Now that KG has been signed, and we have a basic idea of what our roster will look like (Ainge is obviously aiming to use bird rights to bring back as many guys as possible), lets take a look at what our roster will probably be this season.
PG: Rondo / Terry / Dooling
Rondo is a given, no need to go into that one. Will hopefully take the step to reach superstar status (consistency).
Terry is a big time clutch shooter who can not only score in bunches, but (willingly) carry the bench so we don't have to ask the big 4 to score 80 a night. A legit ball handler to help Rondo out, spreads the floor, hits big shots, has played in big games, and gives us a much needed weapon off the bench.
Dooling represents what was the best lockerroom I've seen in a long time. Perhaps the best since the days of Russell (can't honestly comment there). It wasn't Rondo, KG, or even Pierce giving the pep talks before games. It was reverend Dooling. He's a little better than mediocre as a role player at this point his career, but he's a great lockerroom guy who will work his butt off, play some decent defense and help spread the floor. Most of all he can be had for the vet minimum. Not going to find a better fit out there for that price.
SG: Bradley / Ray / Pietrus
Bradley will hopefully recover fine and be back to his lockdown defense self. He demonstrated a pull up jumper and 3 point range at the end of last season and just looked dominant at times. He single handedly elevates our entire defense the same way KG does. Hopefully next season he will be given more free reign to score as he can create, penetrate, and finish as well as hit curls and jumpers.
Ray will be back. I'd be extremely surprised if he picked up and moved at this point in his career, especially considering we're offering way more than anyone else in terms of money. Ray has lost a step on both offense and defense, but he still spreads the floor. Even if he just sits at the corner behind the 3 point line, he will help our offense as it thins out the defense.
Pietrus is more a 3 than 2, but with Pierce and Green firmly entrenched there, I imagine either Green will be playing a lot of 4 (I hope not), or Pietrus will be seeing time at the 2. He does a great job covering Wade and a decent job on Lebron, stupid fouls aside.
SF: Pierce / Green / Pietrus
Pierce is Pierce. He will rebound from the awful performance he gave in the ECF due to injury. People are quick to forget that he looked like an MVP candidate for about 3 weeks when Rondo was out. He can't carry us for a season or even a series like he used to, but he's still an underrated defender who is a clutch shooter and can create his own offense.
Green I hope to see play almost exclusively at the 3 besides a few minutes here and there in a small lineup to spell KG. He seems firm of the belief that the end of the 2010 season here in Boston was not representative of what he can actually do. Hopefully he's right, rebounds, and can eventually be our future starting SF in a couple years when PP retires. He has shown the ability to play great defense and stretch the floor but is wildly inconsistent and needs to be better in every area instead of mediocre/decent in every area. Lots of upside there. He needs to be stronger on rebounding whether he plays the 3 or the 4.
Pietrus buried behind depth, like Dooling I imagine he'll be a guy we can get for cheap (shot his way out of a big contract due to injury). Plays great defense, and when healthy can hit 3s for us. Also a fantastic lockerroom guy, again, like Dooling. Seems a great fit for the vet minimum. Hopefully won't ask for much more than that.
PF: KG / Bass / Johnson
Undoubtedly, KG came back on the promise of Ainge and Doc saying he wouldn't be forced to play at the 5 all season. And again undoubtedly, he will have to play there at times, but I think we can all safely bet he will be back at the 4 the majority of the time. I was extremely surprised he made it through the season given how hard Doc had to ride him. Hopefully we can limit his minutes to 25 MPG this year and ride him in the playoffs.
Bass needs to come off the bench. He works great with Rondo and is an extremely underrated defender, but he can't rebound, and puts way too much pressure on KG to defend the rim and rebound when he's starting. As a bench player I think he's 6th man of the year worthy, and he certainly looked like it the first half of the year last year. A far cry from the "no pass Bass" we all thought we were getting, he is a great teammate who really seemed to jell with the team. All of that being said, Bass seems the most likely candidate to be traded in a S&T for a starter calibre bigman.
Johnson is someone I honestly don't really expect much from. I think at best we can hope for him to be a foul trouble big man who might be able to come in and score 10 points every few months. It speaks a lot to say that Hollins was signed and became a big part of the rotation while Johnson rotted on the bench. He's just way too slender and not strong enough to defend, nor a particularly good pick and roll defender. Has good range, but until he bulks up I can't see him really doing anything.
C: Wilcox / Stiemsma / Hollins
Wilcox I believe will be back for the BAE. He's a decent role player and really should not be starting, but he is honestly our only option as a starter besides forcing KG at the 5 which he would absolutely loathe. He can run the break and finish and get easy transition points with Rondo, but doesn't really fit in with the starters very well. He can't shoot and will have a Perkins like anchor effect on the offense as it eliminates a shooter the defense has to take care of (as opposed to when KG was out there at the 5). Unless Rondo develops a consistent knock down 15 foot jumper, I can't see this really working, but again, our only real option here.
Stiemsma is a great role player, we all love him. He wants to be back and we want him back, but we can't offer nearly as much money as some teams are and probably what he will command. Greg is known for his shotblocking, but it's not like he was a one trick pony. Beyond his horrific tendency to foul, he was rated very well defensively per points per play. He also has an underrated jumper which if made consistent would be massive for our offense. He was a guy who ran hard, listened to KG, and played within his role and as a result did well.
Hollins was an enormous surprise for me and just about everyone else. Not only was he an above average pick and roll defender with KGs help, he gave tons of energy and hustle every time he was on the floor and played surprisingly okay in the playoffs. Another Dooling/Pietrus type locker guy, he can't be expecting anything besides the vet minimum. Hopefully he pans out to the "potential" he was expected to grow into out of college for us, but if not, he is still a decent 6 fouls who can run with Rondo, and not be a total liability on defense for cheap.
In total that leaves one roster spot open, and while Sullinger is obviously the most NBA ready, Melo plays a bigger position of need, and gives us length and rim protection. I honestly don't see Melo passing Hollins as the team and Doc love Hollins, and most importantly, KG trusts him on defense and loves how he plays.
Moore could be taking Doolings spot, but that's really the only other change I could see.
As for the other 14 spots, I feel that is a very deep and versatile team. You can get running lineups, you can get shooters, you can go small, you can go big, and most importantly it looks to be a very well put together team that will work well with each other. Having a 4 man guard rotation of Rondo/Terry/Bradley/Ray is gravy, and at the 3 with Pierce/Green and at the 4 KG/Bass is just tons of talent. Loaded, really. The big problem is how do we fill the center position.
I think the most impressive part is just the depth and the bench. We could be looking at a team that does what San Antonio pulled off last year- resting the aging superstar and keeping at 25-30 MPG. We can easily go 12 deep with that roster.
And of course, all these contracts will probably kill us after next season, but for next year it looks rather fantastic.
Roster:
Rondo / Terry / Dooling
Bradley / Ray / Pietrus
Pierce / Green / Pietrus
KG / Bass / Johnson / Sullinger
Wilcox / Stiemsma / Hollins
Small:
Terry / Bradley / Ray / Green / KG
Super Small:
Terry / Bradley / Ray / Green / Bass
Big:
Rondo / Pietrus / Green / KG / Wilcox
Shooters:
Terry / Ray / Pierce / Bass / KG
Defensive:
Rondo / Bradley / Pietrus / KG / Stiemsma
Young legs/athletic/running:
Rondo / Bradley / Pietrus / Green / Wilcox
Clutch time (offense):
Rondo / Terry / Ray / Pierce / KG
Clutch time (defense):
Rondo / Bradley / Pietrus / Pierce / KG
Bench:
Terry / Ray / Green / Bass / Stiemsma
Topic: Probable Roster for the 2012 season (and breakdown) (Read 2777 times)