First off, I hate the sports talk mentality of gloom and doom after one game. But there's definitely a lot than can be taken from a game against what looks like a pretty good team. Simply put, most of these guys don't have NBA athleticism any more and the team should be blown up so they can maximize value for next year.
Rondo - The one starter with athleticism but if he continues to go to the hoop like this, he's not going to make it through the season. If he can shoot, that would be huge, but no way to tell if that'll happen.
Ray - Still an elite shooter but he's going to struggle to get his shot off against decent defenders. Brings pretty much nothing else at this point.
PP - Going to have a harder time getting his shot. Should be able to create a little but will have a harder time contributing on the boards and defense.
KG/JO - Both look old and slow. Still decent on defense but pretty much nothing on offense. And it'll be a miracle if both of them are healthy by the end of the year.
Bench - Little scoring, undersized.
The only potential saving grace is that the Knicks look really good. They're big, athletic, and as the announcers keep saying, they're physical. But unless all of the other contenders suffer major injuries, I see no way this team even makes it to the Finals. Danny, please blow this up.
EDIT - After the Game
This was posted during the game and despite the encouraging comeback, I still believe the team should be blown up. This had nothing to do with the score and had to do with what I saw going on including:
1) Landry Fields taking away Ray Allen's shot in the first half. Ray only made jumpers later when the Knicks amazingly forgot about him.
2) The Knicks dominating in the paint early on. Amare and Melo got easy basket after basket. All the Celtics could do is watch. This was easily the worst revelation for me.
3) Too many offensive possessions that end in 20-foot jumpers, fallaways, etc.
Positively, I'll say that if Rondo can play like that every night, he's a MVP candidate and the team should be kept together.
However, I'm doubtful he can stay healthy playing that way and continue to make jumpers/free throws. And more importantly, can KG/JO stay healthy? If/when one of them goes down, the Celtics will have no size on the team. Bass is looking like a huge upgrade over Baby, but he's still an undersized power forward.
I know it's tough to trade the vets because only contenders would want them and contenders don't want to trade assets. But if Danny can somehow get a decent pick (like if the Clippers had kept Minnesota's pick) or a young player paired with an expiring contract, he should do it instead of leaving the team with a roster of Paul Pierce and Rondo.
Topic: Game 1 Thoughts: Blow it Up (Read 14047 times)