David Lee complaining about minutes

[Eddie20]

That is NOT complaining. All he is saying is that he will continue to put in full effort to be worthy of more minutes. Did you people actually read the full quote?

There is nothing wrong with what he said. Stevens would be happy with what he said. He wants all the player to have drive and to desire to do more for the team. Do you want him to just cash his check and be happy with a diminished role? Has he at any point shown that he is giving less effort or is being hard to coach?

Here is an earlier part of the article:

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways.

“I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

The OP is just trying to start trouble. Don't take the bait.

Wait, what? He's obviously complaining about playing time. The Boston Globe article even states "David Lee longs for more playing time". He's frustrated and had a meeting with Stevens to address just that.

[Granath]

Ah, we can see the overreaction crowd in full swing at CelticsBlog today!

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways. I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“And that’s no disrespect to any other big [man] we have. But as a player I think everybody wants to play more and that’s just having confidence in your own game.”

“He respects that I went and talked to him,” Lee said. “You know to go to your coach and say, ‘Hey what do I need to do better? How do I try to earn more minutes?’ It’s not how can I get more minutes to get better stats or to get more attention, it’s knowing I could help the team.”

And finally....

“I have not been in a situation like this, or a situation where five bigs are trying to play, five capable bigs,” Lee said. “There’s been times where it’s been frustrating for every single one of us. But most importantly, we’ve got to find a way that whoever Coach plays, to outplay the other team’s bigs. However it works out, there’s not one selfish guy on this roster."

So Lee wants to play. GOOD!!!! I'd be far more concerned if he was willing to ride the pine and collect his $15m by being lazy. I want players who want to play. I want players who are hungry to hit the floor. He's not complaining about minutes. He's saying that he simply wants to help the team.

It's one thing to sulk at the end of the bench and become a locker room disruption. That's when you have to look hard at keeping him on the roster. But there's no evidence of that here. He's working hard and wants to play hard. At some point the team will need him and it sounds like he'll be ready when they do.

[Eja117]

D Lee and Amir have not been the upgrades they were supposed to be. But especially not Lee

[hwangjini_1]

Ah, we can see the overreaction crowd in full swing at CelticsBlog today!

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways. I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“And that’s no disrespect to any other big [man] we have. But as a player I think everybody wants to play more and that’s just having confidence in your own game.”

“He respects that I went and talked to him,” Lee said. “You know to go to your coach and say, ‘Hey what do I need to do better? How do I try to earn more minutes?’ It’s not how can I get more minutes to get better stats or to get more attention, it’s knowing I could help the team.”

And finally....

“I have not been in a situation like this, or a situation where five bigs are trying to play, five capable bigs,” Lee said. “There’s been times where it’s been frustrating for every single one of us. But most importantly, we’ve got to find a way that whoever Coach plays, to outplay the other team’s bigs. However it works out, there’s not one selfish guy on this roster."

So Lee wants to play. GOOD!!!! I'd be far more concerned if he was willing to ride the pine and collect his $15m by being lazy. I want players who want to play. I want players who are hungry to hit the floor. He's not complaining about minutes. He's saying that he simply wants to help the team.

It's one thing to sulk at the end of the bench and become a locker room disruption. That's when you have to look hard at keeping him on the roster. But there's no evidence of that here. He's working hard and wants to play hard. At some point the team will need him and it sounds like he'll be ready when they do.

nice post and a tp.

mayhaps the OP would like to alter the thread title a tad to reflect what was said?

[Eddie20]

Ah, we can see the overreaction crowd in full swing at CelticsBlog today!

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways. I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“And that’s no disrespect to any other big [man] we have. But as a player I think everybody wants to play more and that’s just having confidence in your own game.”

“He respects that I went and talked to him,” Lee said. “You know to go to your coach and say, ‘Hey what do I need to do better? How do I try to earn more minutes?’ It’s not how can I get more minutes to get better stats or to get more attention, it’s knowing I could help the team.”

And finally....

“I have not been in a situation like this, or a situation where five bigs are trying to play, five capable bigs,” Lee said. “There’s been times where it’s been frustrating for every single one of us. But most importantly, we’ve got to find a way that whoever Coach plays, to outplay the other team’s bigs. However it works out, there’s not one selfish guy on this roster."

So Lee wants to play. GOOD!!!! I'd be far more concerned if he was willing to ride the pine and collect his $15m by being lazy. I want players who want to play. I want players who are hungry to hit the floor. He's not complaining about minutes. He's saying that he simply wants to help the team.

It's one thing to sulk at the end of the bench and become a locker room disruption. That's when you have to look hard at keeping him on the roster. But there's no evidence of that here. He's working hard and wants to play hard. At some point the team will need him and it sounds like he'll be ready when they do.

Lee is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. If you want to focus on the part were he SAYS he's ok with it, that's fine. However, I zero in more on that part where he had a meeting with Stevens to address his lack of playing time.  One sounds good, the other is reality.

[hwangjini_1]

Ah, we can see the overreaction crowd in full swing at CelticsBlog today!

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways. I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“And that’s no disrespect to any other big [man] we have. But as a player I think everybody wants to play more and that’s just having confidence in your own game.”

“He respects that I went and talked to him,” Lee said. “You know to go to your coach and say, ‘Hey what do I need to do better? How do I try to earn more minutes?’ It’s not how can I get more minutes to get better stats or to get more attention, it’s knowing I could help the team.”

And finally....

“I have not been in a situation like this, or a situation where five bigs are trying to play, five capable bigs,” Lee said. “There’s been times where it’s been frustrating for every single one of us. But most importantly, we’ve got to find a way that whoever Coach plays, to outplay the other team’s bigs. However it works out, there’s not one selfish guy on this roster."

So Lee wants to play. GOOD!!!! I'd be far more concerned if he was willing to ride the pine and collect his $15m by being lazy. I want players who want to play. I want players who are hungry to hit the floor. He's not complaining about minutes. He's saying that he simply wants to help the team.

It's one thing to sulk at the end of the bench and become a locker room disruption. That's when you have to look hard at keeping him on the roster. But there's no evidence of that here. He's working hard and wants to play hard. At some point the team will need him and it sounds like he'll be ready when they do.

Lee is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. If you want to focus on the part were he SAYS he's ok with it, that's fine. However, I zero in more on that part where he had a meeting with Stevens to address his lack of playing time.  One sounds good, the other is reality.

and reality is defined how here? i dont see this as automatically problematic. a player talks with the coach and wants to play more, but makes no demands or commands or ultimatums or tantrums.

what should have lee done? simply been a good quiet player? it seems to me he addressed a professional concern in a professional way.

[Granath]

Lee is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. If you want to focus on the part were he SAYS he's ok with it, that's fine. However, I zero in more on that part where he had a meeting with Stevens to address his lack of playing time.  One sounds good, the other is reality.

Nice try, but no. You have no idea what that meeting was like. If it is what Lee says it is, then he met with Brad to figure out what he needed to do to EARN more playing time.

Look, Lee's not a dummy. He knows that if he goes into Brad's office and starts whining about court time, he's not going to get anywhere. But if he goes in and asks how he needs to adjust his game to better help the team, he's being a professional. Lee is a professional. 

It's no different than someone going into the corner office to ask for a raise in the corporate world. You can go whine that you're underpaid and see how far that gets you. Or you can go in, talk about your achievements, how you want to continue to help the organization and you're likely to walk out with a nice jump in your paycheck.

The only real question is what happens if he doesn't get more court time. Does he create a disruption in the locker room? If so, then it's a problem. Right now there's ZERO, ZIP, ZILCH evidence of him being a problem in the locker room. If he doesn't, then it's all fine and good and his competitive spirit hopefully keeps the guys in front of him on their toes.

[pearljammer10]

That is NOT complaining. All he is saying is that he will continue to put in full effort to be worthy of more minutes. Did you people actually read the full quote?

There is nothing wrong with what he said. Stevens would be happy with what he said. He wants all the player to have drive and to desire to do more for the team. Do you want him to just cash his check and be happy with a diminished role? Has he at any point shown that he is giving less effort or is being hard to coach?

Here is an earlier part of the article:

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways.

“I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

The OP is just trying to start trouble. Don't take the bait.

It is trouble.  It puts pressure on a coach that already has to do a tough juggling act on a nightly basis.

He has done little to prove he deserves the min he wants. Like against the kings he scored 2 pts in 15 min.   He has been up and down all year long.

Danny should try his best to trade him. If not waive.

No Guava is right in this situation. He isn't complaining about his minutes, he is expressing his frustration and naturally so. He is saying is going to continue to work hard regardless of the minutes he plays because his goal is to be playing 20-25 minutes a game. Even if he doesn't play, he is not going to give up on his team and his goal.

[Tr1boy]

Ah, we can see the overreaction crowd in full swing at CelticsBlog today!

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways. I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“And that’s no disrespect to any other big [man] we have. But as a player I think everybody wants to play more and that’s just having confidence in your own game.”

“He respects that I went and talked to him,” Lee said. “You know to go to your coach and say, ‘Hey what do I need to do better? How do I try to earn more minutes?’ It’s not how can I get more minutes to get better stats or to get more attention, it’s knowing I could help the team.”

And finally....

“I have not been in a situation like this, or a situation where five bigs are trying to play, five capable bigs,” Lee said. “There’s been times where it’s been frustrating for every single one of us. But most importantly, we’ve got to find a way that whoever Coach plays, to outplay the other team’s bigs. However it works out, there’s not one selfish guy on this roster."

So Lee wants to play. GOOD!!!! I'd be far more concerned if he was willing to ride the pine and collect his $15m by being lazy. I want players who want to play. I want players who are hungry to hit the floor. He's not complaining about minutes. He's saying that he simply wants to help the team.

It's one thing to sulk at the end of the bench and become a locker room disruption. That's when you have to look hard at keeping him on the roster. But there's no evidence of that here. He's working hard and wants to play hard. At some point the team will need him and it sounds like he'll be ready when they do.

Lee is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. If you want to focus on the part were he SAYS he's ok with it, that's fine. However, I zero in more on that part where he had a meeting with Stevens to address his lack of playing time.  One sounds good, the other is reality.

I agree with this.

Better to just not say anything regarding the mins situation

Not I'm frustrated, I expect to play 20 min a game. I let coach know.   No diss on other guys.   The team comes 1st

huh?

It's like a child that says, I would like an iPhone for Xmas, but whatever I get, I will still be happy.

[blink]

That is NOT complaining. All he is saying is that he will continue to put in full effort to be worthy of more minutes. Did you people actually read the full quote?

There is nothing wrong with what he said. Stevens would be happy with what he said. He wants all the player to have drive and to desire to do more for the team. Do you want him to just cash his check and be happy with a diminished role? Has he at any point shown that he is giving less effort or is being hard to coach?

Here is an earlier part of the article:

“That’s all I can do, is be ready to play 25, 30 but realize that’s not going to be the case most nights,” said Lee, who is averaging 6.9 points as a reserve. “I can choose to be frustrated by it or I can choose to make the most out of my time and make a positive contribution and find a way to do it in different ways.

“I don’t know where it’s going to be, but I know I’m going to be aggressive and I’m going to play with energy. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

The OP is just trying to start trouble. Don't take the bait.

It is trouble.  It puts pressure on a coach that already has to do a tough juggling act on a nightly basis.

He has done little to prove he deserves the min he wants. Like against the kings he scored 2 pts in 15 min.   He has been up and down all year long.

Danny should try his best to trade him. If not waive.

No Guava is right in this situation. He isn't complaining about his minutes, he is expressing his frustration and naturally so. He is saying is going to continue to work hard regardless of the minutes he plays because his goal is to be playing 20-25 minutes a game. Even if he doesn't play, he is not going to give up on his team and his goal.

I agree with this 100%.  This isn't some complaining malcontent problem child.  Lee hasn't played well, but his statements aren't a problem for Stevens or the team. 

[Csfan1984]

I would limit his PT unless he has a great matchup. Let him play against weak competition for his max minutes when ever possible to build up his trade value.

[Granath]

I would limit his PT unless he has a great matchup. Let him play against weak competition for his max minutes when ever possible to build up his trade value.

Lee has no trade value as a contributor. He's not going to have any trade value as a contributor. He's simply not the player he once was. His value is in leadership and as a potential salary filler in a bigger deal. That's it.

Why do people think that he was traded and is supposed to be a serious piece to this team? For cryin' out loud, we got him for Gerald Wallace! The Warriors moved him so they could save huge dollars (more than $20m) on their tax penalty and in return the Cs got a marginally better player.

[86MaxwellSmart]

I have more Sympathy for Zeller than I do Lee...Lee had his chance-and played like 4 good games--and missed Countless layups....Zeller played better than this last season--He should get Lee's minutes.

[Hemingway]

D Lee and Amir have not been the upgrades they were supposed to be. But especially not Lee

Are you watching the games? Amir has been pretty good. Certainly an upgrade over Bass, and I liked bass' game too.

Do you guys realize how foolish waiving Lee would be?
1. He's not really complaining. Saying you want to keep trying and get more minutes is not really complaining.
2. If we waived him and at the deadline there was a deal to trade picks for Melo or DMC or Durrant we would then have to trade Amir to make the numbers work and Amir is really helping us win.
3. If we waive Lee and 2 or 3 bigs get hurt we would be in trouble.

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

I don't see this as complaining. Going to your coach to discuss how you can earn more playing time shows hunger (as opposed to being a wallflower) and professionalism (as opposed to talking behind the coach's back).

Plus, I think there are certain people who disliked the move for Lee from the beginning and are probably looking for any reason to prove they were right. He's had ups and downs this season, but produced way more than Wallace ever did.