12-14-2007, 06:21 AM
|
#1 (permalink)
|
|
Moderator
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 5,458
|
JS: Allen good for three
Quote:
They want to win," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I think it's the right age. If they were 23, it would be a little more difficult. Everyone would be trying to have their day. Well, they've had their day, and now they're trying to win. That's made it easier for me."
Pierce is the youngest of the trio, after turning 30 in October. Garnett is 31 and playing in his 13th National Basketball Association season.
The 32-year-old Allen is in his 12th pro season, and he admits to drawing on some of his experiences during his 6½ seasons with the Bucks, his first pro team. After all, he played as part of a Big Three in Milwaukee, too, with Glenn Robinson and Sam Cassell.
That trio nearly made it to the NBA Finals, falling in a seven-game Eastern Conference final series against Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers in 2001.
"There was desperation to get up shots (with the Bucks). We wanted to score; we wanted to play fast and we were trying to get more possessions than our opponent. When we were really good, we played defense.
"Here, it's somewhat the same thing, but we're not trying to out-possession our opponent. We want to create steals with our defense, be able to run and execute on both sides."
Allen is averaging 19.2 points with Boston, a huge drop from the 26.4 he averaged last season as the main man in Seattle. He scored 15 in the Celtics' latest victory, a 90-78 decision over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
"The three of us are older players in the league, so we're not trying to prove ourselves, where we've got to get the ball and we've got to score," Allen said.
Maybe the most surprising thing about the Celtics is the way the role players, like point guard Rajon Rondo, rookie Glen "Big Baby" Davis, and reserves James Posey and Eddie House, have fit into the system and made a major impact.
"Teams are so focused on me, Kevin and Ray that these guys are getting opportunities and they're taking advantage of it," Pierce said. "It's not always going to be about us, and these guys are accepting the challenge."
|
Former Buck part of Celtics' dominant trio
|
|
|
JS: Allen good for three
Linear Mode
