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Yesterdays Poll Results: In a land slide- “Rajon Rondo will finish the year averaging a double-double because his assist total will rise as the season progresses.”

Since returning to the Celtics lineup, Glen Davis has not been as much of a presence as he was late last year. We kind of expected him to come back from a serious thumb injury, and put up double digit scoring off the bench. He has clearly not been that yet, but is slowly but surely beginning to look more and more comfortable on the court. He is not as worried about hurting his finger, as he was the first few weeks after coming back. It is very debatable that Shelden Williams in the current situation may provide more for the team now, than Baby is. At the same time, Davis would not be able to get back into the groove of things, and in the long run would have more difficulty being that great big guy off the bench we expected him to be. That leads us to todays question:

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With the same type of injury (thumb) and the same length of time away from the game (6-8 weeks) it would only be appropriate for them to be staggered so we never have a complete lineup until February, which we will hopefully have. Well I guess that isn’t too bad of a deal. It sure would be hard to have both great bench players out of the lineup for almost 2 months. Therefore, for the first give or take, I would give up having them both out of the lineup for 6-8 weeks to have 1 out for 6-8 weeks followed by the next (aka the situation the Celtics are currently in). It would be hard for the Celtics to cover the backup position of a big and a guard. The bench would be very shaken up. The C’s think it is tough playing Shelden and Scal extensive minutes, just imagine Shelden and Scal, plus all of the combo’s there could be to fill Daniels time. With that, the bench we hoped to lift us, would instead likely bring us down.

GIve or Take- Big Baby being out for the 6-8 weeks he was out, or exchange them with the 6-8 Daniels will be out? This is a little unfair, as we have been able to see what the Celtics can do without Glen through this portion of the schedule. However, it is not as easy of a decision as it may seem. We have to look forward. Do we need bigs off the bench agaisnt these teams we are about to play, or guards / small forwards? I would have to say we need smaller players, instead of a power forward in Glen Davis. Therefore, I would give up Glen Davis’ early season injury, for him to instead, take the time off Daniels is about to. In these upcoming couple of months, the Celtics face a lot of teams that are quicker and play up tempo games. The Suns, Hawks, and Mavs are quicker teams that use their guards and perimeter game well. The Magic have big men, but we have the starting lineup, as well as backups (without Davis) who stay right with them perfectly. Orlando beats us with their jump shooting game. So for these games that Marquis is going to miss, I would rather he be in, and Baby out for this portion.

Obviously I would rather have neither of them out. I know the Celtics are 17-4 without Davis and with Daniels. The thing is, I think they could still be that if the players flip flopped the games they missed. With that, it is more crucial for THESE games in the next couple months, that the C’s to have a reliable back up guard-forward, than it is for a big player. Really though, I dont think it too much matters. The Celtics are so well rounded that they can put together a lineup on any night to compete with the different opponents who are good at different things. I just think it would be easier if the players missed the games opposite to the ones they are actually missing. It is unfortunate either player has to miss any time.  

Glen Davis (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

Marquis Daniels (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

What I see, is a much different picture. Of everything negative that has happened, the Celtics have arrived at a positive outcome. First things first, Kevin Garnett injuring his knee last year. This was obviously a tragic story that diminished the C’s chances of going far into the playoffs. What did the Celtics get though? Well Big Baby got starters minutes and improved his game. Then Perkins was forced to become more of a scorer to pick up for some of KG’s lost points. Look at Kendrick Perkins game now, and tell me he has not improved on offense. He is much less tentative, and looks at ease whenever he gets the ball with a chance to make a move.

Now as for Big Baby- we haven’t even thought about him. As fans we have somewhat forgot that the team that is out there right now is not the team that will be there for the remainder of the season. Davis’ miscues just before the season started should bring him back fired up and ready to prove himself. Not only that, he has been working on his game from his left hand, so he will have a new arsenal to bring to the court. A second layer has been added to how this should help the team as Shelden Williams has gotten good playing time, and is slowly but surely learning his role while in the game. This will give Davis someone to compete with for a spot in the rotation, which in turn will only make both players better. In reality, Davis is the better player, thus will get the minutes, but it still should give both players the extra motivation if they didn’t have it already.

 Kevin Garnett’s knee injury did affect himself, and his ability on the team as well (as weird as that may sound-(sarcasm)). He is, however, at just the right time finding his stroke on his jumper, and getting his stamina up to where it should be to play an NBA season. He has been more aggressive, and is getting the flow back down of the game as you can tell with his defensive rotations that were missing to begin the season. He is also regaining chemistry with the starting 5 and is very noticeable with his assist total rising. This is all just in time for the Celtics road heavy December.

Bring back Baby in the near future to make the bench deeper,  have KG getting back to form, Ray finding his range that everyone was worried about, Perkins is now an offensive threat, Pierce is playing lights out, and Rondo… I didn’t even mention Rondo. Number 9 is worry free for a long time. With his new contract, we no longer have to worry about him playing for himself, trying to get a bigger contract. It is all said and done, now all he has to do is play basketball.

With allllll of the things you can think of to begin this season, the team is still 14-4. Are you kidding me? This season is good so far, but I have a feeling there are much better things in store. With the whole team healthy, and playing at their full potential, this team has the feeling they are destined to go very far.

Perkins (Photo by Steve Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)

KG (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)