Bass lets his play do the talking

Bass lets his play do the talking


With a focus that impresses even KG, Celtics veteran quietly becoming a force






Updated: October 2, 2012, 7:52 PM ET

By Greg Payne | ESPNBoston.com






WALTHAM, Mass. -- When the Celtics re-signed Brandon Bass
to a new three-year contract this past summer, the process lacked the
drama and suspense associated with several of Boston's other free-agent
dealings. For Kevin Garnett there was the prospect of retirement; for Jason Terry there was the promise of adding a former NBA Sixth Man of the Year to the roster; for Jeff Green there was his long-awaited return from heart surgery.

For Bass, the contract process was decidedly more efficient -- come in,
take care of business, and go home -- which, really, is a microcosm of
Bass' presence with the Celtics.

There's a striking simplicity to the way Bass approaches his craft -- a
true businesslike method that leaves no room for the celebrity side of
being a professional athlete. While some players seek out or are forced
into the spotlight, Bass opts to keep his head down and quietly go about
his business on the basketball court.

"He's the definition of a true professional," said teammate Courtney Lee.
"He comes in, works hard, gets the job done. And off the court you
don't hear too much from him. He's just the definition of a
professional."






Brian Babineau/NBAE/Getty Images

Brandon Bass, shown stretching before practice Tuesday at the BJK Besiktas
Sports Complex in Istanbul, Turkey, has a pregame shooting ritual that
rivals that of Ray Allen.


"Brandon just wants to be a basketball player," said head coach Doc
Rivers. "He's into it. He doesn't show -- you're never going to see the
great emotion. Jeff [Green]'s a little bit like that. But that doesn't
mean they don't care. Everyone's not going to be emotional, and you
don't really want everybody emotional."

Bass is one of Boston's most important frontcourt players, but he's also
the most unheralded. The simplicity of his approach, coupled with the
solid consistency he displays game after game, can make him easy to lose
sight of. That was especially the case last season, when he shared a
starting lineup with three (and possibly even four) future Hall of
Famers. But Bass doesn't mind. True to his no-nonsense approach, Bass
says he's happy to keep a lower profile.

"Sometimes you want to [fly under the radar]. I think on this team,
personalitywise, I'm going to have to, because there's a lot of guys
with big personalities," Bass said after practice on Sunday. "I'd rather
fly under the radar and step up when I need to, as far as
communicating. But as far as a game, I want to fly [under the radar],
but I want people to respect it, though."

His teammates certainly do. While onlookers might marvel at Garnett's defense, or Rajon Rondo's
lofty stat lines, those in the locker room don't lose sight of what
Bass brings to the team, including his patented elbow jump shot, an
ability to finish strong at the rim, a reliable rebounding presence, and
an ability to stretch the defense and open lanes for perimeter players.


"He's very important. He's very athletic," said Rondo of Bass. "He runs
the floor, he stretches our floor offensively. He knows our defensive
rotations, so a guy that's been in our system year after year is going
to continue to grow."

"If you're into big names and stuff like that, then [Bass is] going to
fly under the radar," said Garnett. "But if you're a basketball fan, you
watch ball, you watch the Celtics play, I mean, you see the things he
does. I thought last year he got better as the year went. And he's going
to be big for us. If we're going to be anything, we're going to need
Brandon to be big for us this year."

Bass' teammates see other aspects of his approach that go largely
unnoticed by fans. Most notable is his relentless work ethic --
something both Garnett and Ray Allen
have been routinely praised for in public circles. Bass possesses a
devotion to his pregame shooting routine that would rival Allen's, and a
dedication to his offseason regimen that has gained the respect of the
workaholic Garnett.






Jim Davis/The Boston Globe/Getty Images

"If you're into big names and stuff like that, then [Bass is] going to fly
under the radar. But if you're a basketball fan, you watch ball, you
watch the Celtics play, I mean, you see the things he does," Kevin
Garnett said of teammate Bass.
"He has a routine, gritty veteran. You've been in this league for a
while, you should have a routine," said Garnett. "But Brandon works
really hard. You just don't wake up and make shots. You've got to invest
in your game, and he does that."

Bass spent this past summer in Orlando, focusing primarily on his
conditioning. He preferred rigorous sand workouts to avoid the constant
pounding on his joints. He's a quiet observer as much as anything else.
His work ethic, like his game, has evolved since day one. As a rookie,
Bass saw the extra work put in by seasoned veterans -- most notably by
former Hornets big man Marc Jackson -- and soon realized it would take the same to carve out a niche in the league.
"There
are a lot of players that I was able to watch and saw how they worked,
day in, day out, and I tried to implement that in my own life, and it
paid off for me," Bass said. "I just spend a lot of time in the gym, try
to be detailed in what I do, as far as preparing for the game.

"[I saw] how [Jackson] worked, day in and day out, coming back to the
gym at nighttime, working on the things that he was going to do the next
day in the game. And here, I admire the way Kevin works, how consistent
he is, how Ray Allen was, how Ray prepared every morning, the day
before the game, players like that."

The results don't lie, as the consistency Bass maintained throughout the
2011-12 campaign yielded career highs in points (12.5), rebounds (6.2)
and minutes (31.7) per game.
Additionally, Bass' offseason
dedication continually cultivates a rock-solid 6-foot-8 frame that, when
coupled with his natural athleticism, can make him a bull in the paint
and on the break.

"My nickname for Brandon is 'The Muscle,' said Lee. "My man is strong on
that block. He goes hard. He's going to rebound, he's going to finish
strong. So, he's 'The Muscle.'"

He can also be a force on the defensive end. After he adjusted to
Boston's defensive schemes last season, Bass gave the Celtics new
versatility on that end of the floor, said Rivers.



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"I think people look at Brandon and think he's a pick-and-pop scorer.
He's a terrific defender. Last year was the first time since I've been
here that we switched three, four pick-and-rolls. We never could do
that. So it gives us a lot of different looks. So he's been great."

One of the biggest mistakes any outside observer can make is assuming
Bass' simplicity yields complacency. Bass is happy with the season he
had last year, but knows his ceiling is much higher.

"Just being better in every aspect of the game, being more consistent,"
Bass said of what his next level is. "Just being better, period. I don't
want to just be content with my accomplishments from last season."

He took into his summer workouts a checklist of areas to improve in,
with rebounding sitting at the very top. So, how does one make strides
when it comes time to crash the glass?

"I just think just going after it more, just making it a point to be a
better rebounder. It starts there," Bass explained. "And then not let
little guards run up behind me and take my rebounds. I got three taken
from me each game. But, for the most part, just making it a point to go
after every rebound, and rebounding will take care of itself.

"You've got to look at a person like Kevin Garnett, who you can tell,
the way he plays, that he thinks about defense-rebound-run, first, and
then he thinks about everything else, and then he ended up with 20 and
10. It's just simple as a thought, just putting that thought in your
head, just like he does. So that's what I want to implement into my
game."

The Celtics are a deeper team than they were last season, but with his older starting frontcourt mates, Garnett and Paul Pierce,
potentially slowing down a step, there could be room for Bass to carve
out a more vital role in the starting lineup. Should that hold true,
don't expect any changes in the way he conducts his business. Bass will
keep working, keep improving and keep doing it all with the simplicity
of a true professional.




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