The NBA has decided that Centers will no longer have a special spot in the All-Star game. Instead, the team will be made up of 3 frontcourt players, and two backcourt, rather than two forwards and a center. It comes as no surprise seeing as most teams don’t rely on a traditional center anymore like the old days.
Last week, we took a poll about who you guys think has been the biggest star of the pre-season for newcomers, and I included Jeff Green because he was injured last season. Jared Sullinger won with over 50% of the votes, and Jeff Green was tied for second with Courtney Lee and Jason Terry, all with roughly 12% of the votes. Everyone keeps going on about how good our team is going to be because of our depth but here are some reasons why each player will succeed in our system.
Jared Sullinger: Rookie that fell to us in the draft, should have been a high lottery pick if not for an injured back last season. Not too many rookies get minutes in our system, 
but Jared could be starting some nights. KG and Doc Rivers have both said that he has a very high basketball IQ and does not play like a rookie typically does. He has adapted to the Celtics’ system real quick, and is not timid out on the court. He rebounds consistently and shoots right when he gets the open look, rather than hesitate and up fake 15 times like a lot of smaller big men like himself. And good news for C’s fans: Garnett said he is “giving him the book, teaching him everything I know”.
Just as expected, the Celtics signed a veteran ball handler on Wednesday to back up Rajon Rondo. They inked Leandro Barbosa, a 9 year veteran. Barbosa has averaged 12.5 PPG and 2.4 APG over his career, but has never played with this kind of talent. Leandro is extremely fast combo guard, who can also play the shooting guard position. However, we are already very deep at that position with Jason 
Terry, Courtney Lee, and Avery Bradley when he returns.
Leandro Barbosa played the majority of his career in Phoenix when they were actually a good team. He is 29 years old and was selected 28th overall by the Spurs in the 2003 draft. He should be a good fit because of his experience, but I wouldn’t expect much from him other than the ability to lead a fast break on a second unit that can already push the ball as it is. He will definitely find a spot on this team
The Celtics are pursuing options talking to Carlos Delfino. After exhausting all options to doing a sign and trade with the Mavericks for Jason Terry, they ended up using their Mid-Level Exception. This only leaves the Celtics with the bi-annual exception which amounts roughly to $1.9 million per year. Unless Courtney Lee wants to take a contract under his market price, he is likely out of the Celtics price range. So the Celtics have started to look at Delfino.
Here’s a little background on Delfino
Height: 6’6″ Weight: 230 NBA Experience: 7 years, drafted 1st Rd Det 2003
On ESPN.com John Hollinger gives the scouting report of Delfino
+ Mellow, solidly built wing who likes corner 3-point shot. Rebounding tailed off.
+ Good handle and court vision but no burst or explosiveness. Runs floor well.
+ Solid defender. Average mobility but big for position with great hands.
The Celtics GM Danny Ainge announced yesterday that the Celtics were going to sign Jason Terry using the Mid-Level Exception. The signing of Terry is no surprise as he has already been introduced to the Boston media and has said that the is going to do everything that he can to help the Celtics win banner 18.
“If they need me to wash the uniforms or sweep the floors, whatever role Doc [Rivers] wants me to play, I’m here to do it at 100 percent and I’ll give it my all,” Terry said. “That’s what I’ve done my whole career. Whatever it takes to win, whatever puts us in the best position to win these games and win a championship is what I’ll be doing.”
They had tried to maneuver a sign-and-trade with the Mavericks to save the MLE to potentially use on another player such as the Rockets Courtney Lee. The Celtic’s could not find a third team to facilitate the sign-and-trade and the Mavericks signing of O.J. Mayo basically ended the talks. This means that the Celtics would have to offer the Rockets players and picks to acquire Lee as they can only fill out the rest of their roster with minimum contracts.
The Celtics lost their fourth straight game last night to the Mavericks in a game that was never really close. Without Kevin Garnett the Celtics had no defensive answer for Dirk Nowitzki as he went for 21 first half points and cruised to a 26-16 night in only 31 minutes on the floor. The Mavericks were up by as much as 26 in the game.
Rajon Rondo was suspended by the NBA for the Celtics final two games before the All-Star break for his altercation with a referee. Without Rondo, the Celtics looked lost on offense and having a tough time to truly find a way to play. Other than Avery Bradley in the first quarter the Celtics only scored 9 points. Avery and Paul were the only two Celtics to score in the first 8 minutes of the game.
The Celtics tough season with injuries continued as both Jermaine O’Neal and Chris Wilcox went out with minor injuries in the third quarter. The turnovers were again a major issue for the Celtics as they turned over the ball 17 times. It ended up turning in 25 Maverick’s points. Both Pierce and Ray continued to struggle shooting from three combining for a 2-8 night from beyond the arc. But they both attacked the rim in ways that we haven’t seen from either of them this season. With no real interior scoring presence tonight most of the Celtics 18 points in the paint came off of Paul and Ray’s ability to attack the hoop.
The Celtics look to end their losing streak Wednesday at 7:00pm against the Thunder.
Extra Notes:
Kevin Garnett missed his second straight game for personal reasons; Dirk past Robert Parish to become number 20 on the all time scoring list; Garnett is 19 on the list; Jason Kidd had three steals to pass Michael Jordan as second on the all time list; in a battle of whose leg’s have deteriorated more Vince Carter got rejected by Jermaine O’Neal on a fast break early in the game, hard to imagine that happening to Vincesanity in his prime.
Avery Bradley Alert
Avery Bradley was a bright spot for the Celtics hitting outside jumpers when the Mavericks were giving him room. Finished 6-11 for the night but he missed a few bunny lay-ups; picked the pocket of future hall of famer Jason Kidd. He scored 6 out of the first 8 points for the Celtics and was basically the entire offense in the first quarter.
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