Which David Lee is in Boston?

When the Boston Celtics acquired David Lee back on July 27th, I had initially the same reaction a lot of you may have shared alongside of me. David is a proven NBA veteran, with All Star years behind him (no, he literally made two all-star games), and a role to play in a young team learning its identity with every passing quarter.

He can mentor guys like Amir Johnson and Jared Sullener, teach them to to run the high post in winning offenses. He can advise the inexperienced Marcus Smart on the intangibles that come along with becoming a leader. He can even keep Isaiah Thomas in check, advising him on proper times to take over the game.

Basically, what I am saying is David Lee is just as valuable on the court, as he may be off of it. That article fantastically describes what I initially felt, and I am sure you all felt some form of it. In retrospect, I think I missed the picture of the David Lee signing entirely.

I’m here, and I might sound crazy, but David Lee could be turning into the “New-Old David Lee” this season, and he could return to his first all-star game since the 2012-2013 season.

May 23, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Golden State Warriors forward David Lee (10) looks to drive as Houston Rockets guard Nick Johnson (3) defends during the game in game three of the Western Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Breaking down the statistics of this well-traveled big man was not easy. There are a lot of different systems he played in, some to his suiting, and others not. He played the role of go-to guy, as clearly demonstrated in his 2011-2012 season usage rating of 26.0 (highest of his career). He also took a back seat on last seasons NBA Championship winning Warriors, with a 19.6 Usage Rate, his lowest since 2008. He has played every role, for every type of team. There are no two greater ends to this spectrum that say he was an All-Star for the Knicks, and a player off the bench for the Warriors.

Now, using usage rates alone, you can see that his BEST seasons (and it isn’t even really close) came in 2009-2010, when he averaged a usage rate of 23.8, and in 2012-2013, when that same average was a very similar 23.2.

Those, coincidentally, were his two all star seasons. In 2009-2010 he was a member of a garbage Knicks team that won 29 games. However, that 2012-2013 season has a lot of similar pieces to this season’s Boston Celtics team.

(ALRIGHT ALRIGHT, I won’t try and convince you Boston has a backcourt ala that Warriors team, but hear me out for a few more seconds.)

That Warriors team was guard heavy to say the least. David Lee was the only true post position player to register more than 2,000 minutes logged (he played in 2,907), with the next player being Carl Landry (CARL LANDRY) with greater than a thousand fewer minutes.

Brad Stevens offense looks to use the same amount of David Lee as that team did. He has spoken repeatedly about David Lee’s fit into his offensive scheme, and the post passing is a valuable asset to every single modern-NBA offense.

Is it too much to ask a player at 32 to recreate his season he had at 29? I do not believe so. David Lee played 4 years of college basketball for the University of Florida, which I believe extends his peak performance years out another 2 or 3 from other NBA players from that draft class. That class, by the way, the same one as Chris Paul, Monta Ellis, and Amir Johnson. Players we often regard as in the peak of their career arc right now.

David Lee averaged 18.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game in route to his second all star game appearance in 2013. That is only 2 years ago.

If Danny Ainge was able to acquire the “New-Old” David Lee for essentially Gerald Wallace’s contract, that could be just the piece of shrewd star power the Celtics needed to get over the hump into NBA elitism and contender status.

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