With the Celtics clicking on all cylinders, it seems like a good time to take a quick peek into the future by checking on the rookies in the D-League (with the Utah Flash). I haven't seen a game yet myself, but I'm told you can watch them for free online.
Last night J.R. Giddens put up 34 points on 11-15 shooting in an overtime loss. Oh yeah, and he also chipped in with 7 boards, 6 assists, and an eye popping 5 blocked shots! Bill Walker also checked in with a solid 14 point, 7 rebound effort.
This was their 3rd game of the D-League season. In the prior two, it was Walker taking the lead with 23 and 26 points while Giddens chipped in 19 and 17. You can see their game by game stats here: J.R. Giddens | Bill Walker
There's only so much you can tell from box scores and one of these days I'll have to catch a game and report back to you here (feel free to do this yourself - I'd be happy to publish a well done FanPost breakdown of a game). Also, we all know that at times Gerald Green and Kedrick Brown looked amazing in the D-League. However, this can't be a bad thing.
They are supposed to be among the best players in that league and they should have solid to great games night in and night out. So far (statistically) so good.
When they'll be able to get some run with the parent club is anyone's guess. Doc clearly has a solid 10 man rotation and isn't willing to mess with that, even to get last year's D-League success story Gabe Pruitt some run. But you never know how the season will play out with trades, injuries, and unexpected circumstances.
More likely we are seeing two young players develop their games for either a role on the bench next year, or maybe even a starting role after the big three start their eventual decline.
If you are interested in following these and other D-League prospects throughout the season, I would suggest the blog Ridiculous Upside. (also see the Pro Basketball News D-League guide for a quick snapshot of the league) I'll try to keep tabs on our 2 rookies but you can also help out with forum posts like this or FanShots like this.