Sam Cassell's propensity to pound, it says here, does not really mesh with the Celtics, who look their best when passing following two dribbles tops - as long as Paul Pierce plays along.
Cassell's imminent signing conflicts with Danny Ainge's feel for the game; he was not Sam I Am's biggest fan when he tried to coach him in Phoenix. In order to force him to pass, Ainge would call a post-up for Cassell and beg the opposition to double.
In other words, this pickup is all about appeasing Kevin Garnett, who enjoyed his lone longest playoff run in '01 (Western finals; all the rest were one round and done) alongside Cassell (working the pick-and-roll to perfection, no doubt) and Latrell Sprewell.
A ready-made faction is not what the Vitamin C's need coming down the home stretch. They also can do nicely without a slow point guard who can't defend, the exact opposite of why they've been so successful.
I also don't like giving Doc Rivers an option when Rajon Rondo commits a particularly grievous turnover or misses two straight open jumpers. The temptation is to substitute experience belonging to someone who played a pivotal part in two titles his first two years in the league in the mid-'90s.
Where in the heck does he get his information from? All of what is bold is completely made up. Garnett played with Cassel and Sprewell in the 2004 (not 2001
) West Finals, and when did Rondo miss two straight jumpers the last time? Rondo hits the open ones, missed contested shots.
