Re: Post-game Thread: Celtics 117 vs. Cavs 113, 4/4/10

[jeb]

I think James will win a few championships by the time he is done. He is def good enough. Maybe then he will ease off the throttle a little bit and feed the right dog. Right now he is trending selfish and petulant. I wonder how his demeanor will change if he wins one...will it be nights out with jay z or hours spent in the gym (as bird and magic and jordan did) to form new skills with which to kill the opponent.

I wonder how we would feel about James if he was wearing green?

[gyso]

jeb,

The closest I can come to explain how Celtic fans would feel if LeBron wore green would be to offer up Nomar Garciaparra in 2004 as an example.

By 2004, many Red Sox fans had grown tired of the whole act, his refusal to take the overly-generous contract offer from the Sox and his 1 minute routine at the plate for each and every frigging pitch, and much, much more. (maybe I'm in this group ) Many still loved him regardless, due to the accolades he brought in for the Sox in the past. Some were somewhere in between.

Another recent example is Manny Ramirez.

I cannot think of any past Celtic player that I can use as an example.

gyso

PS: if you are not a Red Sox fan, you may not get the similarities. Just know that both Nomar and Manny were considered to be superstars and were at the top of their craft before falling in the eyes of many of their fans.

[Sam]

How about Toine?

[pete]

Use Sheed as an example. Remember how a lot of us felt when we signed him? I certainly changed my opinion, at that time, now, I believe I am back to my first impression. But, I am still rooting for him to suck it up & help us.

Pete

[bobheckler]

LeBron for Pierce?

Bring it baby.

bob

.

[mrkleen09]

Pierce looked like a slow, disinterested CHUMP in the 4th quarter yesterday. Lebron ate his lunch and fed it to him.

So disappointing, as the Celtics clearly have NO CLOSER any longer. Guess Ray Allen is our best option in the 4th, so we need to get him the ball with game on the line - as the Captain is not what he once was.

[Sam]

Actually, I would prefer that the Celtics have no designated closer, as I believe it creates more problems for the defense due to less predictability. The problem could be convincing Paul Pierce that there is no routinely designated closer.

One thing seems apparent to me. The Celtics are going to need some creativity and less predictability to have a reasonable chance in the playoffs. Now's the time to install some new wrinkles. In particular, I'd like to see more down picks because that double high pick too often results in blatant offensive fouls or long jumpers.

It would be nice to think that the team had a couple of plays in which all three of the Three Amigos are options. I omit Rondo only because of foul-shooting concerns, but frankly I'm not all that confident in Pierce's late-game performance at the line either.

Moreover, perhaps someone can tell me why Tony so often winds up in the corner. I assume it's because conventional wisdom calls for spreading the offense. But defenses don't fall for that. They play off him because they don't fear his three-point shooting skills. I'd rather see him setting down picks and being ready to roll to the basket or at least use his offensive rebounding skills more regularly. If Glen and Tony were in there fighting for the offensive boards, I'd be much more sanguine about Sheed, Finley and the designated starter getting a jump on transition defense. And having a teammate with him could give Glen options other than having putback attempts blocked.

Lately, I have seen Tony trying to post up guys. I don't believe he has the hang of it yet, but I'd like to see more of it. If there's one possible secret weapon for the playoffs, my money would be on Tony.

Sam

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