Re: PF Possibilities

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

> Maybe, but who does he take minutes away from? If he plays SF, it means fewer
> minutes there for either Walker or Pierce (regardless of whatever happens wit
 h
> Mercer); 

Walker and Pierce are not going to "lose" minutes to a bench player. They are
the premier players on the team and they will get as many minutes as they
can effectively play, or more if the bench is still thin. Pitino is not
going to bench Pierce unnecessarily to play Rogers, say. If anyone is going
to lose minutes, it will be another bench forward - possibly McCarty or
Popeye Jones.
 
My feeling is that none of the starters should play more than 30-35 minutes 
if there is adequate bench support, especially if the Celtics start playing
the uptempo game that Pitino's always talking about. If he plays a ten
man rotation with four guards, there are room for six frontline players:
Potapenko, Battie, Walker, Pierce are probably established, so Popeye, 
McCarty, Rogers would fight for two spots. They could play situationally
I guess; Popeye for rebounding, McCarty for energy and pressing, Rogers 
for scoring. If Walker and Pierce each move down a spot (to SF and SG), 
that would free up room for another forward.

Actually, when I look at it, there are currently nine rotation players
with significant contracts:

Potapenko
Walker
Pierce
Mercer
Anderson
Battie
McCarty
Minor
Barros

Popeye Jones may make it back, and then the Celtics are also looking
to sign two more exception contracts. Who is going to be forced out
of the rotation?

> and if they try him as an undersized PF, he's taking minutes from
> Walker or Battie (not to mention a healthy Popeye). I'm not sure that in
> either scenario his production greatly (if at all) outweighs the production o
 f
> the people he'd be replacing. So how would you see Rogers fitting into the ro
 tation?