CBS Sportsline Boston Celtics

[Tony Pinto <bagaco@worldnet.att.net>]

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> Boston Celtics
> 
> HOT TOPICS:
> 
> GETTING INSIDE
> 
> Rick Pitino has heard the talk, and he know he cannot avoid it. So
> when he mentioned Travis Knight after the Celtics' first exhibition
> game, he immediately mentioned Travis Knight's Contract (TKC).
> 
> Pitino said he understands why people raise the seven-year,
> $22-million deal in conversation. Travis Knight cannot.
> 
> "It's a legitimate question," said Pitino. "People who just look at it
> are justified to ask how you can give that kind of money to a player
> who hasn't really done anything yet.
> 
> "There's no reason to give him that unless you've studied him like we
> have and you know what he can do in your system. People just see
> you're paying Travis Knight $22 million. They don't look beyond that.
> 
> "But I really think he's going to be a steal for that price. He's
> probably going to be coming in and asking me for a raise in a couple
> of years. That's how good I think Travis is going to be."
> 
> With Pitino having raised the operative issue on a club that must rely
> heavily on the second-year center, the matter of pressure and
> expectation was passed to Knight. It just may not be possible to
> divorce TKC from Travis Knight's performance as he is observed this
> season.
> 
> "Not with you guys writing stories about it all the time," said
> Knight. "I mean, I don't think about it. I'm working just as hard this
> year as I worked last year.
> 
> "Once you get out there on the floor, it doesn't matter. It really
> doesn't matter."
> 
> But this season is altogether different than last for Knight. As a
> rookie, he was not expected to provide much to the Lakers, with
> Shaquille O'Neal starting ahead of him and Elden Campbell able to
> swing into the pivot. But after being a pleasant surprise in Los
> Angeles, Knight is now expected to carry the lion's share of the
> position with the Celtics.
> 
> "I put more pressure on myself than anyone else does," Knight said. "I
> expect to be better than I was last year.
> 
> "Pressure doesn't bother you unless you let it. You can look at it any
> way you want with the contract. You can look at it like it's pressure,
> or you can look at it like, wow, I don't have any pressure on me at
> all. I've got seven years guaranteed."
> 
> Knight seems more than a little sensitive about TKC, though the focus
> brought on by the Celtics' commitment to him is likely nothing
> compared to trying to stop Hakeem Olajuwon in a critical possession of
> a big game. Of course, Knight and his Celt mates will have to get a
> lot better to find themselves in a big game against the Rockets.
> 
> "You're always trying to improve," Knight said. "That's the important
> thing. I'm going to play as hard as I can regardless of what they're
> paying me. What the Celtics are paying me is what they wanted to.
> That's fine with me. That was their decision.
> 
> "The pressure isn't a bad thing. Pressure can motivate you. It can
> make you play to a higher level. It helps you rise to the occasion and
> become a better player."
> 
> Having gained 12 pounds and lifted "whatever weight Shaun (Brown, the
> strength and conditioning coach) put on the bar," Knight is destined
> to improve his pivot skills. He may even come to the conclusion that
> living up to a big contract is better than living up to a small one.
> 
> NOTES, QUOTES, ANECDOTES
> 
> The Celtics came out for their first exhibition game in the Pitino era
> and proved they hadn't totally left behind their principles of
> tradition.
> 
> Using an opening night trick that's so old its age can only be told
> through carbon dating, the Celt veterans (what few are left) told the
> rookies that it's custom for them to lead the team onto the court in
> the first game. So the rooks ran out ... and the vets stayed behind
> laughing at the edge of the entryway to the floor.
> 
> Another sign in favor of tradition was the fact the club was wearing
> black sneakers. It's done so since the early years of Red Auerbach's
> tenure, but there was talk of switching to white.
> 
> One new addition was white shooting shirts provided by Nike, the
> Celts' uniform supplier this season. The new warm-up threads are
> white, with collars and green short sleeves topped by striping. The
> look is more conservative than your average "swoosh" gear.
> 
> There is every reason to believe Chauncey Billups will some day be
> able to look upon his first exhibition weekend and laugh. He may get a
> chuckle out of the tentative way he played on offense or the
> difficulty he had in keeping up with Atlanta's Mookie Blaylock. But
> these are trying times for the Celtics' top draft pick -- No. 3
> overall. Fortunately for Billups' self-esteem, nothing he is going
> through is unexpected in the least.
> 
> "I don't really worry at all about Chauncey or Ron," said Pitino,
> referring in the latter to No. 6 overall choice Ron Mercer, who hit
> five of 17 shots in the weekend losses to the Hawks. "They're rookies
> and they're going to be fine.
> 
> "This is good experience for Chauncey. He has to learn good defensive
> stance and good defensive vision. But playing against a guy like
> Mookie Blaylock is only going to help him."
> 
> The problem for the time being is that all the learning has left the
> point more mechanical than instinctive -- more forced than natural.
> Billups had a few decent flashes while looking for teammates in
> Saturday's defeat in Huntsville, Ala., but he was 0-for-7 from the
> floor with one assist in 20 minutes Friday and hit his only attempt
> Saturday with two assists in 15 minutes.
> 
> "In this system, playing point guard has to be second nature," said
> Billups. "That's the point I'm trying to get to. Right now I'm out
> there just thinking a little too much. It's all part of the maturation
> process.
> 
> "Mookie's a great player. His hands are quicker than any I've ever
> seen. He's an established pro, and you've got to respect that. For me,
> it's just a matter of going out to compete and learn as much as I
> possibly can so I can be ready to do what the team needs me to do by
> the time the regular season starts."
> 
> Billups is trying to compete now, but he's fully cognizant of the baby
> steps he must now take.
> 
> "What happened this weekend with me is going to happen to any rookie,
> especially against a guy like Mookie Blaylock," he said. "It's to be
> expected. I just want to make sure I keep getting better.
> 
> "But the thing is I want to get better as quickly as I can. I've got
> to keep reiterating to myself that what's happening now is all part of
> growing. The pro game is so different. There are a lot of adjustments
> I have to make, and in most cases, they're not very fast adjustments.
> You have to make sure you take the time to really learn what you're
> doing. That's what's happen to me right now."
> 
> The Celtics shot 28 percent from the floor Friday in State College,
> Pa., and 39 percent in Huntsville. Though some of the failed attempts
> were taken from proper positions, Pitino is concerned about many of
> his club's choices.
> 
> "I'm worried about things like shot selection," he said. "We've got
> some young guys who are still learning, but we've also got some
> veterans who should know better."
> 
> Dana Barros has generally taken his shots in the flow, but after a
> great deal of inactivity caused by his ankle surgery, he's still
> struggling to find the range from the outside. He was 0-for-6 from the
> floor in the opener, with four of the attempts coming from behind the
> new (old) 3-point arc. Saturday he went to the hoop more, but canned
> one of three treys in a 4-for-8 overall effort.
> 
> "I'm trying to do some other stuff right now," Barros said. "The
> important thing is to get into our offense. I'm not worried about my
> shot. It's not like I'm trying to miss them or anything, but I know my
> shot's going to be there for me. I just want to put everything in
> perspective."
> 
> The Celtics play the Nets tonight in Lexington, Ky. The game was
> originally set up as a homecoming for former UK star Antoine Walker,
> but the return of Pitino makes it a big event in the Bluegrass state.
> 
> BY THE NUMBERS: 59 -- Antoine Walker's total points in the first two
> games.
> 
> QUOTE TO NOTE: "One thing I'll say is that I do think this Antoine
> Walker can play" -- Rick Pitino when asked if he's made any player
> evaluations yet.
> 
> STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
> 
> It's a slow process for the Celts as they develop their fast game. At
> this stage, the lads are playing hard but not smart. Dee Brown said
> things are supposed to be chaotic, "but it's got to be organized
> chaos."
> 
> PROJECTED ROTATION: Starters -- Point guard Chauncey Billups; Shooting
> guard Ron Mercer; Small forward Chris Mills; Power forward Antoine
> Walker; Center Travis Knight. Bench -- Guard Dee Brown; Forward Andrew
> DeClercq; Center Pervis Ellison; Guard Tyus Edney; Forward Tony
> Massenburg.
> 
> UPDATING THE NEWCOMERS: Rd. 1/3, Guard Chauncey Billups, Colorado,
> 6-3, 202 -- It's not going to happen overnight for him, but Pitino
> still liked what he sees.
> 
> Rd. 1/6, Guard Ron Mercer, Kentucky, 6-7, 210 -- Tentative with his
> shot, but good in the open floor.
> 
> Forward Chris Mills (FA-Cavaliers) -- Has been getting open for his
> shot, but hasn't been hitting many.
> 
> Center Travis Knight (FA-Lakers) -- Pressing a bit too hard. Needs to
> relax.
> 
> Forward Andrew DeClercq (FA-Warriors) -- Fills lanes nicely; will
> finish a lot of fast breaks.
> 
> Guard Tyus Edney (FA-Kings) -- Passes well, but looks lost at times.
> 
> Forward Tony Massenburg (FA-Nets) -- Not getting many minutes yet, but
> doing well with what he's gotten.
> 
> Forward Bruce Bowen (FA-Heat) -- Very versatile. Started at point in
> opener and played off-guard and small forward, as well. Looking like a
> nice find.
> 
> INJURY UPDATE: Dana Barros (left ankle surgery, February) has been
> able to participate in every practice.
> 
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Oct. 15, 1997* Vol. 2, No. 85
> 
> Copyright (c) 1996 Pro Sports Xchange
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GO CELTICS!!!!! GO BRUINS!!!! GO RED SOX!!!! GO PATRIOTS!!!!