]

This thread reminds me a lot of Gabe Pruitt's benefactors who claimed he was going to be a legit NBA player.

I thought Avery was going to be good, but he looked beyond terrible in his rookie season. His handles are some of the worst I've ever seen for a PG, and because of that he dribbles with his head down. This kid CAN'T be a point guard. Just not possible.

I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that he'll be out of the league in less than 2 years.

I disagree that the 'benefactor' arguments are similar.  The Gabe situation was basically people seeing positive signs when he actually got some playing time but that he was too timid on the court.  Not enough drive in the kid to succeed.

Avery's benefactors can't lay claim to even that much to base their optimism on.  They can only point to his reputation from high school and college and use the ever-popular 'potential' label.

I'll take you up on that bet though for a TP.  For him to be out of the league before 2 years he'd have to be cut before the end of this season and that's including the fact he has a guaranteed contract.  I have no doubt he'll still be on the team when the season is finished.

Eh, Gabe didn't show much on the court either.  Most of the positives about him came from comments from Danny and Doc during the summer, and fluff pieces.