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I think so. His game's low-key right now. He might pick it up in April. But, it's nice to see that he's getting some assists in if he doesn't do anything else.

I think it is. It shows he can trust his teammates now. I have no doubt he can turn the offense on if he needs to.

for not playing an entire season--and all the Circus atmosphere--I think he looks great--it's just gonna take more playing time---he'll be fine...much more comfortable with him running the bench, than House or Gabe

or Sammie

He just started playing again, so I expect him to start a little slow and then pick it up as the season progresses. But, from what I've seen so far from him has been great. I think he'll start shooting more once he feels more comfortable in Boston and starts to get some his swagger back (not a bad thing). Its good to have a guy who we can trust have come off the bench, now House can shift to his more natural postion at SG

yeah he's also doing the little things right now. which is way cool.
he's smiling and he looks good. 5 more games in and end of regular season/ playoffs, dude is going explode in a couple games.
I also like:
that you have to now game plan 9 deep for offense.
Last year we didn't have that.
"celtsbury" is doing nice team defense for four games in.

I like his approach better than Cassel's, which was to take all the shots himself because it was the only part of the offense he'd managed to figure out.

Yeah, definitely good for ubuntu.

Well, the difference is: Rivers I think was telling Cassell to shoot it. So, you'd a point guard who knew he'd the green light. With Marbury, the approach is to go out and simply play, don't over do it. The hope is that he plays himself back into NBA shape.

His passing has been great for the most part, he has been hitting Ray and Eddie at exactly the right time as they curl around off screens... and some of the drive and dish work he did tonight, especially the one to Moore was very impressive

The shots will fall eventually hes still rusty, but i love what im seeing from him so far

Understand this is coming from someone who thought that Starbury was the anti christ,

But I am surprised, I can't tell if he is trying to prove that he belongs here and really wants to be a part of the whole Celtics thing win lose or draw but he has been perfect really, he needs to get up to speed but he is from central casting.

Sorta, he makes the most weirdest passes. Almost all of them seem to be just a waste of time.

And what I mean by that is.. he'll drive to the hoop, and pass to the right leaving the receiver the only option to take a shot with a defender running at him... that's not an easy shot and that's not proper creation.

And all of his drives go straight to the hoop.. then he fades to one side or the other for the layup.. leaving it in perfect place for it to be blocked or him to never create any contact..

It's not all the time, but I'll just be happy when I see more of his passes that have the end result of a strong finish or a open shot for someone. Then I'll know that he's ready to be a deciding factor in us winning rather then just, kinda helping us.

And of course defensively anything there is gravy at this point. Hopefully we get some gravy at some point.

Sorta, he makes the most weirdest passes. Almost all of them seem to be just a waste of time.

And what I mean by that is.. he'll drive to the hoop, and pass to the right leaving the receiver the only option to take a shot with a defender running at him... that's not an easy shot and that's not proper creation.

No he doesn't. He is both a little rusty and learning about this team. A high level PG like Marbury PREDICTS where guys will be - not just passes to open guys. This can take a bit of timing to get right. Remember Marbury once AVERAGED 9 assists a game. That would place him what second on the C's all time list? Marbury is not a guy to worry about he has crazy basketball talent. He can make great passes.

I personally think he is going to end up being great for us. The reason being for Marbury he was unfairly thought of as "the man" and it was too much for him to deal with. I think he will thrive being one of the guys and winning games. Hopefully it's like a weight of his shoulders.

As a hometown guy in a basketball mecca trying to lead a team - he just didn't have the team or the composure. It was kinda the situation PP was in before with the Cs.

Yes.

IMO it's good and bad. He looks really tentative out there honestly. It's almost like he's trying too hard to discard that "me first" stigma he's carried his whole career. For example the play where he made two mid-air passes to Moore tonight. I'm sure he'll come around, but he needs to stop being scared to bust the open shot when he has it.

With all the time missed, Marbury is essentially in pre-season, with everyone else in prime condition and timing. When I think of how bad PJ Brown looked when he first started playing last year, it amazes me how quickly Marbury was able integrate in. Best is yet to come, that second unit is going to be pretty amazing for the C's in a couple of weeks. House/Moore/Davis spreading the floor along with Pierce/RA, mix in Powe with some driving by TA, and that's going to be a dangerous bunch.

What a nightmare it must have been in NYC, and I know Steph had a big hand in that mess. But there must be such a sense of relief it's over, and I bet all the C's are telling him how great it is to win. And I'm sure him watching the Celtics share the ball is going to really have an impact on him.

Marbury has clearly been deferring to teammates which, as Jammer simply states, is a good thing. Marbury wants to fit into what the team is doing and as Tommy Heinson pointed out "he going to do what the coaches ask [never mind what KG, Paul, Ray etc. are telling him]". I think most of all it's FUN and EXCITING to play for a team like the Celtics. First off, Ubuntu is a great concept and core principle for leading a basketball team. Doc has played his cards perfectly and the players really adore the guy. Then you have Thib's, Clifford Ray, etc. I mean the leadership and team structure is so so solid. Secondly, this team is winning and poised to win in the playoffs, who WOULDN'T want to take advantage of that opportunity.

In terms of his play on the court, I really like what I've been seeing. The EFFORT is there. That's key. Defensively he's clearly WORKING when he's in there. He's also taking the challenge of guarding Star players and bigger players. His instincts are generally good which he displayed when he leaped up to knock away the alley-oop pass in the Cavs game. Offensively he just seems unsure of where his opportunities are coming in the flow. It's like everyone else is doing the Tango while he's Square Dancing. But he's also had flashes where he'll plug into the Celtics offensive Matrix of continuity and player spacing and it's a joy to watch. At a basic level he's allayed all possible fears of dealing with full-court pressure. And as was astutely pointed out earlier by captain green, the opponents now have to gameplan for (at least) nine offensive players with plus offensive weapons (Eddie-Shooting, Powe-Inside game, Moore-Nice mid range shot and a bit of finishing ability, and Davis- Midrange, crafty below the rim interior play). That doesn't even take into account what Tony Allen and Scal both bring to the table as well. Marbury is going to allow everyone to be THEMSELVES by taking ball handling and playmaking responsibilities on his shoulders.

I really like the Celtics chances against ANY and ALL competition, especially with Marbury off the bench.

I want him to re-sign this summer, he is a great mid-season band-aid for us but with a full training camp he could really be a dangerous weapon instead of the caretaker he is likely to be this year.

A fully integrated Marbury can make our entire bench fit together and really what i'm looking forward to is having Marbury, Walker, Powe, Davis and House form a true second unit next year.

I believe Walker, Powe and Marbury can be the key to extending our run as Ray, KG and Paul get older its a must that our bench can allow Doc to lean on them to not only hold leads but actually extend and create them against weaker teams.

If we only have to lean on the stars against the best teams they'll be alot more well rested.

JMillott wrote:I want him to re-sign this summer, he is a great mid-season band-aid for us but with a full training camp he could really be a dangerous weapon instead of the caretaker he is likely to be this year.

A fully integrated Marbury can make our entire bench fit together and really what i'm looking forward to is having Marbury, Walker, Powe, Davis and House form a true second unit next year.

I believe Walker, Powe and Marbury can be the key to extending our run as Ray, KG and Paul get older its a must that our bench can allow Doc to lean on them to not only hold leads but actually extend and create them against weaker teams.

If we only have to lean on the stars against the best teams they'll be alot more well rested.

I too want him re-signed....

With 3 assists last night, Marbury is up to averaging exactly 3 assists per game in just 13.9 mpg, which is more than Ray (2.8) averages in 36.8 minutes. In fact, that's third on the team behind Pierce and Rondo, and Pierce only averages 3.7 apg, which I think Marbury should pass as his minutes begin to increase. Really just having a player who is looking to pass and can handle the ball is going to help us out a lot. Even if Marbury isn't scoring he's going to be a net positive for the team.