Milwaukee Bucks Blog - The Bob Boozer Jinx : Doc Rivers

Eastern Conference Preview

J.D. Mo — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:30:00 GMT

The NBA Eastern Conference got better in the offseason, and is probably stronger top to bottom than the West. Our Bucks, unfortunately did not improve for the short term. This is the inescapable Bucks reality as the 2009-10 season gets underway. Playoffs...(read more)

Playoff Props: Free Ray Allen!!!

J.D. Mo — Sun, 18 May 2008 21:53:00 GMT

PICKING UP GAME 7 ACTION at the start of the 3rd quarter, as Paul Pierce has hit another three for his 29th point to put the Celtics up by six. The forwards have dominated play all day and the shooting guards - Ray Allen and Wally Szczerbiak have been wise to stay out of the way. Lebron is hot to start the second half.

Rondo miss - "If you're Doc Rivers you've got to start thinking about Eddie House ..." ABC/ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy comments, as Ilgauskas collars the rebound. Lebron hits a three; Pierce counters with a three. The forwards are on FIRE. What a show.

In Milwaukee, the small forward position has been all but eliminated, but the position is alive and well in Game 7. Point guard play is still important - the edge all series goes to Delonte West - but the forward play has relegated the shooting guards to role players, the big men to pick and roll outlets. Cleveland and Lebron play this way every night, but Boston? The Cavs have upset the Celtics offensive balance, and now Boston is playing Cavs-ball. ... Or, maybe there was never really enough ball to go around in Boston. .... Escaping notice from analysts Van Gundy and Mark Jackson is that Doc Rivers has started big forward 38-year-old PJ Brown in the 2nd half. Celtics up eight.

Ray cannot hit!!! Two wide-open three-looks within a few possessions. If Ray drains those, the Cavs are reeling going into the 4th quarter. Instead, Ray's back on the bench with Rondo and the Celtics go back to the Eddie House one-guard offense, which means the ball will be in Pierce's hands for the next six minutes. Final seconds of the third quarter, Pierce at the line. Celtics by five going into the 4th.

Here's a link from Basketball Prospectus.

Prospectus says: "Mike Brown and Doc Rivers have set NBA basketball back about eight years, taking us back to the micro-managing control freaks who dominated the game at the beginning of the current decade."

This has been the type of series only Jeff Van Gundy and his point guard, Mark Jackson, sitting next to him for ABC/ESPN, could love. Van Gundy happens to be one of the coaches to whom bball prospectus is referring.

Another ex-Buck on the floor, Damon Jones from the 2003-04 team: "Damon Jones with a wide open look from the corner ...." It's off this time (he had made one earlier). Jones is filling in at guard for Boobie Gibson, sidelined with a separated shoulder.

8:30 remaining now, "Celtics trying to hold on."

Rondo back in the game, Allen and House on the bench.

Eddie House was a Buck for five games in 2004-05 season. Larry Harris picked him up off the waiver wire in Dec. 2004 then released him few weeks later, in favor of Mo Williams, Mike James and Erick Strickland? Five ex-Bucks on these teams. Ray and Sam and House for the Celtics (three of the four Boston guards who get PT). Joe Smith and Jones for the Cavs. Of the six guards playing today, three are ex-Bucks (Jones, Ray and House - Sam is on the bench). I can't resist thinking how the Bucks fate could've been different. Slickless Larry's overconfidence in Mo Williams and Michael Redd probably got the better of him in the end -- $142 million for those two. Meanwhile, here are all of these former Bucks guards in Boston, playing in a game that is bigger than any the NBA has put on the floor so far this season. ...

Pierce hits again - 39 for Pierce. Lebron hits a three. 83-80. Garnett dunks. Celts by five. James misses a three. Five minutes left.

An open Rondo misses. Delonte West has gone back to not guarding him, but by and large, Rondo is keeping his cool, not trying to do too much. I'm feeling that I've been too hard on Rondo, who's only in his second year. PJ Brown is there for the rebound and lay-in!!! Celtics by five. Brown has played nearly the entire second half at power forward/center with Garnett. Perkins and Big Baby have been spectators. Posey gets some minutes.

2:20 left. One-point game. Celtics ball. Doc Rivers goes to Ray Allen and Eddie House for the final two minutes. Free Ray Allen!!!

Jump ball. Celtics James Posey had time to get a timeout in that scrum - Ilgauskus never had a hand on the ball. Bad call by the officials. Could've been a foul on Z. On the tip, Pierce dives to the floor, saves it and gets the time out, even though Delonte West has his hands wrapped around the ball. Somebody chuck a rule book at these refs. 58 seconds left - Garnett ignores Ray on the wing and misfires a 20-footer. Bad judgement, KG. Free Ray Allen!!! KG redeems by grabbing a tough rebound on a James miss, dumps the outlet to Pierce and Pierce, making smart decisions all day, gets it upcourt to Ray, the best free throw shooter in the playoffs. Ray is fouled, hits two and is now 33 of 34 from the line in the playoffs. Celtics by five. 18 seconds left. Celtics hold on if they hit their free throws.

Pavlovic hits a three for Cleveland! Three point game with 9 seconds to go. Pierce now to the line. ... 8 seconds left. He hits two. The first one takes a crazy bounce and falls. Assist to the ghost of Red Auerbach. Cavs down five, needing a miracle. ... Game. 97-92 Celtics. Pierce finishes with 41, a game for the basketball gods.

The Detroit Pistons will practice in Detroit tonight (Chauncey Billups said at halftime that a practice is scheduled), and pack their bags for Beantown tomorrow. Tuesday night, 7:30 Central. Celtics-Pistons Game One. I don't like the Pistons chances at all in that series, and I don't see it going seven games.

Tomorrow night in the hive in New Orleans, the Hornets and Chris Paul try to hold of the defending champion Spurs, who, up to their usual dirty tricks, have disabled an opponent -- this time it's forward David West, popped in his ailing lower back by Robert Horry, the culprit who last season body-checked Steve Nash in the Suns-Spurs Western Conference Finals. ... Dare I say it? This year is not the Spurs year. ... There, I said it.

Playoff Props: Celtics-Cavs Game 7

J.D. Mo — Sun, 18 May 2008 12:10:00 GMT

Celtics-Cavs Game 7 today, just as Al in Ohio would've predicted if he had made a prediction that didn't give him an out.

For Game 7, Al's going out on a limb:

"I'll take the Cavs and the points!"

There's that Cleveland optimism again. The Celtics are giving eight to the spread.

This game is a tough call. Can the Celtics and the ghost of Red Auerbach pull out another defensive gem in a second consecutive Game 7? Can Lebron finally shake Paul Pierce and dominate? Which Rajon Rondo will show up? When will Ray Allen detonate and have a Ray Allen game? (If he does it's over).

The best thing the Celtics have going for them is Kevin Garnett and Cavs guard Daniel "Boobie" Gibson's separated shoulder. Gibson, the Cavs best three-point shooter, is out, leaving it up to Cleveland's starting guards, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West, to make up the difference. (Note: Gibson's injury probably isn't serious enough to rule out the Michael Redd trade.)

"With Gibson out and the Celts seeming to have figured out how to control Z, I'm not sure LeBron can do it himself on the road," Al says.

Lebron's done it before, last year against the Pistons, and that's where Cavs fans place their hopes. But they also have a wild card that could flip the Cavs way -- Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo. Doc Rivers has completely ignored my advice to play Sam Cassell when the offense is struggling -- in fact, he's done the opposite and went so far as to bench Sam in Game 6. Look what happened -- the Celtics went nine minutes without a bucket -- that's right, NINE minutes, spanning the last six minutes of the first half and the first three of the second.

The Cavs outscored the Celtics 24-2 in that stretch, which began when Doc rested Ray in the second quarter and continued until Ray hit a layup in the third. The Celtics never recovered. It was a replay of the game in Atlanta when the Celtics went eight minutes without a field goal in the fourth quarter, yet Doc stuck with Rondo until the final minutes of the game when he pulled him for Cassell, too late.

True, this Doc Rivers version of the Muhammad Ali rope-a-dope (Doc's version doesn't work) seems to be a road phenomena. But if it's sink or swim with Rondo again today, Doc Rivers and his point guard may be the next best thing the Cavs have going for them after Lebron.

Lakers almost RULE!!! The Lakers were one better than the Celtics, Cavs, Spurs and Hornets. Kobe and friends avoided game seven and won a game on the road. Lakers fans will now demand that commish David Stern cancel the rest of the playoffs and declare the Lakers champs. Why? Because its OVER!!! LAKERS RULE!!! I hate to admit it, but the Lakers do seem to be separating from the rest of the pack in the West.

To me the reason these series' have been so close (including the Pistons-Magic series, which was much closer than 4-1) is the obvious one: there's not much of a gap separating the top eight teams from one another. Top 10 if one includes a healthy Houston Rockets and the Phoenix Suns. The Jazz were very close to pushing the Lakers to game seven, and only needed to shoot a little bit better than a terrible 33% in Game 6 to get there.

The boo birds were out in Utah, with Andrei Kirelenko (passport-gate) and Carlos "brick shot" Boozer taking the brunt of it. (Boozer reminds me so much of Terry Cummings - including the bricks - that I wonder sometimes if it isn't the 1987-89 Bucks I'm watching during Utah telecasts; Okur plays like a lot like Jack Sikma, and Kirilenko's a dead ringer for Fred Roberts; it's kinda scary).

Still, I'm sticking to my week-ago rant about Bucks fans forgetting the Jazz as a Bucks trading partner. Utah's nearly on par with the Lakers now, and I don't foresee Jerry Sloan messing with a good thing in the offseason. Sloan's not one to panic - and he doesn't have a history of making big trades.

Playoff Props - What's up Doc?

J.D. Mo — Mon, 12 May 2008 00:19:00 GMT

After another surpisingly out-of-synch playoff performance on the road by the Boston Celtics, Celtics coach Doc Rivers finds his team in a difficult situation with its starting point guard, 21-year-old Rajon Rondo. Rondo finished with zero assists in Game 3 against the Cavaliers on Sunday and was thoroughly outplayed by the Cavs' Delonte West.

Rondo's not ready to help the Celtics win it all; that was all too clear Saturday night. On Doc's bench is the answer: the clown prince of NBA guards, Sam "I Am" Cassell, offensive genius. Yet Rivers has been slow to pull Rondo when things are going badly.

At one point in the 3rd Quarter of Saturday night's game, the ABC cameras found West on defense, playing one of the saggiest one-man zones I've seen in the NBA. He wasn't even guarding Rondo, clogging the paint instead to make life difficult for KG and Paul Pierce. As the minutes passed, the Celtics struggled to cut the lead to 15, then watched it fall back to 20. No team in the NBA would dare to not guard Sam Cassell. Yet Sam sat. Rivers finally went to Cassell at the start of the fourth quarter and the Celtics pulled to within 12, but could get no closer.

With Rondo in the game, Paul Pierce fought for shots and Ray Allen scarcely shot at all, turning playmaker when he did get the ball. Unselfish play by Ray, but that's what Rondo should have been doing, instead of driving the ball at Big Ben Wallace, Z-Ilgauskus and Lebron James. Is Rivers worried about deflating Rondo's confidence in the playoffs? Or is it a team chemistry thing because Sam is the new guy? Whatever the case, Rivers has been far too much of a players' coach where Rondo is concerned, and it's part of the reason the Atlanta series went to seven games.

It doesn't seem to matter when the Celtics are playing in the Garden, but on the road, Rivers has to be quicker to go to Sam when the offense is struggling. If Sam, at 38, wears down, go back to Rondo, but don't give Rondo the reins in the 3rd Quarter on the road -- unless Doc is willing to sacrifice a championship for an "experience" playoffs for Rondo. If the Celtics fall short of the NBA Finals (they're by no means a shoe-in for conference finals) Rivers failure to make game adjustments will be the first thing called into question.

Trust in Sam, Doc. You won't be sorry.

Steady rollin' Joe The Celtics-Cavs series is THE one for Bucks fans. There are future Bucks to watch in Cleveland's Danny Gibson and Wally Szczerbiak ( I finally spelled it right - I think) -- How you doing on that Michael Redd, trade, Lebron? And there are ex-Bucks to watch in Ray and Sam "I Am", and, coming off the Cleveland bench, Joe Smith (Damon Jones is on that bench too, but rarely leaves it).

Joe had a steady-rollin' game Saturday - 24 minutes, 17 points on 7/8 shooting, 6 rebounds, 4 fouls. Smith made a couple of more shots than he normally would, but as Bucks fans know, his game was not that different than it ever was. Smith doesn't force anything, takes good shots, rebounds, plays D and gives his team a chance to win, though he won't be "the guy" winning it.

Smith, 32, came to the Bucks from the T-Wolves in the 2003 trade for Sam Cassell and Ervin Johnson. It was Ernie Grunfeld's last trade as GM, which coincided with the drafting of point guard T.J. Ford. Two weeks later, the woeful era of GM Larry Harris began. Smith started at power forward for two years, averaging 11 pts., 8 boards per game (which makes him one of the more productive power forwards in Bucks history). The following year, Smith came off the bench behind Jamal Magliore and Andrew Bogut, but was hobbled with injuries for much of the year - no doubt the effects of the Bob Boozer Jinx at work again at the Bucks PF position.

"Slickless" Larry eventually traded Smith to Denver for forward Ruben Patterson in Aug., 2006, trade #5 in a series of six dubious Larry trades that left Charlie Villanueva as the only player resource standing. Apparently Harris, never known for his patience, didn't feel like waiting for Smith to fully rehab his knee. The Bucks let Patterson go to the LA Clippers as a free agent in 1997.

In other words, in true Slickless style, the Bucks got nothing for Joe Smith. By the transitive property of the tradelines, this also means the Bucks got nothing for Sam Cassell, who, when he was traded for Smith in 2003 was under contract with the Bucks for another three seasons (at about $6 million per year) -- and should not have been traded at all.

What if the Bucks kept Sam? Instead of drafting T.J., the Bucks draft a forward in 2003 (say, David West). Terry Porter, in his first year as coach, has a leader on the floor in Sam (who was 2nd Team All-NBA 2003-04), and a developing big forward instead of injury prone Smith. Michael Redd's development as a scorer is more natural and team-oriented, and Redd never becomes the black hole or the $51 million, three-year contract problem that he is now. Sam controls the offense; Redd's contract extension doesn't get insane. Tim Thomas is happier (for a while anyway), the Bucks win more and there's less for Slickless Larry to foul up in 2005. Terry Porter keeps his job. Let's stop there, as it's beginning to look like this topic would be better as a post of its own.

In the meantime, Sam "I Am" fans have the Celtics-Cavs series, and Joe Smith and Ray Allen too.

And there's this, which I found whilst surfing around today. It's samcassellonline.org, the unofficial Sam Cassell website, created by a few of the LA Clippers faithful. Now that's good stuff.

Playoff Props: "Dammit Ray!"

J.D. Mo — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:52:00 GMT

Strange Days for the Celtics So how does a team that went 37-45 in the regular season, the youngest team in the playoffs, shock basketball fans everywhere by deadlocking the best team in basketball 2-2 in the first round of the playoffs?

The series that was the best excuse for going back to the bye system - remember the week off Nellie's Bucks teams got at the end of each season - is now one of the more befuddling matchups in sports. And Joe Johnson, the Hawks shooting guard noticed only by Hawks fans at this year's All-Star game, has arrived.

Johnson scored 35 points last night, 20 in a Jordan-esque fourth quarter. The Celtics entered the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead, only to watch helplessly as Johnson and the Hawks outscored them 32-17 to take game four of the seven game series.

In the process, Johnson made his coach, Mike Woodson, look like an offensive genius. Woodson simply isolated Johnson (at Johnson's suggestion) one-on-one against Ray Allen, whose defense last night was about as soft as the defense he usually played when he was a Milwaukee Buck. Charmin soft. Textbook matador. After one driving Johnson basket in the fourth quarter, the TNT cameras panned to Celtics coach Doc Rivers, just as he was screaming, unmistakably, in all silent-screen actor obviousness, DAMMIT RAY!!!

Not to let Rivers off the hook. Doc was thoroughly outcoached by Woodson. As Woodson's Hawks formed their isolation set possession after possession, Johnson starting nearly at half court in one corner against Ray as the rest of the Hawks gathered along the opposite sideline, Rivers had no answer. He just left Allen to defend Johnson and all that open court by himself. "DAMMIT RAY!!!" was all he had.

Rivers last night might have turned in one of the worst-coached games of the postseason were it not for Denver coach George Karl's pathetic job all last week against the Lakers. (I digress). The only basket the Celtics scored in the first EIGHT minutes of the 4th quarter was a three-pointer by Ray Allen, easily the best Celtics player on the court in the final 12 minutes. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce looked like rec league players.

Some of it was just bad, dumb luck - the Celtics worked hard for some good shots that, in the 4th, just rattled out. But great basketball teams make their own luck, and that's where the Celtics fell short. (Nope, not gonna go for any of those hackneyed Irish cliches).

Bucks fans watching the game had to wonder why Rivers left Sam Cassell on the Celtics bench until the final 1:30 of the game. Sam "I Am" will find a way for his team to score more than four points in eight minutes. The trick is to put him in the game and give him the ball. Even George Karl understood that.

Come to think of it, any coach who has Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Sam Cassell at his disposal yet, minute after minute, puts the ball in the hands of a guy named Rajon Rondo, deserves all the trouble that Joe Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks can give them.

“Basketball is a strange thing,” Cassell said after the game. “Strange things happen.” (Like another former Buck, Zaza Pachula, squaring off against future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett).

After last night's game, I'm having a difficult time picturing the Celtics beating Lebron's Cavaliers in the East semifinals - assuming the Celtics manage to get past the Hawks in this first round.

George Karl, the overrated Having watched the Nuggets more than most NBA teams this season other than the Bucks, I've come to the conclusion that George Karl was absolutely full of it during his five years as coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, especially on defense. George Karl is no defensive coach.

Karl's Denver Nuggets, led by Allen Iverson, last night became the first 50-win team in NBA history to be swept out of the playoffs last night by Kobe and the Lakers. Karl's greatest talent as a coach is to take supremely talented teams and make them playoff underachievers. He did it in Seattle (two surpise first round flops). He did it in Milwaukee in three mediocre regular seasons in five years. Now he's done it in Denver.

Not to lay it all on Karl's doorstep. Allen Iverson and fellow guard J.R. Smith, who led the Nuggets reserves, were the only two Nuggets players who seemed to give a headband that their season was coming to an end. Carmelo Anthony's looking round and melo - if he doesn't lay off the potato chips, beer and weed, he's going to turn into Antoine Walker.

The disappointing West The ultra-competitive Western Conference has been anything but in the playoffs. With a few notable exceptions (game one of the Spurs-Suns series, which left the Suns demoralized), the Western matchups have been yawners. The vast majority of the great playoff basketball being played this year has come in the East. Cavs-Wizards has been intense. Pistons-76ers has been a war. The Hawks, again, the youngest team in the playoffs, have stunned everyone against the Celtics.

The Lakers are as good as advertised, maybe even great. But the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets stumbled into the playoffs burnt out from the long regular season. Maybe 82-games is too many. Some of the older players just look tired (Jason Kidd, Marcus Camby, Kenyon Martin - 30 years old and two knee surgeries). Injuries have taken their toll (Houston).

It's no coincidence that the younger teams are beginning to emerge. The Orlando Magic, the Hawks, the Sixers, and the Chris Paul-led Charlotte Hornets have all impressed. Dallas, Detroit, Phoenix are beginning to wane. I'd say that about the Spurs but I know better. The Celtics are being tested.

Lebron James and the Cavaliers nursed injuries all season long and only won 45 games. But the Cavs are built for the playoffs, not the regular season, and they are proving it. Like the Spurs, they're a seven-game series team.

The regular season is only a snapshot of NBA basketball in time. Sometimes the camera lies, and this seems to be one of those seasons.