Im Still Ballin
03-30-2022, 06:41 PM
Many posters have talked about or referenced McHale's '86 playoff run. Lakers 1987 has posted about it for many years; in fact, I remember finding a thread he made about it a decade ago.
Anyway: It's a fantastic performance from a player that's perhaps not underrated, but underappreciated. I've watched all of the finals games, the first round, and a couple of games of the second round. I intend to get through the entirety of the 18-game run.
What impresses me about McHale's performance is his dominance on both ends of the court, while not domineering possession. He's able to keep his usage rate down, allowing space for his teammates to get touches and have an impact. He's done this while fitting with Bird, Parish, Ainge, Johnson, and Walton.
I think we too often praise and prioritize the floor-raising ability while negating the ceiling-raisers. As a team gets better, it becomes harder and harder to improve that squad. Going from 30 to 45 wins is much easier than 60 to 70.
There are simply diminishing returns. Kevin McHale statistically improved the '86 Celtics from a 61 win-pace to a 66-win pace.
He also missed 14 games in 1986 and the Celtics improved from a 61-win pace (7.3 SRS) to a 66-win pace with him (9.9 SRS).
This, I value more than going from a lottery team to a play-in or 8th seed. At the end of the day, it's about winning the championship, not simply making the playoffs. It's 5-on-5, and you need to select and round out your roster with care and consideration. Like the game of Tetris, you need to fit the pieces together.
Back to the playoff run... He averaged for the entire 18-game run:
24.9 PPG // 8.6 RPG // 2.7 APG // 0.4 SPG // 2.4 BPG on 57.9% FG and 63.6% TS
Went Big Baller Mode in the finals against Houston's Hakeem and Ralph. Led the team in scoring, true shooting percentage (among rotation players) and shot-blocking:
25.8 PPG // 8.5 RPG // 1.7 APG // 0.8 SPG // 2.5 BPG on 57.3% FG and 62.9% TS
These stats are great, but they're only stats. They don't show you how McHale scored. It doesn't tell you that McHale drew automatic double and triple teams. A naive individual would assume that he was getting easy shots because of playing with Larry Bird. Or because he was on a good team.
The stats also don't show you the full value and impact of his defense. Watching him shut down explosive SFs like Woolridge and Wilkins was super impressive. His length allowed him to thwart and disrupt the opponent's paint scoring to an appreciable degree.
In the future, I might download the old games from https://usasportsondvd.com/ and upload McHale game-by-game highlights to YouTube.
Anyway: It's a fantastic performance from a player that's perhaps not underrated, but underappreciated. I've watched all of the finals games, the first round, and a couple of games of the second round. I intend to get through the entirety of the 18-game run.
What impresses me about McHale's performance is his dominance on both ends of the court, while not domineering possession. He's able to keep his usage rate down, allowing space for his teammates to get touches and have an impact. He's done this while fitting with Bird, Parish, Ainge, Johnson, and Walton.
I think we too often praise and prioritize the floor-raising ability while negating the ceiling-raisers. As a team gets better, it becomes harder and harder to improve that squad. Going from 30 to 45 wins is much easier than 60 to 70.
There are simply diminishing returns. Kevin McHale statistically improved the '86 Celtics from a 61 win-pace to a 66-win pace.
He also missed 14 games in 1986 and the Celtics improved from a 61-win pace (7.3 SRS) to a 66-win pace with him (9.9 SRS).
This, I value more than going from a lottery team to a play-in or 8th seed. At the end of the day, it's about winning the championship, not simply making the playoffs. It's 5-on-5, and you need to select and round out your roster with care and consideration. Like the game of Tetris, you need to fit the pieces together.
Back to the playoff run... He averaged for the entire 18-game run:
24.9 PPG // 8.6 RPG // 2.7 APG // 0.4 SPG // 2.4 BPG on 57.9% FG and 63.6% TS
Went Big Baller Mode in the finals against Houston's Hakeem and Ralph. Led the team in scoring, true shooting percentage (among rotation players) and shot-blocking:
25.8 PPG // 8.5 RPG // 1.7 APG // 0.8 SPG // 2.5 BPG on 57.3% FG and 62.9% TS
These stats are great, but they're only stats. They don't show you how McHale scored. It doesn't tell you that McHale drew automatic double and triple teams. A naive individual would assume that he was getting easy shots because of playing with Larry Bird. Or because he was on a good team.
The stats also don't show you the full value and impact of his defense. Watching him shut down explosive SFs like Woolridge and Wilkins was super impressive. His length allowed him to thwart and disrupt the opponent's paint scoring to an appreciable degree.
In the future, I might download the old games from https://usasportsondvd.com/ and upload McHale game-by-game highlights to YouTube.