Bradley continues to say all the right things as he recovers from two shoulder surgeries.
Avery Bradley continues to say he's improving during his recovery fro two shoulder surgeries.
Avery Bradley continues to swear he will be a better player and point guard after returning from injury, and the musical artist Caskey comes to mind.
"These are words, and words (are nothing) but some thoughts from your head that go into my ears," Caskey rapped on the aptly-named song Words.
We haven't seen Bradley's vows of improvement acted out on the hardwood. For now, they're just words. Yet he's already catapulted so quickly, like a gymnast on the vault, from the rookie who could do no right to the 21-year old charged with leading a Boston Celtics turnaround last season.
I once doubted Bradley. His game was too raw. His skills too unrefined. His confidence too shallow, like a summer puddle evaporated by the scorching sun. And then overnight he became a difference-maker -- maybe even the difference-maker -- as the Celtics found themselves after the All-Star break last season. His shot, once so broken, started falling. His confidence, once so low that he feared disappointing Kevin Garnett during practice, started booming. His intelligence allowed him to cut behind the defense for layups. His athleticism helped transform the old Celtics into something considerably more dynamic. His defense, always disruptive, held at its lofty standards and became even more devastating to opponents as he earned more and more playing time.
And then the injuries happened. Even with his shoulders dangling as if held by silly putty, he tried to keep helping the Celtics. He continued to invite contact. He never scared and never backed down, until the day he needed to shut down for the season to undergo two shoulder surgeries.
Too soon, his second NBA season ended. During the recovery, he told CSNNE, he sat upright when he slept, surrounded by pillows to keep him from falling over and causing any further damage. He has missed Boston's first 14 games already this season, and will almost certainly miss at least a few more. Yet he swears he will return improved.
I wondered whether Bradley would lose some of the confidence he had gained, since his success had been nothing more than a shooting star, a brief flash in the sky. Players like Paul Pierce have gained confidence through careers of greatness. Bradley struggled immensely as a rookie and then had just a few months of shining during his second season. But it seems those few months have changed him.
The once-meek, wide-eyed rookie now speaks with the assured nature of a veteran comfortable with his abilities. Now 22 after his birthday Monday, Bradley believes the time off has helped him become a smarter player. He talks like something in his game that had been missing finally clicked on.
"There were some of those things (head coach) Doc (Rivers) would yell at us about," Bradley said, according to CSNNE. "[He would] look at us like, 'Are you serious? You don't see that? You don't see what I see?' We'd be like, 'No, we don't.'
"Now I see those things and I look at people that way, like, 'Why aren't you doing things that way?' I look at the game completely different, it's weird. It's like once you know the plays and you feel comfortable, you know all the other teams' sets, it's like you know everything and it's just easier. I know Paul (Pierce) and them can say the same thing, too."
When he said he wants to improve, Bradley mentioned the expected areas, ball-handling and shooting. But he also said he wants to improve his defense, particularly his team defense.
"I just want to learn the game," he told CSNNE.
That's the next step in his development. He became incredibly helpful despite a limited knowledge of basketball, despite a still-raw handle, despite a jump shot that went down but did not seem completely repeatable. Now he must improve his mental capacity for the game, continue to refine his jump shot, develop the ability to handle point guard responsibilities. There's so much more for Bradley to accomplish, so much more growth he can undergo. His skill level and basketball intellect have not yet caught up to his blessed physical skills.
And yet he makes it seem like his game is catching up to his body.
"It's funny because it seems like I was just a rookie yesterday and now I'm helping the rookies, and sometimes I'm helping the older guys because I look at the game differently," he said.
Though he still hasn't played a game this season, though these are still just words, we must admit:
He's saying nothing wrong.