There is no better time to give Gabe Pruitt minutes.

[daveisceltics]

With Rondo playing so gingerly, Eddie having to play extended minutes, and Tony's sloppy ball handle it is time to give Gabe some minutes Just to see how he does.
he looks like a pretty good jump shooter, and his handle is pretty good too.
I'm not sure about his defense though.

[Celts17Pride]

With Rondo playing so gingerly, Eddie having to play extended minutes, and Tony's sloppy ball handle it is time to give Gabe some minutes Just to see how he does.
he looks like a pretty good jump shooter, and his handle is pretty good too.
I'm not sure about his defense though.

Too Simple. Too Obvious.

[ParticleMan]

from what i've seen he really doesn't have a clue. sorry, i think TA is way better overall. yes, TA's ballhandling is suspect but he also gives us a lot of energy and defense. pruitt is a good kid but he's got a ways to go to contribute. my hope is that he is ready to take eddie house's role next season, but with a better handle.

[GreenGrizz]

Pruitt got no clue? What about House?

[LenBiasBaller]

from what i've seen he really doesn't have a clue. sorry, i think TA is way better overall. yes, TA's ballhandling is suspect but he also gives us a lot of energy and defense. pruitt is a good kid but he's got a ways to go to contribute. my hope is that he is ready to take eddie house's role next season, but with a better handle.

So TA has a clue? Everybody and their mother probably told him to not jump at Billups up fake and what does he do...he jumps at it and blows the game. He cost us two games already with bone head plays. He missed that wide open layup that would have sealed it for us..etc.

I like TA but to say Pruitt doesnt have a clue and then suggest that TA has a clue is beyond me. I have seen nothing with limited time on the court that suggests pruitt doesnt have a clue. Is it simply bc he is a rookie?

I hate when people make statements like that because the kid has played a wopping 10 minutes of garbage time in his NBA career.

I have watched all the games and with how slowly TA is coming along I wouldnt mind giving Pruitt a legit shot to see what he can do instead of just writing him off and saying he doesnt have a clue when the kid has hardly played any minutes.

Watching TA carry the damn ball every possession and stepping on every out of bounds line known to man ticks you off at times. Sure he plays great one on one D and is a good slasher when he's healthy but he hasnt shown that this year except for one or two games at most. Look what Big Baby did with his shot at playing time. Pruitt did get drafted before him so i'm thinking he might be able to do some good.

I like TA and he I think he will def. come around to play the caliber of bball he is capable of but him at the pg spot is not working. Keep him away from that position. Give pruitt a shot.

Doc is known for playing inferior players while better players sit on the bench.

[hiphop1]

I think they are playing TA so the can trade him.

[sully00]

I think Pruitt is on the 42 game plan. They have infused Davis into the line up and he doesn't make a lot of those dumbass inexperience plays. As long as he continues to come along then adding another rookie isn't as much of a risk.

I like Pruitt alot as a player and I think he is why they are not in a rush to address the position but the more settled we can get everything else the easier it will be to add him to the mix.

The other thing is that Tony is one of this teams few trade assets. The more they can pump him up heading into the deadline the better.

[Egregious Blunder]

he cant be worse

[daveisceltics]

I just don't see Tony getting traded.
Doesn't he have an expiring contract next season?

[armageddon]

I too strongly believe that TA is getting playing time solely for building up his trade value. I just don't know if it is working.

[Rocky5000]

I don't think it'd be a good move to trade Tony at this moment. He's not a good backup pg, but he is a good backup SG. With Ray already missing multiple games, Tony is a nice insurance policy to have. Paul Pierce thinks that he'll be back to his old self after the All-star break. That seems like a good estimate to me. I can't get on him for not finishing layups, because over his career he has probably been one of the best finishers on the Celtics. The elevation is slowly coming back, but he's still a little worried about going up for dunks. For every mistake tony makes, he usually gives us a good play in return. Remember the game against Washington when he drove Butler completely out of bounds to cause the shotclock violation? His defense can really be game-changing, in fact behind KG he's our best defender.
In the 7 games in January his +/-s, have been -10, +5,+5,+3, +9, +2 (one of two positive on the entire team), and +6. Tony Allen has not been the problem with this team. The mistakes he makes are just very obvious.

To the original posters point, I agree, let's see Pruitt gets some minutes, maybe 10 a game at first.

[P2]

We need to play Pruitt 10 minutes per game right now (but only if Rondo is out), because he needs that experience. We can't do any worse with him, and he would really find himself in the midst of a team that is desperately trying to win.

His main attribute coming into the league was his defense, but he is also an incredible athlete and has a smooth shot. And handling the ball and passing, he is a thousand times better than Tony Allen.

[Dogen]

Sorry, Pruitt's not even out of the incubator yet. I don't see him as the answer to our prayers to 'shut down Billups in the fourth' or anything like that.

It would be good to see him get a few minutes on the floor each night, but I wouldn't want to see him lose confidence if he's not ready. And what makes anyone here think he can run the NBA point?

Face it. If Doc was to play him for any meaningful time during a game and he made a mistake, half the posters here would be crowding the board with threads screaming to ship him out for a bag of Doritos. No thanks. Pruitt will be a keeper, but he's not there yet.

All this development stuff is so, like, 2002-2006. We don't need a rookie at point, we already have a second year man learning the ropes. Veteran back up or hold, and Danny and Doc seem to be saying hold right now.

If Pruitt actually does make some strides and sees meaningful minutes after the allstar break, I shall be extremely happy, though, and eat a bag of Doritos in his honor. But I'm not counting on it.

[Banks2Pierce]

I agree with the OP.

Doc has buried a good rookie on the bench every year he has been coach. Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Rajon Rondo. Ryan Gomes was behind freakin' Justin Reed for a half a season. Rajon Rondo sitting behind Sebastian Telfair.

I bet he will be forced to play Pruitt at some time this year and he will excel and Doc will look dumb again. This team desperately needs a good ball handler and decision maker coming off the bench to pair with House or Tony Allen, and Pruitt seems to be that. He at least deserves a look.

[sully00]

I agree with the OP.

Doc has buried a good rookie on the bench every year he has been coach. Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Rajon Rondo. Ryan Gomes was behind freakin' Justin Reed for a half a season. Rajon Rondo sitting behind Sebastian Telfair.

I bet he will be forced to play Pruitt at some time this year and he will excel and Doc will look dumb again. This team desperately needs a good ball handler and decision maker coming off the bench to pair with House or Tony Allen, and Pruitt seems to be that. He at least deserves a look.

Or perhaps sitting and watching allowed those rookies to learn a little and develop, before they were thrown into the fire. Now Pruitt hasn't even gotten a look but those other guys got shots they just couldn't do much with it early on. In the second half of the year they were able to seize the opportunity.

[bawstin]

It's been time to play Pruitt all season. Giving rookies spot minutes should be one of the benefits of having the league's highest point differential, no?

Maybe he's ready, maybe he's not, he hasn't played enough for any of us to know.

[BillessuR6]

If Rondo is out I would put Pruitt into the starting 5, throw him into the fire and play him extended minutes. Last year CLE gave huge minutes to Gibson and he played great. Give Pruitt a chance a see how he does. We have veterans around him so it would be easier for him.

[BillessuR6]

Neither Tony Allen nor Eddie House has Rondo's expertise, speed, craftiness, or point-guard mentality. Rivers said he might decide to use rookie Gabe Pruitt instead. Pruitt has generally been either inactive this season or playing for the Utah Flash in the D-League. He last appeared in a Celtics uniform a week ago, making a 31-second cameo against the Bobcats.

"One thing Gabe gives us is the shot," Rivers said. "He can shoot the ball. We need that."

Link: http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball ... 50/?page=1

I hope Pruitt actually gets his chance tonight...

[EvadedHavoc]

I say sit out Rondo and play Pruitt.

Rather have a Well Rested 100% Rondo for games against Tough Teams rather then see him play at 50% against Average-Aight teams

[Datruth345]

i say give him the ball and see what happens

we are 30-6 if we really wanted to see if the kid can play, now would be the time