From today's Globe

[Mike Dynon <mdynon@ix.netcom.com>]

Pitino uses revisionist thinking 

                  By Michael Holley, Globe Staff, 10/30/97 

                  WALTHAM - Roy Rogers can erase a mistake fast. That
means he should
                  get along fine with Rick Pitino and Chris Wallace.
They know how to clear a
                  chaotic screen quickly, too. Got an unpleasant
situation? Contact Rogers,
                  Pitino, or Wallace. One of them can help. 

                  Rogers is the 6-foot-9-inch former Vancouver Grizzly
whom the Celtics
                  acquired Tuesday night for Tony Massenburg and a
second-round draft
                  pick. Celtics coach Pitino and general manager Wallace
believed the team
                  needed a shot-blocking heavy who could make an
ambitious player
                  reconsider a drive toward the basket. Rogers is that
man. He has chronically
                  sore knees that sometimes prevent him from practicing
the day after games.
                  And he isn't the man you'll seek out for a basket. But
if a teammate blows a
                  defensive assignment, Rogers can cover him up with a
blocked shot. He did
                  exactly that 163 times last season. 

                  ''I've always liked the way [Dikembe] Mutombo was able
to control the
                  interior defense,'' he said yesterday. ''And I always
liked the hustle of
                  Charles Oakley. I'm not saying I'm on the level of
those guys. But those are
                  guys I've watched. I feel like I can bring that kind
of effort here to the
                  Celtics.'' 

                  He also corrects the mistakes in old cars, as he is
now trying to restore a
                  1970 Chevelle Supersport. 

                  Pitino and Wallace, neither of them much taller than 6
feet, aren't at their best
                  on the court. They don't tinker with classic autos,
either. Their specialty is
                  erasing million-dollar mistakes. If reigning Defensive
Player of the Year
                  Mutombo were a GM, he'd be like these guys. See
something coming your
                  way you don't like? Whap. Send it the other way. 

                  That happened a week ago when Pitino and Wallace's
most expensive free
                  agent signee (Chris Mills) and his seven-year, $33.6
million contract were
                  sent to New York for four players. They did it again
Tuesday when another
                  free agent, 30-year-old Massenburg, was traded for
24-year-old Rogers.
                  Massenburg wasn't going to fit and he had three years
left on his contract,
                  worth nearly $3 million. Rogers is expected to fit, he
is six years younger,
                  and has one fewer year on his contract for half the
money of Massenburg. 

                  Whap, whap. Two mistakes erased in less than a week. 

                  The Celtics still have three players on their roster
from the Knicks deal. If
                  they wanted, they could say goodbye to all three by
the year 2000. With
                  Mills, they were committed until 2004, whether they
liked it or not. They
                  won't say it, but it's fair to assume they didn't like
it. They saw Mills play in
                  Pitino's frenetic attack. They decided it was better
to get three players for
                  one and erase those weighty salary numbers from their
books. 

                  Perhaps signing Mills was a mistake from the start.
His own team, the
                  Cavaliers, refused to give him more than a five-year
deal. And since he was
                  signed on Aug. 22, 51 days after the beginning of the
free agent period, there
                  wasn't a rush to get him. Was the idea that Mills
could help this team a
                  mistake? 

                  ''I don't think so,'' Wallace said. ''There were a
number of factors at work.
                  With Eric Williams [who was traded to Denver to make
room for Mills] and
                  his salary where it was, we could have been in a dicey
situation if we weren't
                  able to re-sign him. Plus, I think Chris Mills was
rounding into form and he
                  would have paid dividends for us. He did it in the
Orlando game. I think you
                  would have seen a lot more performances like that. 

                  ''At the same time, when we acquired Chris, if you
told me we could turn him
                  into the three players we turned him into, that would
have made us even
                  more excited. I'm happy with that transaction, to get
the three players that
                  we got vs. one in the case of either Eric or Chris.
Where we are right now,
                  we'll take the three guys every time.'' 

                  As for Massenburg, Pitino said yesterday the 6-8
veteran would have done
                  well in his system. Except that was never proven on
the court. Pitino also
                  said Massenburg's role was to back up Antoine Walker.
If that is indeed the
                  case, the Celtics may have given themselves a block as
well as an assist with
                  the Massenburg trade because the 7.4-point career
scorer was not up to that
                  task. 

                  Pitino and Wallace got lucky. They signed Massenburg
and Mills for a
                  combined 10 years and $36 million. They were able to
extricate themselves
                  from those deals and get four players. Granted, none
is expected to be a
                  star. But none is older than 24. None will necessarily
affect the Celtics' salary
                  scale in the next millennium. 

                  In the case of Rogers, it also helped that the
Grizzlies wanted to trade him.
                  He questioned his teammates' heart and said he was
''on the wrong team.''
                  The Grizzlies shopped him to New Jersey and Boston
before ''I got a page
                  from the trainer [Tuesday]. He said Stu [Jackson]
wanted to talk to me.'' 

                  Rogers talked to Vancouver GM Jackson, an old
associate of Pitino's.
                  Jackson told him he was being traded. He said the
comments had nothing to
                  do with it, but they didn't help. They helped the
Celtics, though. 

                  ''Now we may have the youngest team in NBA history,''
Pitino said. ''I can't
                  think of a younger team.'' 

                  Wallace was asked if he could think of a younger team. 

                  ''The Fab Five,'' he said, laughing, referring to
Michigan's all-freshman quintet
                  of 1992. 

                  Now there is speculation that there could be more
moves. Another free
                  agent, Tyus Edney, mysteriously came up with an ankle
injury yesterday.
                  And there still is persistent talk involving another
player, believed to be
                  Chauncey Billups. 

                  Before making another move, Pitino and Wallace should
talk to Rogers. A
                  good shot-blocker knows that a rejection can be
satisfying. But sometimes,
                  while you are anticipating a weak shot by your
opponent, he charges in and
                  dunks in your face.