player Outlook - Chris Wilcox

The writer is right about Wilcox being a great running big man. Now that his heart is healthy I hope he runs like crazy.


http://www.rantsports.com/boston-celtics/2012/08/22/boston-celtics-player-outlook-2012-2013-chris-wilcox/


We continue to preview the Boston Celtics roster for the 2012-2013 season and today we look at Chris Wilcox’s outlook for this upcoming season. Wilcox is a frustrating player because if he could ever stay healthy, he has really nice potential. Originally drafted 8th overall in the 2002 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers out of the University of Maryland, he has played on six different NBA teams. I guess you could label him as a journeyman, but he really isn’t. Injuries have plagued him throughout his entire career and he certainly has the talent to be a very effective player in this league.

Wilcox is a great running big man. He runs the floor from baseline to baseline very efficiently. As a result, he is great at catching passes in transition either on a fast break or for an alley-oop dunk. This is a great thing that he has in his toolbox as it is a quality that coaches crave. He is also a nice offensive player in the post. He has a decent amount of post moves that he can utilize. Standing at 6’10, he is an effective rebounder and is always active on the glass. The real weakness with Wilcox has been the obvious health issues. He missed a majority of last season with a serious heart condition and it is great to see him back healthy. He fouls at a pretty high rate which is something that would be nice for him to cut back on.

I have always been a big fan of Chris Wilcox. He was having a really nice season last year before his serious heart condition. He was establishing a great rapport with point guard Rajon Rondo and he would have been especially great to have in the post season. He is an athletic big man who always seems to provide effective minutes. I would expect him to have a similar role this season as last year. He is probably the 4th or 5th big man in the rotation right now, but you can bet that head coach Doc Rivers will find him as many minutes as he can. Wilcox provides this team with excellent depth and it doesn’t hurt either that he makes the league minimum. Having a cheap, veteran big man is always an asset and the team expects him to have another productive season in 2012.


bob



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No comments by the author about Wilcox' defense?

Sam

sam wrote:No comments by the author about Wilcox' defense?

Sam

Sam,

I've noticed this author tends to blow a lot of happy smoke. I think it was gyso on the Lee thread who pointed out that McHale is the coach in Houston not the GM.


bob


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Injuries have plagued him??? He had a heart problem. Suppose you could call that an injury, it's more a health issue. This is the first suggestion I've ever seen saying that Chris Wilcox has been plagued by injuries in his career. If it isn't true, then this is seriously shoddy writing and, a nasty tag to hang on a guy.

Wilcox hasn't been a dominant force in the NBA the way he was in college, where he led his team to the NCAA title, but maybe there's a reason for that; such as, maybe he wasn't in a system that suited his talents. Since he reminds me of Robert Parish in some ways, it would be totally wonderful if he emerged in Doc's nonsystem the same way Chief did alongside Larry and Kevin all those years ago.

Wilcox didn't take long to fit in with this team last year. A few years back, another journeyman big man, Mikki Moore, had a problem on defense switching off while trusting his teammates to pick up his man. Wilcox is so immersed in the idea of team, that he doesn't even think about it.

As for running the floor, he himself said last year that he hasn't had the opportunity to do it much in his career, but with a wizard like Rondo to find him and reward him, he could see the possibilities of racing down the floor on every play. So, even though he has demonstrated the potential to be a great running big man, I'm not sure he's done it enough yet to deserve the accolade. But I'm hoping. Hope hope hope.

Then there's the salary thing. This is a talented big man who's had successful surgery and his heart is good to go, according to the doctors. And yet, he took the minimum to stay here in Boston. As far as I know, he didn't even try the open market. Am I wrong or is Steimer going to make more than Wilcox?

The moral of the story is that it sure seems as though Chris Wilcox was wandering around the NBA, looking for a basketball family and a basketball home, a place where they played the game with joy and determination, and he found it in Boston.

Call it another ingredient in the mix that might just add up to a magic formula.