Making It Look Anything But Easy

The Celtics barely pulled out a win last night against the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves, and were outhustled and outrebounded once again as Boston's big men continued to struggle in the absence of their leader, Kevin Garnett. For the second consecutive game, Boston nearly lost to an inferior team solely because they could not get things done in the paint, allowing Kevin Love to haul in 24 rebounds which is the highest rebound total for any single player in the history of the TD Garden. Glen Davis once again asserted himself as more of a spot-up shooter than as a power forward, as he hung around the perimeter for majority of the game, putting up jump shot after jump shot, and failing to box out Love as he was outrebounded 24-1 in this game. Minnesota seemed to be giving Davis tons of open jumpers, and rightfully so because if Boston is putting up points, I'm sure that opposing teams would much rather have it come in the form of 20-foot jumpers from Big Baby Davis than from the Celtics' style of intricate ball movement, Rondo's dribble penetration, and scoring threats both in the paint and from beyond the three point arc. If the Celtics want any shot tomorrow night when they take on the Western Conference leading San Antonio Spurs, their big men need to get it together.

And when I say that their big men need to get it together, I mean that Von Wafer should not be leading the team in rebounding with 6 in his 16 minutes played, like he did last night. Wafer also led the team with a +16 plus/minus rating, and kept the Celtics in it despite the Wolves leading for majority of the game. However, starting big men Shaquille O'Neal and Big Baby Davis combined for just 3 rebounds last night, and looked extremely sluggish compared to energized Minnesota players such as Love and Darko Milicic. Boston's backup big men outplayed the starters, as Harangody was the only Celtic last night demonstrating an ability to box out his man, and Jermaine O'Neal played some solid defense with 4 very big blocks. It is clear that without KG, energy in the paint has diminished for Boston, and they will not be able to beat quality teams like the Spurs without playing tougher down low. Doc Rivers obviously realizes that this vital energy is currently lacking without Garnett, but he needs to realize that there are other options.

It may lead to some frustrating fouls and and-1 opportunities, but the tough play and energy of Semih Erden is unmatched by any other player on the Celtics. When Jermaine O'Neal was injured, Erden logged some quality minutes and proved that when he is on the court, he likes to dominate the paint. He contests every shot, boxes out his man, and always hustles. Boston has looked incredibly weak down low ever since Garnett went down with his calf injury, and Doc needs to start playing Erden more unless he wants the Celtics to get outrebounded every game until Garnett returns. Doc seems to have a commitment to keeping players at their "position," which is why Erden could fill in for the O'Neals but not for KG. However, big men are big men and the ones that will play tough defense and help win the rebounding battle are the ones that belong on the court. Harangody plays tough, but just does not have the presence on the court that Erden does, and plays much more like a timid rookie than the energetic and confident Erden. Also, Jermaine O'Neal used to be a power forward! He made all-star appearances as a power forward! So what makes Doc think that he can't put Jermaine and Erden on the court together at the same time? The last few games have made me miss Semih, his tough defense, the double picks they ran with him and Glen Davis, and with Boston getting beat up in the paint night in and night out without Kevin Garnett, I think Semih deserves a chance to get back on the court.