Perkins Re-Adjusting on the Fly
by Greg Payne on Mar 10, 2010 6:08 AM EST
in Boston Celtics Articles
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PrintI am not writing this because Andrew Bogut absolutely took Kendrick Perkins to school last night. That would be easy. Bogut goes off, so it's simple to call out the big guy who tried defending him.
Unfortunately, our big guy's in something of a funk these days. Plain and simple. Perk has looked very un-Perklike the last handful of games and people are starting to notice. Instead of transforming into The Beast - a.k.a. the brooding and bruising intimidator - when times get tough, he's looked much more like a passive and unsure average NBA center, who's quite capable of being pushed around.
Long gone are the days when critics of this season's Celtics were labeling Perk, along with Rondo, as our most consistent player. At one time, that label was more than warranted, as Perk held respectable averages of 11.7 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks in November; 12.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks in December; and 11.2 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks in January. His averages for the season (not including last night) now reside at: 10.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks.
However, over his final 11 games before the All-Star break, he managed just 6.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks. And things haven't been a whole lot better since. It does not appear to be illness or injury holding him back. It could, however, be his re-adjusting to playing with a healthier Kevin Garnett.
I went searching for a pattern to support my theory and I just might have found one.
Garnett missed 10 games from December 30 through January 20. In those 10 games, Perk averaged 13.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks. He stepped up when the team needed him to.
But when Garnett returned on January 22, Perk's stats took a full-on nosedive. More importantly, after the All-Star break, many of us noticed that Garnett appeared to turn some sort of corner physically against the Los Angeles Lakers on February 18.
Since that night (not including last night), Garnett has posted averages of 15.2 points and 7.9 rebounds. Over that same stretch, Perk's averages sank to 9.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks.
Obviously, Perk's game is going to change with Garnett back in the lineup. He'll take less shots and with Garnett beside him as opposed to Rasheed Wallace (because Rasheed, you know, doesn't rebound), he might not secure as many rebounds.
But his re-adjustment to being the Perk of old - the one more geared towards defense and rebounding as opposed to offense - has been a rocky one so far. His greatest value to this team comes in the forms of one-on-one defense, help defense, rebounding, blocking shots, and proper screen setting. And he has to get back to that. Even though his offensive game has developed tremendously, the majority of his points should come off of easy dunks and layups that stem from handoffs, simple passes, and dump offs from Rajon Rondo and anyone else who penetrates. Unless a favorable mismatch is in the works - meaning Perk's man is 6'8 or under, or is an overly pathetic defensive player - Perk should always be the fifth option in the Celtics' offense.
Whenever an important player leaves the lineup, the everyday games of the remaining players typically change to an extent. They need to accommodate for the production that will be missing from the other player. So they adapt as necessary. But once that missing player returns and works his way back towards being healthy, those other players need to revert back to the players they were before the injury occurred.
That's Perk's main challenge right now. He needs to work his way back towards being the player that gives the Celtics the highest chance of winning. He needs to be the bruising enforcer beside Garnett. He needs to get back to securing 9+ rebounds per game, blocking 2+ shots per game, and basically letting others create his own offense for him. Perk's an integral part of the puzzle, but only if he plays the role he was meant to play. He, for lack of a better term, needs to keep it simple. Until he fully re-commits himself in those areas, he, and the Celtics as a team, could continue to struggle.
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It seemed like Bogut got position...
…every time down the floor. Perk does a great job of pushing guys like Shaq & Howard out of their comfort zone. I can’t see why he can’t do the same for Bogut. Perk gives up a couple of inches to Bogut, so letting him get deep in the post & shoot isn’t going to work.
Perk’s been in a slump for awhile now it seems. As Greg points out the C’s need defense, rebounds and blocks, not scoring. Perk is more than capable of that.
But this does not explain
…Perk’s meltdown on all things offensive. Like not going back up immediately after getting a rebound, as he did earlier in the season. Like traveling almost EVERY time he gets the ball when he decides to position himself for a shot (most of which are missed by the refs now… but might well be called in the playoffs.) And shooting 3-9 last night. What’s up with that? Can’t see a connection to KG there.
…And Perks inability to guard many of the league’s bigs 1-on-1.
Unless, I suppose, we theorize that KG’s return has somehow gotten into his head and messed him up. But why? I would have thought the opposite.
Maybe Perk’s lost his edge. Maybe his happy family life, and his cute new wife and baby… have tranquilized his hardbitten anger, turned him into Mr. Softee. Women and children: in every story – from Eve to Avatar – they are the undoing of men!
Women and men
Don’t blame the women. Remember ‘there is a woman behind any successful man’? But then, it does not say what the woman does behind the man.
by getthat18now on Mar 10, 2010 7:16 AM EST up reply actions
It's interesting
Many people think Perk’s a better defender when KG’s beside him, but the basic stats seem to say otherwise…There could very well be some advanced stat I haven’t seen yet, but Perk’s developed into a legit player in his own right, and it seems like he’s had a tough time moving back into that lesser role.
I’m most concerned about his demeanor. I think when the demeanor comes back, so will his defensive game.
Advanced Stats
Defense is hard to directly measure, so a lot of the better defensive stats look at how the team does with and without certain players on the floor. 82games.com does a player-pair stat that breaks down how each player does with all of his teammates. For both of the last two years Perk’s highest paired +/- has come with KG, and his best defensive rating has come when paired with KG. They haven’t posted that stat for this season, though, so I don’t know if that’s changed this year or not. But they have posted the best 5-man units, and Perk’s only units with good defensive numbers are the ones where he’s playing next to KG.
But again, all of that is indirect, team-based information. It sounds like your thesis is that Perk’s individual D might suffer next to KG, even if the team’s D is still much better when they’re together? If that’s your stance, these type of stats wouldn’t necessarily prove or disprove that.
I think it's Perk's attitude that really bothers me
Low energy. Complaining about not getting enough touches. When he says that guys are just cruising and that the other team wants it more – I wonder if he’s really talking about himself, because he doesn’t seem to care. There are rebounds just rolling on the ground and he doesn’t bother to go after them. He fumbles catches because he’s not paying attention. He misses free throws, and half of those free throws, he starts his shooting motion not even looking at the basket! I’m really disappointed, because I had such high expectations for him when he started this season off so well.
Simply put, Perk needs to
go back playing like the Perk of 2008, one who focuses on D, rebounding and blocks. And, he should complain less to the refs.
Doc should pull out some 08 videos of Perk and show him a ‘Before-and-After’ comparison.
Plantar Fascaiitis?
Can we rule this out? It seems to me that Perk’s been playing rather “gingerly,” and his strides in open court look odd.
Another reason for his regression could be that he’s pissed at his teammates.
I’ve no evidence of either, these are just some questions I have after watching the games and noticing the un-Perk-like play. He is one of my favorite Celtics, so I’m really hoping he is able to return to form.
by Thruthelookingglass on Mar 10, 2010 7:24 AM EST reply actions
Everybody in their roles
But Perk wants touches. Some other things that might be at play— he’s had to sit and watch Rasheed close games. Rondo made all-star, he didnnt, maybe thinks he should have. Whatever the reason, there indeed seem to be some ego issues at play.
easy
he thinks he a offensive weapon and he’s not…to shut him up,KG is passing him the ball way too much and then he holds it forever…age?? injuries???? forget it,when Perk gets shots and Ray doesn’t we’re just friggin too stupid to win…My God
Ego?
Everyone has one I suppose but Perk should know that he has to check it on this team. Especially if the ego is telling him he needs more touches. His game is not offensive. I cringe when he tries to back someone down. He must be hurt and is keeping it quiet. I do believe he is the one member of the starting five that Danny will shop/listen to offers on him this summer. There were rumors last draft about him going to Memphis. Danny will need a quality young player if this team wants to play at title level these last two years of KG and only Rondo or Perk is going to fetch that. I don’ think Rondo’s going anywhere.
Good observatiojn
I agree with you. His game is way off and so is our intimidating middle as a result. He was a force earlier in his own right. Not as KG’s sidekick. It is definitely attitude. Not because Bogut whupped him. You have to hand it to Bogut. He’s good. But because Perk is not switching and helping like he was earlier. He isn’t playing loose balls hard as though he’s concluded “Rasheed doesn’t so why should I”. The guy giving it his all down low is Big Baby. He’s got the problem going back up but he is after it.
Look, it’s Doc’s problem to fix. How he does it is up to him. But those of us who watch every game know that something is off and I’m pretty sure it isn’t plantar fascitis. If Doc doesn’t see a problem Danny needs to tell him that he sees it.
we all like perk, but he has been the most disappointing celtic of late. it’s not the presence of kg, it’s the absence of perk. at least, he is not picking up a lot of early illegal picks. his free throw shooting seems to be a good metaphor for his whole game. he just throws them up and they smash off the rim. they’re throwaways. no maatter how much he snarls, he does not seem focused .
Consitency?
Here’s how I see it… Begging of the season everyone was in the grove and we were winning games. Then from the day after Christmas the whole team has had it’s ups and downs. After chrismas Ray got cold shooting and Garnett just, was playing more to heal, then playing Kevin Garnett basketball. While others were playing ok. Now rays hot garnetts on the rise and Peirce and perkins
are cold. The only legit consitent player we have had all year is rondo. So let’s hope when perk and pauls phase is over it’ll be just in time for the playoffs. And we can start to play celtics basketball. I also want to say similar with the bench, shelden played well and Rasheed not so much. Then Rasheed plays well and we don’t get to see shelden? I don’t get that but I’ll continue. Glen Davis is hot lately. Nate Robinson has looked like a big improvement Since house can’t create his own shot. Marquis does all the little things right and I love watching someone so passionate about defense play defense. Tony allens defense is good as long and can’t be good on offense as long as he doesn’t just take the ball and drive. On an average night I woukd like to see him averaging 3 or 4 shots. The fin should add depth. Scals the best player we have for putting 0s across the board, hence I don’t know why he ever plays.
Nate Robinson and rondo are probaly the fastest guard combo in the league when they play together, so I’m hoping we run that alot more of them. The passing lanes are clogged and unless the both gambe and lose I don’t really see any negatives on defense. They are both such momementum guys. I mean how good do you feel well rondo gets a steal? No imagine a rondo steal but instead of a Ray Allen layup (or dunk which he seems to be dunking alot more now then last season) you see flash beat everyone up the court and throw down a monster dunk?
All im saying is that we can still win and have the potential too. And with the new roster aquisitions Danny put us in place to win this year. And I’m hoping to raise the 18th banner.
by Pmartin60 on Mar 10, 2010 8:51 AM EST via mobile reply actions
all players who's last name starts with a P
need to start playing better. You can’t win when 2/5th of your starting lineup isn’t producing and that’s what happening right now with perk and pierce. neither one of those guys is defending nor are they rebounding. To add to the misery, Pierce is not scoring. Perk gave up position way too easily last night. At least baby pushed bogut off the block. Perk gets an F for his play lately
Aside from Rondo . . .
Who else has been consistent on this team? Very few players are consistent this season.
Bogut has Perk’s number. So I wouldn’t read anything into this game. But his play has tailed off. Whether it be fatigue, lack of interest, ego, or whatever, he needs to play better. Bottom line is that any player who isn’t getting it done, should have reduced minutes.
How bout Ray going for 25 on Sunday, and then only getting three shots on Tuesday? Doc’s upset with the team. So Doc doesn’t have any control on that either?
I didn’t see the game last night, but from what I have seen they don’t play hungry anymore. If we play like we did the last 6.41 against the wizards I believe were unbeatable. And if we lose a game playing like that, I’ll still be able to walk around knowing these guys tried their hardest and next year ainge will put brtter players on the floor. Point blank.
by Pmartin60 on Mar 10, 2010 1:36 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Why Doc Rivers didn't double teamed Bogut
If Bogut was practically doing anything he wanted why Doc didn’t try to stop him. Was very clear Perk couldn’t stop him in any way, why not try something else, like double team. I really don’t understand.
i was thinkin the same thing
til that play when KG came over to help and bogut immediately found illyasova underneath the basket.. bogut’s too good a passer, it’s on Perk to take him out of his game
by JunkyardDawg on Mar 10, 2010 10:31 AM EST up reply actions
further, even with Bogut scoring at will
we held the Bucks to 86 points. So defensively, overall, the strategy of controlling everybody else on the team had merit.
The problem is 3 of our starting 5 (Pierce, Ray, Perk) combined to miss 19 field goal attempts. Ouch. If we only made 2 or 3 of those …
Perk`s unhappy...he wants to get paid!
As long as the team is championship-bound :
Perk is fine with KG making five times more $ than him…fine with with Sheed making more than him…fine with BBD and Scal nearly making as much as him.
But, the team is in the toilet…Rondo starts making $11M next year…and Perk feels unappreciated playing for peanuts this year and next.
And you know this ... how?
You have telepathic powers? You know Perk intimately? He consults with you about his emotional state?
How?
honestly i think he and sheed have a chemistry problem
Ever since the C’s have gotten Sheed, Perk has gotten fewer crunch time minutes. Doc seems to prefer to use Rasheed for floor spacing and shooting down the stretch of tight ballgames instead of the interior defense and rebounding that Perk provides. I think he’s put off by this. I think he has a right to be, it’s not as if Rasheed has set the world on fire since he’s been here. I think he’s been quite underwhelming actually.
He is in a funk BUT....
he will either get better or he won’t.
I have faith that a guy who worked this hard to get where he is…won’t lie down and quit….and he won’t quit on his teammates…..He has too much pride..And I have faith his teammates won’t quit on him…I may be naive but I think things will find their balance…this isn’t Iverson, Stephan Jackson, Zach Randolph trying to find balance…this is Perk, KG, Ray Allen PP and RR….
I enjoyed the game and thought for a tough team playing hot and us being on the road …we didn’t do too bad (and yes there were mistakes and yes Bogut clearly dominated Perk)….but we live to fightt another day
Some of you guys depress me……Aren’t people allowed to get in a funk whether they highly paid or not…..give this guy a bit more of a break before you start kicking his groin.
If KG spent more time in the paint on the offensive end we might a few more offensive boards and thus be able to balance out the scoring by Bogut and win. I think Sheed and KG are afraid of the offensive paint 95% of the time. They are a couple of real pansies when it comes to banging the offensive glass- How do you like those apples!!!!!!
Is it Soup Yet?
Agree as to KG & Sheed afraid of the paint...
Most “elderly people” try to avoid the discomfort of severe physical contact.
However, Perk is not “highly paid”…his salary is embarrassingly low compared to his peers {Andrew Bynum} and his fellow starting teammates in Boston.
highly paid - is relative ...I meant in context to us working people but I agree with you in the context you mean
Careful what you say about elderly people……LOL
I still like severe physical contact as long as I am dishing it out to someone else
Is it Soup Yet?
and while I am here I might as well add this
I do fault Perk for not having a faceup shot developed and for his constant “slow gather” and extra dribble….but I still like his overall play.
Rondo has more offensive rebounds than KG this year as our PG!!!!. and only two people had offensive rebounds last night for the Celtics (Perk 2 and RR 2) . Now that is OFFENSIVE!!! PLenty of places to point fingers….but I still think we are OK and still have good hope.
Is it Soup Yet?
What, you couldn't
…interpolate this year’s data out to a full year and plug in the last point? Wassamattawitchyoo.
Nice graph. Is it real?
The Celtics are indifferent about offensive rebounds.
Doc has spelled this out multiple times.
They go all out after defensive rebounds. Those are important.
But on offense, after the shot is up, the guards are on orders to immediately drop back into defense. The Bigs have the option to fight for any easy offensive rebounds, but it is not a priority.
For this reason – plus a few others such as averaging a relatively low number of possessions and field goal attempts per game and one of the highest FG% in the NBA – the Celtics will NEVER have very high offensive rebound numbers.
This is a key principle of the Celtic’s defensive philosophy.
Most of the better teams in the NBA also follow similar philosophies.
Go look at the list of teams that rank highest in offensive rebounds. It includes a bunch of really bad teams. There is no correlation between being good at getting offensive rebounds and winning.
Defensive rebounds are much more important. But there, too, are factors that you need to consider when comparing numbers. Just like the C’s have a relatively low number of possessions per game – so too do their opponents. The number was 91 last I checked. The C’s also create an above average number of turnovers – preventing their opponents from even taking a shot on every possession. Thus their opponents on average take fewer shots per game than for most teams. So they’ll miss fewer total shots – thus the total number of defensive rebound opportunities is also going to be lower for the Celtics.
When we talk about rebounds, the only truly important number is defensive rebounding efficiency. That is, when a defensive rebound happens, how good are the C’s at going after that and getting it.
The Cs currently rank 11th at that, getting 74.1%.
Last year, they ranked 3rd at 75.6%.
In 2007-08 they ranked 8th at 74.4%.
On an individual level, it is dangerous to compare too much across teams because players are in vastly different systems. For example, it wouldn’t make a lot of sense to compare KG’s numbers now to when he was in Minnesota, where he was the only real rebounder on his team sometimes. So let’s just compare how KG & Perk are doing relative to the last couple of years since the system is basically the same. Saying that, I’ll also throw in Rasheed’s numbers as well as each player’s career average so you can sort of see how they compare within their own career.
*Defensive Rebound Percentage* Player 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 Career Avg KG 25.1 26.7 25.3 25.6 Perk 19.3 21.4 24.4 21.9 Sheed 21.8 24.6 18.1 18.7
I’m going to at this point let the numbers speak for themselves other than to say that imho folks need to just relax about the rebounding issue a bit. Our three main rebounders are all either doing better than (Perk) or very near their career averages (Sheed, KG). And as a team, we are doing reasonably well, similar to the championship year.
Yes, Shelden is a very efficient defensive rebounder (22%) but doesn’t play enough to warrant putting up on the chart.
Okay, I know you are curious – what are our hero’s offensive rebounding percentages? So small they are barely worth mentioning: KG (4.5%), Perk (8.8%), Sheed(3.1%).
Glen Davis is by far our best Offensive Rebounder at 15.8% but sucks on the defensive boards (13%). So, much of his rebounding effort is kinda ‘meh’ and at odds with the way Doc and Tom T want the team to work. For every time he’s grabbed an offensive board and then promptly gotten stuffed trying to go up for the put-back, would we have just been better if he instead just hustled down court to take his position on defense?
Shelden is the only other player on the C’s with an ORB% over 10 (he’s at 10.5%). At least his defensive rating is decent. But could it be better?
Nice work
Thanks.
To add: Last night, Cs grabbed 30 of the available 39 defensive rebounds, for a rate of about 77%. Pretty good, tending to underscore their overall high effort level. (Another made basket, one more better bounce, one less bad call… and the outcome would have been different. Good game, in general.)
love your posts and that was a very good one
But I just disagree…..offensive rebounds need to be a higher priority but I am not an NBA coach – just a fan and a long time player of basketball.
My gut tells me this…..had KG and PP and Perk and Sheed fought for few more offensive rebounds last night that would have turned into more points than would be lost on not having a such a strong empahsis on getting back on D
Whether or not other teams follow this same philosphy does not overide the fact that WE ARE DEAD LAST in OFFENSIVE Rebounds in the NBA…..if that wasn’t an important stat or aspect of the game they wouldn’t track it would they?
again mmmmm – nice post
Is it Soup Yet?
they track lotsa things that aren't as important as other things.
And I"m not going to say offensive rebounds aren’t nice. They just aren’t as important as some folks think.
It's all about confidence
Perk has lost his confidence—or his swagger, if you will. When KG was out, he was brimming with it—going up strong, finishing around the rim, and playing the role of enforcer/rebounder beautifully.
Since the All-Star break he looks hesitant with the ball and has fallen back into bad habits that he’d shed earlier in the season—like shuffling his feet with the ball, gathering himself down low before going up, and becoming a black hole when he does have the ball.
Harder to explain on the defensive end, though. Bogut is too quick for Perk and exposed him last night, but I was surprised that Perk let him set up deep in the post whenever he wanted. He’s usually much better about moving guys out of their comfort zone.
by McHaleinthepost on Mar 10, 2010 11:05 AM EST reply actions
It's impossible
…to stop a center from shooting a hook shot. It doesn’t come up very often, because most centers can’t do it reliably. Bogut can, which makes him very dangerous, and very good. The thing Perk failed to do is push him away from the basket. That too can be very hard to do… but that’s his job. Otherwise, the only way to stop Bogut is to double-team him, take the ball away, and/or prevent him from getting the ball.
Great Post
Greg
I completely agree. For some reason, Perk believes that he is now an offensive force. He’s not. He mechanical, takes forever and can’t pass out of a double team. He’s most effective getting those slick passes from Rondo on penetration or from KG on double teams. His post game is much better, but for him to be taking a fallaway jump shot in the closing minutes of a game is just plain STUPID!!!!!!!!!!!
Also, since when do you play defense with you hands at your sides. I was always taught 1 hand up and 1 hand down. Bogut got most of his points with Perk hands down by his waist. So there was no real contest on most of his shots. And Wallace and BBD have the same tendency. Maybe Doc should have the team watch the UCONN women play REAL defense.
great post
took long enough to notice i was right soon there will be a post about doc rivers and how much he sucks to
offensive rebounding is offensive.....
I thought I read somewhere here that Doc doesn’t want his guys offensive rebounding and would rather have them peel back to help on defensive transistion. ??? Wonder if that’s true? If so, that explains the weak rebounding numbers. In the old days Bird, McHale, Parish and Walton would kill teams on the offensive glass. The Lakers may have had better skilled, quicker players but they couldn’t stop us on the boards. Then they had to bring in someone like Mycal Thompson to toughen themselves up. Anyways, I digress. I just wish we wouldn’t give up an important part of the game, if that’s what Doc is signing off on.
please see my post up above
as a response to your earlier one, Po. Hopefully it provides some perspective.
Here’s some more:
In 85-86, the Bird, McHale, Parrish Celtics (67-15, NBA Champs) were 17th out of 23 teams in Offensive Rebounding Percentage (31.3%). They were first in defensive rebound percentage at 71.7%.
Master Po
I do to an extent. I’m wondering though as our stars age wouldn’t it help our cause to be able to get second and third opportunities at the basket. Not sure that everything will be ok.
Rebounding
Unfortunately we just don’t rebound very well. It’s hard work, it’s physical, you have to lay a body on someone (Rasheed, did you hear that). The offensive rebound with about 50 seconds to go 3 Celtics and 1 Buck, and the ball hit the floor. Ilysova went for the ball and the Celts looked at each other and then went for it. Would someone try jumping!!!!
Also, how does Bogut get 16 that’s SIXTEEN and Perk manages only 5, Heck, if he had boxes Bogut off the boards and just got the 5 offensive rebounds that Bogut had, he would have had 10 and we win. BTW, how does Carlos Delfino get more boards than Perk! That is embarrassing.
I like Perk, but it’s about time he starts to reassert himself on the boards. We are such a poor rebounding team, if someone would step up they’d look like a hero!
Perk should be better, yes
But overall, their rebounding was pretty good last night. They grabbed 77% of the available defensive boards. (On offense, they don’t try for boards (except Davis.))
blame Doc
Perk is a better player this year, yet his minutes are down. Why? Because Doc loves his veterans and no matter how badly Rasheed plays, Rasheed keeps getting his 20-25 minutes per game. Perk needs to be playing more. He sits for long, far too long, at a time.
Let Perk Play!
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