James Young expected to be inactive - again

[KeepRondo]

Brad Stevens was recently quoted as saying he believes the players who deserve to play will. So what is up with James young getting shelved after a breakout game? He certainly earned at least a second look. I honestly don't understand the reasoning behind playing Thornton over Young. I can't see Thornton getting us anything more then a second rounder so I don't understand the logic that we have to showcase him. Also, there's not much of a drop off from Young to Thornton, if there is any at all. So we are basically playing a player who we will eventually lose over a player we can start developing and see what we actually have.

Here is a quote I grabbed from mass online. It's a D league coach questioning Brad Stevens and why Young is in the D league.

“I don’t know what Danny Ainge and Coach (Brad) Stevens are seeing, but that guy should be getting minutes for the Celtics,” said Delaware’s Young. “Unless he just had his best games of his life against us. This is my eighth year in the D-League and I’ve seen a lot of assignment players come through. He’s got to be the best one I’ve seen. A guy with that size (6-foot-6) and that shooting ability, he’s tough.”

Seeing James Young on the inactive list is the most frustrating thing so far this season. Hopefully Smart keeps progressing and continues to give us hope for the future. It's too bad we can't see both players tonight.

[hpantazo]

It's mainly because Young still has a long way to go on the defensive end. He would be too much of a liability on defense right now in meaningful minutes. He needs to bulk up and get a better feel for NBA defense.

[2short]

while i'm definitely against the tanking mode at this point I have to say play him and let him learn nba defense on the fly, he's athletic and seems to be bright he can pick it up
so what if he isn't ready, this team is being dismantled and the season is done

i'd hope he isn't inactive because trader danny is looking to package him?

[BleedGreen1989]

He'll get a ton of burn after Feb.

Just give Ainge time to sort out the roster.

[LarBrd33]

He'll get a ton of burn after Feb.

Just give Ainge time to sort out the roster.

Giving him reps in d-league is fine right now.  Playing him right now just eats into showcase minutes.  The decisions being made right now with this roster over the month are being made with the short-term objective of ridding ourselves of dead weight precisely so we can start giving developmental minutes to kids like Smart and James young. 

Give it a little more time.  Gonna be a frustrating month if you read too much into rotations.

[KeepRondo]

It's mainly because Young still has a long way to go on the defensive end. He would be too much of a liability on defense right now in meaningful minutes. He needs to bulk up and get a better feel for NBA defense.

I see this argument posted here often. I guess my first thought is, he's not another Gerald Green, who came into the league not knowing his left from his right. Give the guy a chance. He actually played decent defense the other night.

[KungPoweChicken]

His inactive status is a result of politics, not a result of Young not being good enough. Coaches have to manage locker rooms, personalities, etc. It's a delicate balance to not rock the boat. Saying Young isn't getting minutes because of his "defense" and "not being ready" are lazy excuses.

[KeepRondo]

His inactive status is a result of politics, not a result of Young not being good enough. Coaches have to manage locker rooms, personalities, etc. It's a delicate balance to not rock the boat. Saying Young isn't getting minutes because of his "defense" and "not being ready" are lazy excuses.

This sounds about right considering Stevens seems like a guy who has a hard time making difficult decisions. The fact that Young is being the good soldier and keeping quiet and playing these D league games, is making things easier for Stevens.

If only Young would speak up and show his frustration, he would probably get some minutes.

[LarBrd33]

His inactive status is a result of politics, not a result of Young not being good enough. Coaches have to manage locker rooms, personalities, etc. It's a delicate balance to not rock the boat. Saying Young isn't getting minutes because of his "defense" and "not being ready" are lazy excuses.

This sounds about right considering Stevens seems like a guy who has a hard time making difficult decisions. The fact that Young is being the good soldier and keeping quiet and playing these D league games, is making things easier for Stevens.

If only Young would speak up and show his frustration, he would probably get some minutes.

Uh. Both Ainge and Stevens are handling this right.  Playing young right now serves zero short-term purpose unless we want to trade him.  We have clear objectives before the trade deadline. Young can get reps in the d league. He's not going to speak out. He's a 19 year old prospect. His time will come after the deadline.

[soulman]

while i'm definitely against the tanking mode at this point I have to say play him and let him learn nba defense on the fly, he's athletic and seems to be bright he can pick it up
so what if he isn't ready, this team is being dismantled and the season is done

i'd hope he isn't inactive because trader danny is looking to package him?

no way, don t trade Young and Smart ever!

[hwangjini_1]

His inactive status is a result of politics, not a result of Young not being good enough. Coaches have to manage locker rooms, personalities, etc. It's a delicate balance to not rock the boat. Saying Young isn't getting minutes because of his "defense" and "not being ready" are lazy excuses.

not saying you are incorrect, but do you have a source or link or basis for this as opposed to the "poor defense" argument?

[jr_3421]

If Jeff Green is traded in the next week and Young starts getting regular minutes for the rest of the season, would that satisfy the people in the #FreeYoung camp? Because this seems like the most likely scenario.

[guava_wrench]

I would much rather see Young get minutes than Wallace. Anyway, Green will be gone soon and they will have no choice but to play Young.

[Celtics4ever]

I would much rather see Young get minutes than Wallace.

What are you talking about, Wallace has played in 14 games this year and averaged 7 mpg.  He has not even got on the floor in 19 of the games.   He is not getting minutes.   I agree, we should play Young over him but you make it sound like he is hogging minutes which he is not.

[KeepRondo]

His inactive status is a result of politics, not a result of Young not being good enough. Coaches have to manage locker rooms, personalities, etc. It's a delicate balance to not rock the boat. Saying Young isn't getting minutes because of his "defense" and "not being ready" are lazy excuses.

This sounds about right considering Stevens seems like a guy who has a hard time making difficult decisions. The fact that Young is being the good soldier and keeping quiet and playing these D league games, is making things easier for Stevens.

If only Young would speak up and show his frustration, he would probably get some minutes.

Uh. Both Ainge and Stevens are handling this right.  Playing young right now serves zero short-term purpose unless we want to trade him.  We have clear objectives before the trade deadline. Young can get reps in the d league. He's not going to speak out. He's a 19 year old prospect. His time will come after the deadline.

I disagree with this. Time is a valuable commodity in the NBA. We get Young for at least the next 7 years. I'm more interested in fast tracking his development and taking advantage of this year. Otherwise it's a wasted year or a partially wasted year if we don't work on his game.