If Enes Kanter Doesn’t Start, What Does That Mean For Celtics’ Lineups?

https://nesn.com/2019/10/if-enes-kanter-doesnt-start-what-does-that-mean-for-celtics-lineups/




If Enes Kanter Doesn’t Start, What Does That Mean For Celtics’ Lineups?



by Chris Grenham

on Tue, Oct 8, 2019 at 11:15PM



Enes Kanter was one of the Celtics’ biggest offseason pickups, so why would they bring him off the bench to begin the year?

Brad Stevens on Tuesday indicated that it’s likely he’ll start the season playing with Boston’s second unit. As surprising as this might sound, it’s the best option for the new-look Celtics.

There’s no shortage of scoring in Boston’s starting lineup. Between Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown, there’s plenty of athletic points to be had. Kanter, who primarily is used on the block, wouldn’t really fit the wing-centric mold of that lineup.

But Kanter’s defensive ability, or lack thereof, adds more reason to toss him in with the second unit. Opposing starting bigs would take advantage of Kanter in a pick-and-roll scheme, so having him come off the bench would prevent him from being targeted in that scenario. He’ll also give the second unit a great scoring punch and provide some much-needed help on the offensive glass.

So, who starts at the five?

Well, there isn’t a clear answer quite yet.

Robert Williams got the nod in Sunday’s preseason opener, but his sophomore debut left plenty to be desired. Yes, it started with an alley-oop, but the Texas A&M product struggled for the remainder of his 10 minutes. He’s coming off a rookie season where he played just 32 games, so these growing pains are to be expected. But the bottom line is he may not be ready to handle starting minutes quite yet.

Vincent Poirier was solid on the defensive end, but the Frenchman has the least amount of NBA experience as any big on the roster. He’ll likely need some time to adapt and continue developing.

That leaves Daniel Theis, who might be the best option at the moment. He returned to practice Tuesday after sitting out Sunday’s win, but at 6-foot-8, his size could present a problem against lineups like the Philadelphia 76ers, among others. Despite this potential issue, he may be Boston’s best bet for the time being.

Time will tell who becomes the regular starter, but this is a fluid situation, and should be for some time.



bob
MY NOTE:  I'm a big fan of Theis but I do not see him as a starting NBA center, he's too small.  Kanter was the starting center in Utah, but who else did they have?  He came off the bench behind Steven Adams in OKC, despite being better offensively than Adams, because of his defensive liabilities.  The Time Lord needs time.  To me, that leaves Poirier.  He's an NBA rookie but he has years of professional experience.  He's a physical player and can handle the bigger centers, which I doubt Theis could do.  I started watching film of Poirier as soon as International brought him to our attention.  After Danny signed him I went back and watched every bit of film on him I could find.  I believe he can play in the NBA and maybe even start.  Would I prefer him coming off the bench and flattening his NBA learning curve there first?  Sure, but beggars can't be choosers and right now we're begging for a real center.  As I have opined in other threads I could see starting Williams just so he could be surrounded by veteran players who could buoy him, which he would not get if he played with the 2nd unit (think of how young the 2nd unit is. Smart, perhaps Kanter, are veterans. Who else has more than 2 years NBA experience?).  So, for me, it's either start Williams to get him minutes and insulate him from having to carry a unit or start Poirier and let him bang with the other teams' starting bigs.


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My best guess is the season starts out with center by committee. Kanter and R Williams. No bet as to who will be on the floor for the opening tip yet, but I think both are going to get heavy rotation time.

Unless Poirier can show that his 5 minutes can look equally good over 20, or Theis reaches for the Miracle-Gro, I think that will be the picture. I do believe R Williams has the talent to take sole possession of the starting job by later this season. He's going to have to play a lot to get his game to that point, however. And in the NBA, not the G-League. To me the question is this; will Brad decide the team can afford the cost of the learning curve for R Williams?

Just saw this as well...

Brad Stevens Discusses Celtics Injuries, Enes Kanter Coming Off the Bench

https://www.clnsmedia.com/brad-stevens-discusses-celtics-injuries-enes-kanter-coming-off-the-bench/

R Williams is out for Friday with a groin injury too. If Brad does like Kanter with the second unit, it could be Theis' chance at a start and maybe more minutes along the way for Poirier.

The thing is, Brad does not have the data yet to really determine lineups.  That is the reason why we will see starts at center by different guys.

Kanter will get some starts as will VP.  Williams will get some starts as well.  Brad likes to play small ball but he rarely has a small ball center in the starting lineup.  Theis only got 2 starts last year and only 3 the year before. (5 out of 129 games played)

I think that either Williams or VP will end up as the starting center.  This goes back to my belief that having too many scorers on the floor together will dilute the product by limiting scoring opportunities for the best scorers. 

If either Williams or VP can play a more complimentary role on offense and become a reliable defender and rebounder on defense, they may be a good fit to play with our top scorers.  If neither one of them can do that, this team will be in deep doo-doo

In the meantime I would suggest that we sit back and let things play out.