Empty the Bench

Ever since that mid-summer trade for Kevin Garnett all the talk about Boston has centered on their Big Three of Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. And rightfully so, with those three combining for 64.7 points per game in their long careers. All three are potential Hall of Fame inductees and were integral in turning the entire culture around in Boston. But basketball teams have five players at all times on the floor and nobody plays 48 minutes a game.

The strong play of role players and bench players has been just as key in the historic turnaround from a 24-58 record and a bottom seed in the East last season to 66-16 record and the NBA’s top seed this season. After trading for Allen and Garnett the Celtics roster was supposed to have been stripped of all their quality role and bench players, but GM Danny Ainge has done a surprisingly good job of augmenting his core. It’s been an ongoing process with Ainge adding key pieces up until the last month of the season.

Now we see how those moves pay off and more than one of those low-publicity additions could come up in a big way in the NBA Finals. Here are five Celtics not named Garnett, Allen, Pierce or Rondo that could put forth heroic efforts in this decisive series:

P.J. Brown, PF: A 14-year veteran who has averaged just 2.2 points a game in the regular season and 2.6 pointer per in the playoffs certainly qualifies as an unexpected hero. The scoring numbers don’t say anything about what Brown brings to these Celtics though. He’s a man whose athleticism faded years ago and yet remains an extremely disciplined and polished low-post defender. And while Brown doesn’t look for his offense at all these days, he’s still an accomplished jump-shooter for a guy who stands 6-11. After spending a bulk of the season in semi-retirement it took P.J. a while to get back up to speed, but in the playoffs he’s hitting 51.5% from the field and 88.2% from the line.

That shooting is key, because Brown often spells Kevin Garnett when The Big Ticket gets winded or in foul trouble. Because Brown can knock down that mid-range jumper the Celtics aren’t forced to dramatically alter their offense in the limited minutes KG rests. Another thing the lithe, hard-nosed Brown does well is keep rebounds and loose balls alive. Reminiscent of Dennis Rodman, he seems to only get credit for half of the boards he creates for his team. Like the rest of these Celts though, Brown will earn his ring on the defensive end: he’s capable of making things very difficult for Pau Gasol in limited stretches.

James Posey photo credit: Icon SMI

James Posey, SG: Far too much is made about role players who have earned rings as bit contributors at some point in their careers, but James Posey is one of the few Celtics who has been to the NBA Finals and it’s showed. He’s not a “veteran leader” and he’s only scoring 6.1 points a game in the playoffs, but he knows his role and Posey has played it very well in recent years. Like a poor man’s Bruce Bowen, Posey plays pesky defense on the perimeter and camps out in three-point range on offense. He’s a valuable handyman on both ends.

Posey will often be tasked with the tall order of keeping up with Kobe Bryant and Sasha Vujacic, and because of his postseason experience Doc Rivers has enough confidence in Posey to play him in crunch time. That confidence was rewarded in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals as Posey played great defense on Chauncey Billups down the stretch and came up with a huge steal late in the game. Posey has a knack for plays like that, which could easily make him a hero any game. He’s also the only player off the bench for the Celts who has any business guarding Kobe. If he can provide some clutch defense and knock down a few outside jumpers the final statistical line won’t matter: James Posey could be integral in more than one win.

Three more possible contributors to a Celtics championship after the jump…

Leon Powe, PF: Like Ronny Turiaf in Los Angeles, the head coach in Boston hasn’t shown much faith in Powe this postsason. But also like Turiaf, Powe always seems to make good things happen when he’s on the court with relentless hustle and work ethic. Leon is undersized at 6-8 and his 8 points with 4 boards a game this season won’t wow anybody. The Boston faithful know he can have an impact on games though. Powe has a knack for getting tough rebounds, keeping balls alive and making timely put-backs.

With Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Kobe Bryant relentlessly attacking the Boston front line they will be in dire need of big bodies who can provide quality minutes… and a few fouls. I expect the offensive prowess and speed of the Lakers to negate the lumbering Glen “Big Baby” Davis, making the more agile and versatile Powe a more attractive option. If given more minutes all Powe needs to do is show up with his excellent timing, boxing out and hustle to make a difference.

Kendrick Perkins, C: Kendrick Perkins was one of my favorite secrets coming into this season, but he blew his cover in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. In front of a national audience Beast blew up for 18 points, 16 boards, 2 steals and 2 blocks on 8-of-11 shooting while hitting both of his free throws. Contrary to what Mike Breen said, those were not career highs, but usually a scoring or rebounding game like that only comes once a month for Perk.

He’s picked up his game in these playoffs though, and is playing more minutes as a result. In 20 postseason games Perkins is averaging 7.2 points, 6.8 boards and 1.4 blocks on an impressive 58.7% FGs. His offensive game is usually comprised entirely of put-backs and flushes of excellent Kevin Garnett dimes, but as we saw in that Game 5 Perkins has confidence in his offensive repertoire and isn’t shy of showing it off when he feels he’s earned the right. The Lakers have talented forwards, but they’re a decidedly soft bunch who will struggle with the physicality of Perk. One or two more big double-doubles in wins would qualify him as a Bean Town hero.

Sam Cassell, PG: It’s been a long time for Sam I Am since he played an integral role for the NBA Champion Houston Rockets in 1994 and 1995. He didn’t last long in Houston after that, but Cassell’s reputation as an assassin and stellar clutch scorer started there. Since then he’s made a case for himself as one of the premier clutch shooters in the league, both in the regular season and the playoffs. That’s why I projected Sam to hit a few big shots in the Celtics playoff run this year and I’m not backing down even if he’s hit just 32.2% of his field-goals for Boston in the postseason.

Cassell is relatively immobile on both ends at this point, especially in contrast with Rajon Rondo, but he can still find open spaces. And when he does get open in big situations nothing he’s done up to that point matters: this man lives for the clutch. Yes, his defense is a major liability. And yes, a dedicated defender can easily stick with him. But if he’s in late in games Derek Fisher will be on him, who is no spring chicken himself. And with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to worry about in late-game situations it’s not hard to imagine the cagey vet finding an open spot and nailing a massive late-game jumper or two.

See Also: Steppin’ Up: Five Potential Unexpected Heroes for the Los Angeles Lakers

Related: Boston Celtics, Sam Cassell, P.J. Brown, James Posey, Kendrick Perkins, Leon Powe, Los Angeles Lakers