Buftex Posted June 11, 2008 Author Share Posted June 11, 2008 Yes, agreed about Doc...Hilarious that the media and Celtics fans thought he was a TOTAL buffoon three weeks ago when they were struggling with Atlanta, but apparently he "got smarter" in the last 20 days as his team took a 2-0 lead in the Finals. Just like he was the absolute worst coach last year when the Celtics won 15 games, and he's Coach of the Year now when they have three Hall of Famers on their roster. People are so short-sighted. Phil is a good coach, if only for two things: His ability to keep his MEGA stars happy (every team has stars, but Phil has dealt with some players who have been sports and cultural phenomenons) and his ability to maximize the output and energy of mid-tier players that are CRUCIAL to a championship team. It's no conincidence that Lamar Odom is playing the best ball of his life with the Lakers (not yet in this series though.) Same for Rodman, Ron Harper, etc. with the Bulls. I think most people who have followed the Celtics, year after year (as difficult as it has been) knew that what Doc did the last few seasons in Boston, was not necessarily reflective of what kind of coach he was capable of being. This team has been talent deficient for years, in part from poor drafting, and in part, because of not having enough patience with young players. My biggest fear was that Danny Ainge would fire Doc before the season, and take over himself. If Doc Rivers made any mistake in this years playoffs, especially in the first two rounds, it was not playing his bench guys enough. He wasn't sure he could trust them. He seemed to learn the lesson in time to beat Detroit. In the NBA especially, I think a coach is only as good as his players are. You have twelve guys on your team, and only 8 of them will likely play much. If you don't have at least two great players, you aren't going to go far. Ainge did a good job of building this Celtics team, but he also got lucky that Allen and Garnett were both available. You won't likely find three vets of the caliber of Garnett, Allen and Pierce, who are all very team oriented. You get the feeling from everything you see and hear, these guys genuinely like eachother, and like playing together. That rubs off on the bench guys. That has got to help Doc Rivers a lot. I judge Rivers by how much the young guys progress. He has done a nice job with Rondo, a kid who most felt was a marginal point guard, but is blossoming in to a top tier guard. Doc has been really patient with him the last two seasons, and it is paying off. Rondo isn't great yet, but he is getting better by the week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
***PetrinoInAlbany*** Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Add me to the "I hate Kobe" list. I used to laugh out loud when I'd be driving in to work in the morning listening to the short version of the sports on Albany morning news radio, and there was almost always some version of "... and in LA, Kobe Bryant scored 46 points as the Lakers lost to the Mavs, 108 - 101." He's a selfish player. Yes, he's as talented as all get-up-and-go. I admit that. But so is T.O. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffOrange Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Tex I don't know anyone else who follows the C's that doesn't think Doc is a bad coach. Phil is a good coach, if only for two things: His ability to keep his MEGA stars happy (every team has stars, but Phil has dealt with some players who have been sports and cultural phenomenons) and his ability to maximize the output and energy of mid-tier players that are CRUCIAL to a championship team. It's no conincidence that Lamar Odom is playing the best ball of his life with the Lakers (not yet in this series though.) Same for Rodman, Ron Harper, etc. with the Bulls. The other thing neither him (or Pippen) ever got enough credit for imo was winning 55 games with a Jordanless team where Toni freaking Kukoc was the 2nd best player (and they were screwed vs. the Knicks in the 2nd round). As for his whining antics, I can understand why it's annoying for opposing fans. I also think it's pretty obvious that he knows what he's saying is 90% gibberish - it's just intentionally agitating head games (w/ both the officials and the opponent) and it's frankly not much different than what Lindy Ruff does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 12, 2008 Author Share Posted June 12, 2008 Tex I don't know anyone else who follows the C's that doesn't think Doc is a bad coach. The other thing neither him (or Pippen) ever got enough credit for imo was winning 55 games with a Jordanless team where Toni freaking Kukoc was the 2nd best player (and they were screwed vs. the Knicks in the 2nd round). As for his whining antics, I can understand why it's annoying for opposing fans. I also think it's pretty obvious that he knows what he's saying is 90% gibberish - it's just intentionally agitating head games (w/ both the officials and the opponent) and it's frankly not much different than what Lindy Ruff does. Sorry, didn't mean to come off like I was discreting Phil Jackson. The guy obviously knows what he is doing. My point was, people say that Doc is a bad coach, but he has never had any real talent to coach. Now, this year, he does, and he is 2 games away from a championship. How do you judge an NBA coach? People always said KC Jones was a rotten coach too...but he won a couple championships. Phil has won a bunch, but only when he had at least one of the best players in the NBA players on his roster. You can give him credit for winning 55 games with Pippen (I agree that Pippen is often overlooked), but I think he might deserve some of the blame for the Lakers not winning more championships than they did. Personaly, I think the guy (Jackson) is a little too smug for his own good, and he added a lot of fuel to the Kobe and Shaq drama that kind of ruined what should have been an even greater team. The comparison of Lindy and Phils' tactics in dealing with the refs, via the press is a good one. I like Ruff a lot, but there have been a few times over the years, where I thought he should just keep his mouth shut. There is a point where sticking up and fighting for your team turns into whining and excuse making. One difference between the two men though, Ruff is more emotional with his whining...Phil is just smug as hell. The guys ego is massive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EZC-Boston Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 BUMP - Things are going fantastic so far, glad this is the one game I picked to actually sit down and watch. GO KOBE! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongLiveRalph Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 BUMP - Things are going fantastic so far, glad this is the one game I picked to actually sit down and watch. GO KOBE! Did they say "Largest 1st quarter lead in NBA Finals history"? Love Odom's game when he's playing with confidence. He can be such a mismatch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Love Odom's game when he's playing with confidence. He can be such a mismatch. That would be former URI Runnin' Ram Lamar Odom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 BUMP - Things are going fantastic so far, glad this is the one game I picked to actually sit down and watch. GO KOBE! How come it got so quiet in this thread all of a sudden? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-Gun10 Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 This is a really good game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajzepp Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 This is a really good game. I agree...Celts are growing as a team right before our eyes. James Posey is the new Robert Horry! The dude is CLUTCH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ofiba Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Wow. What a comeback. I hate the Celtics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills44 Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Nice choke, Zen Master. Is he going to whine about the refs again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock Sniffer Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Wow. What a comeback. I hate the Celtics. It is unwatchable. I hate all Boston sports and I hate rapists. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taterhill Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 BUMP - Things are going fantastic so far, glad this is the one game I picked to actually sit down and watch. GO KOBE! You truly are a mush Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajzepp Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 I hate rapists. Especially rapists who are overrated in terms of their "greatness". Somewhere, Shaq is staring at his Miami NBA ring and laughing his ass off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills44 Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 I agree...Celts are growing as a team right before our eyes. James Posey is the new Robert Horry! The dude is CLUTCH. Posey is the new "Big Game James" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodBye Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 YAY! BEAT L.A.! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted June 13, 2008 Author Share Posted June 13, 2008 Wow..that was an amazing game...the Celtics are clearly the better team. Doc Rivers should be shutting up his critics after this game. He makes some crazy substitutions at times, but his half time adjustments have been money all playoffs. Just listened to Phil Jackson's post game comments. He was uncharacteristically gracious in this loss. I think he knows his team is overmathced. Sasha Vuyacic, the toast of the beautiful people just 48 hrs ago, will likely go down as the goat of this series. He was friggin awful tonight, defensively...Pal Gasol and Lamar Odom as well. Even at their best, they are Dirk Nowitski ultra-lite. My enduring image of this game, the greatest comeback in finals history: Sasha Vujacic trying to trip Ray Allen while laying on the ground...Mark Jackson, the color guy said "that was a scissor move"...but it sounded like he said "that was a sissy move"...more accurate! Then, the game clincher, the over the hill Ray Allen going coast to coast through the Lakers Europeon cheese defense, for as an easy a lay-up you will ever see in a 3 pt game, in the final 30 seconds...Sasha tries to hand check him as Allen blows by him, and gets spun around. The "great" Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom just stand there, under the net, wathching as Allen, in effect, ices the game, and their championship asperations....and finally, Sasha on the bench, crying... For whoever it was who said the Lakers would come back and win this series, after game 2, because they "have more heart" than the Celtics...guess again! This Celtics team is awesome! They aren't likely to be contending for championships for the years to come, but the team is full of good guys, who play hard. I am glad to see it paying dividends. I might have to light a cigar, when they sew this thing up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajzepp Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 For whoever it was who said the Lakers would come back and win this series, after game 2, because they "have more heart" than the Celtics...guess again! Pretty sure that was KDinCT who said that...nice GUESS there, KD! Silly boy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fan in San Diego Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Gasol may single handedly lost this game for the Lakers. Why is he in the NBA? He can't play defense and can't shoot worth sh--. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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