Brandon Bass Is Boring (And Pretty Good Too)

http://www.celticsblog.com/2014/9/10/6127991/brandon-bass-is-boring-but-hes-also-pretty-good




Brandon Bass is boring (but he's also pretty good)
By Jeff Clark  @celticsblog on Sep 10 2014, 6:01a 13






Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
(Yawn)


Brandon Bass is boring.  He's not a big scorer, he's not the best rebounder, and he's not a particularly good passer.  He's not outspoken, or controversial, or charismatic.  He doesn't have a catchy nickname (unless you count the mocking Black Hole Bass).  Basically he's the anti-Big-Baby.

All he does is show up for work every day (he played in all 82 games last year), play solid defense, and chip in between 8 and 11 points per game (as he has for 5 of the last 6 seasons).  He's money with that pick-n-pop elbow jumper and he does everything the coach asks of him.

For that, he was awarded the Red Auerbach Award last year.

Brandon Bass Wins Red Auerbach Award - Celtics Blog - Boston.com

Brandon Bass won the 9th annual Red Auerbach Award prior to the team's season finale against the Washington Wizards Wednesday night. The award is given to a Celtics player who best exemplifies the spirit of what it means to be a true Celtic through performance on the court and is named in honor of legendary coach, General Manager, and President of the Boston Celtics, the late Arnold "Red" Auerbach.

Sure, it was a down year, but there were other viable candidates and he was picked as the winner for good reason.

Most of us are much more interested in the development of the youth at this point in the rebuilding plan. Jared Sullinger and Kelly Olynyk are the heir apparents and from a certain point of view, Brandon is just the veteran who's standing in their way.

Bass doesn't represent the future of the franchise.  He wasn't even around for the 2008 title. so he's not even have much of a nostalgic link to the past.  He's just one of the many guys that was brought in to fill in around the Big 3 and hopefully extend their run long enough to win another title (which ultimately fell short).

But that doesn't mean he didn't give it his all.  It isn't his fault he was traded to the Celtics after they won their banner. If anything, he's exceeded my expectations of him and provided a nice bridge between the generations.  He's no Hall of Famer but he played with some.  He's no spring chicken but he's certainly not old and he can still get the job done.

Right now he's just a miscast role player.  He'd be a nice addition to just about any contending team, but for whatever reason he wasn't coveted enough by contenders last February or this offseason to warrant a trade.  Part of that is the glut of solid power forwards around the league.  If he was a couple of inches taller he'd probably be making 8 digits a year and would have teams beating down Ainge's door for him.  But this is the life of a solid-but-unspectacular power forward.

It also doesn't help that his most marketable talent, the ability to hit a midrange jumper, is out of vogue in the league right now. Apparently stats are telling the league that if you don't live in the paint or bomb three pointers, you are wrong and should be corrected at all costs. Bass will never be a low post beast and he doesn't have range out to the 3 point line, so he'll have to make due with what the defenses give him at the high post.

He still seems like the guy (aside from Keith Bogans) who's most likely to be traded before the season starts, but there's also no rush to make a move either.  He's a very nice guy and a solid veteran and he'll continue to do his job and make no waves for as long as he's a Celtic.  Who knows?  He might even win the Red Auerbach award again.

So maybe he's a little boring.  But he's also a great guy to have around.




bob
MY NOTE:  No surprise here, I'm a big Brandon Bass fan.  Does everything well and doesn't bitch about anything.  If he can be traded for someone we need, and especially if it's a good opportunity for him, I'll wish him well and thank him for everything.  If he isn't and stays a Celtic, I'm happy with that too.  I don't feel like he's "stealing minutes" from anybody.  If he's getting the job done that's what we want, isn't it?



.

The guy has quietly improved his penetration game and his defense each season.  His lack of a handle holds him back.  When was the starting center by default, he even got far more than his share of the opening tips.  Although he can occasionally go off, his lack of offensive versatility and a good handle make it difficult-to-impossible to see him as a starter on a contending team.  A fine resource off the bench and in the locker room. I guess I'll never find out how he might fit as a part-time small forward.

Sam