Re: Article out of Denver on Battie, Billups, Draft.

["Jeff Tepper" <jaytee@itasoft.com>]

- ----------
> From: JLyell <jlyell@concentric.net>
> To: Celtics@igtc.COM
> Subject: Re: Article out of Denver on Battie, Billups, Draft.
> Date: Sunday, June 29, 1997 5:04 AM
> 
> 
> I think you're overestimating the short term need for a center.  In
> Pitino's system it's much more important to have good guards than it is a
> good center, and i think that building the team around a franchise
> backcourt is the way to go, even if it means suffering without a great
> center for the time being.  Wesley and Eisley are both very serviceable
> point guards, but certainly not people you would build the franchise
around
> > for long term success.  
> > 
> > 
> The Bulls have shown you don't need a top notch center if you have stars
at
> other positions who can come through in the clutch, but a decent mobile,
> physical player would be nice.  Also Pitino 's run & shoot style got its
> ass whipped by a more intelligent, better prepared athletic Arizona team,
> and twice by So. Carolina. Only time will tell if the Celtic's have any
> Bird or Jordan type assassins with ice in the blood that come through in
> the clutch.

Yes, Pitino's team had a few shortcommings, but if you follow college
basketball somewhat closely then you have to admit that overall, Kentucky
had a much better season than expected, especially when you throw in the
loss of Derek Anderson for the second part of the season.  If you told
people at the beginning of the season that they would advance to the NCAA
finals without Derek Anderson they would have thought you were crazy.  

> > The year before this season (team that won the title), the center was
> Mark Pope, who was better than Prickett and Mohammed but still not a top
> notch center. Both teams were good enough to ger to the NCAA finals
because
> they
> > were very guard oriented with quick forwards, and the center was never
> more than a role player.
> > 
> > So even if McDyess is as good a center as Billups is a point guard
(which
> may or may not be true), why go with the center over the point guard when
> deciding who to build the team around?
> > 
> 
> Based on the ability to adequately fill the other position with a decent
> role player.  Dallas had Kidd & Jackson but didn't do squat, maybe it was
> chemistry, maybe the need for a decent big man ?  I don't expect any of
the
> current Celtic players to be the next Bird , Magic or Jordan, so I think
we
> need build the most versatile, athletic,  team possible with a few stars
&
> several decent role players like John Paxson, Steve Kerr, D.J. , M.L.
Carr,
> Jerry Sichting, etc.  If we have guys that can play 1&2, 2&3, 3&4, & 4&5
we
> can throw a lot of different looks at teams depending on who is on that
> night.  The Celtic teams of late have not had a lot of versatility. 
Barros
> & Brown can't play the point,  & are defensive liabilities at the 2  we
got
> scorched by Sprewell, Rider, Stackhouse, Richmond for 35+ on too many
> occasions last year, Williams style is an inside game, but he gets killed
> on D, the center position is a mess. Billups & Mercer will definitely
help,
> but we need to move some of the other deadwood.

In time i think we will be able to get a decent center.  If not through the
draft then we will be able to through free agency in 2 or 3 years when the
big contracts run out.  We aren't going to be making a title run this year,
so the worst thing to do would be to panic and make a bad deal or signing. 
"Moving the deadwood" is a lot easier said than done, and we may have to
wait until the contracts run out.  I'm hoping that this new system will fit
the games of Barros and Brown better than the old one.  If they do well
under it, they will generate interest from other teams that need immediate
help for playoff runs at the end of the year.  That's about all we can hope
for because right now they are very hard sells given their ablilities and
contracts.

Jeff