Christmas distinguishing himself from the pack

So says Greg Payne of ESPN Boston. Shades of disappointing gray to me. Reading this article, I think Doc is finally starting to realize Smith is NOT a point guard.




Christmas distinguishing himself from pack



October, 14, 2012
Oct 14
12:23
PM ET



By Greg Payne | ESPNBoston.com







Mark L. Baer/US Presswire

Dionte Christmas handles the ball during Saturday's game against the Knicks.

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Reporters joked with Dionte Christmas before the team's
preseason trip to Europe that he would be the unofficial tour guide,
given his experience playing overseas before being picked up by Boston.
He might have similar responsibilities on Sunday, as the Celtics were
scheduled to practice at Temple University, Christmas' alma mater,
leading up to their exhibition game against the Philadelphia 76ers on
Monday night.


But showing his team the sights as they barnstorm around, well, the
world, isn't how he's earning his keep. Though his playing time through
Boston's first three preseason games has been limited, Christmas has
distinguished himself enough over the first two weeks of training camp
to be considered the frontrunner for one of the team's final roster
spots. And if there still is a debate about who'll end up on the squad
at the beginning of the regular season, Christmas might have taken
another strong step on Saturday, in the team's 98-95 overtime loss to
the New York Knicks.



Though the one play from Saturday's loss that might stick out most
was the final one, in which Christmas didn't run the set correctly that
was designed to get Jamar Smith an open look at a potential game-tying
3-pointer, Christmas did play a significant role in the Celtics even
getting that opportunity, as they overcame a six-point fourth-quarter
deficit to force overtime.



"I thought coach said one thing and it was another. It was a whole
communication problem," Christmas said after the game. "Things like that
can't happen if we're going to win games, so that's something we're
definitely going to change and get out of my system -- one and done for
that."



Part of the reason Boston fell behind midway through the final frame
was the frenetic pace it was playing at. The sets seemed rushed, and,
at times, the Celtics couldn't even properly inbound the ball or get it
across halfcourt. But that's when Christmas stepped in. Though playing
at the two-guard spot, once the likes of Jason Kidd and Pablo Prigioni
began applying full-court pressure on Jamar Smith, Christmas retreated
to help break up the defense and restore order to Boston's offense.



"I mean, coach has that confidence in me. Sometimes he called me
over and told me to get the ball, play in the pick-and-roll and try to
calm things down and just try to run some plays," Christmas said. "So, I
had that confidence. Coach gives me that confidence, Rondo, all those
guys, they know when I get in there I can run plays. I don't just play
the 2 or 3, I can play the 1 as well, so when a guy was pressuring Jamar
a little bit, coach told me to help him out a little bit, come get the
ball, and call some plays. But I thought, overall, we all did a great
job."


It was a summer league reunion of sorts for the
lineup that closed the game for Boston, so it's not completely
surprising that Christmas assumed a leadership role similar to the one
he developed in Orlando and Las Vegas. Knowing the C's wanted to run
their offense through Jared Sullinger before he fouled out, Christmas
found him for a jumper from the left elbow early in the final frame, and
then again for an easy dunk on the right side in transition.


Christmas added a jumper of his own to bring Boston within a point
of the Knicks in the final minutes of regulation, and, more importantly,
two steals, the latter of which led to a bucket for Micah Downs on the
right baseline that kept Boston within one. After a rushed first few
minutes of the last quarter, Boston's reserves found their groove,
showing a familiarity bred from their frequent practices reps.



"We play together every day," Christmas said. "The second and third
unit in practice, going against [Rajon] Rondo and [Jason Terry], Paul
[Pierce], [Kevin Garnett], Courtney [Lee], and all those guys, so us
playing together is nothing new. We knew who our scorers were, we knew
who to put in the pick-and-rolls. We knew when Sully was in the game we
were going to Sully. When he was out, coach wanted to put me and Jamar
into the pick-and-rolls and create and make some plays, which I think we
did well. Even Micah, he was playing at a position he never plays in
practice and, like coach said, he just came out there and played with a
lot of heart, so that was cool."




bob


.

Inexperience feeds upon inexperience. When there are five rookies on the floor simultaneously, each of them has a triple whammy operating. (1) Each has to focus on minimizing the effects of his own inexperience. (2) He has to do so while working with four equally inexperienced, and therefore unpredictable, teammates. (3) All five have the pressure of trying to make the team, which can lead to ill-advised shots.

Whether it's lack of communication or lack of execution or lack of ability or whatever, playing five rookies together (especially with a "pick 'em apart" artist like Kidd among the opposition) is just asking for it. I would like to have seen Rondo in there to give the young guys some stability. Moreover, constantly throwing all the young guys (except for Sully) in there in garbage time may be considered by some to be a valuable "baptism of fire." But inserting them into otherwise-veteran combinations at different points in the game would place them in a better position to succeed as well as a more realistic facsimile of what's likely to happen during the regular season.

Sam

I totally agree with you Sam. These kids may need to learn, but you are asking 5 guys who haven't had that long a time to run the plays Doc is calling for. Put in a veteran or two, stabalize the offense and help them. Throwing them into the fire just doesn't seem like the way to see who is ready to sit at the end of the bench and who to cut. I have been disappointed in this aspect of the preseason games.

Rosalie

Rosalie, thanks for chiming in on this one. Maybe you can get Doc to listen to you. For some strange reason, I can't seem to get his attention.

Sam

Rosalie, Sam,
I agree, better to surround a new player with 3 or 4 guys who know the ropes, than sub in mass confusion. I think this underscores Doc's biggest challenge this year, when we may not have the best 5 in the league, but might well have the best 12. Nothing wrong with experimenting, but it's hard to judge a player's potential unless the player has some confidence that he knows the system. Hawk