Right, this “statistic” indicates that when Tony plays well, Doc gives him more minutes; when Tony doesn’t play well, he gets pulled from the game quickly.

Any other questions?

Can’t disagree. One can only hope that Tony Allen improves throughout the rest of the season.

Nick, I know you were chomping at the bit with this post, but you’re a little premature with your conclusion, not to mention flawed in your reasoning. Let me remind you of a few things:
1. Regardless of whatever number-crunching you do, Tony’s the 2nd team’s best scorer, dribble penetrator, ballhandler, creator, and defender. Take him out of the mix, and the 2nd team really struggles, as we saw 3 to 4 games ago. He hasn’t replaced Posey in the sense of doing everything that Posey did (because they’re different players), but he has replaced Posey in the sense of being the bench’s most important player.
2. And if you want to compare numbers, even with an up-and-down first quarter of the season (with an ankle injury thrown in there, which you neglected to mention) Tony’s still averaging more points, blocks, and steals, and shooting a better percentage from the field than dearly departed James Posey, in 5 minutes less per game. And, unlike Posey, Tony hardly plays with the first team, and thus rarely enjoys the benefit of less defensive attention, or a point guard who can dribble and create for others.
3. Tony’s working harder for his offense than Posey did because of the nature of his game and because House is not a point guard (which thrusts more responsibility onto Tony’s shoulders). Comcast ran a stat last game that said that 33% of Tony’s points come off the fast break. That’s amazing considering he plays most of his minutes with tiny 2-guard masquerading as a point who rarely if ever leads a successful fast break. Where Posey could still get his offense with Eddie at point (because James just shot 3s basically, which he could get at any time with a little ball movement), Tony has to work more for his offense, breaking down the defense off-the-dribble when he can or getting out on the break for a layup (usually after he steals it, or if he gets an outlet pass around half court). Where Posey could play with the 1st team and get a bunch of easy looks, Tony plays with a non-point guard 2nd team which faces a ton more defensive pressure. In essence, Tony’s been given more responsibility than Posey had last season, and he’s still putting up better numbers in less minutes.
4. I’m not sure we can draw any conclusions from the first 25 games, given Tony’s ankle injury and the way the team has been evolving into a more Rondo-centric team: we’re still a work in progress. Before the ankle injury, I thought Tony was playing some pretty consistent ball. He’s been more up-and-down since the injury, but that’s to be expected. I’m sure his consistency will pick up in the next couple games. Further, since he’s yet to be fully integrated into the offense (no one on the 2nd team is, mainly because of the point guard problems that unit has), I think it’s safe to assume he’s going to get better as the season progresses (just like I think Powe and House will too), hopefully getting some minutes with Rondo at the helm and taking advantage of his fast break prowess.
5. I think you’re missing the biggest point of them all: Tony’s game compliments the team as it is currently constructed. If you remember back to last season, the 2nd unit was sink-or-swim with the 3-ball. If Posey or House weren’t hitting, the 2nd unit was not going to score. This season, we’ve diversified. By removing Posey and playing Powe and Tony in his absence we’ve become a more well-rounded team, harder to defend, and more efficient. Now, the 2nd team can attack from inside or outside. We didn’t have that luxury last season.

Tony has many areas to improve on as the season progresses, but I think he’s had a fine first quarter of the season, with plenty of room for growth as the season continues. What’s holding the 2nd team back right now is the lack of a point guard. Personally, I’d like to see Doc either play Rondo with the 2nd team more, or play Pruitt, with House sliding to the 2 and Tony at the 3. Instead of having Ray or Paul bridge the 1st and 2nd teams, use Rondo instead. Once we see the point guard problems resolved on the 2nd unit, I think we’re going to see a huge jump in 2nd team performance. Rondo or Pruitt should be at the point at all times, Tony should be taken off the ball more, along with Eddie House, and we should be transitioning to a more fast-break based 2nd unit, featuring Powe in the low post when we can’t get out in transition.

Bottom line: Tony’s being asked to do a lot for that 2nd team right now, and I think he’s answered the call for the most part. As his ankle fully heals, and he gets more reps (and hopefully more minutes), and as the 2nd team improves with better PG play, I think we’ll see Tony play better and better.

(BTW: I’m not going to even address your not-so-well researched under/over 20 minutes argument—the sample size is WAY too small)

He’s defending more consistently, I will grant you that.

However, he has no outside shot whatsoever and his judgment with the basketball – as Nick accurately points out – isn’t a whole lot better than it’s ever been: bad. Meanwhile, the second unit has in recent games hurt this basketball team; it’s inability to hold leads has been consistent and disappointing. Thank God the first five is clicking.

Been around here long enough to know that there’s some odd urge to elevate Tony to star status, like Gerald Green. But the facts bely that.