I’m going with Wallace.

The Rasheed voters haven’t gotten up yet, except BudweiserCeltic who probably hasn’t gone to bed yet. Perk should start and the minutes will play out logically.

He HAS to start. Imagine him as a bench guy? Perk has earned that job with his hard work.

Plus Wallace would be great offense off the bench.

There shouldn`t even be a discussion about this. Perk is our starting center!

they’re likely to say about four times as many stupid things.

Doc’s comments weren’t as inflamatory as I was expecting when I saw the reactions…

Is Doc going to use Sheed like he used to use Raef? Is Sheed just a modern day Raef now that I think of it?

It makes no difference whatsoever to me who starts.

Let training camp sort it out and let the best person start.

The important question, to my mind, is who will be on the floor at the end of the game, when it really matters…and that is the time that will have to be earned between the two.

“We’re just going to put our best five on the floor, as always”

I coach 10-11 year olds and it’s much more complex than that. I do an awful lot of thinking about balancing my defense and offense at all time.

How much does Doc make?

Jeesh, he isn’t even required to play everyone 2 quarters, his job apparently is much easier than mine.

Matchups and the progress of the game dictate who’s on the floor. The starting lineup is a rather overrated idea, anyway.

It really doesn’t make any difference who starts.

Sheed.

if wallaca starts – i dont even want him on this team, he and perk could have problems

Are the Raptors now the leaders for the championship? We need to start Krep, and get some better bench players if we want to compete with the raptors.

Nothing wrong with discussing it. Everyone must weigh the options. But, at the beginning of the season, Perk will start. It’s a long season.

Imagine KG coming off the bench – there was another Kevin that did it during the 80’s

definitely wasn’t expecting to hear this…

We may have to bring Mason over, and stick Eddie P. in the bullpen

Seriously though, Wallace has so much more Value off the bench, Perk needs the Big 3 more than Sheed, period

We should start Perkins. He compliments the Big 3 Well, is young and better suited for longer minutes. However sheed will finish games.

As Red Auerbach said, what matters is the team that finishes. If you look at the players on the floor at the end of a close game, you’ll have a pretty good idea of who the coach views as his 5 best players.

spot on brick. perk starts and it’s all in the game from there.

In which case, I’d say you need to start Perkins because of his post defense and ability to handle players that are funneled into him.

Also, Rasheed coming off the bench gives the 2nd unit some much needed offense. It wouldn’t make sense to play Perk with any 2nd unit guys.

Great points that some players might be resting, and so you’ll see any one of the 3 starting.

Personally I hope Perkins starts and Rasheed closes out the game, unless there’s a center that Perkins matches up extremely well with.

Most overused phrase of Celticsblog, “Perk perfectly complements KG/Big 3”. I love it especially as if to mean as no one else could “perfectly complement” them too.

The best starting unit will be with Sheed, hands down and it has little to do with Perk vs. Sheed, but how well the rest of the unit will play with Sheed. The spacing will be absolutely great, letting Rondo, Pierce, and KG do what they’re best at.

With that said, you might want to consider Sheed of the bench just to have an offensive option coming from the bench, but that aside, the best starting 5 is with Sheed instead of Perk.

All along, Doc talked about the need to bolster the bench…not the need for a new starting center!

Leave it to Doc to take a happy occasion…and end it by “dissing” Perk for no legitimate reason.

Sheed has been signed…it`s time for Doc to stop “selling”!

Perk is very effective as a young/veteran starter…is a decade younger than Sheed…and has established chemistry with the other 4 starters.

Perk starts. Period.

I think ‘Sheed is a better player, and I reject the notion that you must keep an extra scorer on the bench (you still have the same number of “scorers” and you don’t have to sub 5 guys at a time). But…

Personally I would make Wallace the first big off the bench because:

a) It sends the message that it’s about the team. He can still get his 30 MPG if warranted.

b) I think Perk will play better with a consistent role. ’Sheed is more flexible off the bench and can play multiple positions, but Perk is going to play better knowing every night he is the starting center, IMO.

c) On some nights, I think you sub Wallace early for Garnett if Perk is playing well. What a nightmare for an opposing PF to go from a fresh Garnett straight to a fresh Wallace. It’s also rewarding Perk for staying out of foul trouble, and keeping Garnett healthy.

d) Perk is (possibly) still reaching his potential. He’s not going to get vastly better, but he’s still only 24 so he might be able to score another “point” in this debate with his play.

FWIW, I think Doc said the right thing. Nobody can complain about letting the best guy start, whereas if you just name a starter you can p*ss someone off. They probably already have a good idea of what they want to do, and are just being diplomatic. He’s just giving the proper company line.

There’s no way Perk isn’t starting opening night. Doc just didn’t want to come out and say that right now, instead saying ’it’ll be addressed in training camp,’ which it will be.

This is a defensive team first—and Perk is a better defender of the pick-and-roll and a better help defender right now. So, he’ll get the nod. He’ll also be showing a new 15 footer next season, which should allow us to further spread the floor. Wallace is the perfect backup for the 4 and 5—that’s going to be his role.

Perk should start. He’s a vastly superior player over Wallace, and a better fit in the starting lineup.

I pretty much think that Doc said that just to threw that out there to motivate Perks to work hard in training camp, don’t slack off, cause his spot on the starting unit isn’t guaranteed by any means. To me, cordialb said it best with his line about Perk imaging Rasheed doing his pre-game dance for the starting lineup.

I mean, with Perks starting the last two years, we’ve won 66 games one season for a title and 62 the next; that’s an average of 64 games in two regular seasons. Just this coming playoffs, Perkins proved his worth by keeping Howard in check 1on1. He’s easily one of the top defensive centers in the league, and he’s on a team that’s about their defense. Perkins has earned the right to start next season, and as long as he works as hard as he’s had to stay in the starting unit and stays healthy, he’ll probably have a big part in another 60-win regular season, and possibly ring #18 for Celtic Green. Doc knows this, so this is his way of reminding Perkins that his spot on the starting role is NEVER guaranteed.

Now, onto #30. Yes, that’s Rasheed Wallace, people. Is he a better player overall than Perkins? Yeah, I’ll say he is, especially on the offensive side. He can shoot 3’s, while Perkins is just developing a 15-footer, which I’m glad Salmon + Mashed Potatoes (don’t get me hungry now mmm k?) mentioned before me. And hey, Budweiser Celtic? If that 15-footer turns out to be effective for Perkins this season, that’ll adress your issue of floor spacing a bit, right? Anyways, Wallace, with his skill set, can provide what our bench kind of lacked last season; offensive threats. It’s why we were so giddy to get Marbury mid-season, before he dropped a douche and then some, right? We thought Marbury was an overall better player than Rondo, but that Marbury was needed to strengthen our poor bench and we weren’t sure he’d be cool with that. Same thing with Wallace, and he probably will be cool with that if he doesn’t get the starting role (which, again, he won’t). But, Wallace has range, so he can spread the floor if necessary, but he also has a great post game and can bang in the hoop. And if people are doubling him, maybe he can pass it off to House or Scal, who will be waiting to shoot some 3’s. It’ll be poetry in motion.

Wallace can destroy 2nd units, and everyone in the East knows it. Let him do so, and #18 isn’t too far away, so suddenly.

opps, wrong place, tried to do it on my phone and messed it up

Bring ray off the bench. Slide kg and pp down to the 2-3. Huge, long lineup, fantastic big man passing, which can’t really be defended and good shooting and general offense. Kg can gaurd ther league’s gaurdable threes and nobody can gaurd the ungaurdable ones, ditto pp at the 2. And ray as an assisin off the bench, I’m a genius.

http://thereal2kinsider.blogspot.com/2009/07/sheed-to-boston.html

Rasheed Wallace goes to the Boston Celtics to presumably be their 6th man. His contract is 3 years for the full MLE starting at 5.8 million (3rd year is a player option he almost certainly exercises at age 37).

I liked this move a lot more when it was a 2 year deal, as Sheed will surely be an overpaid Robert Horry at that point (of course, they can probably send his expiring deal off at that point, and really, the important thing is that they have him NOW as this team is built for NOW).

So let’s look at where Sheed fits in the Boston frontcourt after starting at C the last few years in Detroit.

PER
KG: 21.2
Sheed: 14.9
Perk: 13.2
BBD: 10.7
Powe: 17.2

Talentwise, Sheed appears to be an upgrade over Kendrick Perkins and Glen Davis. The injury to Leon Powe made bringing in another frontcourt player a must for Boston to have any chance at a championship next season. Big Baby Davis is still drawing interest as a free agent, although Danny Ainge has stated he wants to bring him back. If he does return he’d likely go back to the 10 mpg role he had before KG went down. This isn’t the stacked frontcourt it’s made out to be, as it is still heavily dependant on KG’s return to form (25.3 PER in 2008).

TS%
KG: .563
Sheed: .520
Perk: .591
BBD: .502
Powe: .591

Sheed doesn’t get many points at the line as he has strayed further from the post with every passing season. And while he is among the better 3pt shooting centers in the league, he’s only average for an NBA player with 35% the last four seasons. Of course, Glen Davis doesn’t even have legit 3pt range yet, and isn’t much of a finisher in the post either, so Sheed shouldn’t exactly feel threatened. The Celtics could use another bruising presence inside to replace Powe, and while Sheed ain’t it, BBD definitely ain’t either.

ORB%
KG: 5.6
Sheed: 3.1
Perk: 11.5
BBD: 9.4
Powe: 15.1

Offensive rebounding has never been Sheed’s strongest suit, which is a bit concerning because it hasn’t really been Garnett’s either. KG’s 5.6 may have been due to injury, but his 7.3 the year prior was also a career worst. He is definitely trending down as he spends more and more time away from the basket, a problem also compounded by Sheed settling for more and more threes. Perkins should maintain his starting spot for this reason. And yeah, losing Powe really hurts. This area is probably the main incentive to keeping Davis around, because replacing Powe will be very difficult.

DRB%
KG: 26.7
Sheed: 24.6
Perk: 21.4
BBD: 12.8
Powe: 18.9

Sheed’s numbers can probably be expected to drop a bit considering he’ll be playing next to KG or Perkins most of the time, but at the very least he’s as good as Perk, which makes this trio very solid on the defensive boards. And man, I really can’t overstate how overrated BBD got filling in for KG. He’s sandwiched between PGs Rondo (13.9) and Eddie House (11.5), which is not good when you’re a PF/C.

BLK%
KG: 3.1
Sheed: 3.1
Perk: 5.3
BBD: 0.9
Powe: 2.5

Yet another reason why Perk should continue to start over Sheed. And another example of how limited BBD is as a player and why the Celtics won’t miss him if he does indeed move on (if another team is stupid enough to offer him the full MLE, by all means, let him walk).

SUMMARY
This is a solid signing for Boston that certainly fills a need. A healthy Kevin Garnett negates it’s importance somewhat, but his health is no guarantee either. In a perfect world, the Celtics would let BBD walk and bring in Brandon Bass to replace him, but that’s a pipe dream with only the bi-annual exception to offer (which they are already begging Grant Hill to take). Sheed won’t contend for sixth man of the year, and may not even be the 4th option in some Boston lineups. He is a great defensive player joining a great defensive team. He is also a jumpshot dependant player like everyone else on the team not named Rajon or Kendrick. But regardless of his pros and cons, whether you like or dislike him, the most important thing he does in Boston is ensure Brian Scalabrine never plays another meaningful playoff minute again. Which is a good thing when you’re trying to bring home that ring.

The way you described Sheed reminds me of James Posey if anything. Posey played PF in Boston more often than not, and spaced the floor as a 3rd or 4th three point shooter, while also drawing tough defensive assignments. Sheed is bigger, which has it’s pros and cons. He won’t run the floor nearly as well and won’t be able to handle the tough perimeter assignments (Kobe) but he is yet another player to throw at Dwight Howard and Shaquille O’Neal.

KG & Sheed are death to Cleveland; Shaq ain’t gonna chase Sheed out to the 3pt line and KG is too quick for him (same goes for Ilgauskas). Varejao can’t guard everybody.

Can I just say that Sheed has the sweetest classic post-up drop-step in basketball. It’s like Rays jump shot.

I have to admit, Sheed has always been one of my favorite players. I am beyond thrilled he is a Celtic now. I honestly used to like him more than KG (well, this was obviously before KG came to the Celtics).

I like Perk. He is a classic down-low bruiser. I hope he can beat out Sheed to get a starting position. But, just for the thrill of it, I’d like to dream of watching the over-30’s dream-team-in-green schooling the schoolyard kids.

Who receives more technicals next season – Sheed or Perk?

At the press conference with Wallace today the question was asked. First of all Wallace doesn’t care if he starts or not. He just wants to win. Doc sort of said it’s something that will be determined down the line, but he seemed more interested in his golf than in this situation. My guess is Perk will start. Wallace gives us much more versatility coming off the bench because he can really play 3 positions. I’m sure Wallace and Perk will be on the floor together alot. As to the techs—It’s a contest between Sheed, KG and Perk. Again no one seems very concerned. But a controversy did surface. Sheed said that KG is a better rebounder than he is, but that Sheed is a better shooter. KG didn’t seem to agree and said they would settle it when everyone left. But then he saw Ed Lacerte and KG sort of changed his mind. This last part is some fabrication on my part. All the elements are true, but the context isn’t. Anyway you come away from the press conference with a very good feeling. KG, PP and Ray were all there with Danny and Doc (who was trying to get away without answering any questions, but got caught by some reporter).

Perkins should start. It makes sense that way. Perk is coming off a great year, he’ll be 25 in November, and he is younger and more athletic than Sheed and he’s only getting better at this point. Sheed, on the other hand, will be 35 in September and is, quite frankly, too old to be starting. It makes more sense for Sheed to come off the bench so that he can be fresh for the playoffs, when we’ll need him the most.
It also will be a good thing for our second unit to have a veteran like Sheed, who can play solid D and open up the floor for his teammates. Our second unit could be pretty weak next year, with big questions at the SF and PG positions. Sheed could definitely be a big part of keeping the unit together. I don’t see Perk going in there and helping out with the massive amount of inexperience we have in the second unit. As our roster stands right now, look at our other backups:
PF- Big Baby
SF – Walker
SG – Eddie
PG – Pruitt
Of those four, Eddie House is the only player with more than two years of NBA experience. We basically need Sheed in there just to keep these guys from falling apart.

Between backing up Perk and Garnett, Wallace will end up playing starter’s minutes each game. If Ray gets cold again, we may see the Big 3 + Wallace and Rondo on the floor at the same time.

I’m not so sure Sheed is going to have THAT big an impact on offense with KG on the floor.

Perkins
0-6 ft: 247-400 (.618)
6-15 ft: 21-62 (.338)
15-23 ft: 7-11 (.636)
23+ ft: 0-1 (.000)

Sheed
0-6 ft: 51-90 (.566)
6-15 ft: 91-193 (.471)
15-23 ft: 47-118 (.398)
23+ ft: 113-318 (.355)

Perkins gets the majority of his points close to the basket, whereas Sheed only took little more than 1 shot per game that close. I don’t know how much Sheed can be expected to operate in the high post when that is KG’s favorite operating spot as well. Perkins actually compliments KG very well because KG’s passing ability leads to easy buckets/fouls for Perkins (not to mention the offensive rebounding difference, SOMEBODY has to crash the boards for this team besides Rondo). Sheed is basically relegated to a Horry-esque 3pt shooter if he plays with KG, as he can’t finish or board like Perk can, and he’s not going to get the ball in KG’s spots.

Sheed at the least does make for a good post option with KG off the floor, another reason why a bench role would be the correct utilization.