Near the end of the 1976-77 regular season, Al Attles, coach of the Golden State Warriors, was asked what he thought of Bill Walton.
"He'd be fun to play with!" Attles exclaimed.
"Walton's the kind of player that might get the ball back to you after you've passed it to him."
Attles continued:
The NBA season is a long, grueling grind, and it's no easy task to keep players motivated and morale high. If your team has one superstar, and the only thing Mr. Superstar does is shoot the ball, his teammates begin to see their role as simply getting him the ball. Once they've passed Mr. Superstar the ball, they feel their job is done, and often quit paying attention for the rest of the offensive sequence. Meanwhile, the defense is ganging on up Mr. Superstar. By the end of the year, Mr. Superstar realizes he is beginning to struggle against the double and triple teams, and starts looking for open teammates. Well, the teammates are either asleep or their skills have eroded from lack of use.
This doesn't happen with Walton. Not only does Walton pass the ball, but he singles out his teammates for praise, both publicly and privately. He remembers the name of every guy who throws a pick, makes a great pass, or plays effective defense. What this does is make his teammates play even harder for him and the team. Meanwhile, Mr Superstar's teammates are sick and tired of hearing how great Mr. Superstar is.
It is hard to read this quote without thinking of Kevin Garnett. Like Walton, KG is a great passer. Almost to a fault, The Ticket looks to pass first after getting the ball. This keeps the defense honest, and prevents them from double-teaming him without paying a price. When he's on the bench, he's constantly encouraging his teammates, and calling them out for their great plays. After the game, he's quick to praise the role those teammates played in the win.
Rondo's a future all-star.
Posey's the glue.
House is an assassin.
Big Baby is the Celtic's team personality.
Like Attles said about Walton, KG's teammates clearly go to war for him. Posey and House both said that they signed with the Cs in part to play with KG. You can see the excitement and comraderie between KG, Posey, and House on the court.
Most importantly, you can see it in the entire second unit's performance. The Celtics bench has surprised just about everyone, and quieted the early critics. It may not be the most talented bench in the NBA, but it certainly plays together as a unit, and plays like they are part of something bigger.
What is that something bigger?
You can give Doc Rivers plenty of credit for instilling the team ethic of Ubuntu at the outset of the season. But KG took the lead in making Ubuntu a reality. He's gotten everyone on the same page, united for a common purpose.
The players show up ready to play together with KG at their side.
Just like Walton's teammates did.
Funny thing that KG chose Walton's #5 when he joined the GREEN.
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