mean people who pick on Chauncey

[KK <6166kkver@umbsky.cc.umb.edu>]

The  mean people who dump on Chauncey have been multiplying like Microsoft
haters (both for a good reason, I 'd say). Witness the following excerpt from
Boston Globe's main basketball writer Peter May:

                    "The coach said Billups, who for better or
                  worse is the point guard, still doesn't know where his
teammates are going to
                  be if he gets into the air, which, as we all know, Billups
does with aggravating
                  regularity."

However, I  think Billups, despite his horrid shooting, showed some decent
passing in the last game. I was surprised to see that he was credited for only
four assists, but that was probably a function of his teammates' fg%. Obviously,
the poor fg% has a lot to do with shot selections, but, in some cases, people
were simply missing wide open shots set up by Billups or Barros.  Which brings
me to another quote from the same article:

"After the loss to San Antonio, Chauncey Billups (11 for 50 in the five games)
                  said the team should spend an entire practice on shooting."

Here I must rejoin the bandwagon and ask this: what's wrong with going to the
gym by yourself and launching 300-400 shots? Is it because you're not being paid
overtime? Are these people too stupid to realize that, if they become .500
instead of  remaining .375 shooters, they'll make so much more money in the long
term? This applies not just to Billups but to all his teammates who think that
improving themselves should only be done on "company time".
Speaking of unmotivated basketball players, whatever has become of the allegedly
hard-woking, huge upside-possessing Travis Knight? Despite some  gaudy blocks
here and there, Boy Travis has seen more layups made by his man than a ballboy
helping out in a layup drill - most, if not all, with his implicit approval.
Travis should tape a picture of Andrew DeClercq in his locker, if he needs a
role model. Bruce Bowen would do nicely as well. I think that signing Knight to
a 7-year, 22 mil. contract has been the biggest gaffe of the Pitino
administration, and hope that it can be erased somehow. I'll leave it to our
list trade specialists to figure out how. Just one condition, though: Travis's
new coach better know how to motivate wussy 7-foot shooting guards (Riley?a
Marine drill sergeant?). Pitino apparently does not, reputation and how-to books
notwithstanding. And what can Rogers possibly be doing so wrong as to be behind
Knight on the depth chart?

In the better news dept., does anyone think the mini-stink about the foul
inequality has brought about the desired results, at least in the last game? I
didn't see that big a change in the Celts' determination to take it to the hoop
to warrant such a large increase in ft's awarded. With an excellent ft shooter
in Billups, and improved ft% from Walker, DeClercq and others, Celts were able
to get back in the game Tuesday night.
It'll be interesting to see if this equality  trend continues.

K. Kveraga