From Stub to Ticket and Baby to Man

When the Celtics acquired the 35th pick overall (Glen Davis) from the Seattle Supersonics, along with Ray Allen; hopes were high for him to be a large framed player who could rebound and have an offensive post game. I formally owe Glen "Big Baby" Davis an apology for my comments and feelings towards him last and much of this season. I always wanted him to use his size to rebound, play good defense, and serve as a backup to Kendrick Perkins. When I saw him taking jump shots and missing it was very frustrating as it seemed he was playing the wrong style. Why was Big Baby taking shots when you have Ray Allen and Paul Pierce? Each brick and each airball continute to reaffirm the notion that he should not be taking shots. What I failed to see is that he was working on a jumper that is now keeping the Celtic's season alive. So far during the Playoffs Glen Davis has been spectacular for his team; by hitting the mid range jump shot all series against the Bulls and now is still being left open against the Magic.

Big Baby was 9/14 from the field (64%) and scored the winning basket on a twenty one foot jump shot at the buzzer. The buzzer beating score by Davis as time expired was the climax of a tense last possesion by the Celtics. With seven seconds left Rondo had the ball at the top of the key, as I feared he would take a hero three or get blocked, but he passes to Pierce with nearly four seconds left. As the two Orlando defenders rush to double team Pierce; thoughts of him taking a fadeaway jumper over Dwight Howard and Reshard Lewis and missing badly seemed a likely outcome. A younger Paul Pierce or a current day Kobe Bryant would have taken that shot, but Pierce knew to get the ball to an open Glen "Big Baby" Davis for a game winning play. As Doc Rivers once told his young power forward, "if you prove you can make shots, you can take them" and that is exatcly what he has done. What made this last shot even more improbable was that the Celtics offense looked dismal, going nearly three mintues without scoring in the closing moments. None other than Glen Davis makes a free throw with 6:27 left in the contest, but this would mark the beginning of a Celtic drought. Boston did not score again until a free throw from Rajon Rondo with 3:52 remaining. In this final sterech of time Boston would only produce four points and only one Celtic would score again. That Celtic of course was Glen Davis; hitting shots with 0:33 and 0:01 to even the best of seven series at two a piece.

When it was known that Kevin Garnett would be out for the postseason, it was also known that Glen Davis would replace him as Boston's starting power forward. To lighten the mood and foreshadow his self confidence Davis proclaimed himself the "Ticket Stub" as Garnet had been called the "Big Ticket". Without Garnett's defensive intensity it seemed a grim situation for the Celtics even against the Bulls. Big Baby will never be even half the defender KG is, but he can contribute on defense with his size, and I thought he could rebound and combine with Perkins for some solid defense. However, I never though he would become Garnett on the offensive end. The Ticket Stub has averaged over sixteen points per game since starting for the injured Garnett and has converted the mid range shot all postseason, even in the clutch. The second year power forward out of LSU will never be the defensive presnce that Garnett is, but this postseason on the offensive end you've got to tip your cap to Big Baby. Perhaps the Ticket Stub has become a Ticket, and Big Baby has become a Big man for the Boston Celtics.