Avery Bradley will be the next Russell Westbrook

[hpantazo]

Ive noticed a trend.

People dont want Celtics players to be great, and like devaluing them for some reason.

For example Avery Bradley is recently showing he has star potential, we have one side of the forums saying "yes, hes going to be great", and the other side saying "no he wont be, he is what he is and hes flawed"

Why cant we all as Celtics fans enjoy the fact that we have a young 21 year old stud with potential and all embrace him.

Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it.

Shouldnt we all be hyping him up since were all fans on this team?

Not everyone is on one side or the other. I love Bradley, I'm very happy he's playing great, but I am realistic. He still has serious flaws to work out and has not been tested in high pressure situations yet. I think eventually he will improve on his flaws and prove himself, it's just a question of when, and will it happen early enough to help us get banner 18 while KG and Ray are still here.

I don't agree with the posts that he is a mediocre player who has peaked, but I also don't agree with posts that he's a phenom who can be as great as Derrick Rose. Let's all be realistic here and enjoy him for what he is, a nice surprising young player with great athleticism, defense and energy (all sorely lacking on our team) and an improving ability to score, but with poor ball handling skills, poor court vision/sense of the game, and very evident, although improving, lack of NBA experience.

[hpantazo]

well let's see how you feel about his lack of weaknesses after the playoffs. That's all I have to say about it for now.

As a Celtics fan, shouldnt you want Bradley to do well in the playoffs? You make it seem like you hope he does bad just so you can say "i told you so" to another poster. That isnt very fanlike.

read a bit more of my posts about him before calling me un fanlike. I don't give a crap about "I told you so", in fact, I would love to be totally wrong on this.  I just care about getting banner 18 this year.  I love Bradley, I hope he does very well, I just don't think it will be enough to help cover all of his weaknesses this year. In 2-3 years from now, sure, I think he will be great.

FWIW, I also think JJJ will be a great player, he is just farther away from showing it than Bradley is.

[arambone]

 "I love Bradley, I hope he does very well, I just don't think it will be enough to help cover all of his weaknesses this year. In 2-3 years from now, sure, I think he will be great."

Sounds like the kid has potential.

[hpantazo]

"I love Bradley, I hope he does very well, I just don't think it will be enough to help cover all of his weaknesses this year. In 2-3 years from now, sure, I think he will be great."

Sounds like the kid has potential.

yes, the kid has some serious potential. He came a long way from last year, I just hope he can make just one more small jump for now for the playoffs, we need it

[arambone]

I can live with what we've been getting the last 5 games, only one of which Bradley was more than 4th or 5th option:

Last 5 Games   m36.8   fg8.8-14.6   fg%.603   3p2.4-3.4   3pt%.706   ft1.6-2.2   ft%.727   reb2.4   ast1.6   blk0.0   stl1.2   pf2.4   to1.8   ppg21.6

No additional leap needed. That's 99th percentile efficiency.

I just hope Paul, KG, and Rondo start feeding Bradley when he's open. Keep him in the game and ride him if he gets hot. I think Pierce and Bass will chuck more. Veterans, etc

[nickagneta]

To be honest he could have had 40+ points if he took the game over, but Doc has him on a tight leash, he told him to stop scoring and try to get other guys involved, he also benched him when he was hot for like half of the 4th quarter which I didnt understand.

Okay I lobe Avery Bradley too but let's come back to reality. Before the game Doc talked to Bradley. The team mad e him their captain for the night and Doc told him, you are playing the 1 but we need you to be the scoring 2 you have been.

There was never a time Doc told him to calm down and get others involved. Actually Doc's philosophy has ALWAYS been feed the hot hand and since Bradley had the hot hand there is zero chance Doc told him to get others involved.

Bradley also was gassed and had played a lot and needed a breather in the 4th. The reason he never scored again was because of Atlanta's traps and double teams as they attempted to take the ball out of Bradley's hands in the last 6 minutes.

I love Bradley and if you need to you can check may past posts to prove my love for him since the season started. But what you are declaring here is wrong.

[arambone]

Yeah, Bradley's played more minutes than anybody over this last crazy stretch - and at a sky high intensity.

[LarBrd33]

Yeah, sounds like some of the early haters are still stingy with their praise of Bradley.

First he was a decent defender but nothing else.
Then he was a great defender but not even nba caliber over-all. Then he was a decent shooter and great defender but a terrible ball handler and over-all below average player.
Then he was a decent shooter and smart offensive player and great defender, but a terrible ball handler who would only be a spot up shooter the rest of his career, and should be traded for a mid-first round pick.
Then he was an excellent shooter and excellent defender but a terrible ball handler who probably has already reached his peak.
Then he was an excellent shooter, decent ball handler, great cutter, good at driving to the hoop, and a decent defender who only averaged 20 points a game as soon as he got the green light from Doc.

Now he's an excellent shooter, excellent defender, excellent cutter, smart passer, great one-on-one player, and scored 28 points against a play-off team in his first game as go-to scorer, and we'll be extremely lucky if his long-term potential eventually comes close to approximating that of Jason Terry.

 

Ive noticed a trend.

People dont want Celtics players to be great, and like devaluing them for some reason.

For example Avery Bradley is recently showing he has star potential, we have one side of the forums saying "yes, hes going to be great", and the other side saying "no he wont be, he is what he is and hes flawed"

Why cant we all as Celtics fans enjoy the fact that we have a young 21 year old stud with potential and all embrace him.

Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it.

Shouldnt we all be hyping him up since were all fans on this team?

Just an overall Cynical and Negative feel from some of the posters here.

I'm going to let you both in on a little secret.  It's going to save you a lot of anguish arguing with people on internet sports forums.  Step with me behind the curtain for a second...

EVERYONE on this forum secretly wants Avery Bradley to surpass Michael Jordan and end up the greatest player of all time.  Show me a member of this forum who doesn't secretly want Bradley to turn into a basketball god and I'll bet money on that fan being an undercover Laker troll.  You think the "haters" are all "stingy" that Bradley is doing well?... come on.  Don't forget who you are talking to.  This is a Celtic forum.  They are ecstatic.  I'd bet money that most of these "haters" are having discussions with their non-Celtic friends... tentatively singing some praises for Bradley... and having large chunks of ice tossed on them "Look Steve, I'm not trying to be a homer here... but I'm telling you this Avery Bradley kid is actually playing pretty good.  Don't get me wrong... I'm just saying"... to which Steve laughs at him and tells him to get a grip.  Then that Celtic fan comes here and starts torturing you all with his party pooping.   

There's two drastic approaches from Celtics (and probably all sports) forum members.  You overreact and anoint every player who shows a sign of life as the next (INSERT FORMER/CURRENT LEGEND HERE) or you throw buckets of ice on everyone and temper the enthusiasm with a dose of "realism".  In general the people in "overreact" camp are genuinely delusional and don't know what the heck they are talking about. In general the people in the "pessimist" camp (myself, for example) are being less than honest on what they truly feel.  I might tell you Glen Davis is a "bum" while others are calling him the "next Barkley", but internally I'm going through the rollercoaster with the rest of ya... flipping out when he hits a big Shrek/Donkey shot in the playoffs and trying not to get overly out of touch in the excitement.   There's a middle ground that some fans are able to exist in...  but you're always going to have this huge clash of personalities and it's part of what makes the internet forum community wonderful and hilarious.  We can't all agree with each other... that would be boring.  Every thread would be 1 post long.  Kayak would stop paying for ad space. Lol.

Here's the other secret.  Those of us in the pessimist camp have probably been burned by the over excitement once or twice in the past.  I doubt you'll find someone tempering your enthusiasm on Bradley who doesn't have a "Brandon Hunter is the next Barkley" or "Orien Greene is the next Steve Nash" in their closet.  I temporarily thought Vin Baker was a good trade.  A couple of us thought Kedrick Brown was going to be a hall of famer.  Basically we're just trying to cover our bases and not look like a bunch of idiots.  To thestackshow, who said "Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it." ... you nailed it.  We don't want to look like a bunch of idiots... as Knicks fans did after collectively losing their minds over 11 games.   It's a different mentality and a different approach.  If Bradley ends up an undersized shooting guard who never reaches his Jason Terry potential...  Chaulk one up in the win column.  Message board victory.  If he ends up surpassing that Jason Terry ceiling and I'm wrong... even better.  It's a classic win/win scenario.  Nobody here actually wants him to be a bust.  I'm the self-anointed ringleader of the "full of crap reverse jinx bipolar" team.  Actually, that's probably Bill Simmons... but never mind that.   

Celtics are getting swept in the first round.  Bradley's hot shooting streak is over.  Poor man's midget Flip Murray.

[indeedproceed]

Haha...a poor man's Flip Murray.

Well played. How often do you get to say 'a poor man's flip Murray'?

[LarBrd33]

Haha...a poor man's Flip Murray.

Well played. How often do you get to say 'a poor man's flip Murray'?

you forgot to add the "Midget" part.

Btw, if anyone doesn't get the Flip Murray reference... it's my go-to example anytime anyone overreacts to a hot streak.  In Murray's 2nd season, he stepped in for an injured Ray Allen and proceeded to look like a superstar in his first 11 games.  Check the game log:  http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/murraro01/gamelog/2004/ ... Coincidentally Brandon Jennings and Jeremy Lin both lasted exactly 11 games before they fell back down to earth (technically DaJuan Wagner as well).  I'm going to start keeping track of this 11 game thing.  We might be on to something.

FYI... I don't know when to start counting Bradley's 11 games.  He first started getting consistent minutes against Washington on 3/25 which would mean he's now well past the 11 game jinx and we're in the safe.  However, technically Chicago was the first game that he officially won the starting role from Ray Allen... which would mean that last night was his 11th game.  But last night was his 6th game in a row scoring 15+... so maybe it's his 6th.  Ut oh.  Stay posted.

[arambone]

April   g13   m33.8   %.548   reb2.8   as1.5   blk0.2   to1.1   pf2.5   ppg15.7

Uh oh, 13.

[wahz]

Please tell me about Bradley's serious weaknesses. Or are you basing these "weaknesses" on the first half of the season when Bradley was getting spotty minutes with Doc breathing down his neck, no summer league, and hardly any team practices.

The weakest part of his game is his handle, and I think even that has been over exaggerated. His handle looked pretty [dang] adequate last night, now that he's getting his swagger and got his first green light from Doc to create off the dribble.

Passing? He doesn't turn it over much, and is a smart, competent passer. That's not a serious weakness, that's a slight strength that can be strengthened even more.

He's not like Jeremy Lin turning the ball over 7 times a game, while having limited athletic ability.

I think Bradley's upside is Derrick Rose, if Bradley ever got to play for a couple years at PG as a team's primary scorer.

You are the only person on this blog who has matched my bullishness on Avery. I should have thought of Rose myself. I punted and feel there is no ceiling. I've been watching him since his jr year in highs school. There will be nothing he can't do on offense. He is a fine defender but we have seen him getting burned a little. He'll get better there too though I agree his effort will probably drop.

I still think a Rondo, Avery, Green, KG, Bass, PP, Pietrus first 7 next year is one heckuva start. We would have had a lot of easy buckets this year with Avery and Green on the floor

[Trifecta]

The comparison to Rose is close in the sense they're both 2 guards in a point guard's body and athletic. Rose's explosiveness and body control as well as his handles are about as good as it gets in this league, though. Plus he's an above average passer.. Avery cannot match that. However, AB is a much better shooter than Rose was at 21 (Rose is still only 23, WOW)and a much better defender so I guess he makes up for it a little bit.

He has time to grow, but I don't think he's a Derrick Rose or a Russell Westbrook. Avery is pretty unique, it's fun to watch. We already have the most unique player in the league in Rondo, now we have Bradley who, while not quite the talented player Rajon is, is still an intriguing player himself because he just continues to get it done. Mostly off the ball, but just recently we've seen him dribbling off of screens and sticking the mid range pull ups.

He's not flashy, he just gets it done. And taking into account how much he was under fire and how lost he looked in the beginning of the season, it's pretty impressive what he's done. I can't wait to see the future for this kid.

[European NBA fan]

Yeah, sounds like some of the early haters are still stingy with their praise of Bradley.

First he was a decent defender but nothing else.
Then he was a great defender but not even nba caliber over-all. Then he was a decent shooter and great defender but a terrible ball handler and over-all below average player.
Then he was a decent shooter and smart offensive player and great defender, but a terrible ball handler who would only be a spot up shooter the rest of his career, and should be traded for a mid-first round pick.
Then he was an excellent shooter and excellent defender but a terrible ball handler who probably has already reached his peak.
Then he was an excellent shooter, decent ball handler, great cutter, good at driving to the hoop, and a decent defender who only averaged 20 points a game as soon as he got the green light from Doc.

Now he's an excellent shooter, excellent defender, excellent cutter, smart passer, great one-on-one player, and scored 28 points against a play-off team in his first game as go-to scorer, and we'll be extremely lucky if his long-term potential eventually comes close to approximating that of Jason Terry.

 

Ive noticed a trend.

People dont want Celtics players to be great, and like devaluing them for some reason.

For example Avery Bradley is recently showing he has star potential, we have one side of the forums saying "yes, hes going to be great", and the other side saying "no he wont be, he is what he is and hes flawed"

Why cant we all as Celtics fans enjoy the fact that we have a young 21 year old stud with potential and all embrace him.

Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it.

Shouldnt we all be hyping him up since were all fans on this team?

Just an overall Cynical and Negative feel from some of the posters here.

I'm going to let you both in on a little secret.  It's going to save you a lot of anguish arguing with people on internet sports forums.  Step with me behind the curtain for a second...

EVERYONE on this forum secretly wants Avery Bradley to surpass Michael Jordan and end up the greatest player of all time.  Show me a member of this forum who doesn't secretly want Bradley to turn into a basketball god and I'll bet money on that fan being an undercover Laker troll.  You think the "haters" are all "stingy" that Bradley is doing well?... come on.  Don't forget who you are talking to.  This is a Celtic forum.  They are ecstatic.  I'd bet money that most of these "haters" are having discussions with their non-Celtic friends... tentatively singing some praises for Bradley... and having large chunks of ice tossed on them "Look Steve, I'm not trying to be a homer here... but I'm telling you this Avery Bradley kid is actually playing pretty good.  Don't get me wrong... I'm just saying"... to which Steve laughs at him and tells him to get a grip.  Then that Celtic fan comes here and starts torturing you all with his party pooping.   

There's two drastic approaches from Celtics (and probably all sports) forum members.  You overreact and anoint every player who shows a sign of life as the next (INSERT FORMER/CURRENT LEGEND HERE) or you throw buckets of ice on everyone and temper the enthusiasm with a dose of "realism".  In general the people in "overreact" camp are genuinely delusional and don't know what the heck they are talking about. In general the people in the "pessimist" camp (myself, for example) are being less than honest on what they truly feel.  I might tell you Glen Davis is a "bum" while others are calling him the "next Barkley", but internally I'm going through the rollercoaster with the rest of ya... flipping out when he hits a big Shrek/Donkey shot in the playoffs and trying not to get overly out of touch in the excitement.   There's a middle ground that some fans are able to exist in...  but you're always going to have this huge clash of personalities and it's part of what makes the internet forum community wonderful and hilarious.  We can't all agree with each other... that would be boring.  Every thread would be 1 post long.  Kayak would stop paying for ad space. Lol.

Here's the other secret.  Those of us in the pessimist camp have probably been burned by the over excitement once or twice in the past.  I doubt you'll find someone tempering your enthusiasm on Bradley who doesn't have a "Brandon Hunter is the next Barkley" or "Orien Greene is the next Steve Nash" in their closet.  I temporarily thought Vin Baker was a good trade.  A couple of us thought Kedrick Brown was going to be a hall of famer.  Basically we're just trying to cover our bases and not look like a bunch of idiots.  To thestackshow, who said "Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it." ... you nailed it.  We don't want to look like a bunch of idiots... as Knicks fans did after collectively losing their minds over 11 games.   It's a different mentality and a different approach.  If Bradley ends up an undersized shooting guard who never reaches his Jason Terry potential...  Chaulk one up in the win column.  Message board victory.  If he ends up surpassing that Jason Terry ceiling and I'm wrong... even better.  It's a classic win/win scenario.  Nobody here actually wants him to be a bust.  I'm the self-anointed ringleader of the "full of crap reverse jinx bipolar" team.  Actually, that's probably Bill Simmons... but never mind that.   

Celtics are getting swept in the first round.  Bradley's hot shooting streak is over.  Poor man's midget Flip Murray.

You should have this post as your disclaimer. It makes me appreciate your other posts much more. TP for you

[LarBrd33]

Yeah, sounds like some of the early haters are still stingy with their praise of Bradley.

First he was a decent defender but nothing else.
Then he was a great defender but not even nba caliber over-all. Then he was a decent shooter and great defender but a terrible ball handler and over-all below average player.
Then he was a decent shooter and smart offensive player and great defender, but a terrible ball handler who would only be a spot up shooter the rest of his career, and should be traded for a mid-first round pick.
Then he was an excellent shooter and excellent defender but a terrible ball handler who probably has already reached his peak.
Then he was an excellent shooter, decent ball handler, great cutter, good at driving to the hoop, and a decent defender who only averaged 20 points a game as soon as he got the green light from Doc.

Now he's an excellent shooter, excellent defender, excellent cutter, smart passer, great one-on-one player, and scored 28 points against a play-off team in his first game as go-to scorer, and we'll be extremely lucky if his long-term potential eventually comes close to approximating that of Jason Terry.

 

Ive noticed a trend.

People dont want Celtics players to be great, and like devaluing them for some reason.

For example Avery Bradley is recently showing he has star potential, we have one side of the forums saying "yes, hes going to be great", and the other side saying "no he wont be, he is what he is and hes flawed"

Why cant we all as Celtics fans enjoy the fact that we have a young 21 year old stud with potential and all embrace him.

Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it.

Shouldnt we all be hyping him up since were all fans on this team?

Just an overall Cynical and Negative feel from some of the posters here.

I'm going to let you both in on a little secret.  It's going to save you a lot of anguish arguing with people on internet sports forums.  Step with me behind the curtain for a second...

EVERYONE on this forum secretly wants Avery Bradley to surpass Michael Jordan and end up the greatest player of all time.  Show me a member of this forum who doesn't secretly want Bradley to turn into a basketball god and I'll bet money on that fan being an undercover Laker troll.  You think the "haters" are all "stingy" that Bradley is doing well?... come on.  Don't forget who you are talking to.  This is a Celtic forum.  They are ecstatic.  I'd bet money that most of these "haters" are having discussions with their non-Celtic friends... tentatively singing some praises for Bradley... and having large chunks of ice tossed on them "Look Steve, I'm not trying to be a homer here... but I'm telling you this Avery Bradley kid is actually playing pretty good.  Don't get me wrong... I'm just saying"... to which Steve laughs at him and tells him to get a grip.  Then that Celtic fan comes here and starts torturing you all with his party pooping.   

There's two drastic approaches from Celtics (and probably all sports) forum members.  You overreact and anoint every player who shows a sign of life as the next (INSERT FORMER/CURRENT LEGEND HERE) or you throw buckets of ice on everyone and temper the enthusiasm with a dose of "realism".  In general the people in "overreact" camp are genuinely delusional and don't know what the heck they are talking about. In general the people in the "pessimist" camp (myself, for example) are being less than honest on what they truly feel.  I might tell you Glen Davis is a "bum" while others are calling him the "next Barkley", but internally I'm going through the rollercoaster with the rest of ya... flipping out when he hits a big Shrek/Donkey shot in the playoffs and trying not to get overly out of touch in the excitement.   There's a middle ground that some fans are able to exist in...  but you're always going to have this huge clash of personalities and it's part of what makes the internet forum community wonderful and hilarious.  We can't all agree with each other... that would be boring.  Every thread would be 1 post long.  Kayak would stop paying for ad space. Lol.

Here's the other secret.  Those of us in the pessimist camp have probably been burned by the over excitement once or twice in the past.  I doubt you'll find someone tempering your enthusiasm on Bradley who doesn't have a "Brandon Hunter is the next Barkley" or "Orien Greene is the next Steve Nash" in their closet.  I temporarily thought Vin Baker was a good trade.  A couple of us thought Kedrick Brown was going to be a hall of famer.  Basically we're just trying to cover our bases and not look like a bunch of idiots.  To thestackshow, who said "Knick fans see Jeremy Lin on a roll, and they claim hes incredible, Bradley has been on a roll ever since he got the starting job, and Celtics fans are quick to dismiss him. I dont get it." ... you nailed it.  We don't want to look like a bunch of idiots... as Knicks fans did after collectively losing their minds over 11 games.   It's a different mentality and a different approach.  If Bradley ends up an undersized shooting guard who never reaches his Jason Terry potential...  Chaulk one up in the win column.  Message board victory.  If he ends up surpassing that Jason Terry ceiling and I'm wrong... even better.  It's a classic win/win scenario.  Nobody here actually wants him to be a bust.  I'm the self-anointed ringleader of the "full of crap reverse jinx bipolar" team.  Actually, that's probably Bill Simmons... but never mind that.   

Celtics are getting swept in the first round.  Bradley's hot shooting streak is over.  Poor man's midget Flip Murray.

You should have this post as your disclaimer. It makes me appreciate your other posts much more. TP for you

Nobody on this forum should take me seriously.  I once got bored and had an argument with myself until a mod stepped in, locked the thread and threatened to ban me:  http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=54953.msg1176997#msg1176997

I'm an idiot.  You're best off just ignoring me.