Coping with the Loss of Jeff Green
Also, with Paul Pierce already showing signs of injury, after missing last night’s scrimmage due to a heel bruise, the loss of Green’s versatility is undoubtedly a critical blow to the Celtics’ hopes for Banner 18. As they prepare to open the season a week from tomorrow against the New York Knicks, the Celtics’ ability to cope with the loss of their talented sixth man during this strenuous shortened season becomes a central focus.
Pierce’s heel bruise likely will not be his only injury
this season, and with Green out, keeping quality players on the court during the
rough four-to-five game weeks will be a season-long struggle for Doc and Danny
Ainge. The decision to bring Marquis
Daniels back to Boston has now become a key acquisition, as he will once again serve
as the primary backup to Pierce, and will probably see his fair share of starting
opportunities this season. Sasha
Pavlovic will also likely see some playing time and opportunities, but he is
yet to prove that he can truly be a positive asset to the team.
The issue of injuries to veteran players due to the high
frequency of games will almost certainly result in significant minutes for the
Celtics’ younger players this season. Rondo
will have to continue developing his leadership ability, and play effectively
both with the Big Three, and with undeveloped talents such as Avery Bradley, and
rookies JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore.
Undrafted rookie Gilbert Brown could even see some playing time if Ainge
fails to bring in another veteran forward such as James Posey for the veteran
minimum, just in time for Christmas.
Losing Green is a big blow, and as fans we are now forced to
put our trust in players who are young and unproven. We will likely see frequent appearances of
multiple shooting guards on the floor together when Pierce or Daniels is
unavailable or in foul trouble. Big men
who are new to Boston, such as Johnson, Chris Wilcox, Brandon Bass, and perhaps
even Greg Stiemsma, will have to try to fill the void left behind by Kendrick
Perkins by embracing Boston’s physical mentality. Meanwhile, bench scoring will have to become
a collective effort from the young talents and new veterans, and hopefully
someone can really step up as Boston’s sixth man and leader off the bench.
The Celtics have not started a season in conditions this
poor since before the acquisitions of Allen and Garnett. Their obvious issues with depth and
physicality may continue to be Boston’s Achilles ’ heel, and the lack of
preparation time due to the lockout only makes matters worse for them.
However, I refuse to believe that the season
is lost. The Mavericks proved last year
that anything is possible with the right combination of hard work, talent, leadership,
strategy, and team chemistry. Furthermore,
I would not be surprised to see the Celtics very active once again at the
trading deadline, and hopefully Ainge can make some smart moves which address
current issues instead of creating new ones.
