Boston Celtics
2008-09 Record: 62-20
Anticipated Starting Five
PG- Rajon Rondo
SG- Ray Allen
SF- Paul Pierce
PF- Kevin Garnett
C- Kendrick Perkins
Key Reserves: Rasheed Wallace, Tony Allen, Marquis Daniels, Glen Davis, Eddie House
Biggest Strength: Defense
Defense is why this team won a championship two years ago and it’s the reason they could win again. They have the personnel, coaching and desire to play defense as the highest level every game, all game. Here’s the thing – they have the potential to be even better defensively. They added 3 more good defenders. Sheed can defend and rebound inside. Sheldon Williams adds more height inside behind Perkins and will defend and rebound. And Marquis Daniels adds another wing defender off the bench to go along with Tony Allen. See where I am going here. This team will lock you up.
Biggest Weakness: Age/health
Ray Allen, Pierce, KG and Sheed are all getting up there in age and they all are vital to the success of this team. If any of them get hurt or their production takes a noise dive Boston will be in trouble. The good thing tho is they have so many good players no one individual has to carry the team. That makes having older players easier to manage. Doc can spread the minutes out as to not over exert his vets before it’s money time.
Key Player: Kevin Garnett
This is easy. This is easy even if KG hadn’t gotten hurt last season. He is the driver of the Celtics. He is the reason they are a championship winner and contender. If he is 100% healthy and back on his game Boston is a legit title contender again. If he isn’t healthy or doesn’t perform at a KG level Boston isn’t a contender at all. They will win games regardless but once the playoffs start they are at risk to lose as early as the first round and don’t stand a chance against Cleveland or Orlando. KG is the key.
Biggest Question: How are KG’s knees?
As Dannie said above, KG is the most important player on this team. However, one thing he said, “if he is 100% healthy” deserves a little more ink. Garnett is 33, but has played 14 seasons in the NBA. He’s played 1,128 games and 42,624 minutes on his gangly knees. It’s possible, even probable that he is “fully recovered” from his knee surgery – but there is some wear and tear on the legs of an athlete that surgery can’t fix. I think we are going to start seeing that with KG this year. Don’t get me wrong, he’s not over the hill or anything, but I think you might start to see a decline in his game because of decreased explosiveness.
Best Individual Season of All-Time: Larry Bird, 1986-87
28.1 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 7.6 apg, 1.8 spg, 52.5 FG%
Larry Legend’s best individual season. Only Bird and Oscar Robertson have had seasons with 28 ppg, 9 rpg, 7 apg and 50% shooting. A perfect representation of Bird’s unique all-around game.
Pete’s 2010 Outlook: 1st place, Atlantic division / 3rd place, Eastern conference / 5th place, NBA
The Celtics are right there with the Cavs and Magic atop the Eastern Conference. It’s very possible that the healthiest team of those 3 will be the conference champ. The Celtics are the most likely to be hit with injury woes given the age of their 3 best players. In addition, all 3 of those players are on the downside of their career’s, though I don’t think any will drop dramatically this year. Wallace gives them another weapon, but I’m not sure his talent will offset his erratic behavior at his age.
Dannie’s 2010 Outlook: 1st place, Atlantic division / 2nd place, Eastern conference / 3rd place, NBA
While KG is the key player, the single guy that can’t get hurt is Rajon Rondo. There isn’t another point guard on the roster to even fill that position if he goes down for any extended period of time. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Boston try to go after a guy like Antonio Daniels for the minimum to have some sort of security blanket.
Aside from that if Boston says healthy they are good enough to win it all again because of the type of defense they play and well rounded offensive attack.
See all 2010 NBA team previews
The last hurrah for this group and hopefully than it will be our division for the taking!!!!
Quick Sixers hit: heard/read a discussion on what would be considered successful/failed seasons for NBA teams – what would be a failed 09-10 Sixers season?
Out of the playoffs and in the lottery? I think I’d be okay with that. The playoffs? I think I’d be okay with that, too. Record-wise, I don’t know how this team can disappoint.
What I would like to see is something different from what I’ve seen the past two seasons, and I’ll be disappointed if that doesn’t happen. I don’t care about how it’s different – trade for different players, different lineups, or more talk about how the Sixers are taking advantage of the newer, more advanced NBA statistics (like how Jim O’Brien was always talking about how Willie Green and Allen Iverson couldn’t play together, according to his data). There’s a reason the Sixers don’t get a lot of play in the national media – they haven’t had anything new and innovative to offer to the NBA since they did Iverson at SG (how cool was that, so cool).
Anyway, I hope the Princeton Offense works for them. Come on Sixers, you need to get better at engaging your fans…
Team Defense
The “Big 3? being committed, esp Ray Allen & Paul Pierce. KG has always been great defensively.
Tom Thibodeau should get plenty of credit and Should Have earned an “Assistant Coach of the Year” Award for 2008.
The No Layup or Dunk Rule
-Give Doc Rivers, Danny Ainge, Paul Pierce, and their fans their dues for sticking around during the tough times.
-Frontcourt Depth (They have enough I think)
They can always find someone that was released by another team.
-Maintaining Most of Last Year’s Roster (Chemistry)
-Post Up Skills
-The “Big 3?
1) They don’t have to score 20 a piece
2)One or all of them can come through when it counts!
-The Team Concept
I love this team in terms of “playing the right way” (I’m still a Sixers fan FIRST though!)
-The Hustle of the Bench and Young Players
Underrated bench, better than last year’s bench by far!
-Experience to Build On (Consistency)
-Celtic Pride
1)Understanding what it means to wear the Green
2)Want to win more Championships and make more history!
3)Others will want to sign with this team
4)Former legends support team constantly
5)Championship City
6)TD Banknorth Garden
7)One of the top five sports fans
Greatest weakness(es) or Question Marks?
-3pt Shooting From THE BENCH
-James Posey loss
Tony Allen is missing the 3pt shooting and the extra hustle
(ala Billups pump fake last season)
-Road issues in postseason?
-Ray Allen not so sharp early in the postseason(s).
Paul Pierce, ultimate Sixer Strangler. Yes, I do wish we had him. He represents the type of emotional player that we need especially in the CLUTCH! Sixers team lacks that clutch!
With that said, the Celtics will be 1st in the Atlantic Division, 1st in the East, maybe #1 or #2 team in the NBA depending on Lakers-Celtics matchups regular season! I think there will be a Celtics-Lakers Finals.
(On a side note, the Sixers will win one game against the Celtics (1-3). Thaddeus Young’s extra hustle and post up play has harmed the Celtics offensively. Keep an eye on Young against the Celtics. Both benches will be key in determining who wins that series. Andre Iguodala has to hit that mid-range jumper like he did last season and the season before where the Sixers last beat the Celtics. Elton Brand vs Kevin Garnett will be an interesting matchup, even though Garnett has the height advantage and the length. I am looking forward to that series matchup indeed!! After all, it’s Sixers-Celtics!!)
BREAKING NEWS: Glen Davis to miss about 8 weeks!
http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nba/news/story?id=4598533
Celtics will once again be champs this year. Lakers only getting Ron Artest is not going to be enough and the Lakers bench aint as strong as the Celtics.