It's St. Patrick's Day, so let's all celebrate accordingly. Forget all your troubles, put on your favorite green shirt and kick back with an ice cold Celtics mailbag.
You guys had lots of good questions this week, ranging from bench role players to playoff rotations. As the C's head down the home stretch with the postseason mere weeks away, it's time to focus on what stands between the C's and Banner 18. Let's break down everything standing in the Celtics' way as they set their sights on another championship run.
Thanks to everyone who submitted questions this week. Here's hoping you keep 'em coming, and happy St. Paddy's Day.
When are the Celtics going to start bothering to show up for games again? I'd like to see them show a little bit of a pulse before the playoffs, or we are going to lose home-court advantage to a bunch of teams like Chicago, Miami and the Lakers.
–CT
I can't blame you for being worried, CT. The Celtics are now 5-3 in March, but considering their schedule, that record doesn't exactly wow you. Their recent track record includes disappointing losses to the Clippers, Sixers and Nets.
The C's are definitely struggling a little bit. Rajon Rondo isn't himself, Kevin Garnett is a touch softer, and the integration of the new guys has been OK, but not perfect. You wouldn't want the current C's, the way they're playing right now, to take the floor for Game 7 of the Finals. They're not ready yet.
I'm afraid that no matter how much this may anger some fans, the Celtics simply don't worry that much about the regular season. Home court matters, but it's not the be-all and end-all, at least not for the Celtics, who have enough savvy veterans that they can win anywhere, home or elsewhere. Would it be nice for them to land the No. 1 seed for the playoffs? Sure, but no matter how much fans clamor for it, the Celtics will never make it a top priority. They care more about getting healthy, rested and into a rhythm for the postseason.
What is wrong with Rajon Rondo's play of late? Is he tired, or injured, or is it the "Perk effect"? His inferior play is the reason for the Celtics' last three losses.
–SK
You're spot on, SK, to say that something's slowing Rajon lately. He's definitely had a rough couple of weeks. The C's point guard has now gone six consecutive games without double-digit assists, and in his last three games, he's scored a total of four points on 2-of-18 shooting. Wednesday night against the Pacers, he attempted only two shots. These numbers are really, really ugly.
I don't think it's because of Kendrick Perkins. Rondo's a professional like everyone else, and all these guys know how to play well, even if Perk's absence bums them out. That storyline is old news by this point. It may be a little bit of fatigue. He played a lot of minutes in Delonte West's absence. It also may be injury, as his never-ending battle with plantar fasciitis has dimmed his athleticism a little bit this season.
But more than anything, I think this is just a natural round of March doldrums. Rondo's going through a little bit of a lean period as he gears up for the playoffs. It's difficult to go hard for 82 games, and he's taken the foot off the gas a little bit this month. Come April, May and June, you can expect to see him pick his game up again.
What do you think Nenad Krstic's rebounding of late says about Kendrick Perkins? I know that wasn't always his strongest suit, but still …
—JdotD, via Twitter
Krstic's rebounding numbers have definitely been impressive. He's averaging 7.1 over his first 10 games. Last weekend, he had 15 against the Sixers and 14 the following game against the Bucks, which led to a Player of the Week nomination on Monday.
I take that less as an indictment of Perkins and more of a credit to Krstic. He's a different type of rebounder than Perk was. He doesn't have the big, beefy body to box guys out, but he's got great length and great hands, enabling him to reach out for balls that Perkins never could. Krstic is a really solid rebounder in his own right, regardless of who played the position before him.
I know the temptation will always be there to compare Krstic to Perkins in every aspect of the game, not just rebounding. But perhaps it's time to just accept that they're two very different players. Let's not waste too much energy trying to compare apples to oranges.
Jeff Green — do you think he will be the Celtics' next great power forward? He has potential and has shown great skill.
–TJ
He'll be the next very good something, that's for sure. I can't say "great" with any degree of certainty, and I can't say "power forward."
I do think the Celtics are interested in re-signing Green this summer and making him a building-block player moving forward. Green, along with Rajon Rondo and Glen Davis, can help Danny Ainge build a bridge to the post-Big Three era with a winning team still intact. That alone makes him an important asset.
At the same time, Ainge is wary of overpaying Green. If he shells out max money or anything close to it, he's severely hamstringing himself going forward. Green isn't worth eight figures a year, but if you can keep him around for $7 or $8 million, you do it.
Green is best utilized as an athletic wing player who can run the floor and post up smaller guys at small forward. He doesn't have the size or the toughness to be the next great post player in Boston, but he's a very nice complementary piece.
Why did Danny Ainge sign Jermaine O'Neal? Waste of money. He could have given that $12 million to Glen Davis, to Kwame Brown, or even some to D-Leaguer Chris Johnson.
–SK
In Danny Ainge's defense, the Jermaine O'Neal signing looked very good on paper when it went down last July. The Celtics had $6 million a year to spend, courtesy of the cap's mid-level exception, and J.O. was absolutely the best mid-level player out there who fit their needs. Danny hit a home run with that one.
Glen Davis is a nice player, but he's still under contract this season for $3 million, and the C's weren't ready to commit a huge raise to him just yet. Kwame Brown? Chris Johnson? Both currently making under $1 million. Nice players, but not All-Star caliber guys like J.O.
Obviously, the signing hasn't worked out yet. But J.O. was brought to Boston to help the C's win a championship, and it remains to be seen whether the gambit will pay off. Let's wait this one out. If he's healthy and ready to contribute next month, you might wind up singing a different tune.
How is Jermaine coming along?
–Vinny
Jermaine is coming along slowly but surely. He underwent surgery on his left knee on Feb. 5, but the good news is there wasn't any serious structural damage to the knee. The operation was basically a cleaning-out process, and the best medicine is good old-fashioned rest.
I'd expect J.O. to be out for another three weeks. He's still aiming to make his return before the end of the regular season, and when the playoffs roll around, he absolutely expects to be out there.
Why is Doc Rivers watching minutes now, in mid-March? Dropping Ray Allen's minutes from 38 to 34, or Rajon Rondo's from 37 to 33 — is four minutes a game really going to make them any more fresh for the playoffs? Sorry, I don't buy it.
–Vinny
Here's one thing Doc Rivers is a big fan of — not just watching minutes, but specifically watching minutes in a row. Playing a seven-minute stretch is significantly easier than playing nine. If you overextend yourself to play an entire quarter or an entire half, you're more likely to feel sore the next morning. There's a certain tipping point where achy knees, ankles and calves begin to become a real problem, and Doc is watching carefully to make sure his starters don't cross that point.
I agree with you that four minutes isn't likely going to make the difference between a championship and an early-round exit, but when you're gearing up for a 100-plus game season, every little bit of rest helps. Given the tumultuous season the team's been through injury-wise, you can't blame Doc for being a little extra cautious.
Why would Doc Rivers go into the playoffs with a nine-man rotation instead of 12? Clearly these guys get tired. Doesn't it make sense to have a deep bench when it matters?
–Glenn
That's true in the regular season, but postseason basketball is a different animal. Guys are expected to leave it all out there on the floor when the playoffs roll around. When there's a championship at stake, you have to play your best players as much as possible, even if it means risking fatigue and maybe injury.
Doc's more likely to go 12 deep now, since he's still tinkering with different combinations in order to perfect his playoff rotation. But a month from now, he'll whittle his roster down to the nine best guys and roll with them. You won't see much of Sasha Pavlovic or Avery Bradley unless injuries become a real problem.
Will the Celtics consider going big to finish games? They often get pounded on the boards, and bigs can just shoot over Glen Davis. Just adding Nenad Krstic's rebounding and size instead of Big Baby might help against certain teams. Or they could add Jeff Green and play without a point guard for a big size advantage.
–Banner18
You're right that Glen Davis has his weaknesses as a crunch-time player — he's not long enough to be a true center, as scoring and rebounding are both problems in certain matchups. It's terrifying to think that Big Baby's matchup with Pau Gasol or Tim Duncan could be a deciding factor in the NBA Finals.
Here's an idea the Celtics could go with come playoff time: Move Kevin Garnett to center, and play Jeff Green as a power forward in the late minutes. Remember the 2008 playoffs, when James Posey came off the bench as a versatile forward who could hit shots, stretch the floor and cover anyone on the defensive end? Green could play that same role.
The "Posey Lineup" already brought one championship back to Boston, and another isn't out of the question.
