Keyon Dooling has taken a lot of crap around here. I've been one of the chief culprits, celebrating on Twitter whenever he did….. anything at all.
But it's time to move past that, because Keyon is showing that the early season injuries and lack of any practice time have been huge obstacles for him that he's only just starting to overcome.
“I feel good. I’m able to move better than when I came back from my injuries,” Dooling said. “I think I found my niche off the bench. I know the range of minutes I’m going to play. Also, I finally figured out how to involve myself in the game, and not just be running up and down the floor. Finding a way to get into pick and rolls, passing and cutting and getting people the ball at the right times. I’ve adapted to that role.”
I can see it on the floor. Keyon looks like he's part of the offense. There's a confidence in his game now that he can contribute, which is a big deal. Confidence is not something that shows up in box scores, but it can be the difference between a made and missed shot.
Keyon's not going to fill the box score much, but that's not what he's supposed to do. With Avery Bradley in the starting lineup, he's supposed to come in and hold down the for along side Rajon Rondo or Avery until the guy who sat down can get back into the game. Up until these past couple of weeks, he's been unable to do that. But things have begun to turn around.
Dooling is a role player. He'll very rarely get a lot of credit for anything. But he deserves a bunch now for not giving up on himself this season and making the most of the opportunity he's gotten with Ray Allen out. And considering the hell he's caught from the C's fans, and me, it's time to pat the guy on the back for what he's been doing lately.
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