Telfair

[Eric Albert]

>Roy Enrile wrote, about Sebastian:
> 
>Instead his game has been flexible, and he's kept a veteran demeanor on
>the court, no Antoine-like complaining or celebrations.  At the start of
>1st & 3rd quarters, he blends well w/ Gomes/Wally/Paul, doesn't dominate
>the ball, and gets his assists swinging it around to our shooters with
>conservative crisp passes.

I agree about the demeanor, but otherwise have a very different take on
his play.  (I've seen every preseason game.)

Sebastian doesn't make the players around him better; in fact, he sometimes
makes them worse.  "Conservative," is one way to put it.  "Over-controlling"
is the word I prefer.

He *never* passes up the court when he's given the ball after a rebound
(something that Rondo does on maybe half his possessions).  No, Sebastian
always has to dribble it up, ensuring that the Celtics are forced to play
half-court ball.  And this is *not* a team that should be playing half-court!
(For one thing, that requires coaching.)

When Sebastian finally makes it to the three-point line, the defense is
set.  Sebastian does nothing to unset them.  He dribbles a lot.  He makes
a "conservative" pass to the next player over.  The Celtics usually end up
with a perimeter shot, or a player making an individual move against a
set defense.  Whatever they do, it's stagnant offense at its worst.

Oh, I forgot, there is one other option: Sebastian heading for the basket
and getting fouled.  And I have to admit, he does that pretty well, especially
since he's a good foul shooter (praise the Lord!).  But that's been his
primary skill (I'm not trusting his suddenly discovered outside shot until I see
it fall a lot more), and I don't want that to be my point guard's primary
skill.  A two-guard . . . maybe.  Too bad he's so short.

I think one reason Sebastian avoids the fast break is he isn't very good at
it.  After seeing all those highlight clips, I thought he'd be hurling the ball
through defenders' legs to hit streaking Celtics for a dunk.  Instead, I've
watched him blow just about every fast-break opportunity he's had.  In the
game before last, he blew a *four-on-one* fast break -- the defender was
able to hit the ball out of bounds, so not even a foul!

Let me be clear about this.  My problem isn't that Rondo, a rookie, can run
an NBA fast break infinitely better than Telfair.  My problem is that Tony
Allen can run the break much better than Telfair.  (See the most recent
game.)

Sebastian is also way too prone to unforced (or mildly forced) turnovers.
He makes passes that aren't quite there.  (As opposed to Rondo, whose
passes never get intercepted, though he passes three times as often as
Sebastian.)  His dribbling is suspect, especially when he goes into traffic.

I would have said that Sebastian's defense has been poor, but he turned
it up three notches in the late stages of the latest game.  I just hope he'll
do it when it's not a "do-or-die" situation.  Doc commented afterwards
about Telfair's competitiveness during the comeback, and it makes me
wonder if, like some other players, Telfair needs that level of passion to
fully focus.  Hope not, because the NBA season is a grind, and we need
people (like Delonte and Gomes) who bring every night, every play.

If you put all my comments together, it seems like I'm criticizing just
about every aspect of Telfair's game.  That's accurate.  From what I've
seen so far, he's a fundamentally unsound basketball player.  Capable of
making the occasional amazing pass, but unable to competently and
consistently run a team.

I'd much rather have Rondo or Delonte at the point.  At the very least
(can you hear me screaming from here, Doc?), when Telfair and Rondo
are both in, RONDO SHOULD BRING UP THE BALL.

-- Eric