Patriots to re-sign Deion Branch.

The Patriots will re-sign Deion Branch, confirming that him being cut a few weeks ago was essentially the equivalent of him being placed on IR. With Deion now seemingly healthy Bill Belichick will place Donte Stallworth on Injured Reserve, ending his season. 

Deion has 9 receptions for 80 yards with 0 TD's in 7 games this season. Maybe he can provide more of a spark in the home stretch not that he's been resting at home. The Patriots especially need a third receiver now with Julien Edelman out for the season. 

3 Seasons Later And Ninkovich Is An NFL Playmaker

"The Patriots are missing those playmakers like Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi..."

Yes, the Patriots are missing the elite SB winning defenses of the early 2000's, but they aren't necessarily missing the Vrabel and Bruschi type of players. If you really think back to those defenses there were All-Pro guys like Lawyer Milloy, Ty Law, and Richard Seymour. But then there were also late draft picks and scrap heap guys, guys like Vrabel.

The former Ohio State Buckeye was drafted by the Steelers in 1997 and had a solid rookie year only to spend the next 3 years failing to live up to expectations. Vrabel was signed as an unrestricted FA by the Patriots in 2001. In his first season with New England, Mike more than doubled his career tackles, recorded a career high in sacks, and recorded his first 2 career interceptions... of course The Patriots also won their first Super Bowl that February. For the next 7 years Mike Vrabel was a staple in the Pats defense. Along with winning 3 rings in New England he also set a few individual achievements, in 2007 he was selected to the Pro-Bowl with 11.5 Sacks on a season where his team went undefeated, and over the years he became known as a serious offensive Red Zone threat by catching 10 TD's in his Patriots career... two of those were in Super Bowls.

While Rob Ninkovich may not be catching touchdowns, he is doing just about everything else. In 2006 The New Orleans Saints drafted Rob Ninkovich, 6'2" defensive lineman from Purdue, in the 5th round. After playing only 3 games with New Orleans Ninkovich was claimed in 2007 by The Miami Dolphins, he then played 5 games in 2 years with the Dolphins. In 2008 the Saints resigned Rob Ninkovich from Miami's practice squad only to release him after never appearing in the game. In 3 seasons Rob Ninkovich recorded 3 tackles and defended one pass... not exactly what the 5th round pick was looking for. Things would change on August 2, 2009 when he was signed by The New England Patriots and made the 53 man roster.

In Ninko's first season with New England he only recorded 1 sack and 1 pass defended, but he played in 15 games. Despite not making many plays in 2009, Bill Belichick felt that Rob was worthy of being on the field. In year two Ninkovich took a big step as a playmaker. He started 10 out of 16 games in 2010, sacked the QB 4 times, picked off 2 interceptions, recovered 3 fumbles, and forced one himself... he was a jack of all trades. The next season Ninkovich continued his growth with 6.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, then once again 3 fumble recoveries. But even that wasn't the end for Rob.

This season Rob Ninkovich has played both as an outside linebacker, but also as an incredible undersized defensive end. Through 10 games Ninko already has 6 sacks, including 5 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries... one of those was of course a game-winning overtime strip sack of Mark Sanchez.

Guys like Vince Wilfork, Brandon Spikes, and rookie Chandler Jones have been credited with anchoring the Patriots' "bend but don't break" defense, but the new #50, Mike Vrabel 2.0 a.k.a. Rob Ninkovich may be one of the team's most valuable playmaker.

The Problem With Brandon Bass

Let's first start off by saying that Brandon Bass is one of the best mid-range shooting big men in the NBA and since coming to Boston has proven that he is an above average defender, and a much improved rebounder. Now let's get to the other stuff.

Through 3 games this season Bass is averaging 10pts, 7reb, 2ast (career high), and is shooting 47% from the field. Add that with the fact that he turns it over less than once a game and you should basically find nothing wrong with the guy... so what the hell is my problem? It's something I see when watching him in the game. Bass has developed some bad habits since Game 7 last year. 

The first of his newfound bad habits is his hesitation in the offense, not necessarily with his shooting, but more-so with his decision making. The Celtics will run a set where the ball is swung to Bass at the top of the three point arc. On the opposite side of the court there will be a wing player coming off a screen, right in this moment is where I think Brandon is killing the offense. He hesitates on the initial pass, looks back to the rim, dribbles, picks up his dribble, looks back to his teammate that he missed with the open pass, then forces his teammate to retreat back and out of scoring position in order to save his panicked teammate... then of course the offense is forced for reset with about 5 seconds left. Tonight on the first play of the game Jared Sullinger executed this set perfectly and delivered a chest pass to Paul Pierce who hit the three pointer.

The second major issue with Bass has been his switching in pick and rolls. Against the Heat I guess it's okay because Miami uses lineups with Lebron and Battier who are both small forwards, but Boston doesn't play Miami every game. Against Washington there were countless times where he didn't "hedge" on the pick and roll but just switched out to cover the perimeter player, this puts the Celtic defense at a complete disadvantage. With Brandon out guarding a small, quicker, more talented player that left Rondo, Lee, or Pierce down on the block getting posted up by a big man. Washington immediately looked to take advantage. They spread out the floor, looked to get it inside to exploit the matchup, then either scored on an easy post up or took advantage in other areas because Boston had to overcompensate inside to deny the easy post score. The switching also hurts on the boards because if a shot goes up you now have your power forward standing up at the three point line.

Some of these weaknesses in Brandon's game are just extensions of him trying to do too much with what he IS good at. Bass is a great mid-range shooter who commits very few turnovers because he is always looking to shoot when the opportunity shows itself. On the other hand when Bass is put in a position to read the play and make the right pass he often hesitates and second guesses himself, opting to just get the ball back to Rondo. Another great asset of Brandon's is his quick feet and ability to shoot the gap for steals and also guard perimeter players when forced to switch out. The negative with this is that he is sometimes too willing to just pick up the smaller guy, thus introducing the problems mentioned in the previous paragraph. 

If Brandon Bass can make quick decisions on offense and choose better angles defensively he is easily a starting caliber power forward, and at worst will be considered the Celtics most valuable big off the bench. I think starting Jared Sullinger right now is the right decision because as a rookie he's already a better passer, but if Brandon can provide the team with more than just that silky smooth jumper... the job could be Bass' once again. 

Is Courtney Lee Even Better Than We Thought?

Through the preseason Courtney Lee has had flashes here and there on the offensive end, but on the defensive end it's been constant. Even when the team itself hasn't been playing great defense Lee has been staying in front of his man, hustling back to prevent easy baskets off turnovers, and has shown an excellent "ball-hawking" ability. There were many times against the Brooklyn Nets where the ball was driven on the baseline, kicked to the opposite baseline, and either knocked away or stolen by Lee just because he read the play and hustled down to help against his teammate's man.

Although not exactly a defensive skill, Lee has also shown his value in transition. When Lee's man is in the corner and not crashing the boards he has exploded out of the defensive end, forcing the tempo and often creating layups within the first 5 seconds of the shot clock. This aggressive mentality from Lee appears to be contagious as Paul Pierce seems to be jumping ahead of the ball much more often than he has over the past 5 seasons. Now that Rondo has Lee as a back court teammate he can not only add to his assist total with easy throw ahead passes, he'll also get easier looks for himself in transition because he'll actually be working a properly executed odd man rush.

Let's talk more about Courtney's defense. Avery Bradley is widely considered as one of the NBA's elite defenders, both on and off the ball. I think Courtney is just below that level. When you think of [i]great[/i] defenders that the SG spot you think of Tony Allen, Avery Bradley, Dwyane Wade, and Andre Iguodala. After this season you'll be adding Courtney Lee to that mix, and that's not even taking into consideration the fact that he can guard point guards and small forwards too.
Over Courtney Lee's career he's been known as a good defender but the individual defensive numbers don't actually tell the story. Lee's best defensive rating was 104, his rookie year playing in front of Defensive ace Dwight Howard. He also had over 3 defensive win shares in that season. In the three years since leaving Orlando Courtney's defensive win shares have totaled just 3.8. That tells me that he's been on squads where the team defense doesn't exactly perform at the highest level. It doesn't work that way in Boston.

With KG behind him Lee will be able to overplay the passing lanes and suffocate his individual match-up. With Rondo next to him he'll be rewarded for blitzing down the floor in transition. With Pierce on the floor he won't have to be concerned with taking too many difficult shots. Then, once Bradley gets back, he'll be able to play less minutes, allowing him to go even harder during the time he's on the court with the bench or the starters. I could name quite a few teams who would love to have Jason Terry, Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, Brandon Bass (or Sullinger), and Darko Milicic in their STARTING lineup... never mind coming off the bench.

What If Sully Fulfills His Potential?

We've heard it over and over again, "Jared Sullinger is a top 10 talent". "Jared Sullinger could have went top 5." But is anyone expecting that type of career out of him in Boston? More importantly, would it be fair if they were?

The saying goes that if an elite NCAA Freshmen comes back for his 2nd season there's a chance he will show off his weaknesses as opposed to his strengths. Somehow Sullinger put up 17pts and 9reb, improved his 3PT Range by .200, and still managed to lower his draft stock. As the draft crept up you heard more and more about Jared's supposed back issues, and less about him being a two time 1st Team All-American. If "Sully" never becomes anything more than Dejuan Blair 2.0 Danny Ainge has done it again... but what if he becomes more than that?

Comparisons have been thrown around to guys like Carlos Boozer, David West, Zach Randolph, and even a few to Kevin Love, but the one comparison i think fits best is to Elton Brand. The Brand comparison has come numerous times from Sullinger directly and if it comes to fruition it could be a franchise changer for Danny Ainge and the Boston Celtics.

Some of you might be saying "Elton Brand! The bum in Philly who can't stay on the floor? Are you serious?" First of all I'd like to start by telling you to calm down. Now I'll let you know that before his knee injury Elton Brand was an absolute beast, a rebounding machine, and most of all a STAR... that's right a star. From 1999 to 2007 Brand averaged exactly 20.3 points, 10.2 rebounds per game for his career and he did it exactly the way that Jared Sullinger will have to do it, with his bulk, soft hands, and basketball IQ.

Let us now get hypothetical. We're three years into the future, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce have walked into the sunset. Boston's projected lineup is Rondo, Bradley, Green, Sullinger, and Fab Melo.

*Rondo is still a top 3 PG in the prime of his career.

*Bradley is 24 years old and has a few All-Defensive team selections.

*Jeff Green has made the transfer from PF/SF to a legitimate full time small forward, a 6'9" 235lb scorer who is no longer living in the shadow of Kevin Durant or Paul Pierce.

*Jared Sullinger is entering is first season as the Celtic's full time starting power forward and will be given every opportunity to be the team's primary scoring big man.

*Fab Melo. Also in his first season as a starter Melo is a shot blocking machine capable of racing up the court to receive highlight alley-oops from his All-Star point guard.

This could very well be your 2015 Boston Celtics. A fast paced team with decent outside shooting, great rebounding, great passing from it's "stars", and elite defenders at 3 out of 5 positions in the starting lineup.

If Sullinger fulfills his potential he will be an All-Star. By then most of the elite PF's we see now will be well into their 30's and Sully could find himself at the top of the league in rebounds and free throws attempted. Of course Sullinger could also be the alternative. He could be a decent role player for a few seasons only to be hampered with too many injuries to ever be a real factor.

For right now Jared Sullinger is doing all the right things, he's scoring and rebounding in the D-League, impressing coaches and analysts with his passing ability and basketball IQ, and of course saying all the right things. It will be fun to see how Jared Sullinger evolves into his NBA career but two things are definitely for certain, One: The chip that he carries on his back can only help him on his mission to prove everybody wrong. Two: Danny Ainge has once again made out like an absolute thief.

Celtics Re-Sign Keyon Dooling

And you'll get more of the same.

KG Officially Continuing His Assault on NBA's All-Time Records.

With Garnett officially back with The Celtics and not retiring he can now continue his amazing Hall of Fame Career. After not making the All-Star Game last season for the first time in 13 years It wouldn't surprise me at all if the 36 year old (now) Center found himself back in the spotlight.

Along with the All-Star nod I also expect KG to pass quite a few career milestones in the 2012-13 season. Here are a few notes:

KG currently ranks 18th on the All-Time scoring list with 24,270 points (right behind Allen Iverson). If Garnett can score 1,000 points next year he will jump over A.I., Patrick Ewing, Jerry West, and possibly Reggie Miller.

The Big Ticket is 12th All-Time in Total Rebounds at 13,313, just below Hakeem Olajuwon. If KG can grab 500 rebounds next season he'll pass Hakeem and Bullets great Wes Unseld.

One of the greatest passing big men in league history, Kevin ranks 51st with 5,065 career assists and if he could dish out 170 dimes he's move up to 47th, jumping over Rickey Green, Norm Van Lier, Kenny Anderson, and Sleepy Floyd in the process.

Garnett ranks 19th All-Time in blocks behind Theo Ratliff and is 61 away from passing the fellow member of The 1995 Draft Class.