Leandro Barbosa reached agreement with the Boston Celtics

[Who]

I thought that Toronto - a lot like Indiana - mis-used Barbosa (exclusively as a two guard instead of as a PG/SG) and that that played a large factor in his poor play there.

As did the Raptors lack of shot creation / high caliber offensive talent which saw several player's shooting percentages decline because nobody could draw a double team. Resulting in fewer open shots / opportunities and an increase in more difficult contested shot attempts.

When Barbosa was used properly -- as Calderon's primary backup + some playing time alongside Calderon + importantly, receiving zero playing time alongside Bayless -- Barbosa actually played well for the Raptors. Unfortunately, those moments were few and far between.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Love the pick-up.

[LooseCannon]

I like that he has a 39.1% career 3pt percentage, which is higher than the 35.7 of a guy like Pietrus, for comparison.  Barbosa and Pietrus shoot about the same number of threes per 36 minutes, but threes make up a significantly smaller precentage of Barbosa's shots.

With Lee and Barbosa, the Celtics can put in a backcourt with two guys who shot 40% from beyond the arc last season.  I see value in being able to do that.  I wonder if there are situations when a smallball chucker unit of Terry/Lee/Barbosa/Pierce/big(Garnett?) would make sense when down by a lot with not much time on the clock.

[MJohnnyboy]

I thought that Toronto - a lot like Indiana - mis-used Barbosa (exclusively as a two guard instead of as a PG/SG) and that that played a large factor in his poor play there.

As did the Raptors lack of shot creation / high caliber offensive talent which saw several player's shooting percentages decline because nobody could draw a double team. Resulting in fewer open shots / opportunities and an increase in more difficult contested shot attempts.

When Barbosa was used properly -- as Calderon's primary backup + some playing time alongside Calderon + importantly, receiving zero playing time alongside Bayless -- Barbosa actually played well for the Raptors. Unfortunately, those moments were few and far between.

So what you're saying is we should play him with Rondo? That's not too bad of an idea.

[j804]

c's have the deepest team in the league...

youve got Terry, Barbosa, sullinger, green, darko coming off the bench..not even mentioning Avery Bradley coming back soon

imagine if we landed someone like KMart mid season we would be crazy deep and scary

[MJohnnyboy]

c's have the deepest team in the league...

youve got Terry, Barbosa, sullinger, green, darko coming off the bench..not even mentioning Avery Bradley coming back soon

imagine if we landed someone like KMart mid season we would be crazy deep and scary

I'm pretty sure if we had another spot open that we wouldn't use it on another big.
KG/Sully/Bass/Darko/Wilcox plus Collins/Melo as utility is pretty deep.

If anything we should get another wing. I don't think KJ43 is out of the woods just yet.

[ImShakHeIsShaq]

I think you guys are missing this point... before Barbosa signed, I am 99.9% sure they probably told him that he will have to buy into a set role and that he may get very few minutes (they told Collins that). He must really want a chip, and if he is going to warm any bench, he knows the most unselfish team with a shot is Boston! People want to play with Nash, but how many people have you heard of that like Kobe or talk of wanting to play with him. Even people who left on bad terms (#20), talk great about the organization, players, and coaches that are The Boston Celtics.

[ronaldo943]

I think you guys are missing this point... before Barbosa signed, I am 99.9% sure they probably told him that he will have to buy into a set role and that he may get very few minutes (they told Collins that). He must really want a chip, and if he is going to warm any bench, he knows the most unselfish team with a shot is Boston! People want to play with Nash, but how many people have you heard of that like Kobe or talk of wanting to play with him. Even people who left on bad terms (#20), talk great about the organization, players, and coaches that are The Boston Celtics.

Agree with this.

[ausbacker]

This is beginning to look like a formidable team with depth across the board.

[JumpingJudkins]

I would have much preferred it if we signed someone who isn't so terrible at handling the ball, though. Barbosa has always been turnover prone, and doesn't generate many assists, indicating he isn't terribly good at ball handling. Which is what makes him an odd signing.

Historically, his strengths have been forcing turnovers (he gets a lot of steals ... but, then, he fouls a lot too) and scoring (though the past 2-3 seasons his shooting percentages have been WAY down ... that's why we need him to play like he did in Phoenix, like that season with 59% TS and 1.3 PPS, which is amazing). He's also not a bad rebounder for his size/position.

Barbosa and Terry actually average exactly the same steals (1.4) and turnovers (2.2) per 36 minutes over their careers.

[snively]

I thought that Toronto - a lot like Indiana - mis-used Barbosa (exclusively as a two guard instead of as a PG/SG) and that that played a large factor in his poor play there.

As did the Raptors lack of shot creation / high caliber offensive talent which saw several player's shooting percentages decline because nobody could draw a double team. Resulting in fewer open shots / opportunities and an increase in more difficult contested shot attempts.

When Barbosa was used properly -- as Calderon's primary backup + some playing time alongside Calderon + importantly, receiving zero playing time alongside Bayless -- Barbosa actually played well for the Raptors. Unfortunately, those moments were few and far between.

So what you're saying is we should play him with Rondo? That's not too bad of an idea.

Rondo in spurts and with another playmaker off the bench.  Barbosa's best offensive years came when he was playing with either Nash or Diaw on the floor at all times.  The presence of Diaw especially allowed him to see more time at the 1, where he's less of a defense/rebounding problem.

The presence of other initiators/facilitators made Barbosa more dangerous offensively - spot-up opportunities, secondary shot creation (dribble penetration after a kick-out) and transition scoring using his speed. 

I think he'll do well in Boston - playing with Rondo & Pierce in spurts with the first unit and then having KG spending time with the 2nd unit on the 5-5-5 plan, I don't think he'll be as over-exposed as a shot-creator as he was in Toronto and Indy (no quality playmakers/facilitators off the bench).  If Jeff Green can do a poor man's Boris Diaw impersonation as a shot-creator to complement KG, all the better - that would allow guys like Terry and Barbosa to play off them and focus on scoring.

[CelticSooner]

Like others have said, I like the move talent wise but it doesn't make much sense in terms of depth. Are we going to see a potential trade later in the season?

[igorsure]

Barbosa was main scorer for Brazilian team on the last FIBA competitions (including Olympics). He is great offensive player but I am afraid has reputation of not very good defender.

[chambers]

But my concerns are, when Bradley is fully back. How are we going to allocate minutes between Jet, Lee, Bradley and Barbosa?

Barbosa sits on the bench, and waves around a towel.

I solve problems.

How do we allocate minutes? We trade one of them with either Sully or bass plus melo and some fillers for Josh Smith.
You read it here first.

[Jon]

As others have noted, this is a great move for the Celtics, but a terrible move for Barbosa.  If I was his agent, this is not what I would've recommended. 

This might be the last chance for Barbosa to be on a team that has a shot at a championship. perhaps money and playing time are less important to him now than getting a ring. If that is the case, I think it a tremendous move.

I get that to an extent, but Barbosa is only 29 (30 in a month).  This certainly isn't his last hurrah. 

I also question how much a ring is worth if you don't really contribute. I get the idea of a player like Posey, Brown, Pietrus, or even Lee (if you believe him) taking less money to be a role player on a title team.  However, depending on the matchups in the playoffs (particularly against bigger team), it's possible Barbosa could be in street clothes.

Rondo/Terry
Bradley/Lee
Pierce/Green
Sullinger/Bass/Wilcox
KG/Darko/Collins

Again, that's not a problem for us.  That's phenomenal for the C's to have such depth.  The season is long and he'll likely fill a need for us along the way (particularly now with Bradley out).  Furthermore, if he does well, it gives us more flexibility to trade Bradley or Lee later in the season. 

However, from an agent's perspective, I would've recommended he sign somewhere else for a minimum deal where he could be part of the rotation and drive up his value for next season.

maybe nobody was blowing up his agents phone but a couple teams and he just chose us

im not worried about too much depth as much as you don't want it to happen injuries will occur through out the year

I'm not worried about too much depth at all.  I think this is phenomenal (as my post says). 

I'm simply saying that if I was Barbosa's agent, I would've advised him to sign somewhere where he could get more time.