After Jonas Valanciunas was again benched mysteriously in the fourth after having another solid game, the center was brought up as a topic in his post-game press conference.
The full press conference is here, but here’s the clip where Casey simply moves on from the touchy topic:
Here’s what he said:
Question: Jonas appeared to be the exception in that starting group [which had played poorly]:
Answer: He rebounded well. Jonas rebounded well, you know, did a good job in the paint in that situation and again, we just needed to…matter of fact, Pat played the five quite a bit down the stretch. But, Jonas did a good job.
The mystery continues. My guess is that Casey hasn’t figured out how he can utilize Valanciunas in a game that’s being played at even a slightly higher pace than normal, and where he’s guarding a center who isn’t completely immobile. Apparently, according to Ryan Wolstat, Casey prefers playing Valanciunas in matchups where he’s facing a “true center” (I guess John Henson doesn’t count).
In the past he’s been benched because of defensive dereliction, which others have gotten away with. This time around, that was certainly not the case. I get riding the unit that got you back into the game, but expecting that to sustain itself for the full quarter is improbable.
I’m not suggesting we win this game if Valanciunas plays, only contemplating the rationale of benching your best starter on the night.
