Just a simple question

[arctic 3.0]

For those of you who want Kevin Love to play for the C's:
How many of you dismissed the idea of Al Jefferson returning because "he doesn't play defense and can't lead a team to the playoffs".
I wonder because I can't think of a better description of Love then that.
Of course Big Al's quietly dominant season, as he leads the Horcats to the post season, can give the Love'rs some hope...

[Mr October]

Love can do more than Jefferson. But yeah, with either player you absolutely need a defensive big next to him in order to make a run at a serious playoff berth.

I am not a total believer in Kevin Love. Locking up 18-20 million per year on a player who only plays one end of the court is a dangerous proposition. We would need a bunch of defenders around him.

[BballTim]

 Big Al's been having a lot of big games lately. He's averaging 26 ppg or so since the all-star break.

[pokeKingCurtis]

Al Jefferson's been playing some of the best defense of his career.

[JBcat]

Al Jefferson's been playing some of the best defense of his career.

Yep.  I read a couple articles about him.  His coaches are pretty happy with his defense this year.

[Smitty77]

It is interesting to me that Big Al has a player option after the 2014/2015 season when we will have PLENTY of cap room and hopefully a re-built nucleus.

Big Al coming home??:-))))))))))))))))))

Smitty77

[LooseCannon]

I am not completely enthusiastic about Love, but he is a better player than Jefferson and I crave his three-point shooting much more than I want Jefferson's post offense.

[Celtics18]

TP to arctic.

Never mind, Kevin Love for a second, but Big Al definitely deserves some props for what he's doing this season. 

He's putting up big numbers on a playoff team (albeit, a below .500 one in the weak Eastern Conference), and he's even having articles written about his defense.

He's got to be right at the top of the category of "most underrated player in the league" right now.  I wasn't aware how beefy his season numbers were myself until seeing this post.

Congrats to Big Al.  A little piece of him will always be a Celtic in my mind.  Here's hoping the Bobcats surprise somebody in the playoffs by at least giving them a good fight.

I'll be rooting for Big Al.

[fitzhickey]

I'd like to see Al Jefferson paired with Josh Smith.. Or someone similar

[JBcat]

I'd like to see Al Jefferson paired with Josh Smith.. Or someone similar

Or Kenneth Faried like in my fantasy team. 

[JBcat]

Just checking his numbers.  Since the all star break for the last 13 games Al is putting up 26.1 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 2.1 APG, .544 FG%, playing the best D of his career, while the Bobcats have been winning with a 9-4 record.   His numbers were similar too from January on.  Arguably the best low post scorer in the league right now.   Really nice to see from a former Celtic. 

[fitzhickey]

I'd like to see Al Jefferson paired with Josh Smith.. Or someone similar

Or Kenneth Faried like in my fantasy team. 

Just checking his numbers.  Since the all star break for the last 13 games Al is putting up 26.1 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 2.1 APG, .544 FG%, playing the best D of his career, while the Bobcats have been winning with a 9-4 record.   His numbers were similar too from January on.  Arguably the best low post scorer in the league right now.   Really nice to see from a former Celtic. 

Woah, did not expect those kind of numbers. Would like to see Big Al back in the green

[JBcat]

For those of you who want Kevin Love to play for the C's:
How many of you dismissed the idea of Al Jefferson returning because "he doesn't play defense and can't lead a team to the playoffs".
I wonder because I can't think of a better description of Love then that.
Of course Big Al's quietly dominant season, as he leads the Horcats to the post season, can give the Love'rs some hope...

Was just thinking with the way Al is playing right now he would be an excellent fit next to Love, and they did play next to each other a few years back!  Jefferson of course then was just plain awful on D, and didn't pass the ball well.  He is better at both now.  For the Bobcats to even be around .500 is a huge success considering where they were last year.

[timpiker]

Obviously I don't know but I've thought all year that something was up at the end of games and the 4thQ in general.  Most of time I just thought we are lacking a crunch time player...but I know many times that guys like Humph are not in there at the end of games.  And it makes you wonder.

[JBcat]

Just read an article on Insider ESPN talking about Toronto and Charlotte being darkhorses down the stretch.

Here are some tidbits about Al Jefferson and Charlotte:

Have you seen Al Jefferson's numbers lately? The throwback big man is terrorizing the league by averaging 25.7 points and 10.8 rebounds while shooting 54.4 percent over his past 30 games. He now owns the third-best PER (22.6) in the Eastern Conference behind LeBron James (28.9) and Carmelo Anthony (25.1). He has scored nearly 100 more points on post-up plays than any other player in the league and his baseline jumper is as automatic as they come.

But what sets this Al-Jeff season apart from seasons past is that he's been a key member of a solvent defense. Jefferson doesn't have the lateral mobility or instincts to be a Defensive Player of the Year, but the Bobcats rep the seventh-best defense in the league, allowing just 101.3 points per 100 possessions, according to NBA.com. Coach Steve Clifford has been able to mask his team's deficiencies by implementing a conservative system that doesn't ask Jefferson to jump out to the perimeter in pick-and-roll coverage.

The result is that the Bobcats are a poor man's version of the Pacers -- a defensive-minded team that slows the game down and pounds the defensive boards. The key difference is that the Bobcats take amazingly good care of the ball (NBA-best turnover rate) and they've injected some more 3-point shooting into their offense with the acquisition of Gary Neal (who's shooting a ridiculous 53 percent from deep for his new club).

This is a well-coached group of players with an incredible scoring weapon on the block, which will come in handy when the game slows down in the postseason. With a 16-10 record since an overtime loss against Miami in January, there isn't much separating the Bobcats from the Pacers over the past couple of months. And if that is indeed the first-round matchup at No. 2 vs. No. 7, don't be surprised if the Bobcats push the Pacers to the brink. These aren't the same ol' Bobcats anymore.