Boston Celtics: Who Will Be the Last 2 Players Cut from the Roster?

 Boston  No Responses »
Oct 112012
 

With one final spot left on the Boston Celtics roster, things are getting down to the wire. Dionte Christmas, Jamar Smith and Kris Joseph are battling it out in training camp to prove they each deserve the last spot on the team—but only one will prevail.

Christmas is a 6’5″, 205-pound shooting guard from Temple University. The 25-year-old spent the last three seasons away from the United States playing overseas, but returned to the States for the NBA Summer League. Christmas impressed the Celtics so much during his summer campaign that he earned a partially guaranteed contract with the team. 

In the Summer League, Christmas averaged an outstanding 14.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. Christmas also turned heads by shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 45 percent from the three-point line. However, success in the Summer League doesn’t necessarily translate to equal success on the official team.

Christmas played limited minutes in the two exhibition games in Istanbul and Milan. He is averaging eight minutes per game in the preseason, only getting floor time when head coach Doc Rivers decides to unleash the bench late in games. However, Christmas has still managed to score 4.5 points per game.

Although Christmas hasn’t seen much action in games, his presence in practices has gotten the attention of Rivers. According to the Boston Herald, Christmas was singled out by the coach for failed rotations and errant moves but continued to ask questions at the front of the huddles in hopes to improve.

When asked about Christmas, Rivers said:

“What opens my eyes is solid play at the end of the day. He does have great energy, and he’s a tough kid, but other than that it’s basketball IQ and how he fits with this group of guys.”

 

Jamar Smith is another guard hoping to make the final cut. Standing at 6’3″ and 185 pounds, Smith can play both guard positions, which gives him an edge on his competition.

Smith spent last year playing in the Czech Republic, but he is no stranger to the Boston Celtics. The combo guard was a member of the D-League’s Maine Red Claws in the 2010-11 season, where he averaged 13.6 points, five assists and roughly one steal per game.

Due to the recent departure of Keyon Dooling, the C’s need another point guard to serve as Rajon Rondo’s backup. Doc Rivers spoke to Comcast SportsNet New England about how Dooling‘s retirement affects the team. Rivers said:

“Even as a coach, I don’t think you realize it, that it’s a loss, until you see it on the floor in a game and you realize, ‘that’s a bigger loss than I thought.’” Rivers added, “I’m hoping we can figure that out without going out and getting another body. Jamar has a chance.”

Smith has averaged two points over 12 minutes per game in the preseason. He’s going to have to play better if he wants the final roster spot. The Celtics need another point guard, but they are not going to settle for one who doesn’t play up to NBA standards.

The final prospect, Kris Joseph, resides in the frontcourt. A second-round draft pick from Syracuse, Joseph plays the small forward position, which means he would back up Paul Pierce and Jeff Green.

The rookie led Syracuse in scoring his senior year, but he’s not a volume scorer. He struggled with being aggressive during the Summer League but still managed to average eight points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

Coach Rivers called Joseph the “biggest surprise” of the summer. However, he hasn’t been able to make the same impact in the preseason. In the two exhibition games, Joseph averaged one point in 5.5 minutes per game.

Although preseason games hold a lot of weight, practices are even more important to Doc Rivers. He told Boston Herald:

“That’s where the real evaluation comes in. Because everyone plays in practice. In games they play different minutes. I try to mix some of those guys with some of the starters, because they don’t get much chance to play with the starters in practice, where if it was a real game they would.”

Of the three players competing for the final roster spot, Dionte Christmas is the clear-cut favorite. He has shown the most promise and best all-around game. Even though he’s not playing significant minutes in the preseason, he is the most complete player of the three.

Therefore, Christmas will most likely survive the final round of cuts.

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Are Huge Expectations for Jimmy Butler Just a Chicago Bulls Pipe Dream?

 Chicago  No Responses »
Sep 162012
 

Between the knee injury to Derrick Rose that’s elicited wails of despair and an otherwise quiet Bulls offseason that’s invited howls of derision, the Bulls have managed to excessively lower fan expectations heading into 2012-13.

And as a result of sheer loss of manpower (Rose’s 35.3 mpg) and personnel losses (Kyle Korver to the Atlanta Hawks, Ronnie Brewer to the New York Knicks), expectations have leaped for Jimmy Butler, Chicago’s second-year small forward.

Is there any traction to the notion that Butler will respond to an almost certain uptick in minutes by building on his rookie promise, or are fans merely searching for any reason to be excited as they sit through 50 games without Rose?

The signs are optimistic, within reason.

 

Butler has room to grow

On an extremely successful Bulls team in 2011-12, the small forward still made a small mark in spite of being the youngest and least experienced man on the team.

Merely extrapolating Butler’s rookie digits—quadrupling his 8.5 mpg out to per-36 minute numbers—is dangerous business. After all, no one knows how a player so infrequently called upon would have reacted to instead playing three quarters of every game. That said, Butler’s team rankings weren’t bad on a per-36 level:

  • 7.3 offensive rebound percentage (fifth on the team)
  • .144 win shares/48 (sixth)
  • 1.1 steals (tied for sixth)
  • 5.6 rebounds (seventh)
  • 8.7 rebound percentage (seventh)
  • 0.5 blocks (tied for eighth)
  • 1.4 turnovers (third fewest)
  • 2.0 fouls (fourth fewest)

There are also some encouraging numbers that don’t involve rounding Butler up to 36 mpg. His total shooting percentage was fifth on the Bulls, at .526. And while they are team measures, it still doesn’t hurt that Butler’s offensive rating (112) tied Rose for third on the Bulls and his defensive rating (100) tied Luol Deng for seventh.

 

Butler has produced in the past

The small forward has seen just 359 minutes of NBA playing time, giving him little chance to make a pro impact so far.

But at Marquette, where he played three years (and carried a major minutes load for two), he produced 12.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 29.6 minutes per game. For those concerned over Butler’s poor shooting in his rookie year with the Bulls (.405 from the floor and .182 from distance), in college, he hit on .508 of his shots and nailed .383 from the shorter three-point line.

 

Competition for minutes is wide open

Another factor, one that falls outside of Butler’s light minutes load and rookie status in 2011-12, is the fact that Chicago’s chronic underperformance at the 2-spot means that competition for minutes will be more open in 2012-13.

Remember, Butler had no training camp in 2011 to use to show off his wares to Bulls brass; this fall, he will. Richard Hamilton was brought to Chicago specifically to solve the shooting guard conundrum, and he failed (in fact, in spite of 16.4 less minutes per game in 2011-12, Butler finished the season with identical offensive win shares, 0.5, to Hamilton). Marco Belinelli is now a Bull at least in part as Rip insurance and is a supposed long-term option for the team at the 2.

But in the case of both Rip and Marco, Butler will get a chance to steal away minutes from the opening tip of 2012-13.

 

Summer fun 

It hasn’t hurt one bit that Butler wowed during Summer League play in 2012. He was one of 13 players chosen as All-Stars for the circuit, on the strength of 20.8 points on .431 shooting, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists over four games.

Bulls assistant Adrian Griffin, who coached Chicago’s squad, was very pleased with Butler’s development.

“He’s been putting in the time that it takes to succeed in the league, so I wasn’t surprised that he did so well in Las Vegas,” Griffin told Adam Fluck of Bulls.com. “The future is bright for him if he continues with all the hours and this kind of dedication. He’ll have the opportunity to play next year, but it’s going to be up to him as far as how he develops and whether he is truly ready.

“He’s a very talented young player in the league. But in order to help your team, someone has to do what I like to call the dirty work—diving on the floor, hustling, and shutting down the top player on the other team.”

That’s exactly what Butler wants to hear, as he shared with Fluck upon arrival at Summer League.

The small forward admitted he was “tremendously excited” for the opportunity that appeared to be awaiting him with the Bulls in 2012-13.

“This is the time I’ve been waiting on and working toward,” Butler said. “All the time I’ve put in at the gym, now I can let it show. I’ve got to keep working though. I’ll never settle. I just want to keep getting better and better—every game, every practice, every year. So day-in and day-out, I’ll still put in that extra work because there is always somebody out there who is trying to have what you have and wants to be better than you.”

 

The Cons to Butler breaking out in 2012-13

The truth is, for all of Butler’s promise and fans’ willingness to root for him as a true, good-guy underdog, no one knows what he’s capable of in the NBA. His rookie year, truncated as it was and sans training camp, saw him play in just five games for 20 minutes or more.

In not one of those games of substantial minutes did Butler post an above-average game score—an average game score is 10, and Butler averaged just 5.9 over those five games. In more traditional stat parlance, Butler averaged 8.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in his five big-minute games.

Along similar lines, Butler’s Player Efficiency Rating—an all-around stat meant to function differently than the mere aggregation of stats that in part reward a heavy minutes load (ppg, rpg, apg, etc.) by seeing the quality of a player’s time on the floor—was very weak, at 12.5. Only Brewer posted a worse PER for the 2011-12 Bulls, and he’s now cleaned out his locker at the United Center. If Butler’s rookie year was merely compromised by a lack of minutes, it would show up in a PER of 15 or better, indicating extreme promise for 2012-13.

Win shares are another advanced stat that, like PER, aim to measure the all-around prowess of a player. While win shares are an aggregating stat (the more you play, the easier it is to pile ’em up), Butler’s 0.6 defensive win shares topped only Brian Scalabrine and Mike James on the 2011-12 Bulls—and the latter two players saw just half of Butler’s minutes. For a potential defensive stopper of the future, as Butler is regarded, that’s not a promising tally.

Butler also failed to see any time at all of substance in the playoffs vs. the Philadelphia 76ers. Granted, rotations tighten in the postseason, and Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau is unlikely to grace a rookie with too many playoff minutes on principle alone. But even injuries to Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson didn‘t change Butler’s case.

While it’s important not to read too much into Butler’s postseason minutes, conversely, if the rookie had been building a case for a bigger minutes load, that load would have logically extended to at least spot time in the playoffs. Thus, in the coaching staff’s eyes, Butler didn’t build any momentum over the course of the season.

Finally, while no self-respecting GM would hand over the keys to a player entering his second season and Butler is more small forward than shooting guard, the arrival of Belinelli means that Butler may see an even bigger squeeze for minutes in 2012-13.

Sure, Korver and Brewer are gone, but if Hamilton and Belinelli eat up all of the 2-guard time—not a stretch of the imagination at all—that leaves 10 minutes of scrap time for Butler as he backs Luol the iron man. A mere replay of his rookie-year internship won’t do much toward answering the question of whether Butler can play at the NBA level.

 

Conclusion: Temper enthusiasm

Yes, Bulls fans are desperate to embrace any positives, heading into 2012-13 without Rose and with their team’s brass possibly abandoning hope for the next season or two. However, to place that all on the shoulders of a low first-rounder in just his second season is beyond overenthusiastic.

That said, Butler will have an opportunity in 2012-13 he’s never given, certainly not in the hubbub to collect the club together post-lockout, December 2011. A full training camp—layered atop a solid rookie season and a spectacular Summer League—will give the sophomore every shot at stealing minutes from the Chicago vets.

Butler will need to prove he has some shooting touch to see any real minutes—say 15-plus—over the course of the early season. It’s a given that he can defend and board. His hustle points, particularly in the area of offensive rebounding work, definitely impress.

To turn Thibodeau’s head, Butler needs to continue to play smart when on the floor and nudge his shooting closer to .450. Combine that with any slacking or injury from Rip, Belinelli, and even Deng, and Butler could see his time shoot skyward in the coming season.

Temper expectations, Bulls fans. Butler is due for a tidy step forward in 2012-13, but only by stepping up the offensive side of his game will the huge expectations everyone is eager to load him up with prove warranted for his third year and beyond.

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Are the Chicago Bulls Falling Behind the Changing Times?

 Chicago  No Responses »
Sep 032012
 

The explosion of player hyphenates—guys able to master more than one position—is a trend that seemingly has cut across all sports, including the NBA.

Unfortunately for the Chicago Bulls, the changing times are passing them by, particularly with exquisite combo guard Derrick Rose missing a huge chunk of the upcoming 2012-13 season. Few of the club’s healthy players boast positional flexibility, the sort of thing that will help the Bulls battle through injury over the course of the season, not to mention any nasty matchups and foul trouble that could plague the club on a a game-to-game basis.

You’d think the Toros were hitting the court in canvas Chuck Taylors and buzz cuts with the traditional look they’ll be throwing down sans Rose. Take a look at the inflexibility of the roster:

Point guards: Kirk Hinrich, Marquis Teague

Shooting guards: Marco Belinelli, Richard Hamilton, Nate Robinson

Small forwards: Luol Deng

Power forwards: Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Vladimir Radmanovic

Centers: Nazr Mohammed, Joakim Noah

The only true hyphenate on the club? Second-year swingman Jimmy Butler, who impressed enough in Summer League that he’s got a crack at backing up Deng at the 3. Don’t spend those 10 mpg all in one spot, Jimmy.

With Rose out, the Bulls knocked favorite son Hinrich over with a heavy bag of cash to come back into the fold. Part of the justification of Hinrich’s two-year (gasp), $8 million (double-gasp) deal was that he would fill a combo guard role, deftly sliding over to the 2 when Rose returns. But at 31 and still just 6-3 with limited hops, how many 2s will Hinrich be able to neutralize, grit and spit and heart and sweat aside?

Even in intrasquad games, Hinrich will be too short to stop Belinelli and too slow to roll Robinson. Hinrich should be able to handle fellow graybeard Rip Hamilton, so that’s one of three shooting guards on a team that’s aching for a single star at the 2. That’s beyond unconvincing; Hinrich’s suited role will be backing Rose and emergency work at the 2, no more.

Teague, for all his offensive bravado, is a raw rookie who will never have the size or strength to guard NBA 2s.

Can Belinelli swing to small forward and rest Deng? The Bulls may have been tickled to find Kyle Korver Lite at a bargain-basement price, but the paesan is nearly as reedy as Hamilton, so good luck tussling with any major-league forward in the paint.

None of the beefy Bulls down low can spell Deng at the 3, either. Gibson has the tenacity to take on his share of 3s, but he’s yet to warm to open-court defense the way, say, a Dennis Rodman did. Going big with Taj at small forward is an emergency measure only.

Radmanovic has skills and court sense that scream small forward, but size and hops that suggest…well…the inactive list?

If not for the dearth of depth at center, Noah would certainly slide down to the 4 and be a terrific hyphenate on the 2012-13 Bulls. But when the only other center on the roster is Mohammed, who might give you 10 good minutes on the right night, don’t expect Noah anywhere but in the middle all year long.

Bulls opponents in most cases are playing at a talent disadvantage even when Chicago is sans Rose, so the different mixes of matchups could ease the inflexibility of the roster. For example, Boozer or Gibson could easily man center when a team goes small against the Bulls. Conversely, Captain Kirk could see time at the 2 with impunity when an opponent runs a small backcourt against Chicago.

But in straight-up battles against the mettle of the Eastern Conference, Chicago is at a flexibility disadvantage. The Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers boast four hyphenate players, the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic three, and the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks two—and in each case, there is additional, “unofficial” flexibility than that indicated by the official roster lists.

What’s interesting is that Chicago’s roster inflexibility flies in the face of its proud championship years. It’s not apocryphal that Michael Jordan manned the point for the Bulls—he not only did, but ran off a string of triple-doubles from the 1.

Scottie Pippen was a famed “point forward,” not only the captain of the defense but, at 6-9, the true point guard on the floor. Rodman might as well have played the “zero-spot” on offense but guarded 1s up to 5s on defense, handily. The supposedly subpar big men that manned some center for six titles often could occupy power forward as well: Stacey King, Horace Grant, Scott Williams, Bill Wennington, and Bison Dele.

Of course, the cream of the East, the Miami Heat, looks to open the season just as positionally locked as the Bulls, with swingman James Jones and his 13 mpg as their sole hyphenate. But then, when guys like Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Ray Allen and Chris Bosh are the inflexibly-positioned players at crunch time, there might be a little less cause for concern.

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Knicks Rumors: New York Signs J.R.’s Brother Chris Smith Following Summer League

 New York  No Responses »
Aug 012012
 

With one more roster space left to fill, it appears the New York Knicks have gone in a surprising direction, signing Chris Smith, brother of J.R., following his invitation to the Las Vegas Summer League last month.

According to a Tweet from the former Louisville Cardinal, the guard officially put pen to paper today, with a photo attached as evidence.

The biggest question Knicks fans will be asking is whether or not the contract is guaranteed, because if it is they likely won’t be making` any more moves this offseason.

With Smith included, the Knicks now have 15 players on their roster, and the only way they could add another is by cutting someone, with the most likely candidates being Summer League Invitees Chris Copeland, James White and Smith himself.

After a shocking performance in the Summer League, White is the player that should be most worried about making the final cut, especially considering that the Knicks supposedly have a chance of signing Josh Howard—another small forward.

Speaking of unimpressive displays in Summer League, Smith only averaged 5.2 points, 2 rebounds and 1.4 assists in Vegas, so it’s hard to believe that his signing was based purely on what he showed the Knicks last month.

Rather, Smith’s signing is probably linked to J.R. taking a pay-cut to stay in New York, with a contract for his younger brother coming as part of the deal.

Whatever the reason for his signing, Smith will not have a big role on this team, and when everyone’s healthy he’ll be the fourth shooting guard on the depth chart.

What this signing does indicate, though, is that Copeland is set for a relatively big bench role on this team, as he remains the only power forward on the roster other than Amar’e Stoudemire.

That final spot on the roster could have been used to bring in another big man, but now that it’s gone it will be between Copeland and Kurt Thomas as to who gets minutes behind Stoudemire.

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Jeff Green Still Without Official Deal While Celtics Announce Four Signings

 Boston  No Responses »
Aug 012012
 

The Boston Celtics have had quite a successful free-agency period, which helped to restore depth to a roster decimated by injury at season’s end. Chris Forsberg of ESPN reports that the signings of Keyon Dooling, Jason Collins, Jamar Smith and Dionte Christmas have formally been announced.

There remains only one player, Jeff Green, who has yet to finalize the details of his contract for the upcoming season.

Keyon Dooling never quite lived up to expectations last season as the backup point guard for the team. However, the move does provide a true reserve for Rajon Rondo. Dooling averaged four points per game on 40.5 percent shooting, as well as 1.1 assists over 14.4 minutes per game.

According to Ben Watanabe of NESN, Dooling was a tremendous locker room influence and an emotional leader that helped to keep the team performing at their best. The C’s likely brought Dooling back in order to be a stabilizing force for many of the younger players. He’ll also provide an emotional spark that will greatly improve team chemistry and hold the whole team accountable.

Jason Collins isn’t going to meet the C’s needs as a backup center, as he only averaged 1.3 points and 1.6 rebounds in 10 minutes per game. However, he does add depth and is a legitimate seven-footer that can defend the low post extremely well. He is likely to see the court more at the beginning of the year, before Chris Wilcox returns. After that, Collins will likely see his minutes dwindle due to his inability to score or rebound. But he’ll still be useful in matchups with powerful low-post centers.

Jamar Smith and Dionte Christmas both have partially guaranteed contracts and will likely be competing to get the final spot on the Celtics’ roster. Christmas had a breakout Summer League, averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, which likely gave the Celtics the confidence to move E’Twaun Moore for Courtney Lee.

Smith had a strong summer league as well, and was a force overseas, where he averaged 14.8 points and 2.5 assists for BK Prostov last year.

Because both Smith and Christmas are guards, Kris Joseph will likely make the final roster while they compete for the last spot. Based on their Summer League performances, Christmas is the clear favorite over Smith to make the team. Christmas showed a greater ability to run the offense and develop in a short period of time.

As long as Christmas continues to show the promise and drive he played with over the last month, he is likely to make the team and may even find his way into the rotation.

According to A. Sherrod Blakely of Comcast Sports Net, the Celtics have yet to work through the remaining details of the deal that would bring Jeff Green back to Boston. Blakely states that Danny Ainge is confident an agreement will be reached, but no details on the holdup have been discussed publicly. Gary Washburn of Boston.com reports that Greens’ agent, David Falk, is confident they will soon work out the remaining details of the four-year, $36 million framework the team and his client agreed to earlier this month.

Jeff Green missed all of last season due to a surgery he needed to correct an aortic aneurysm found by the Celtics’ doctors. It is likely the two sides are trying to work through how much the first year of Green’s deal will be, as the Celtics are up against the luxury tax after signing of Jason Terry to the full mid-level exception.

They may also be trying to leave enough room to allow for the signing of an additional player during the season. I imagine a deal will be reached in the next week or two, and the Boston Celtics will finish out their roster by adding the very promising and young Jeff Green.

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5 Available Free-Agent Summer League Standouts New York Knicks Should Target

 New York  No Responses »
Jul 302012
 

The New York Knicks will be looking to sign a summer league standout or two to fill out their roster for next season. 

The Knicks are over the cap and already used their mid-level exception to sign Jason Kidd.

This means the only deals they are able to sign now are for players who are willing to accept the league minimum contracts.

Currently, the Knicks have seven players on their roster that can play the guard position: Raymond Felton, Jason Kidd, Pablo Prigioni, J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Ronnie Brewer and James White. 

The Knicks need to add a few big men to their team who can compete for one of the final roster spots in training camp.

Here are five available free agents the Knicks should target who played great in the Summer League this year. 

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Chicago Bulls Rumors: 5 Available Free Agent Summer League Standouts to Target

 Chicago  No Responses »
Jul 292012
 

Summer League play is over, and now it is time for the Chicago Bulls to decide whether to target some new players for the season roster.

After an offseason when the team lost Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer, C.J. Watson and Omer Asik, Chicago really needs some cheap replacements to fill out its once plentiful bench.  In particular, Chicago needs a backcourt scorer, a backup small forward, a stellar shooter, and a defensive frontcourt player.  

Here is a list of five Summer League standouts the Bulls should target and sign.  

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NBA Free Agency: Philadelphia 76ers Sign Undrafted Guard Maalik Wayns

 Philadelphia  No Responses »
Jul 292012
 

They say homecomings are sweet, but what happens next is even sweeter.

Well, Maalik Wayns, a former player for both Roman Catholic and Villanova, is about to find out if that is true. The undrafted guard is reportedly set to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers and stay in the city he’s played in his entire life.

Wayns recently tweeted the following:

Dreams do come true never let somebody tell you what you can’t be or where u can’t go #tearsofjoy #Amen

— Maalik Wayns (@MaalikWayns2) July 27, 2012

In his junior season at ‘Nova, Wayns averaged 17.6 points, 4.6 assists and one steal per game while shooting over 41 percent from the field. He was advised to stay on for his senior season, but decided to enter the 2012 NBA draft and risk not being taken late in the second round.

Like fellow Philadelphia product Scoop Jardine, Wayns wasn’t picked up by any team and was instead worked out by both the Golden State Warriors and Orlando Magic in the Orlando summer league.

If the reports are true, Wayns will be under the same contract as Lavoy Allen, which means he will be on the team, whether in the NBA or in the D-League, for at least one year while making $473,604.

The Sixers suffered a hit in the backcourt when Xavier Silas was injured during a Summer League game, but quickly responded by signing veteran Royal Ivey to mentor and backup starter Jrue Holiday. With most of the active roster already decided, Wayns will have to beat out former Kansas State guard Jacob Pullen if he wants to stay on an NBA roster and avoid being sent to the D-League.

Whatever happens, Wayns’ dream of being signed by an NBA team has been realized. Let’s see what will become of his career back in his hometown.

 

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