Isaiah Thomas watch

[hrdboild]

Isaiah is a terrific scorer. I think that's plainly apparent to anyone who watches him play. He's also decent to good at setting up teammates when he wants to. The problem areas are wavering defensive effort (which has only gotten worse as his scoring role increased), high volume of shot attempts, and most significantly that he gets tunnel vision and completely ignores everyone on the team when he decides that it's his turn to get a basket. Unfortunately, this often happens at the end of the 4th quarter when defenses are keyed in and every mistake is magnified. I got tired of watching opposing PGs blow by him for the 25 minutes a game he doesn't think he needs to play hard defense, watching him get caught on picks constantly forcing everyone else to rotate out of position, and watching four players stand around while he took pull up jumper after pull up jumper. There's a limit to how far any team will go with him as the starting PG primarily because he doesn't seem all that concerned with learning anyone else's favorite spots and how to set them up consistently and he's passable at best as a defender. He's a solid rotation player who's ego will only accept top-billing. That's why I didn't mind seeing him go.

Brad Stevens is a good coach though. I think IT will be an important player for Boston and Stevens will get a lot out of him. There will be games when he's the best player on the floor. There will also be games when Celtics fans are pulling their hair out as he dribbles all over the court and shoots them out of the game. Basically he's a 5'9" Kobe Bryant. Ultimately I think he may be too much of a distraction for what he brings you, but it'll certainly be an entertaining ride. Good luck!

 

[Tetsujin]

IT has gone full heroball against the Suns and for the most part tonight, it's working.

 

[kingsboi]

he sure took it to Phoenix in the fourth...good defense played against him and all

 

[Tetsujin]

he sure took it to Phoenix in the fourth...good defense played against him and all

Yeah, there was a drive through like four defenders in the fourth quarter where he went up and under and I'm still trying to figure out how he got the ball to go in.

 

[kingsboi]

how about that step back three versus Bledsoe who is a good wing defender might I add....just one of those nights I suppose

 

[VF21]

how about that step back three versus Bledsoe who is a good wing defender might I add....just one of those nights I suppose

To IT, it's all about revenge...and it's a strong motivator. Not sure why he felt the need to glare at the Suns players - it's not their fault.

 

[Chubbs]

My dad told me don’t be a follower, be a leader," he says. "I’ve been a leader on every team I’ve been on and I will continue to do that. Even more so on this team just because I’m one of the older guys, which is weird. These guys look to me to lead and I’m going to do the best I possibly can. I’ve been in the league four years. When you say ‘vet’ it seems like a guy who’s been in for 10 years. It’s nice because people look at you for answers to things. It’s nice and weird at the same time."

Nice and weird is an accurate description of where the Celtics are right now. Thomas’ play has already helped begin the transition from a highly structured offensive philosophy into more of the pace-and-space method that’s in vogue these days. All of that is fine with Stevens, who has been thrilled with what his new guard brings to the team.

http://www.sbnation.com/2015/3/1/81...ltics-jae-crowder-rebooted-sunday-shootaround

That second paragraph is my vivek signature quote paraphrased, isn't it? Vivek wants to be an innovator. What he is is an imitator.

Interesting we saw IT as a guy to remove to reach pace and space jazz hands basketball, and the celtics see him as the guy to lead them there. Ah, to be in the east, where a team with IT as the best player can actually make the playoffs.

Jerry, maybe you were right. Maybe that shrine will be built to IT in the east. Heck, he could even make the all star team out there if he's given free reign.

 

[Chubbs]

I'm posting this one cause it includes Jerry Reynold's quotes. And quotes from ITs father.

Though he is no longer bound to Isaiah Thomas by their ties to the Sacramento Kings, Jerry Reynolds will always be keenly aware of the point guard’s travels.

The former Kings coach and general manager effortlessly runs through what the Celtics traded to Phoenix for Thomas, and he’s amused.

Leaving Marcus Thornton out of the conversation, Reynolds said, “That future Cleveland pick ain’t going to be Isaiah Thomas. I can tell you that.”

Reynolds, now a TV color analyst for the Kings, is as much a fan of the story as what that story became.

“I saw Isaiah come in here as the 60th pick (in 2011) and nobody expected him to make the team. But from the first day you could see it. This is no 60th pick.

“There were cases where he consistently had to out-play guys to get minutes. The franchise kept bringing guys in to beat him out, but they couldn’t.”

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/...bting_celtics_isaiah_thomas_a_foolhardy_thing

 

[Tetsujin]

I'm posting this one cause it includes Jerry Reynold's quotes. And quotes from ITs father.



http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/...bting_celtics_isaiah_thomas_a_foolhardy_thing

To be fair to everyone involved, Jerry Reynolds has a schoolboy crush on IT as intense as the core of the sun.

 

[mac]

That second paragraph is my vivek signature quote paraphrased, isn't it? Vivek wants to be an innovator. What he is is an imitator.

Interesting we saw IT as a guy to remove to reach pace and space jazz hands basketball, and the celtics see him as the guy to lead them there. Ah, to be in the east, where a team with IT as the best player can actually make the playoffs.

Jerry, maybe you were right. Maybe that shrine will be built to IT in the east. Heck, he could even make the all star team out there if he's given free reign.

We'll wait and see how long before IT is on the trading block again

 

[Chubbs]

We'll wait and see how long before IT is on the trading block again

Indeed. He could get those huge numbers, and the celtics may still be looking to unload him when they quickly realize the effect he has on team chemistry.

Quotes like these, are they true? "Even the players, there’s times when I turn the ball over and they’re like, ‘We’re still behind you. Keep going. We’re going to go as far as you take us.’"

He sure seems confident the team is fine with him being the man. His confidence is odd considering he backs up a rookie. But that's IT being IT.

Time will tell. I don't see a happy ending for a team full of players hoping for IT to take them places. I also find that claim rather dubious.

 

[Padrino]

Indeed. He could get those huge numbers, and the celtics may still be looking to unload him when they quickly realize the effect he has on team chemistry.

Quotes like these, are they true? "Even the players, there’s times when I turn the ball over and they’re like, ‘We’re still behind you. Keep going. We’re going to go as far as you take us.’"

He sure seems confident the team is fine with him being the man. His confidence is odd considering he backs up a rookie. But that's IT being IT.

Time will tell. I don't see a happy ending for a team full of players hoping for IT to take them places. I also find that claim rather dubious.

well, IT benefits from the fact that the celtics are a very young team in which not a single player on the roster can actively lay claim to the title of "the man." in sacramento, thomas was competing for touches first with demarcus cousins and tyreke evans, and then with demarcus cousins and rudy gay. after moving on to phoenix, he was competing for touches with eric bledsoe and goran dragic. in those situations, thomas certainly muddied the pecking order, but in boston, there is no established pecking order. marcus smart is a rookie and kelly olynyk is a sophomore. avery bradley has some veteran experience, but he's only just started to establish himself. thomas is clearly the most gifted scorer on that roster, and while smart is also an alpha personality, he hasn't accomplished anywhere near enough yet to have put his stamp on the team...

honestly, i like thomas on the celtics, particularly if brad stevens is able to justify bringing him off the bench. it's possible that smart and thomas eventually clash, but right now, nothing is at stake. in sacramento, IT was playing for a new contract. in phoenix, IT inadvertently disrupted the guard rotation on a team that expected to be much more than an outside shot at an 8th seed. in boston, what's the worst that could happen? thomas is not in a contract year. marcus smart is in no position to make trade demands a la goran dragic. and the celtics aren't necessarily trying to "win now." danny ainge is just doing danny ainge things; he's quietly making smart moves that neither mortgage the celtics' future nor bankrupt the celtics' competitive chances on any given night. he gives celtics fans an on-court product they can root for as he reshapes the roster. a team like philly is placing all of its chips in the tanking basket, and their hemorrhaging fans in the process. it may work out for them in the end (2019? 2022? 2025? who the eff knows?), but it can also backfire in dramatic fashion. the celtics are similarly asset-rich, but they have more front office flexibility. they're not tied to a long-term plan, which i admire...

ainge is an opportunist, and if he's ready to cash in his chips in the coming offseason to "win now," he will, or if he wants to play his hand a bit farther down the road, when he has a better sense of what his young players (and his bevy of eventual draft picks) will become, he'll do that instead. one gets the sense that he's not married to any strategy that he can't adjust as he goes. but one doesn't get the sense that a guy like sam hinkie will sell off his current assets for anything other than future assets. hinkie's either going to be proof that the super-tank is a viable strategy for building a contender, or he's going to drown with that ship as it plummets as deeply into the basement of the eastern conference as it can go. if either scenario occurs, danny ainge will still be pulling the rug from underneath less savvy gm's, and he'll have all the job security in the world as he does it...

 

[The_Jamal]

Yea, Celtics are already looking to trade IT off his Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

You guys make me laugh.

 

[mac]

Yea, Celtics are already looking to trade IT off his Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

You guys make me laugh.

Whoever said they are already looking to trade IT?

 

[PHXSUNSFAN]

Looks like IT got in the playoffs before either the Suns or Kings did. It's the East but still

 

[jcwkings]

Well our team sure can use IT, making the same as Landry and JT to boot lol. Give me 10 IT's who play with a scowl, constantly going for the throat over guys like Ben or Nik who shy away at the first sign of resistance.

 

[jcwkings]

Its looking like both IT and Tyreke are going to make the playoffs before us(both making major contributions towards each teams respective push as well). Yet we gave both of them away for a sack of garbage(more so IT).

 

[Padrino]

Its looking like both IT and Tyreke are going to make the playoffs before us(both making major contributions towards each teams respective push as well). Yet we gave both of them away for a sack of garbage(more so IT).

indeed. no matter where you may have landed in the tyreke evans and isaiah thomas debates of the last few seasons, it has always been crucial that the kings maximized the value of their young assets, particularly given the lack of talent on the roster that the new regime inherited. setting aside PDA's more recent blunders, the following strike me as firable offenses in aggregate: 1) he outbid himself to overpay carl effing landry, 2) he bled talent in exchanging tyreke for greivis vasquez in s&t, 3) he flat-out waived a useful backup center in robin lopez as part of the evans s&t (btw, the kings are still without a true backup for demarcus), and 4) he got nothing but scraps in return for IT in s&t. as someone who has been lauded for his ability to see several steps ahead, these moves display a stunning lack of foresight on the part of pete d'alessandro. talent matters above just about everything else in this league, and as the kings' gm, he's mostly just let it slip through his fingers...

 

[Capt. Factorial]

3) he flat-out waived a useful backup center in robin lopez as part of the evans s&t (btw, the kings are still without a true backup for demarcus)

For accuracy, he did not waive Robin Lopez. Though he could have acquired Lopez, he instead decided to engineer the Tyreke trade into a three-team deal that sent Lopez to Portland in exchange for a future second-round pick swap.

The effect is nearly the same as having waived Lopez (though without having to actually pay Lopez' salary, which is a major detail) but the mechanism was different.

 

[jcwkings]

IT named Eastern Conference Player of the week.

 

[jcwkings]

Imagine how many more free throws this team would average(already one of the tops in the league) if we had kept IT. He is a master at drawing contact. Already having the biggest foul magnet in Cousins, IT would live on the line.

 

[Big Cuz 15]

loving the celtics. they're really scrappy.

 

[Kingster]

Jeff Van Gundy: "Getting Isaiah Thomas (for the Celtics) was a masterwork of genius."

LOL.

 

[jcwkings]

This Celtics team kind of emodies the personality of IT, they are just playing scrappy overlooking convention that the script says they will just lay down like dogs.

 

[Big Cuz 15]

Imagine how many more free throws this team would average(already one of the tops in the league) if we had kept IT. He is a master at drawing contact. Already having the biggest foul magnet in Cousins, IT would live on the line.

imagine having a more fractured locker room. he wasn't willing to accept the 6th man role here. took him being moved 2x to really embrace it.

 

[Kingster]

indeed. no matter where you may have landed in the tyreke evans and isaiah thomas debates of the last few seasons, it has always been crucial that the kings maximized the value of their young assets, particularly given the lack of talent on the roster that the new regime inherited. setting aside PDA's more recent blunders, the following strike me as firable offenses in aggregate: 1) he outbid himself to overpay carl effing landry, 2) he bled talent in exchanging tyreke for greivis vasquez in s&t, 3) he flat-out waived a useful backup center in robin lopez as part of the evans s&t (btw, the kings are still without a true backup for demarcus), and 4) he got nothing but scraps in return for IT in s&t. as someone who has been lauded for his ability to see several steps ahead, these moves display a stunning lack of foresight on the part of pete d'alessandro. talent matters above just about everything else in this league, and as the kings' gm, he's mostly just let it slip through his fingers...

And he's still with this organization! That, combined with his weaselness in the Malone fiasco, has been rewarded! Vlade Divac was hired to clean up the organization. How can you clean up the organization if you can't even take out the trash!

 

[jcwkings]

Also in retrospect of all the discussion that went on about IT last summer here, and what we say transpire here, its become pretty obvious what the problem was, and no it wasn't IT.

 

[jcwkings]

imagine having a more fractured locker room. he wasn't willing to accept the 6th man role here. took him being moved 2x to really embrace it.

Bullbird, IT detractors will always say that, he is a gamer that wants to win, if we are winning he will accept a 6th man role. IT is a killer on the court, a throwback really, give me a bunch of those guys over the pansy general populus that is the NBA player these days. Plus who was he being benchecd over? Aaron Brooks, Grievis Vasquez? Of Course he feels he should start over those guys. If Collison comes in shows he works well with the starters and IT can come in as the killer of the bench leading the second unit, and closing most games with Malones bully style drawing tons of fouls, we could have had something, enough in fact to survive DMC's viral meningitis. IF IT was here this team could have stayed afloat over that period, Malone would have been saved and we could have really made a run at the 8th seed, given all we know now.

 

[Kingster]

imagine having a more fractured locker room. he wasn't willing to accept the 6th man role here. took him being moved 2x to really embrace it.

That's the story-line; one of many Kings' fables told over the eons. Mike Malone wanted him. I guess Mike didn't know what was going on his own team. This fable will probably continue to grow to the point where little girls in cribs will be told to keep the light on at night or else the boogeyman, Isaiah Thomas, will come to get them.

 

[Kingster]

From Brad Stevens on IT: 'Obviously he's got the skill level and the numbers he's putting up, but his personality is a big part of the locker room and the court and he carries himself with confidence; he's very likeable in the locker room; always smiling.'