Role player production can be the difference between the Eastern Semis and Banner No. 18. KG helps, too.
There’s one bright spot to the end of every Red Sox season: Celtics season.
The biggest key to a successful season will be Kevin Garnett’s health. (Duh). I’ll admit, I’m pretty worried. Bill Simmons pretty much sold me in his 2009 MVP column (No. 46) that KG’s knees have pretty much had it. Hopefully, that’s not the case, but I’m prepared for the worst (thank god for the Rasheed Wallace insurance policy).
Regardless of what KG’s knees decide to do, the role players will play an enormous role in how far the Celtics go.
I think Marquis Daniels can and will play a large role off the bench this season. Obviously, he won’t be getting the shot when the game is on the line, but his play in the second and third quarters could dictate whether the game is even close.
He presents good size at guard (6-6) and can score a little bit. He averaged 13.6 ppg with Indiana last year, while starting 43 of 54 games played. As long as he leaves the long-range game to Eddie House (Daniels shot 20% from 3-point land last season), he can be a legitimate contributor to a title run.
Big Baby Davis proved his worth to the squad in a postseason that ended all too quickly. He was rightfully rewarded with a new contract.
Eddie House isn’t a point guard who will efficiently run an offense, but if he gets hot from outside — watch out.
A fairly unproductive, but enery-inserting guard will be Bill Walker. He’s explosive and will be on SportsCenter top ten at least three times this season, but his all-around game needs work.
Brian Scalabrine has the best comedic presence the NBA has to offer. He’s living the average white guy’s dream. I can’t believe he’s real. Even if I saw him on a movie, I’d think it was a little over the top — oh wait — Jackie Moon.
Aside from picking up Sheed, I think the most eye-grabbing acquisition Boston made was Shelden Williams. I hated that pickup. What a waste of cash. I wish he over-achieved on the court as much as he did off the court. He might have the most mis-shaped head in basketball:
However, he’s with Candace Parker — and she might not be Jessica Biel or anything – but she could do a hell of a lot better than that dude.
On the court, he’s under-sized, under-skilled, and not energetic enough to make up for it.
I can’t believe he might win a ring with the Celtics. He’ll scare children at the parade.
-Tidbit
