Second unit shines as Celtics cut down Nets

by Jimmy Toscano on Oct 11, 2009 5:32 PM EDT in Boston Celtics Games

The talk going into this season was that this Celtics team was extremely deep. After just the third preseason game of the season, the Celtics showed just how deep they were.

Beating the New Jersey Nets 100-93 at the TD Garden, it was the second unit- not the first- that gave the Celtics some breathing room in the fourth quarter. Playing with a lineup of Lester Hudson, Eddie House, Marquis Daniels, Glen Davis, and Rasheed Wallace, the Celtics turned a two point game at the start of the fourth quarter into a 13 point game in under six minutes.

Paul Pierce, who scored a game high 25 points on 8-12 shooting, was quick to give credit where credit is due.

Speaking after the game, Pierce said, "To tell you the truth I think our second unit was a lot more impressive than we were. They were the ones who pushed the lead out and they're looking like they're gelling well together."

Daniels, who saw time at small forward today during that fourth quarter run, knows how important it is to pick up where the first unit left off.

"We did a lot of great things in the second half," said Daniels. "When the first team comes out we have to look to continue to build the lead, keep the pressure on the other team, and keep things going."

Eddie House was quick to echo Daniels' thoughts, saying, "We want to be an extension of what the first group does, we don't want to be a drop off when we come into the game. We got Rasheed with his presence, Baby (Glen Davis) with the throw down at the post and then we got shooters out there, also with Marquis slashing."

Anchoring the lineup during this scoring run was Celtics second round draft pick Lester Hudson. Hudson, who doesn't have much experience at point guard, played the part to his best ability at this stage in his young career.

"Lester is going to be a good player but he's never played point (guard) before, and you could see that when they were pressuring him," said coach Doc Rivers. "He was almost running away from the ball and actually you're the guy that has to come get the ball. He is a confident kid and a quick learner, at least defensively, so that's good."

"[Hudson] played good, he's still learning on the fly and he's doing a lot of good things," teammate Marquis Daniels said. "He's a sponge though; he's soaking up everything we're telling him."

There is an old saying that goes, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." While Doc Rivers is the coach of this team and a former point guard himself, there are many veterans on this team who have the experience and knowledge to also teach young players like Hudson. It is encouraging to know that Hudson is soaking up everything that players like Daniels are teaching him.

"[Daniels'] basketball IQ is really high," said Rivers. "You knew he had a good one because he played point before, but I didn't know it's where it's at. He cuts instinctively and just has an unbelievable feel for where to be on the floor."

By being able to play three positions effectively, it is clear that Marquis Daniels is the floor general that the Celtics' second unit was missing last year. If he can come in and lead the second unit while guys like Ray Allen, Pierce, or even Rondo rest, the Celtics will find much more success in holding off their opponent than they did last season.

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Great news about the second unit

It’s a good sign to me that Hudson got some minutes with the actual 2nd unit, instead of just the 3rd unit, and that he impressed, especially on defense. I understand this PG thing is new to him, and I don’t expect him to learn it overnight. But he’s showing he has a chance to be a contributor possibly this year, even if that means near the All-star break.

by Tai on Oct 11, 2009 5:50 PM EDT reply actions

Nice to hear the love for Lester from Doc and Marquis.

by clover on Oct 11, 2009 5:51 PM EDT reply actions

great work Jimmy

I love having a beat reporter for the blog

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers" Henry V

by Jeff Clark on Oct 11, 2009 5:53 PM EDT reply actions

some more notes...

Tony Allen not expected to join Celts on their trip to NJ.

KG said the best thing he did today was sprint and that today he was the most agressive he has been since he started playing again. Everytime he gets on the court whether game or practice he gains more confidence- his words.

Seems to be a lot of unity on this team already. Perk comes into locker room talking trash about how the Cowboys are winning the game. Meanwhile the Chiefs are marching down the field. They score on a Dwayne Bowe TD late in the game and Rasheed Wallace makes sure everybody knows he’s pumped. He calls out Sweetney and Perk who were talking trash earlier about the game (Sheed is a Chiefs fan). Really funny moment. Perk ran out of the locker room fast after that TD.

by Jimmy Toscano on Oct 11, 2009 6:08 PM EDT reply actions

jimmyt????

Jimmyt is Lester Hudson hater reformed? Maybe he will a rotation guy in the second unit???

Nice to hear the chemistry in the locker room. You have my dream access and dream job…really hate you. Thanks for the report

Is it Soup Yet?

by Master Po on Oct 11, 2009 6:34 PM EDT reply actions

Same here

Every word. ; ) That access? I WANT THAT.

by Tai on Oct 11, 2009 6:38 PM EDT up reply actions

haha

lester hater?!! How dare you… haha. I just don’t think he will get many minutes on this team early on at least, and I stand by that. Like Doc said, he is new at the position, so obviously it will take some time (maybe in the D league) before he really gets put in situations where he is counted on

by Jimmy Toscano on Oct 11, 2009 6:50 PM EDT up reply actions

was at the game

Sheed and Baby are quite a duo under the basket. Wide bodies on defense causing problems for opponents getting to the basket. Daniels is outstanding on defense and is twice the ballhandler that House is. Hudson plays outstanding defense in addition. I like the Baby, Sheed, Daniels, House, Hudson line better than Scalabrine for Hudson. Of course, it will depend upon the matchups. Williams has yet to show much. Sweetney is looking bye bye. If Giddens stays, it will be in Portland.
   1Perkins 2Garnett 3Pierce 4RAllen 5Rondo
    6Davis 7Wallace 8Daniels 9House 10Hudson
    11Scalabrine 12Williams
    IR: TAllen
    NBDL: Walker, Giddens
    When Walker finishes rehab, TAllen will be traded
    Released: Sweetney

by old_fan on Oct 11, 2009 6:45 PM EDT reply actions

was at the game too

by and large i agree with what you say. however, i like williams. he has a nose for the ball, especially in the boards. hes’s aggressive on defense and on the glass don’t see him getting major minutes without an injury hitting a big, but he doesn’t hurt you out there. hudson is a lot to learn, but he can shoot it and plays aggressive defense. his time will come.

- JoeB

by joeb on Oct 11, 2009 7:01 PM EDT up reply actions

I’d say Walker and Williams will go back and forth between who dresses, and it’ll be based on the opponant’s depths on the wing vs bigs. But overall i’d say im very unimpressed with Williams and TA.

by jesse_stoneham on Oct 11, 2009 8:54 PM EDT up reply actions

box score

http://www.nba.com/games/20091011/NJNBOS/boxscore.html

by NC Celtic Fan on Oct 11, 2009 9:32 PM EDT reply actions

BEAT L.A

by celt4ever on Oct 11, 2009 10:51 PM EDT reply actions

??

Calm down little buddy

by latin on Oct 12, 2009 4:36 AM EDT up reply actions

Not quite

But you do broach a good topic; Can we really gauge our Celtics against a young and undeveloped team like the Nets? I agree with the rest of you that all these notes are good news but the real test and results will come when we face a good team with established chemistry and notable post season success.

I believe the C’s will prove they can run the floor against anyone and that the second unit will continue to look as good as some of the lesser teams’ starters but we won’t know for sure until we see it.

by adubson on Oct 12, 2009 8:13 AM EDT up reply actions

Some observations

KG played very well for the 3rd straight game and has been better each game. For the first time PP asserted himself and was pretty much dominant. Rondo asserted himself a bit for the first time showing off his speed on several occasions. Perk continues to look more mobile and adept offensively. RA was pretty invisible.

RW’s shot was off, but he does many other things. He is a better player than I expected. Daniels is clearly a better ball handler than Eddie and he looks to make plays. I do think Eddie is going to benefit by being with Daniels and RW, both who are good passers. It seems that Hudson is in the front of Sweetney and Williams on Doc’s depth chart. I’d still expect Scals to get the 10th slot though with Hudson spending time in the NDBL. If Williams sticks, I think he stays up here both for his confidence and to work with Coach Ray.

The game wasn’t as close as the score. The Nets 5 top players were in 5 more minutes than our starters and their comeback was against 2nd and 3rd stringers. Cs still turning the ball over too much. Nets were better than expected led by Lopez, who looks like a major talent going forward. Harris didn’t play and LBJ hasn’t signed yet. This team has a a decent set of rotation players plus Lopez, who is only in his second year and Harris. They are clearly better than the NYK and might sneak into the 8th slot in the playoffs.

by colincb on Oct 11, 2009 11:45 PM EDT reply actions

I swear, if Daniels cut’s that hair of his, he’s gonna be much faster.

by thatswhatshesaid23 on Oct 12, 2009 12:10 AM EDT reply actions

he should anyway, for the sake of my health

sometimes when i see him out there with the braids, headband and #7 jersey i get flashbacks of mikki moore on the court and my heart skips a beat… then he always seems to make a few sound, logical basketball decisions and i recover

by HalfBeard_HalfAmazing on Oct 12, 2009 9:33 AM EDT up reply actions

Thought Pierce came out and played good, other then that the first unit was absolutely nothing to write home about, sloppy, turnover fest, and playing toe-to-toe with a Nets team who wasnt playing there best player.
The Bench was good

by latin on Oct 12, 2009 4:37 AM EDT reply actions

Some Impressions

1. I don’t think the second unit has given up anything in any of the pre-season games. Much of the time they’ve played better than the starters
2. Why in the world did Indiana not keep Daniels? We talk about extensions for Rondo and Ray, both of which I would like to see, but let’s start talking about extending and locking up Daniels. He might be the best player on the floor thruout the preseason. Danny said he would be backup point, we all questioned it, and now Daniels practically has that job.
3. Impressed with Lester Hudson
4. Baby playing more under the basket and doing a good job. We questioned his rebounding, but he was more of an outside player last year.
5. Sheed is all we thought he’d be and more.
6. Waiting for Rondo and Ray to show up.
7. Think Doc basically has his combos down already.

"I don't come to play, I come to WIN"--Larry Bird
"Criminally Negligent Officiating"--Tommy Heinsohn

by TrueGreen on Oct 12, 2009 7:24 AM EDT reply actions

the starters are not really asserting themselves much, it's just the preseason anyways

and they are sure that they will have the minutes come regular season, the preseason is i believe very much about the second unit and those who are trying to make the team since this will be the time for them to show their worth and try to earn their spot in the rotation and their minutes come the regular season starts. I have no worries about the some uninspired play of the starters for now, I’m sure come Oct 28 when season starts they’ll be in their usual awesome form!

by jeric on Oct 12, 2009 9:36 AM EDT reply actions

Agree

To me the roster is set at 15. Sweetney goes, Hudson stays. Don’t see TA getting new contract next year and don’t see him contributing this year. It’s a shame. But there really isn’t a place for him now. Marquis Daniels has made him totally irrelevant.

More on Daniels/Pacers. I know the Pacers are re-building and Daniels is not a franchise player. But if, by chance, they do get a franchise player next year they sure would want Daniels on their side. Danny had it right all the way.

"I don't come to play, I come to WIN"--Larry Bird
"Criminally Negligent Officiating"--Tommy Heinsohn

by TrueGreen on Oct 12, 2009 10:54 AM EDT up reply actions

Well isnt Danny Granger kinda there franchise player right now?
I remember an interview with him last season stating Marquis was his main sidekick and favorite teammate, Robin to his Batman, so regardless it makes no sense to sign dahntay jones and let marquis go

by latin on Oct 12, 2009 5:37 PM EDT up reply actions