When the Celtics sent Rajon Rondo to the Mavericks, the team added another big man to a front-court rotation that was already crowded. In the four games since Brandan Wright entered the fold, blue-collar power forward Brandon Bass has played just 10.5 minutes per contest.
Even before the trade, Bass was playing less than 20 minutes per game. Still, being the consummate professional that he is, Bass never made any public outcries or did anything that would isolate himself from his teammates. When Brad Stevens has called his number this season, Bass is always ready to contribute.
Why hasn’t the nine-year veteran received much playing time this year? The answer is simple. Bass, who is a free agent at the end of the season, does not factor into the Celtics long-term plans. As Boston continues to rebuild, there is a far greater emphasis on the development of Kelly Olynyk and Jared Sullinger than there is on carving out minutes for Bass.
Furthermore, Bass’ trade value is not high enough to land the Celtics a first-round draft pick. Playing him 25-30 minutes a night will not change that. This can be quite frustrating for a player who is looking to increase his value entering free agency.
So, when the media peppered Bass with questions about his lack of playing time, it was only natural that he revealed how he truly feels about his situation.
“It doesn’t affect my approach. I continue to work hard, I continue to improve every day. So it’s the same,” Bass explained to the media following Monday’s practice. When asked another question along these lines, he added, “I think it’s my job to control what I can control and what I can control is how hard I work and how much I improve every day.”
So far, so good. Bass was continuing to tow the company line and say all the right things. But that does not make for an entertaining story. And so, the media continued to ask Bass about how he feels about his lack of playing time. Finally, he opened up.
“If I lived like a man under a rock, y’all would know about it,” Bass said. “I would express myself in a way such that a man that lives under a rock. But since I don’t live like that, I know better.
“I just control what I can control, and just try to look at everything as a blessing. Because this is my 10th season, I’ve seen a lot. Some people don’t even get to go through what I’ve gone through in my career. You’ve got to look at it like finding something good out of everything.”
So, while this is admittedly a frustrating experience for Bass, what else can he do besides stay positive? Boston could only land a first-round pick if it packaged Bass with another player and even that might not be enough to tempt a team into surrendering its pick.
The Celtics best move is probably to hold onto Bass and recoup his $6.9 million in cap space in the offseason. But for a player who prides himself on working hard and improving every day, riding the pine for the next four months is not exactly an enticing proposition.
“No, you don’t anticipate nothing like this, man. You anticipate constantly growing every day and everybody seeing the growth.”
Bass’ head coach also acknowledged the difficulty of the situation. “Bass has played less since the trade, and he’s been phenomenal,” Stevens said. “And you see now, he comes to work, he does the same thing every single day. It’s a challenge, but we try to be as proactive as we can.”
For a player who prides himself on working hard and staying positive, there is even something to be gained from an experience as trying as this one.
“It has helped me. I would just say that in a lot of different ways, on the court, off the court, just to face adversity and keep going. because a lot of people just lay down in cases like this. That just ain’t me.”