Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo to the Celtics...

[docsu]

the melo pick had me smh. the guy is a stiff! he`ll be in the dleague in a year and out of basketball completely in 3. hes looking for some guarranteed money so he can buy a car,house and lots of weed.

the sullinger pick i dont have an issue with because hes a high character kid who will work his tail off.

will work his tail off

will work his tail off

LOL

 

[nomar]

It's amazing how overrated and overhyped Bradley has become in such a short period of time. Celtics fans are real crazy about a guy who averaged 7.6 PPG last season. I know he's young and talented, but comeon - the guy wouldn't have made that much of a difference in the Celtics-Heat series. What exactly does he give you that Pietrus doesn't?

The numbers showed that the Celtics' defense when Ray was out and Bradley was in was historically good. Like, one of the best defensive 5 of all time. People didn't score on him. Hollinger named him the best defensive PG in the NBA. High praise (and he ain't a Celtics fan).

And you're cherrypicking: in his starts, he averaged well more than that. In April, when Ray was out, he averaged 15.1 ppg on 52% shooting. He was also on fire from 3 (55%). And he averaged 1.2 spg. But he's not a stats guy. He's a defensive stopper who became worth putting on the floor when he started making shots (after missing everything as a rookie).

Bottom line: yes, I agree, people are overhyping him based on one really amazing month (although he started playing great in February and didn't have any bad months after that). But your criticism reveals that you are ignorant of his defensive skills and thus underrating him. Pietrus can't hold Bradley's jock strap. Terrible, terrible comparison. Pietrus would be lucky to get paid $1M a year, for a reason. He has no offensive game and he is inconsistent on defense. Guy never met a pump fake he didn't jump on. Bradley is for real on defense. You have no idea what impact he would have had on the series. Wade struggled, but he was getting a lot of double-teams. What would have happened if Bradley covered Wade 1-on-1? I'm not saying the C's would have won, but who knows. The Celtics are a better team with Avery Bradley than they are without him, period.

Huskypants, I'd say Bosh is "better." Not that that's really relevant.

 

[nomar]

More Hollinger re Bradley:

The defense, however, hasn't just been treading water; it's practically walking on it. Boston has allowed an astounding 92.9 points per 100 possessions over its past 15 games, according to NBA.com's advanced stats tool, a figure which has propelled it to the league lead in defensive efficiency.

Let me help you try to grasp the significance of that 92.9 figure. The league average in offensive efficiency in that stretch shot up to 103.0, as every NBA team (except the ones playing Boston) found its post-lockout offensive rhythm.

So in the past 15 games, Boston's defensive efficiency is a full 10 points better than the league average, a feat which nobody has done for a full season since … actually nobody has ever done that. Not even the 2008 champions, who were only 7.98 points better.

That gives you some idea of how awesome the Celtics' defense has been, but again the question comes up: How? Early in the season, the Celtics didn't defend even remotely this well. Boston permitted 100.5 points per 100 possessions in its first 10 games, leaving it in the middle of the pack in defensive efficiency. Kevin Garnett looked heavy-legged and unable to jump, and it wasn't clear how that problem might fix itself, plus the bench was a federal disaster zone.

I wrote about this very topic in January, when Kendrick Perkins and the Thunder visited and every Celtics fan was mourning Perk's departure as the reason for the team's decline.

***

Then Avery Bradley started playing regularly at shooting guard, and suddenly the Celtics found another level.

Bradley went in the starting lineup when Ray Allen went out with an injury, and he's been so good that Allen is now coming off the bench. Bradley's impact has been twofold. First, he had been abysmal offensively in previous trials at the point, but playing off the ball next to Rondo he's proved adequate: In this nine-game stretch as a starter, he's hit double figures six times.

Defensively, however, Bradley is a world-class pest. He's quick, athletic and relentless and excels at pressuring the ball, making up for being a bit undersized for the 2. While his rejection of Dwyane Wade last week is the play everyone is talking about, my heart was won earlier this season, when Orlando's guards could scarcely get the ball across the time line against him.

Add a heavy dose of Bradley to the mix, and the result has been that an already excellent defense has become an absolutely terrifying one. In this nine-game stretch, the Celtics have allowed 79 points or fewer five times, and the only teams to beat them are Chicago and San Antonio.

The lineup data supports the idea that Boston has found itself a defensive lineup for the ages. Check out the carnage on NBA.com's advanced stats tool: When Bradley and Garnett play together, Boston gives up 88.8 points per 100 possessions, allows 38.8 percent shooting and forces nearly one turnover for every assist. This is scary stuff, and it's not one of those small-minute flukes, either -- they've played 658 minutes together.

You think that's impressive? How's this: When Rondo and Bradley play together, opponents average 82.2 points per 100 possessions.

That's nearly 20 points below the league average. It's in 271 minutes, so it's not as robust a sample as the data with Garnett, but good heavens. The Celtics barely need to bother with an offense if the D is going to provide this kind of domination.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/stor...a-boston-celtics-saved-their-season-turning-d

 

[champs99and04]

The numbers showed that the Celtics' defense when Ray was out and Bradley was in was historically good. Like, one of the best defensive 5 of all time. People didn't score on him. Hollinger named him the best defensive PG in the NBA. High praise (and he ain't a Celtics fan).

And you're cherrypicking: in his starts, he averaged well more than that. In April, when Ray was out, he averaged 15.1 ppg on 52% shooting. He was also on fire from 3 (55%). And he averaged 1.2 spg. But he's not a stats guy. He's a defensive stopper who became worth putting on the floor when he started making shots (after missing everything as a rookie).

Bottom line: yes, I agree, people are overhyping him based on one really amazing month (although he started playing great in February and didn't have any bad months after that). But your criticism reveals that you are ignorant of his defensive skills and thus underrating him. Pietrus can't hold Bradley's jock strap. Terrible, terrible comparison. Pietrus would be lucky to get paid $1M a year, for a reason. He has no offensive game and he is inconsistent on defense. Guy never met a pump fake he didn't jump on. Bradley is for real on defense. You have no idea what impact he would have had on the series. Wade struggled, but he was getting a lot of double-teams. What would have happened if Bradley covered Wade 1-on-1? I'm not saying the C's would have won, but who knows. The Celtics are a better team with Avery Bradley than they are without him, period.

Huskypants, I'd say Bosh is "better." Not that that's really relevant.

Ok, you got me. I haven't seen him play much, and the excerpts you highlighted from the Hollinger article shows that Bradley's impact reaches far beyond what meets the eye on his statsheet. It seems like you've seen the Celtics play a lot more than me this season, so you're word is better than mine.

With that said, nobody touched Miami when Bosh was healthy. With Bosh now hitting threes and growing more and more comfortable in his role on offense, Miami has been practically unguardable, and when you consider the fact that Bosh has been much improved on defense (at least in my opinion), I just thought it was a bit farfetched for Celt fans to be playing the injury card when Miami was without a top 25 player for the first four games of that series. I could be woefully wrong, but I think there is a chance Miami wins that series in five games with Bosh healthy.

And would Bradley undoubtedly have been on the floor for the Celtics during crunch time in that series? For as well as Bradley shot the ball during the last few months during the regular season, he shot 37% from the field and 22% from three in ten postseason games. I'm not sure how much the injury contributed to those figures, but I think it's fair to be skeptical in regards to Bradley's shotmaking abilities in big moments, especially against a swarming defense like Miami's. So would Doc have opted for the guy that can stretch the floor in Ray, or would he have strengthened an already impressive defense by staying with Bradley?

 

[dsturdy5]

Bradley reagrivated the shoulder early in the 1st round series and was not the same. Also, what he gives the offense is a runningmate for Rondo. He was the one player who could get out on the break with RR and finish around the rim. No one else would/could do that consistently.

 

[NHUConnfan]

You can't call it overhype for Bradley. People easily forgot that the Celtics drafted him pretty high (19th overall). He was a diamond-in-the-rough because he only played one year in college. But I think he was pretty much recognized as someone having an incredibly high ceiling from the draft day as long as they were willing to commit to work with him in the D-League. Those bright flashes last year are only the beginning of a very good future for Mr. Bradley. It's not overhype...he's progressing just as expected.

 

[UConn990411]

With that said, nobody touched Miami when Bosh was healthy. With Bosh now hitting threes and growing more and more comfortable in his role on offense, Miami has been practically unguardable, and when you consider the fact that Bosh has been much improved on defense (at least in my opinion), I just thought it was a bit farfetched for Celt fans to be playing the injury card when Miami was without a top 25 player for the first four games of that series. I could be woefully wrong, but I think there is a chance Miami wins that series in five games with Bosh healthy.

It's not just that the Celtics lost Bradley for the series - it's that the guy who replaced him (Ray) was at like 50%. Miami, meanwhile, got Bosh back for the last three games, and he played exceptionally well.

If both teams were healthy all series, I still think Miami wins in 6 or 7. But it's not unreasonable to think the Celtics still would've been competitive even if Bosh were there the whole time.

 

[mauconnfan]

Bosh and Battier shooting out of their respective a**es was pretty key. Bosh coming back made them better no doubt but Bosh coming back and shooting like RayAllen made them unbeatable.......Bradley is going to be a very nice player........as will Sullinger if healthy.

 

[nomar]

Ok, you got me. I haven't seen him play much, and the excerpts you highlighted from the Hollinger article shows that Bradley's impact reaches far beyond what meets the eye on his statsheet. It seems like you've seen the Celtics play a lot more than me this season, so you're word is better than mine.

With that said, nobody touched Miami when Bosh was healthy. With Bosh now hitting threes and growing more and more comfortable in his role on offense, Miami has been practically unguardable, and when you consider the fact that Bosh has been much improved on defense (at least in my opinion), I just thought it was a bit farfetched for Celt fans to be playing the injury card when Miami was without a top 25 player for the first four games of that series. I could be woefully wrong, but I think there is a chance Miami wins that series in five games with Bosh healthy.

And would Bradley undoubtedly have been on the floor for the Celtics during crunch time in that series? For as well as Bradley shot the ball during the last few months during the regular season, he shot 37% from the field and 22% from three in ten postseason games. I'm not sure how much the injury contributed to those figures, but I think it's fair to be skeptical in regards to Bradley's shotmaking abilities in big moments, especially against a swarming defense like Miami's. So would Doc have opted for the guy that can stretch the floor in Ray, or would he have strengthened an already impressive defense by staying with Bradley?

Fair post. Bradley's offense was limited by the injury but who knows how we would have shot against Miami even if healthy. As to end-of-game situations, I think Doc probably would have coached to the scoreboard and/or gone offense-defense as much as possible. Bottom line, I agree that it is unfair for Celtics fans to say "we would have won with Bradley" without acknowledging that a healthy Bosh for 7 games would have been huge as well. I'm just trying to explain why the Bradley injury was such a punch in the gut to Celtics fans.