FanPost

Were The Celtics Wise In Keeping Joseph Over Smith And Christmas?

It's unfortunate to see both Jamar Smith and Dionte Christmas leave the Celtics roster, but was the right decision made?

Istanbul:

Jamar Smith: Jamar put in 2 points, and 1 rebound shooting 25% from the field, in 12 minutes of playing time. He rushed a lot of his 4 shot attempts. He took shots early in the shot clock and his only made field goal was a long 2-pointer midway through the fourth quarter. You got the sense that Christmas tried to make a large impression on the Celtics coaching staff by trying to show off his range. All of his jump shots were beyond 18 feet.

Dionte Christmas: Dionte only managed to get 7 minutes of playing time. In his short stint on the court, Christmas' only stat was a missed field goal, and a personal foul. His only field goal attempt was a desperation 3-pointer, very late in the game. Little could be said about Christmas in this first game.

Kris Joseph: Joseph got even less playing time than Christmas and Smith. Joseph only saw 5 minutes on the court, and his only stat was an offensive rebound. Despite that, Joseph's +/- was still higher than Christmas' and Smith's combined (they both had net points of 0).

Milan:

Jamar Smith: In Milan, Smith had stats very similar to the ones he had in Istanbul. Smith logged 12 minutes, snatched 1 rebound, and made 1 field goal (he shot 1-6). He got himself a steal, but also committed 3 turnovers. A lot of Jamar's minutes came in the 2nd quarter, where he went 0-3. All of his misses were 18-20 foot, 2-pointers. Once again it seemed like Smith was more concerned about showing his long-range abilities than anything else.

Dionte Christmas: Christmas had a nice bounce-back game against Milan. In his 9 minutes of playing time, Christmas scored 9 points, snatched 4 rebounds (2 of them offensive) going 4-6 from the field, and 1-2 from 3-point range. He looked like a speed demon on the court, trying to show his athleticism as much as he could in the limited time that he had.

Kris Joseph: Joseph once again played the least amount of minutes compared to both Smith and Christmas. Joseph logged 7 minutes, grabbing 1 offensive board, and going 1-3 from the field. His only field goal came in the final 5 seconds of the game.

Knicks:

Jamar Smith: Smith played 18 minutes in this game, scoring 5 points, going 2-7 from the field, 1-3 from 3-point range, snatching 1 rebound, and committing 3 turnovers. Once again it seemed as if Smith was trying to find his shooting-stroke. He continued to settle for long-range jumpers, and committed costly turnovers late in the game.

Dionte Christmas: Christmas played 18 minutes as well, logging 2 points, going 1-5 from the field, getting 2 rebounds, and 2 assists, 2 steals, and only 1 turnover. Christmas made a clutch long-range 2-pointer around the 3-minute mark of the 4th quarter, but of course, the Celtics fell short.

Kris Joseph: Joseph has played the least amount of minutes out of the three, for the 3rd consecutive game. Joseph played 12 minutes, scoring 4 points, 1-4 from the field, and grabbing 3 boards. Joseph managed to get some late-game foul shots, going 2-3 from the free throw line.

76ers:

Jamar Smith: Smith played 13 minutes without scoring, finishing the game with 1 rebound and 2 assists. Some of Smith's shots weren't as long-ranged as before, but he still couldn't find the net. He was never truly able to get into any kind of rhythm.

Dionte Christmas: Christmas played 13 minutes as well, only putting up 2 points on 25% shooting. His only made field goal was a 2-pointer. All of his other shot attempts were 3-pointers which he of coursed missed. Christmas, similar to Smith, could not find the range in this game, as the 76er guards continued to play suffocating defense on the Celtics.

Kris Joseph: For the fourth straight game, Smith's and Christmas' minutes tower over Joseph's. Joseph only played a measly 4 minutes, and made 1 field goal (going 1-2). Not much could be said about Joseph's performance in this game, seeing as how he had such a short stint on the court. Nevertheless, it seems the player that played the least, is the one who actually got the roster spot.

What are your thoughts? Did the Celtics make the right decision? What factors do you believe contributed to the selection of Joseph over Christmas and Smith? Can you see Joseph getting regular minutes once the regular season begins?

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