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Post by DERRENMATTS on Mar 12, 2007 11:51:25 GMT -5
Like so many of the other young players (Jefferson, Green, Gomes), its taken an injury to Delonte for Rajon to get his opportunity to showcase his game without feeling the pressure of being yanked.
Rondo has been shining very brightly the past few games, as his jumper, the only thing standing in his way from being a big time PG, has been falling down. He's orchestrating the offense like a master maestro, carving out the defense and zipping the ball to the best scoring option (which happened to be Leon Powe, who found a lot of scoring opportunities down low because Rondo sucked in the defense after penetrating into the lane).
Rajon's confidence has taken off to new heights--he's being a bit more riskier and untamed, and this is how he performs the best. Tubby Smith at Kentucky tried to contain him and make him a robot, and it hampered Rajon's game. Doc has been doing the same for the most part. But last night's game vs. Chicago, when we played small ball with Telfair and Allan Ray playing alongside of Rajon, the tempo was sped up and Rajon took off like a unleased wild animal and he was in his true environment. It was an exciting brand of basketball, with fastbreaks galore. And even in our halfcourt sets, with Rajon being able to penetrate into the lanes, it opened up passing lanes for numerous individuals.
This is why we went out and got speedy PG's (Rajon and Telfair). Rajon illustrates how much more dangerous we can be when PG's create plays for the team. And rather than clamping down on them again, Doc needs to let Rajon and Telfair handle the ball more and allow them the creativity and freedom to set up the team offense.
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Post by FLCeltsFan on Mar 12, 2007 12:20:29 GMT -5
Unfortunately, I expect Doc to go back to West at the point when Delonte is cleared to play. Doc doesn't go by how well they play to give them minutes.... otherwise, Powe would be getting a lot more minutes.
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 12:32:58 GMT -5
RAjon played well. He is the pg of the future without question. He does need to work on his shooting though and his inconsistency 1st half vs the 2nd half still shows... I think Rajon will come back next year and really start to contribute on a more consistant basis. I still think he has some things to work on. In other words when he is on his game he shows why he should be the starter ultimately, but a lot of times he completely disapears and hurts us more than he helps us and he goes into those stretches where he cant buy a bucket. Rajon's play 1st half vs 2nd half against the bulls pretty much showed why we played a good 1st half and got killed in the 2nd half.
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Post by DERRENMATTS on Mar 12, 2007 15:37:44 GMT -5
I think a big reason why he (and Telfair) disappear during games is because of the way Doc uses them. He continually takes the ball out of the hands of our PG's and instead focuses a lot on having the ball go through the big men at the high post. Perkins and Jefferson often touch the ball more during a possession than Rajon or Telfair.
As well as Rajon, and even Telfair, have been playing lately, Doc has yet to instill pick and roll plays that utilize the creative playmaking abilities of our speedy PG's. I hope to see this implemented.
Rajon has certainly raised his stock the past couple of months. And though I was hoping that Telfair would shine here in Boston, its evident that Rajon's overall skills (especially on defense) will edge out Telfair for the future starting PG role. He's just a fascinating and exciting PG. I was hoping to see more of a battle between the 2, and there still may be a legit challenge once Telfair starts playing like an NBA PG and not a streetballer. But until then, Rajon is cementing himself as our PG for the next 10 years.
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 16:10:04 GMT -5
How is Doc taking the ball out of their hands? I think Rajon is just young and inconsistant. He needs to work on his shot. I don't think Doc is ruling this team with this iron fist like you imagine, he gives these guys free reign for the most part when they are out there and just teaches and gives advice, when they make mistakes. Yes they do have an offense they try to run, but Rajon and Telfair were running teh show in the second half, they just were not doing a good job of it. Rajon started off the game like 5 for 5 and then went like 0-10 after that. They stopped pushing the ball and became tentative. Green was the same thing. He was playing well in the first half and within himself but then he started trying to do too much. These are just the inconsistencies of young players and has nothing to do with Doc imo.
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 16:28:11 GMT -5
I know what you are saying Derren and I know how you see a players potential, and you want to put that player in the best possible position to succeed. But I tend to think this is a case of inexperience on the players part. Say this team had Steve Nash. Do you think he would play like Steve Nash? Or do you think he would be hogtied by Doc? I say he would play like Steve Nash. Rondo once he gets better will be fine. It's the player imo, not the coach. Basketball isn't like other sports where there is a whole lot of strategy to it. It's more on the player than the coach, and if a player is good he will play like it. I personally like the offense the C's are trying to run. I don't think it's as restrictive as you say. There is a lot of more sharing of the ball and motion going on and they do push the tempo at times. It's just a matter of players understanding their roles and being better imo... There's that whole chemistry factor. And inexperience. You watch Green and he has talent but he still has a lot to work on. We try to get everyone involved but there are holes, and we don't go to the right guys at the right times, and players fail in their roles at times and it's just messy. You watch Ben Gordon and you watch the bulls and they aren't exactly the most talented team, they have no low post presence on offense but the players they do have understand their roles. Gordon is not the greatest player in the world but he's a great shooter and he does what he does and the team knows what he can do. Rondo is still in the process of improving his game and figuring out what he can do himself, and how can he be relied on when he doesn't know what he can do himself sometimes. I think as Rondo improves and plays more consistantly you will see a change.
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 16:59:50 GMT -5
Anyways I know how you are Derren. I used to be the same way, and I still am in a lot of regards. You see talent and you think you can get these guys playing the way you want them to, but we have to remember Rondo is a rookie. He's still trying to find his game for the most part. That is what makes an experienced player is one that knows what he can do and understands his role and Rondo is not there yet. He really needs to become more consistant with his shooting, and stop driving to the basket and throwing up shots aimlessly like he does sometimes.
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 17:07:06 GMT -5
One thing I notice about Rondo is once he starts missing his shot, teams back off of him and that's when he starts plowing into the paint and throwing up those shots against 3 defenders. Green was doing the same thing later in the game. When their outside shots are falling it's a different story.
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Post by DERRENMATTS on Mar 12, 2007 17:14:23 GMT -5
A good portion of the time, Rajon (and the same for Telfair back in the days he was starting) will pass midcourt and pass the ball to a big man and fall to one side of the court and wait for a play to develop. Sometimes they'll get the ball back, other times they won't (usually because either Jefferson or Pierce will take the shot).
Its not so much that Doc is choreographing the entire play (precisely which players will touch the ball), but the way the offense is designed, our PG's aren't being asked to create plays for the team--and that's shortchanging Rajon's and Telfair's skills, and puts the pressure on the rest of the team to keep the ball moving. The offense looks good when everyone is clicking, but that's when guys like Scal, Perk, Pierce and Gomes start dancing around the court, leading to some turnovers.
A good team offense is not entirely based solely on just the PG's, and I do want our other players to be smart enough to execute plays without the PG. But the way things are now, Rajon and Telfair don't utilize their PG skills nearly enough as they are capable of.
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Post by FLCeltsFan on Mar 12, 2007 17:16:23 GMT -5
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cfoo
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Post by cfoo on Mar 12, 2007 19:54:50 GMT -5
Well that's the thing Derren. The ball should be in the hands of the pg more, but the same can eb said for why does Al go stretches where he doesn't touch the ball? I just thinks it's more of a case of inexperience and guys not trusting each other fully and being unselfish more than it is coaching and the offense we are running. Rondo plays well and he does get the ball and he has stretches where he does a lot of good. Then he starts forcing things and it's different. Rajon took some pretty awful shots in the 2nd half. Doc is a prove it to me coach, and I think Doc will play guys that show consistency. Al has really come along and the team is utilizing him and going to him more and more.
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