Bulpett: Walker Not A Good Fit In Chicago, But Gaston May Hold The Line

[witchcraft1998@hotmail.com (Witch)]

Steve Bulpett in today's Boston Herald addresses the unlikely possibility
of Antoine Walker returning to Chicago after his contract expires:

"The problem with a Walker-Bulls marriage ~ beyond the fact the Celtics still
want to keep him and he wants to stay ~ is that Walker is being advised to stay
away from the Windy City.  If Celtics owner Paul Gaston decides he cannot pay 
Walker's market rate or his desired deal (six years at $105 million), the club 
will likely push for a deal before the contractual issue becomes a major 
distraction next season.... Walker's mom and his top advisors are telling him
that Chicago isn't his kind of NBA town.  In addition to the local 
distractions, one advisor said, 'No one wants Antoine to be the first guy who 
comes in making big money after Michael (Jordan) is gone.  That would be 
unbelievable pressure on him.'"

So, if there's not a big rush for Antoine to exit Boston for Chicago, and 
Walker loves playing for the C's, why can't the two sides come to an agreement?
The reason, Bulpett notes, "is that Gaston may hold the line on fiscal sanity,"
becoming one of the few owners to do so.  Bulpett says of Gaston: "that would 
mean he is not playing in the same league with other clubs that choose to raise 
the roof to keep a magnetic talent such as Walker."

WC