Stevens Regrets His Faverani Decision

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2013/12/boston_celtics_vs_los_angeles_1.html


Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Clippers notebook: Brad Stevens regrets his Vitor Faverani decision, Jordan Crawford's growth 'absolutely terrific' for the NBA




Los Angeles Clippers guard Willie Green (34) reaches to block the shot of Boston Celtics guard Jordan Crawford (27) in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2013. The Clippers won 96-88. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Print Jay King, MassLive.com By Jay King, MassLive.com  
on December 12, 2013 at 2:45 AM





BOSTON – Big men are scarce in Boston, at least this season, but Wednesday night the scarcity became more of an epidemic.

Kelly Olynyk missed his 10th straight outing with a sprained ankle, Kris Humphries sat with a bruised knee, and Jared Sullinger picked up his fifth foul a minute into the fourth quarter. Vitor Faverani was healthy and did not foul a soul (or body), but head coach Brad Stevens opted to go small instead.

After a 96-88 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, Stevens explained one regret.

“I don’t think (foul trouble) would have thrown (the Celtics) off if we had a couple of guys that we could throw in there from a size standpoint,” Stevens said. “We just didn’t have much size. And I should have put Vitor in the second half. I’ll be kicking myself for that.”

Perhaps things would have looked more cohesive if Stevens had chosen Faverani; a couple of rarely-used small lineups combined to score five points over the first six minutes of the second half. But it should be noted that Faverani’s presence on the court has generally torpedoed the Celtics offense all season long.

With Faverani on the bench, Stevens called on MarShon Brooks for his first non-blowout action since Nov. 30. Playing out of position at small forward (Jeff Green slid over to power forward in one of Boston’s smallest lineups this year), Brooks hit his first shot, a layup. But some highly peculiar decisions with the basketball followed; Brooks finished with three turnovers in four minutes.

“We were small. We were out of sync, that’s for sure,” Stevens said. “But that happens and we have to have the ability to adjust to that better than we did. They went small as well. They’ve got a couple of guys out and they handled it better than we did.”

Crawford's development good for the league

One of the biggest, and most unexpected, storylines in Boston so far has been Jordan Crawford’s maturity as a player. The guard has also proclaimed himself as a leader, and his teammates have uniformly praised his competitiveness.

Several months removed from coaching Crawford for one half-season, Doc Rivers has watched Crawford’s growth from afar – and he thinks it’s good for the NBA.

“I think it’s always good when you see this,” Rivers said Wednesday night after Crawford had 20 points and nine assists during a 96-88 loss. “It’s good for our league when guys who have struggled in other places – on and off the floor – then all of a sudden they grow up in front of our eyes. I think that’s just absolutely terrific, not just for the Celtics but for our whole league.”

Crawford, the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week, was pretty good throughout most of the loss to the Clippers, just about keeping pace with point god Chris Paul (22 points, nine assists). But with about two minutes left, Crawford strung together consecutive errors, badly damaging the Celtics as they fought to scrape back into the game.

After the Celtics cut an eight-point deficit to two with 2:56 left (on a Crawford assist, I should point out), Jamal Crawford hit a 3-pointer to push the score to 88-83. At that point, Jordan Crawford seemed to shed the extra layer of caution he has worn this season. Early in the shot clock, he used an off-balance spin move to get himself into the paint. There he forced a tough layup, which Jared Dudley came from the weak side to block.

As Jordan Crawford complained to the referee about the no-call on the play, the Clippers pushed the ball quickly to the opposite end of the court. The Celtics scrambled to cover four men with three, but Jamal Crawford was left open again and drilled his second consecutive triple -- all but ending the game.

Still, Rivers said of Jordan Crawford, “He’s been good. Obviously he’s playing a position right now because he has to, the point guard. He’s probably still a two, but he can still play the point guard position. I think he’s been sensational. I think he’s defending. He’s very competitive; you can see at the end of the game he’s trying to win the game for them, probably took some tough ones.

“But I’m happy for him. I do believe that people mature differently. It’s taken him some time, and now you can see it coming in his game. He’s always had the talent. I think we’ve all known that. I think Brad’s done a terrific job with him. He’s letting him play, he’s supporting him. So good for Jordan. Really good.”

Ainge and Rivers

One positive from Doc Rivers’ relocation to Los Angeles: He now has the final say on all personnel decisions, which he did not while working with Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge. Rivers likes the new freedom to acquire whomever he pleases (at least within owner Donald Sterling’s price range), but might now have a greater appreciation for Ainge.

“It’s been good. You can see that you need other guys in the office to do most of the work, honestly. It’s just nice to be able to pull the trigger. You say no or yes,” he said. “But it’s a lot of work. It’s more. Usually on this trip I would have just been preparing for basketball. But we had so many injuries that I’m looking at film of guys that I really didn’t want to have to look at. Then you have to make a decision and we brought in Stephen Jackson. We signed him yesterday and he’s going to play tonight, literally play tonight. We’ll see how that goes.”

Does Rivers like having a voice in decisions?

“It’s nice. It’s not like I didn’t have one (in Boston). I just wasn’t the voice,” he said. “I couldn’t do what I wanted to do any time I wanted to do it. But Danny and I worked pretty well together. We had – and still do – a hell of a relationship. As far as I’m concerned, a model relationship. As coach and GM, I don’t know if there was a better duo as far as getting along in the league than our group.”




bob



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Good luck, Doc. Period.

Sam