Everyone seems to love the Darius Miles story. Everyone who has met him and talked to him this year (including JB from Celtics Stuff Live) have walked away impressed with his attitude. Everyone remembers how good a player he was before his injury. But none of that will matter if he can't prove he can still play basketball.
As it stands now, the only issue is who winds up being the odd man out. Assuming a deal isn’t made to clear a spot, it’s safe to say the onus is on Darius Miles, the only C’s player of 16 without a guaranteed contract. Word is Miles needs to show he is worthy of being a key contributor - not just the 15th best player - to make the squad. Miles scored one point last night.
I looked up the box scores: He's played just 51 minutes in 5 games and scored a grand total of 8 points.
It doesn't look good for the guy, at least in Boston. I tend to think that he'll still get a shot somewhere this year. It may take a team willing to wait on his conditioning (and suspension) without having to make a roster cut to add him to the squad, but there are teams out there who could take a chance on him.
There's still a chance things could work out in Boston, but Doc and Danny only provide luke-warm praise for him and he hasn't exactly lit up the scoreboard when given the chance.
For those (like me) that were hoping to speed up the Sam Cassell coaching plan, Doc and Danny pour cold water on that idea today:
Doc Rivers has taken to calling Sam Cassell a coach in uniform, and that’s apparently what he will stay. The veteran guard didn’t play again last night, but Rivers knows what Cassell can provide. "He’s been really helpful to us, but he’s here to play," Rivers said. According to GM Danny Ainge, "I haven’t even discussed coaching with Sam. I know he wants to get into that some day, but I haven’t talked to him about it. He’s here to play."
The least complicated move the Celtics could move to get the roster to 15 is simply to cut Miles. It is looking more and more like that will happen.