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2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« on: April 12, 2015, 12:42:47 AM »

Offline PhoSita

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Some how, some way, this rag tag bunch of Celtics appears headed for the post-season.

One of the more interesting questions being bandied about in the face of that news is, who is the Most Valuable Player on this team?  It is, without any question, a team without a single guy who has ever, or likely will ever, be a part of the league-wide MVP discussion.  This is a team that has succeeded on the strength of its depth. 

Eleven different players have started a game for the Celtics this year.  Nobody has averaged more than 33.1 minutes per game, and 13 players have averaged at least 20 minutes a game in their time here.  Consequently, it's a mildly engaging exercise to try and figure out which of these mighty mighty role players has done the most to get the team to where it is today.


The Candidates:

1. Avery Bradley

1st in minutes played (2378) and 3rd in minutes per game (31.7)
1st in points scored (1045)
2nd in steals (80)
1st in made 3 pointers (121)
1st in Games Started (75)

5 best game scores:

26.0 ... 2-20-15 @ SAC (28 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, 1 block, 12-22 FG, 1-4 3P)
24.5 ... 11-3-14 @ DAL (32 points, 1 assist, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, 13-22 FG, 4-6 3P)
22.9 ... 2-3-15 @ NYK (26 points, 4 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 11-14 FG, 3-5 3P)
22.9 ... 2-23-15 @ PHO (23 points, 3 assists, 4 rebounds, 6 steals, 8-14 FG, 3-4 3P)
21.6 ... 3-16-15 vs PHI (20 points, 6 assists, 10 rebounds, 2 steals, 8-14 FG, 4-7 3P)

 Biggest Weakness: ALL of the advanced stats dislike Avery, but he had some big games, though his best game resulted in losses.


2. Evan Turner

2nd in minutes played (2184)
Tied for 1st in games played (79) and 3rd in games started (54)
1st in assists (429 -- nearly 200 ahead of the next guy)
3rd in steals (77)
3rd in rebounds (401) and 1st in defensive rebounds (362)

5 best game scores:

22.5 ... 3-13-15 vs ORL (30 points, 4 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 12-20 FG, 5-5 FT)
22.4 ... 3-23-15 @ BRK (19 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds, 1 block, 9-13 FG)
19.5 ... 3-22-15 vs DET (23 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 10-21 FG, 2-6 3P)
18.6 ... 12-8-14 @ WAS (18 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 8-13 FG, 2-2 3P)
16.5 ... 1-3-15 @ CHI (29 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 12-22 FG, 4-5 3P)

Biggest Weakness: Like Bradley, none of the advanced stats wants anything to do with Turner


3. Brandon Bass

3rd in minutes played (1869)
1st in free throw attempts (209)
3rd in offensive rebounds (134)
2nd in points (843)
Tied for 1st in games played (79)
2nd in Win Shares (5.2)

5 best game scores:

20.8 ... 3-8-15 @ ORL (19 points, 17 rebounds, 5 assists, 9-14 FG)
19.7 ... 11-19-14 @ PHI (23 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 9-13 FG, 5-7 FT)
19.7 ... 1-23-15 @ DEN (17 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 5-12 FG, 7-8 FT)
19.6 ... 3-18-15 @ OKC (20 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 8-11 FG, 1-2 3P)
16.8 ... 2-23-15 @ PHO (18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 8-11 FG, 4-6 FT

Biggest Weakness: Lack of big games, not really a standout in any particular area aside from just showing up night after night.


4. Tyler Zeller

Tied for 1st in games played (79) and 2nd in games started (56)
3rd in points scored (803)
1st in blocks (51)
1st in rebounds (449) and second in both offensive (140) and defensive (309) rebounds
2nd in free throw attempts (209)
1st in Win Shares (6.1) and 2nd in WS/48 (.176)
2nd in PER (18.9)
2nd in TRB% (14.7)

5 best game scores:

23.8 ... 12-5-14 vs LAL (24 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 10-11 FG, 4-4 FT)
21.2 ... 11-17-14 vs PHO (19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 8-9 FG, 3-4 FT)
20.0 ... 12-23-14 @ ORL (22 points, 10 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 6-9 FG, 10-10 FT)
19.2 ... 3-16-15 vs PHI (26 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 11-15 FG, 4-4 FT)
19.1 ... 2-20-15 @ SAC (22 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block, 9-16 FG, 4-4 FT)

Biggest Weakness: Zeller only averaged 21.2 minutes per game despite his 54 starts, and spent a number of fourth quarters on the bench due to matchups.



These are your best candidates.  Marcus Smart is not the MVP guys.  ESPN's RPM likes him (and Kelly) a lot, but that somewhat questionable metric, and total steals, are the only things that like him.  He's done some nice things for the team, but I disagree with Scal.

Neither is Isaiah Thomas the MVP.  If there were a chance for a guy who joined the team halfway through the season to be MVP, it went away when the team continued winning during a crucial stretch of the playoff run when Thomas was out. 



Ultimately, my choice is a guy I NEVER would have picked heading into this season.  Tyler Zeller. 

That's right.  A guy who averaged just over 20 minutes a game, and only started 56 games, is the MVP.  He's been the most productive guy that has actually been with the team and in the rotation for the entire season.  He may not have put up any triple doubles, and he only has one game winner to his credit, but he's simply gone out there and done work. 

Seems like a fitting choice for this team, huh?  The players on this team aren't flashy.  They may be destined to spend much of their careers on the bench.  But they just go out there and do work.


Hats off to Tyler Zeller, your Role Playerest Role Player for 2014-2015.



« Last Edit: April 12, 2015, 01:41:17 PM by PhoSita »
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #1 on: April 12, 2015, 12:47:29 AM »

Offline Monkhouse

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Quote from: PhoSita on April 12, 2015, 12:42:47 AM

TP for the interesting analysis.

I do agree. Zeller has been great in his limited minutes, and hasn't complained once about his role. He seems like a genuinely nice guy who works hard.
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #2 on: April 12, 2015, 04:16:00 AM »

Offline D.o.s.

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Best thread title 2015.
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #3 on: April 12, 2015, 01:39:57 PM »

Offline PhoSita

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Quote from: D.o.s. on April 12, 2015, 04:16:00 AM
Best thread title 2015.

Thank you, thank you.


No dissenting opinions here?  Everybody agrees Tyler Zeller is the team MVP?
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #4 on: April 13, 2015, 12:32:40 AM »

Offline Greyman

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I think AB, as stated in another thread. TZ for 'most improved' if that award exists.
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #5 on: April 13, 2015, 12:38:38 AM »

Offline Monkhouse

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Quote from: PhoSita on April 12, 2015, 01:39:57 PM
Quote from: D.o.s. on April 12, 2015, 04:16:00 AM
Best thread title 2015.

Thank you, thank you.


No dissenting opinions here?  Everybody agrees Tyler Zeller is the team MVP?

Zeller is a great player; don't get me wrong, but he isn't the Team MVP in my eyes. I would say Stevens is and will always be the real MVP. IT has been fantastic for us, but Stevens has still somehow managed to turn names like Crowder, Gigi, Jerebko, Turner, and others in the past like Jordan Crawford into serviceable players.

I would still rank Smart, and Evan Turner as another important part of our success too. Turner has made some clutch songs, and Smart has always been a huge difference maker especially in the plus/minus category.

Looking at the entire team only about 3 players could honestly be starting players on contenders.

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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #6 on: April 13, 2015, 12:49:58 AM »

Offline Chris22

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Danny Ainge
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #7 on: April 13, 2015, 01:16:31 AM »

Offline crimson_stallion

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I'm going to say Avery Bradley. 

Not only has more or less carried this team offensively for the last two seasons, but I really feel like his grown a LOT this season - both mentally, and in terms of his game.

His passing, ball handling and decision making (ultimately, his biggest weaknesses) have IMHO all improved significantly. 

For a guy who is so quiet and still so young, his development as a leader (both on and off the court) has really impressed me.  He leads by example on the court with his hustle, his professionalism and his outright work ethic.  According to all reports, he's also really grown as an emotional/mental leader in the locker room.

His defense (which seemed to drop off a lot last year) has taken a big step back up to where it used to be a few seasons back, which is a huge thing.  Without that deadly defensive 1-2 punch of Bradley and Smart there's no way the Celtics would be sitting in the 7th seed with 2 games to play.

Finally he's done one other thing that he's never really been able to do - he has (for the most part) stayed healthy.

He still has his games where he largely disappears offensively, but even on nights like that he still makes an impact on the game with his effort, his hustle and his defense.  He's a guy who always finds a way to contribute. 

Lets be honest - before we got Isaiah Thomas, Bradley was pretty much the only guy on this team who did anything to scare opposing teams on the offensive end.  He's extremely streaky, but when AB gets on a hot streak offensively, he's very nearly unstoppable.  I've lost count of the number of games where I thought we were long gone (down by double figures) and then Bradley went on an offensive tear and scored 10-12 straight points to single handedly bring us back in the game.

My second choice would probably be Bass, for much the same reasons.  Great role model and leader on and off the court, brilliant work ethic, and a two way player who just seems to have a positive impact any time he gets on the court.

I truly believe that without Bradley and Bass, this would have been a 10-15 win team that would have been battling the Wolves, Knicks and Sixers for the lottery gold medal.
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Re: 2014-2015 Celtics MVP: The Role Playerest Role Player
« Reply #8 on: April 13, 2015, 01:40:33 AM »

Offline PhoSita

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Danny Ainge doesn't qualify, though he's had a great year.  I agree that Stevens is the true centerpiece right now, but he's not a player, either.

I agree with the idea that before IT got here, Avery was the only player on the team who could really put the opponent on their heels with a hot streak.  I also really like that he's stepped up into a shot taker / shot maker role for this team.  No more deer in headlights with Bradley.

Still, the numbers just don't support the idea that Avery has "carried" the team offensively.  He's taken a lot of shots because often he's the only option on a broken play and he takes a deep two.  Avery still doesn't regularly bring enough besides the long twos to be called the most valuable.

As for Turner, if this were a degree of difficult award, he'd be a runaway winner.  I enjoy watching him when he's on, and I appreciate what he's brought to the team as a secondary ballhandler, but he's still more or less the guy Philly and Indiana were happy to move on from.  He's just the best the Celts have right now in terms of wings that can handle the ball.

I do think Bass has done a lot for the team, and if Ainge had just dumped Bass and Prince instead of keeping Bass and acquiring more useful role players, I think the team would have been significantly worse down the stretch.

Still, I think the biggest problem for this team heading into the offseason was the total lack of competent center play.  The team desperately needed a consistent guy with legit size who could bother shots and finish inside.  Zeller fit the bill and made a big difference, even though he was in some ways a designated hitter in the way Brad shifted him around based on matchups.
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