Pruitt and House

[campybatman]

What was wrong with this tandem off the bench? Why does Rivers prefer Tony over Pruitt? It appears that House has cooled off. He's more effective as the off guard. He and Tony together on the floor doesn't look right. Because Tony's still having trouble with his decision making and indecisiveness with the ball.

I'll like for Pruitt to return to the rotation. I mean what did he do wrong? He's another shooter and he pushes the ball better than either Tony or House. Isn't this the season you would want to really evaluate Pruitt as a player? Let's not forget that Pruitt's a RFA next year.

[Celts17Pride]

Celtics putting their hopes in Tony Allen is a recipe for disaster. Not going to happen.

[return2glory]

Pruitt and House combo was a lot better IMO because two these guys can hit the 3 and open up more spacing. Also Pruitt is a better ball handler than TA, which allows House to slid to the SG position, where is he more comfortable.

But I agreewith Doc in playing TA over Pruitt because while it hurts the team a little now, it helps TA's trade value. Pruitt doesn't have the same trade value as TA. I still think TA is a good player, but he would be better suited for another team.

[MaxwellSmart]

Pruitt and House combo was a lot better IMO because two these guys can hit the 3 and open up more spacing. Also Pruitt is a better ball handler than TA, which allows House to slid to the SG position, where is he more comfortable.

But I agreewith Doc in playing TA over Pruitt because while it hurts the team a little now, it helps TA's trade value. Pruitt doesn't have the same trade value as TA. I still think TA is a good player, but he would be better suited for ANOTHER team.

Yeah, he'd tear up the NBDL

[MaxwellSmart]

This Eddie House TA combo has not worked---neither can dribble for S***....Gabe would be better than TA.

[campybatman]

I didn't want to use the word showcase but why mess with something that had been working while Tony was sidelined. I mean you've two guards, Tony and House, who operate better when you lessen their responsibilities and they aren't asked to create for other teammates. I think Rivers is out thinking himself on this.

[Rocky5000]

The problem is not Tony it is Eddie at PG. Eddie and Pruitt did not play well together if you look at their player pairings, but the ball movement was better because Eddie was not handling it. I don't think Pruitt is ready to play major minutes, his shooting is still pretty poor and he does not demand any attention from the defense. We really have only 1 point guard and 3 Combo guards, who can at times play point. I think that maybe we might want Sam to suit up.

I believe Tony is the best player of the 3 guards off the bench that we have, he's just playing with a back-court teammate who makes things more difficult for him.

I also think that Rondo doesn't play enough minutes, he should be the one averaging 38 mpg, not Pierce and Ray. Tony and House need to be played more in their natural positions to allow those 2 to rest, with Rajon at the point guard spot.

[Jammer]

A Tale of 3 Guards ,

starring Tony, Eddie and Gabe.

Player PER *** PER of the Man they Guard ****** NET PER

Tony 14.3 ********************* 9.5 ******************** +4.8
Eddie 16.8 ******************* 14.3 ******************** +2.5
Gabe 08.9 ******************** 13.7 ******************** -4.9

In a nutshell, Offensively, it's

Eddie 1 (shooter who spreads the floor),
Tony 2 (penetrator who kills the bottom 12 teams, plays OK to good against the middle 10,
and is an unknown against the top 8 teams)

Gabe is the weakest offensively, due to a 0.314% field goal percent,
which means that despite lots of wide open looks in garbage time,
he can't hit sh*t.

Defensively,
Tony is the top rated individual defender on the Celtics,
and 2nd year pro Gabe Pruitt is only marginally better than Eddie.

Since Gabe wreaks on O, and is only marginally better than Eddie on D,
Gabe doesn't warrant any rotation time from Tony or Eddie.

I am glad Doc Rivers agrees with the obvious.
It would be more helpful if Ainge gave Doc an active roster guard in place
of Gabe who Doc could actually use.

Wyc Grousbeck has been quoted as saying that he expects the
Celtics to add a Big and a Guard before the playoffs.
And if he expects it, it better darn come true.

So sit tight.

[campybatman]

Tony's bringing the ball up and still handles the ball some when he's out there in the half court. Pruitt worked well with House because it allowed him to focus on scoring. Personally, I'm not going to nitpick about Pruitt's game since his presence on the floor alone helps another player, House. Tony and House together confuses each other. They both need to score (Tony being the better defender) to be effective and contribute in the best way they know how. House is the shooter while Tony's the slasher. Why is Tony shooting from farther out than where he usually shoots if from? And why isn't plays run to work House off screens? You either play one or the either. Someone must sit. If Rondo's out there, play House or Tony. If Rondo's on the bench, then you've to decide between the two or, as said, play Pruitt with one of them.

When do you believe Pruitt will be ready? Just asking, because his contract is up at season's end. This season is his opportunity to play for Boston. If Rivers isn't going to play him. Trade him ASAP. At least you know Cassell isn't likely to play, but sometimes I wonder if Pruitt will get in this time. I dislike the whole play a bottom of the rotation player only if the game's a blowout. How's he supposed to learn and get better if he's playing against the back ups? In my opinion, it's all about gaining confidence and experience against opponents you could face in the playoffs. If Pruitt were on another team, he'll be playing I bet. No matter if the team's a veteran team or a young team. Look at the Lakers, they've Farmar or the Spurs have George Hill or the Raptors have Roko Ukic or any of the rookie point guards. My point is the aforementioned players are all playing regularly and Pruitt isn't. I don't know, someone among House, Tony, Pruitt and Cassell must go then. Preferably, two of them. Take the guess work out of Rivers' hands.

[ryaningf]

The problem is not Tony it is Eddie at PG. Eddie and Pruitt did not play well together if you look at their player pairings, but the ball movement was better because Eddie was not handling it. I don't think Pruitt is ready to play major minutes, his shooting is still pretty poor and he does not demand any attention from the defense. We really have only 1 point guard and 3 Combo guards, who can at times play point. I think that maybe we might want Sam to suit up.

I believe Tony is the best player of the 3 guards off the bench that we have, he's just playing with a back-court teammate who makes things more difficult for him.

I also think that Rondo doesn't play enough minutes, he should be the one averaging 38 mpg, not Pierce and Ray. Tony and House need to be played more in their natural positions to allow those 2 to rest, with Rajon at the point guard spot.

Rocky, you freaking nailed it on the head. It's all about PG play on the 2nd unit. Gabe, despite his limitations, is a vastly better point guard than Eddie or TA. The way to fix the 2nd unit is to start using Gabe at point and making TA and Eddie fight for their minutes at the 2 guard. TA is the better player, but on certain nights Eddie will have it going and he'll get the call. Regardless, Pruitt will raise the level of everyone's play, not only TA and Eddie, but also Powe and Baby. Hell, if you start giving Pruitt minutes, and TA and Eddie are both benefiting from playing with a real point, it might even allow us to give more rest to Paul and Ray.

Rondo could stand to play more minutes as well.

[ParticleMan]

you guys seriously undervalue tony allen. he is the ONLY guy we have on the bench who you can give the ball to with 5 secs on the shotclock, and he will get a good look at the rim or get to the line. that is a HUGE skill in the NBA. pruitt, house, baby can't do that. powe can, but only against certain matchups. tony can beat anyone off the dribble. that's why by any statistical measure he is our best bench player. you're going to replace him with a non-factor Pruitt just because it makes Eddie House better?? wtf?!?!

imo a lot of eddie's decline lately has been because teams are not giving him the looks he got during his hot streak. they are treating him like ray allen out there now. when he gets looks he still hits them, but putting pruitt in there isn't going to get him any better looks. particularly if pruitt only shoots 30% from the floor.

[Slartibartfast]

I agree with your evaluation of Tony, ParticleMan, but unfortunately Doc's offensive methodology involves ball movement and exploiting efficient match-ups, and Tony is just not much of a complementary piece. If we just gave him the ball and told him to attack, like Phoenix used to do with Barbosa, I think he'd be more effective. As such, Pruitt is a better fit for the offense, as his jumper is far more of a threat than Tony's, his ballhandling under duress is better, and he's willing to shoot the pull-up jumpers that are often the best looks generated by our offense.

But Doc is going to be very reluctant to bench Tony, as his confidence is so crucial to his play and his skill level is unmatched on the bench.

[armageddon]

You cannot judge the values to the team by looking at individual statistics. Sure, Individually their values are 1. Eddie, 2. Tony, 3. Gabe, but we're not playing one-on-one.

This issue is what combination and at what roles are these players most valuable. We all know that Eddie at the point is a disaster and make him useless. Tony has some skills but it doesn't ever seem to mess into team play. Its similar to what Gerald Green used to offer, an occasional good play and a bunch of individual me against the other 5 moves. And Gabe's shooting has been a disappointment.

The best results for the team has obviously been Gabe at the point and Eddie at the 2 with TA on the bench. This takes care of the backup minutes at the 1 and 2 adequately. Backup 3 minutes is another issue.

[campybatman]

This issue is what combination and at what roles are these players most valuable. We all know that Eddie at the point is a disaster and make him useless. Tony has some skills but it doesn't ever seem to mess into team play. Its similar to what Gerald Green used to offer, an occasional good play and a bunch of individual me against the other 5 moves. And Gabe's shooting has been a disappointment.

The best results for the team has obviously been Gabe at the point and Eddie at the 2 with TA on the bench. This takes care of the backup minutes at the 1 and 2 adequately. Backup 3 minutes is another issue.

That's what I was saying... It seems like it requires an injury to a certain player or what have you in order to assist Rivers in his decision making. Otherwise, he'll stick to one way and sometimes it isn't aways the better route to take. He's loyal... But, doesn't make an adjustment until he has no choice but to due to injuries. Other than the starters, the only decision he has made this season where the explanation for doing so made any sense to me was when he's started Scalabrine in place of Perkins. Davis in place of Garnett didn't work as good. Perhaps, Powe who's more of an interior player would've made more sense. Also, this new found outside range of Davis is irksome. He isn't Gomes or Eric Williams. Those players developed their perimeter game while with the Celtics to better results. Someone among the coaching staff (Rivers I believe) made a mistake in advising him to shoot more.

[Rocky5000]

The best results for the team has obviously been Gabe at the point and Eddie at the 2 with TA on the bench. This takes care of the backup minutes at the 1 and 2 adequately. Backup 3 minutes is another issue.

It seems that way, since Eddie's shooting stretch corresponded to Tony's absence, but it's wrong. Look at the stats on 82games.com , they don't back you up. Gabe isn't a good enough player.

[campybatman]

Looks like Tony will be sidelined for a few games. Here's an opportunity to play Cassell some or reinsert Pruitt back into the rotation. If Tony's out indefinitely, then Rivers will need to adjust his rotation anyways.

[Dirty Water]

I think we might see Sam Cassell by March.