Celtics ready to fire up hybrid

Two years ago, after trading for Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, the Celtics brought in James Posey, the kind of subtle move that coach Doc Rivers considers a difference-maker.

Posey was a hybrid forward with a reputation for being a harassing defender who was versatile on the offensive end, and a veteran who toed the line between being cocky and confident. He came over with a championship ring from Miami, and after just one season, he left Boston with another.

Last season, the Lakers had Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom, guard-forwards cut from similar cloth as Posey. In a sense, they were to Los Angeles what Posey was to the Celtics, and ultimately they, too, hoisted a banner.

This past summer that hybrid forward was the must-have accessory around the NBA. Los Angeles brought in Ron Artest. Houston lured Ariza from the Lakers. San Antonio acquired Richard Jefferson. Cleveland added Anthony Parker. And so on and so on.

“You know how our league works,’’ said Rivers. “Now everybody’s trying to do it.’’

The Celtics added Marquis Daniels in the offseason.

The first thing Daniels will tell you is that he is not James Posey.

“I don’t compare myself to nobody,’’ the 28-year-old said. “I just go out there and do what I need to do to help the team.’’

Daniels is 6 feet 6 inches, not 6-8 like Posey. He’s a slasher, not the type to hang around the arc. He can play point guard, shooting guard, or small forward; Posey played small forward or power forward.

“They’re kind of almost polar opposites, but in a good way,’’ said Eddie House. “Both of them are very smart players, but in different ways.’’

Every so often, Daniels does things that give one deja vu. Like Posey, his ability to defend takes pressure off Paul Pierce. But Pierce said Posey was a different player on a different team.

“We’re not putting Marquis in Posey’s shoes,’’ Pierce said. “He may bring something different than what Posey brings.’’

The only similarity, in Rivers’s eyes, “is that they’re both veterans and they’re multidimensional. Marquis more so.’’

That versatility is what excites Rivers, who’s already experimented with putting him at different places on the floor, while expecting him to be able to run the point from the small forward position.

Rivers has had his eyes on Daniels since he was coaching in Orlando and Daniels was still at Auburn. Daniels was projected as a second-round pick in the 2003 draft. Rivers said he wanted to draft him - “He had a high basketball IQ,’’ the coach said. “You’ve got a high basketball IQ you can play for me’’ - but the Magic took Zaza Pachulia, now in Atlanta. Daniels went undrafted.

“A lot of people that come in, they say they’re hungry, well I’m starving,’’ Daniels said. “I’m starving every night. I feel like I’ve got to prove something.’’

He caught on with Dallas while the team was under Don Nelson. But when Avery Johnson took over as coach, Daniels found himself on the outs. Sometimes his role would grow, sometimes it would shrink. He played on the Mavericks team that lost to Miami in the 2006 NBA Finals; in the first four games he averaged close to five minutes, but in the last two he averaged 16.

“You learn from every situation,’’ Daniels said. “You learn from every coach. I don’t have no grudges against nobody. He [Johnson] was a good coach. It was times when I wasn’t playing, it was times when it was tough playing, but you’ve got to be ready for any situation.’’

That offseason, Daniels was dealt to Indiana for Austin Croshere. Rivers, who was just finishing his second season with the Celtics, said he wanted Daniels then, too. But in a way, it might have been better that he landed him last offseason.

Spending six years in the league playing varying roles has made Daniels smarter.

“You’re still doing the same things, working hard, but you’re doing it in a smarter ways,’’ Daniels said. “It’s so many little small things. How to use the pick and rolls, changing speeds. When you’re a rookie coming in, you only know one speed. You’ve got to learn to use your tricks of the game.’’

Rivers said Daniels is “comfortable’’ doing whatever is asked of him, which is both the sign and the value of a veteran.

“They know how to play,’’ Rivers said. “They don’t have agendas. They’re not trying to make their own name. They’re trying to win. They’ve been through that stuff already. That’s why veterans are so important. If a play breaks down, veterans are pretty calm. They’ve been through the wars.’’

House, who almost instantly clicked with Daniels on the court, stressed that it wasn’t just important to have veterans but to have the right veterans.

“You can get a veteran that doesn’t know how to play the game,’’ House said. “Just because he’s been in the league a long time doesn’t mean his basketball IQ is high. We’ve got guys whose basketball IQ is extremely high. They know how to play the game, when to make a pass, when to set a screen, and just how to play the game of basketball.’’

Daniels put it in simple terms.

“You’ve got to know your role,’’ he said. “You’ve got to know what you need to do coming in. I know we’ve got a great group. You’ve just got to come in and fit in.’’

Julian Benbow can be reached at jbenbow@globe.com.