Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
“It’s key,” coach Doc Rivers said. “Our bench is going to be huge for us. It’s going to be the key, in my opinion, for the regular season. And that’s what’s going to have us be able to be ready for the playoffs.
“Look at it this way: If the bench doesn’t come through, it’ll be tough, because that means the starters will have to play more minutes. And that’s not something we want. I think it’s the key to our season.
Herald - Reserve tank should fuel Celtics drive
It's a simple formula. A productive bench equals reduced minutes for starters. Reduced minutes increases the probability the starters stay healthy.
One of those reserves - the guy who questioned his role on Media Day - is off to a fantastic start:
Two games in, Davis is utilizing the versatility of having played both near the basket and on the perimeter in recent seasons to thrive with Boston's new mix-and-match bench. For the second straight game, Davis got to the foul line for 10 attempts, generating points by drawing contact around the basket. On Thursday, Davis connected on a team-high six field goals while scoring 20 points in 28 minutes of action.
His role might not be defined, but not being pigeonholed to one area of the floor seems to be allowing Davis to flourish.
"Right now, he's scoring through the flow," said Rivers. "I don't like when guys are holding the ball and stopping the offense. I thought Davis was far better [Thursday]; he did a great job of passing up a shot, getting to the next play, then getting wide-open shots. When he starts doing that, everyone starts trusting him and he starts trusting the offense, and it becomes easy for him."
File this under: so far, so good.
On Page 2, the Celtics play ball at Fenway.
There are no media reports of the event, only ramblings on Shaq's Twitter feed.
The big fella dubbed it: Team Rondo vs Team Shamrock - Celtics softball practice invitational. Shaq claims his team won 32 to 25.
The rest of the links:
Globe: Bench worth a look | CSNNE - Oh Baby! Davis coming thru | ESPN Boston - Nice and Quisy |