Just curious as to why everyone is thinking Jefferson is a center, because quite obviously he is not. Jefferson is the 4 of the future for this team, not the center.
ainge has done some good things for the c's as you point out, but you cant just dismiss the negative things hes done and how hes set us back. he said he wanted to run and didnt, traded antoine for an injury-prone contract rich center, if he wants his vision set out, why doesnt he coach the team? he and everyone talks about a team for the future, well we were saying this a couple years ago too. when is the plan gonna work? could this team contend with any western team in the finals? when will the future be now? thats a lot of questions you say i bash ainge alot and maybe i do, but hey, its FUN
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">he and everyone talks about a team for the future, well we were saying this a couple years ago too. when is the plan gonna work?</div> Ainge has been DOBO for little over one season now. Anything past that can't be attributed to him. It is a ridiculous assertion to think that Ainge(or anyone else) could make us championship contenders in 1 year. I hope you aren't implying that, becuase you seem much smarter than that.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Wink23:</div><div class="quote_post">ainge has done some good things for the c's as you point out, but you cant just dismiss the negative things hes done and how hes set us back. he said he wanted to run and didnt, traded antoine for an injury-prone contract rich center, if he wants his vision set out, why doesnt he coach the team? he and everyone talks about a team for the future, well we were saying this a couple years ago too. when is the plan gonna work? could this team contend with any western team in the finals? when will the future be now? thats a lot of questions you say i bash ainge alot and maybe i do, but hey, its FUN</div> Yes, danny set us back, but seeing as he admitted he was going to do this, he is right on key. As far as not running, that is a debateable point. Assists, Steals, Shooting% all up from the previous year. These are all measures of a running game ... no? Did you really expect them to all of a sudden flip a switch and you would see a noticable impact in running? Changing the style of play, while shipping players in and out is not condusive to a teams chemistry, but IMO, it was needed. It is also not condusive to offensive flow, but through it all, the team overcame the odds and started cranking up the O a bit towards the end of the season (Evidence:Over 100 Pts a game over the last 25-30 games) As far as everyone talking about the future, Danny is the only one of our GM's that has taken that step in words as well as action. Evidence : He traded a lot of our aging players with health concerns (Battie's and Evil's knees) for younger, more athletic players with easier palatable contracts, the opposite of what we have seen from previous management. If anyone really watched the team of 2002, they would have known that team had gone as far as it could. Aging bodies, "me first" shooters and some pretty good gimmick D got us that far. We were cap strapped, with no tradable commodities and an owner that was more worried about his wallet, then what was best for the team (Evidence: Vin Baker) Danny needs some time, a year is no where near enough time time to fix the damage that was done over a decade of bad trades, bad drafting and really stupid contracts being handed out (evidence: 2001 draft, Travis Knight, Pervis Ellison and Chris Mills just to name a few ) Give him some time before you really get down on him.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting hagrid:</div><div class="quote_post">Dude, no offense, but If you're going to incessantly bash Ainge in just about every post, then why not get it out of the way all at once, instead of dragging every thread into the fray? It's your right to be negative, but it seems that nothing the mans going to do will make you content, at least by some of your posts. Just create a thread for that purpose and get it over with please. Calling the guy an idiot in every other post really takes away from the good stuff in your posts. I'm not saying it to come down on you, but it's kinda distracting, IMO. Perkins was drafted for the future. So was Jefferson. Exactly what's wrong with planning for the future? Perkins wouldn't have played last year no matter what, because first OB was running the show, then Carroll. Both are idiots and neither has a penchant nor the ability to develop rookies. IYO, Who exactly should we have gotten instead of Jefferson?</div> hey, easy on the guy. You cant blame people for bashing Ainge. not yet. not til he proves that he doesnt deserve it. only time will tell but every fans got the right to blindly get on a player/coach/GM's nuts at all times and they got the right to do the opposite and throw em under a train. me, i try to do a little of column A a little of column B :mrgreen:
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting olskoolFunktitude:</div><div class="quote_post">hey, easy on the guy. You cant blame people for bashing Ainge. not yet. not til he proves that he doesnt deserve it. only time will tell but every fans got the right to blindly get on a player/coach/GM's nuts at all times and they got the right to do the opposite and throw em under a train. me, i try to do a little of column A a little of column B :mrgreen:</div> Guilty till proven innocent
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting olskoolFunktitude:</div><div class="quote_post">hey, easy on the guy. You cant blame people for bashing Ainge. not yet. not til he proves that he doesnt deserve it. only time will tell but every fans got the right to blindly get on a player/coach/GM's nuts at all times and they got the right to do the opposite and throw em under a train. me, i try to do a little of column A a little of column B :mrgreen:</div> these are my people!
I have heard some good things about Jefferson. Here are some observations from summer camp: <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Al Jefferson: The player that really impressed me the most in Orlando. I was initially shocked by how skinny he is after hearing about how much of a beast he is in the paint, but then I was even more shocked by how much of a beast he really is even despite his obvious lack of bulk. Once this guy puts on 20 pounds or so of muscle he is going to be really tough to guard in the post. His footwork is light years ahead of anyone his age, especially Dwight Howard. His hands are absolutely terrific; he catches anything and everything thrown in his general area, especially with those long arms of his. I think he is a little more athletic than people give him credit for, he got off his feet quite nicely to block some shots and he runs the floor pretty well. He even hit a couple of shots from the perimeter, which makes his offensive game that much more lethal. Defensively, he still has a ways to go, but gaining experience and growing into his frame should help him out with that considerably. Ball-handling is another one of his biggest flaws. I suspect that those who called him a bust right after the draft are going to be eating their words for years to come. </div>
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">BEASTIE BOY Al Jefferson only 19, but body is NBA-ready By: Michael D. McClellan | Monday, July 12th 2004 If you believe those in the know, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was set to take center Robert Swift with the 15th pick in the 2004 NBA Draft. The Seattle Supersonics rendered this point moot, grabbing the Bakersfield High School product at number twelve. Was Ainge truly enamored with the raw seven-footer, or was he merely blowing smoke, hoping like hell to land another high schooler with some serious upside? We may never know, but an urban legend will surely emerge if Prentiss High School's Al Jefferson lives up to his potential. Jefferson is only 19, but how many nineteen year olds are 6'-10" and 263 pounds of game-altering muscle?</div> http://www.celtic-nation.com/news/2004_200...4_man_child.htm
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Jefferson impresses Rivers ORLANDO, Fla. - As the week has progressed, so has the comfort level and dominance of the No. 1 pick in this year's draft, 6-foot-11 Orlando rookie Dwight Howard. But after watching his own first-round big man, Al Jefferson, knife in to put down a pair of dunks under Howard's shadow, Celtics coach Doc Rivers walked away happier than he thought possible. ``No doubt that Dwight Howard is a terrific player, but as good as he is, there's not that great difference between him and (Jefferson),'' Rivers said after his summer league team fell just short in yesterday's 80-78 loss to Orlando, giving the C's a 2-3 record for the week. </div> Complete article: http://celtics.bostonherald.com/celtics/vi...articleid=43771
Now that we're almost halfway through the season I would like to get your opinions on Al Jefferson's play so far. He's averaging 7.1 ppg, 4.8 rbg and 1 bpg in just 16.1 minutes per game. His FG% is 52.6%. Is he living up to the expectations and his potential? Will he get the starting spot or more minutes any time soon?
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Is he living up to the expectations and his potential? </div> I'd have to say that even with the high expectations of the Celtic Nation, he's probably lived up to all but the most demanding of those expectations, particularly given he's only averaging 16 mins per. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Will he get the starting spot or more minutes any time soon?</div> Starting spot? Not likely just yet. I don't see Doc benching anyone, even though Blount deserves it. Big Al's PT, along with Perkins will likely continue to rise, particularly if Blount continues to struggle. I don't see either getting more than 25 per unless someone playing in front of them implodes or gets injured.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting hagrid:</div><div class="quote_post">I'd have to say that even with the high expectations of the Celtic Nation, he's probably lived up to all but the most demanding of those expectations, particularly given he's only averaging 16 mins per.</div>I agree, just look at our replies in this very thread. Most of us expected a good 10-15 minutes from him each game, and others thought that Danny Ainge was stupid to draft him. I'd say that he's exceded expectations big time. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting hagrid:</div><div class="quote_post"> Starting spot? Not likely just yet. I don't see Doc benching anyone, even though Blount deserves it. Big Al's PT, along with Perkins will likely continue to rise, particularly if Blount continues to struggle. I don't see either getting more than 25 per unless someone playing in front of them implodes or gets injured.</div>Yeah, I also agree with that. Well, I agree with what you said, not that what you said is a good idea. I think AJ needs to start. Blount just isn't getting it done. How many other starting centers have had multiple 20-plus minute/O rebounds/0 Point games? He just doesn't care, it seems, just out there going through the motions. For him to get a rebound, not only does the ball have to come right to him, but there also can be no opposing player in his vicinity. It's such a pathetic display that he puts on some nights. What better to force Blount to get his ass in gear than to send him to the bench? If Ricky Davis can come off the pine, than so can Blount. Not to mention the fact that Jefferson has earned a starting spot.
