Building the Celtics roster

[BradyManny]

The C's problem for as long as I can remember is having not enough talent or having that talent too spread out. The team needs to consolidate.

In the NBA, good teams win with a good 8 players, maybe 9. Do you remember the 12th man on the bench on any of the great C's, Bulls, Pistons or Laker teams? I sure don't.

So, with that in mind, here is my attempt at laying out what Ainge oughta do for the C's of now and the future, let me start at the bottom and work up:

The end of the bench
12: Pick up a warm body.
11: Pick up a warm body
10: Leon Powe
9: Allan Ray

Again, your #12 and #11 men can suck perfectly fine. Leon Powe and Allan Ray are both perfectly good enough to be the 9 and 10 men on your bench. Having seen Ray play plenty in college, I know this kid can shoot the lights out if called upon. So, now that are bench warmers are set, let's move to the starting lineup...

The starting lineup
PG: Delonte West
SG: Gerald Green
SF: Paul Pierce
PF: *Legitimate PF acquired via trade or free agency
C: Al Jefferson

When the C's made the trades for Telfair and Rondo respectively, I briefly bought into the idea that maybe a true point guard would help our offense run better - but in the back of my mind was what I had thought all season long watch DWest run point - we don't need a true point guard in this offense. Our offense runs from the wings, and more specifically, through Paul - it doesn't require the penetration & dish a true point guard brings.

One reason why Telfair is no doubt struggling as a C is b/c his role as a point guard on the C revolves largely around bringing the ball up the court, handing/passing it to a wing. Why West is actually a perfect fit at PG for the C's is b/c of his shot - when the D breaks down on PP or Big Al, that ball is going to come out to an open guy, and if Telfair can't knock them down, well then he's not doing his job. DWest - when he gets PT - is a sharp shooter, his ball handling and passing are more than adequate for this team.

I like Big Al at center for reasons I've mentioned before - he can use his quickness to beat up on opposing centers, and not having a man bigger than him in the lane (Perk) lets him roam free and own the lane.

The bench:

That leaves us Wally S., Perk, Allen, Gomes, Telfair and Rondo to fill 3 spots, with the other 3 being used in trade.

Wally is untradeable and will make a perfect 6th man coming off the bench.

Rondo is going to develop just fine, but Telfair's trade value has taken a hit since coming to Btown.

Allen and Gomes both have fairly high trade value right now, and I don't think either truly need to fit into our plans down the road. Tony Allen has absolutely been playing out of his rear as of late, and I would trade him now, personally, as good as his D is, Green is the future and Allen is plain wreckless on offense. You could get something decent in return for Allen right now.

Perk is a perfect C off the bench.

So, my bench:

6: Wally
7: Perk
8: Rondo

Take Tony Allen, Ryan Gomes, Telfair, Kandy Man & Scal, draft picks, money, whatever you have to do and find a good solid PF out there that is available. Who? I don't know.

That's Danny Ainge's job - but if he does it, I think we have a legitimate team that could contend within a year or two and would be good as long as Paul Pierce stays healthy and on this team.

 

[maverick4]

Great analysis, basically reverse-engineering a championship team by figuring out what roster spots are needed.

I doubt we could get a great PF with the players you mentioned as trade bait, though. Great PF's are rare, and no team with a good one will trade them.

What we could probably get, however, is a Horace Grant / Dennis Rodman type guy who works hard, plays tough D, gets lots of rebounds, and is a hustle type guy. He would fit in well since most of the shots would go to Pierce, Green, and Jefferson anyways.

 

[BradyManny]

What we could probably get, however, is a Horace Grant / Dennis Rodman type guy who works hard, plays tough D, gets lots of rebounds, and is a hustle type guy. He would fit in well since most of the shots would go to Pierce, Green, and Jefferson anyways.

That's funny, as soon as I posted this - I started thinking about how Grant or Rodman would be absolutely perfect for this team.

Frankly, Ben Wallace would've been perfect for this team, but the contract he got is far out of our price range.

It would be nice if Perk could turn into that kind of player, but I don't know think he will, he doesn't have the athleticism we'd like at that position.

You're right though - Pierce, Green and Big Al is more than enough offense.

So, really, all I see missing is a PF or C who plays great D and is great on the glass. If we can find one in exchange for Tony Allen, Ryan Gomes and change, I'd do it - but I don't see one out there right now unfortunately.

 

[maverick4]

It would also simplify things for Doc, since he can't seem to manage a roster or substitutions with so many players on the team.

The easier it is for our coach, the better!