I am in shock

[Galeto]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level. 

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

I think we are witnessing the end of an era in Boston.

You may very well be right, Smitty. At this point, this team can mail it in (they may have already done that), or rally to write one of the greatest chapters in Boston's storied history.

[Atzar]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

Sullinger is also a rookie in his first year in the system.  There's reasonable expectation that his defense will get better with more experience.  Hopefully, he'll also stop being the victim of a ton of rookie calls as well.

[celticinorlando]

Disaster at this point

[TheBig5]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

Sullinger is also a rookie in his first year in the system.  There's reasonable expectation that his defense will get better with more experience.  Hopefully, he'll also stop being the victim of a ton of rookie calls as well.

Agreed, he needs to lose some weight as well.

[Chris]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

This isn't love for Sully when I point out that he has been their second best defensive big man lately. That is pointing out a major flaw in the rest of the big men.

[SHAQATTACK]

Danny milked KG and Pierce for every ounce .   They are TOO old to carry the team .  They are still verg good players , but probally should be bench player , along with Terry.

The rest of the the team consist of a star in Rondo , who can 't shoot very good, and a bunch of average players.

Just  outclassed  and over the hill.

[Galeto]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

Sullinger is also a rookie in his first year in the system.  There's reasonable expectation that his defense will get better with more experience.  Hopefully, he'll also stop being the victim of a ton of rookie calls as well.

Experience isn't going to make him quicker or jump higher.  I think his defensive IQ is well above a typical rookie.  Like Scalabrine is fond of saying, Sullinger reads the action pretty well, which is why his lack of physical tools are so disappointing.  Sullinger is also not one of those guys who gains athleticism with weight loss.  He tried that his sophomore year at OSU and didn't look any different.  Pierce is another one..  Pierce at 250 is the same guy athletically at 235 or so but with less strength. 

Defense isn't all about effort and experience.  You need the physical tools as well.  Sullinger doesn't look like he'll ever have any.

[Galeto]

Behind Garnett, there is just a comedy of bad defenders.  You want a short guy who is poor at reading plays, rebounding and never saw a pump fake he didn't want to devour?  There's Bass.  No Brains, halfway solid physical tools.  You want an high-IQ rookie with horrible physical tools?  Take Sullinger, all brains, no physical tools besides strength.  You want a big man who is a fantastic athlete and strong but has one of the lowest basketball IQs in the NBA?  Here's Wilcox for you, no brains, all body.  You want a big man who actually has good size and a good basketball mind?  Here's Collins, unfortunately he can't rebound and his finishing around the hoop makes Perkins look like Shaq.

[JoT]

I rather have Perkins, Baby, Tony, and Ray right now than Bass, Green, Terry, and Lee. Am I alone here? 

I think we should keep Bradley and Sullinger, then get rid of everybody else on this team. KG might as well retire(why should he stick around?) and Pierce can leave to a contender. The next 5 years will suck...

Honestly, I love Rondo but if we gonna get high draft picks and good players in return, we have to trade him.

What I miss from the bold is that not only did they click when they were on the C's, but it seemed like they had toughness and heart. This team is soft, careless, and inconsistent like nobody's business it seems.
 
I would not be surprised nor mad if KG were to confront the players for playing like this.

[Atzar]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

Sullinger is also a rookie in his first year in the system.  There's reasonable expectation that his defense will get better with more experience.  Hopefully, he'll also stop being the victim of a ton of rookie calls as well.

Experience isn't going to make him quicker or jump higher.  I think his defensive IQ is well above a typical rookie.  Like Scalabrine is fond of saying, Sullinger reads the action pretty well, which is why his lack of physical tools are so disappointing.  Sullinger is also not one of those guys who gains athleticism with weight loss.  He tried that his sophomore year at OSU and didn't look any different.  Pierce is another one..  Pierce at 250 is the same guy athletically at 235 or so but with less strength. 

Defense isn't all about effort and experience.  You need the physical tools as well.  Sullinger doesn't look like he'll ever have any.

Defense also isn't all about athleticism.  There have been plenty of good-to-elite defenders in this league who haven't necessarily been the best athletes.  Bruce Bowen and Shane Battier certainly fit that category.  Tim Duncan has been an elite defender without elite mobility.  Bird was solid without being a great athlete.  Kendrick Perkins.  Chuck Hayes. 

They do it with instincts, intelligence and positioning.  Sullinger is better than most rookies, but he's still only a rookie.  He'll get better with experience.

[KG_ended_Bias]

I said from day 1 Terry was a bad fit for our team & C. Lee was overrated! I said Gerald Green was a better fit for now & going forward & for significant less money  & I was laughed at! Rondo needed speed, youthful exuberance & a flat scorer who can get easy buckets off dunks & 3's. But we choose the old route & JT causes us matchup problems every night. Rondo,Bradley,Green,Green,Sullinger,Melo is a nice young core going forward but Terry Kills the 2-3 combo spot until we can dump him, & hopefully that dump is very soon. WE NEED TO BLOW IT ALL THE WAY UP!

[Galeto]

I don't get all this unadulterated love for Sullinger.  Yeah he tries hard and is physical and fights for offensive boards which a sight for sore eyes.  He also gets the rookie boost.  But his defense is so bad that the Celtics are not a good team with him on the floor.  Late-stage Shaq was bad in the pick and roll but Sullinger is at that level.

Sullinger is also a rookie in his first year in the system.  There's reasonable expectation that his defense will get better with more experience.  Hopefully, he'll also stop being the victim of a ton of rookie calls as well.

Experience isn't going to make him quicker or jump higher.  I think his defensive IQ is well above a typical rookie.  Like Scalabrine is fond of saying, Sullinger reads the action pretty well, which is why his lack of physical tools are so disappointing.  Sullinger is also not one of those guys who gains athleticism with weight loss.  He tried that his sophomore year at OSU and didn't look any different.  Pierce is another one..  Pierce at 250 is the same guy athletically at 235 or so but with less strength. 

Defense isn't all about effort and experience.  You need the physical tools as well.  Sullinger doesn't look like he'll ever have any.

Defense also isn't all about athleticism.  There have been plenty of good-to-elite defenders in this league who haven't necessarily been the best athletes.  Bruce Bowen and Shane Battier certainly fit that category.  Tim Duncan has been an elite defender without elite mobility.  Bird was solid without being a great athlete.  Kendrick Perkins.  Chuck Hayes. 

They do it with instincts, intelligence and positioning.  Sullinger is better than most rookies, but he's still only a rookie.  He'll get better with experience.

You brought up Tim Duncan as a guy who overcame his lack of physical tools to be a great defender?  Really?  In his prime, he had great mobility and he's still plenty mobile after losing weight. When he labored a few years ago, his pick and roll defense slipped significantly.  All the experience in the world couldn't make him effective. Also, his wingspan is enormous. You can't bring up Duncan as an example of someone who didn't have physical tools.  Bowen had incredible lateral quickness.  Battier has excellent size for a small forward.  Perkins has nearly a 7'6 wingspan and great strength.  Hayes has incredibly fast hands and very good lateral quickness. 

I like Sullinger but he's one of the worst athletes in the NBA. 

[Galeto]

A couple of big changes with this team from the great defensive years is the lack of overall length and role players who will take charges.  They used to be able to shrink the floor with their length and then if opponents got into the paint, you had guys like Posey, Powe, Davis and Pierce before he grew older and started taking charges infrequently who would step up and take charges.  Because the Celtics lack shotblockers and charge takers, they get killed by points in the paint.

[Atzar]

You brought up Tim Duncan as a guy who overcame his lack of physical tools to be a great defender?  Really?  In his prime, he had great mobility and he's still plenty mobile after losing weight. When he labored a few years ago, his pick and roll defense slipped significantly.  All the experience in the world couldn't make him effective. Also, his wingspan is enormous. You can't bring up Duncan as an example of someone who didn't have physical tools.  Bowen had incredible lateral quickness.  Battier has excellent size for a small forward.  Perkins has nearly a 7'6 wingspan and great strength.  Hayes has incredibly fast hands and very good lateral quickness. 

I like Sullinger but he's one of the worst athletes in the NBA.

Haha, I'm not saying these guys had nothing going for them.  Of course they had good qualities - every player in the NBA has something going for them.  So does Sullinger.  He's very strong, has good instincts and has good footwork (which is an underrated quality on defense).  He'll never be an elite defender, but he can be serviceable at the very least.