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Peter May: Union Annoyed With Celtics Management And More Interesting NBA News
[The Boston Globe Online][Boston.com]
[Boston Globe Online / Sports]
PRO BASKETBALL
Union resists NBA's press
By Peter May, Globe Staff, 11/07/98
Yesterday was ice-melting day in the NBA. Or ice-breaking day. Or, as Billy
Hunter saw it, jaw-breaking day.
On Wednesday, the NBA gave its teams the go-ahead to mau-mau their players
about the benefits of management's proposal to end the interminable lockout.
The Celtics, apparently, were more than up to the challenge.
According to players' union chief Billy Hunter, the Celtics put on a
three-pronged press yesterday to chat up management's offer. Owner Paul
Gaston, coach Rick Pitino, and general manager Chris Wallace were identified
as the callers.
''I am led to believe,'' Hunter said, ''that they were all on the phone at the
same time.''
Gaston, reached at home, declined to comment. Wallace would say only that he
was not the person designated to speak to the players about the bargaining
situation. Pitino was unavailable for comment. Hunter did not identify which
players were called.
The Celtics weren't the only ones burning up the phone wires. The Heat rolled
out the heavy artillery in the persons of Pat Riley and owner Mickey Arison
and went so far as to contact borderline player Antonio Lang. Milwaukee coach
George Karl was identified by Hunter as another caller. (If that was the case,
it was Karl's first legal contact with his new team.) Cleveland was another
team working the phones, Hunter said, as were Charlotte and Houston.
Whether it was one, two, three people, or the Nets' new ownership group of 33,
seemed to bother Hunter less than the underlying message: another attempt by
commissioner David Stern to divide the union by persuading the players that
it's in their best interest to sign the new deal.
''Instead of negotiating with us, they are putting general managers and
coaches on our players,'' Hunter said. ''They are taking it to another level
to exert pressure on our players to capitulate.''
Stern said one individual from each team would be available to answer any
questions a player might have. There was no mention of a mass canvassing or of
more than one person participating. Hunter said yesterday's calls by
management amounted to ''bad-faith bargaining, no question about it.''
As for the actual negotiations, there are no talks scheduled after a surprise
1 1/2-hour session yesterday. Hunter said he thinks the league will take ''a
week or two'' to talk to the players and then see where everything stands.
This latest delay could mean the season, if there is one, would not start
until 1999. Deputy commissioner Russ Granik said, ''We have agreed that we are
very far apart with no solution in sight.''
A hardheaded stance
The owner of the Orlando Magic wore a hard hat to the Board of Governors'
meeting last month in New York. He wanted to let his fellow governors know
that he wears a ''hard cap'' and so do most others. ''Every fan and every
customer has a hard cap. We've got to get used to that,'' said Rich DeVos. The
comments came at a golf outing Thursday, and while management can't talk
publicly about the lockout, DeVos did address the issue indirectly. He said
the players had better accept the whole notion of a hard cap, or cost
containment, or defined revenue streams. ''I know they may not like it, but if
you want unlimited opportunity, then start your own business. That's what I
did.'' He also said that even rich guys like himself get tired of writing
checks they don't like to write. The Magic lost $5 million last season. ''I
don't think it's right that I have to dig into my pocket to make up for a
shortfall every year,'' DeVos said. ''Then pretty soon the only way to make
money is to sell the team. That's a lousy deal. I don't really want to do
that. I love this team. I love it here [in central Florida]. I'd love to keep
this team. That's all we're trying to fight for is to get some reasonable
numbers we can work with.'' ... NBA scouts will be out in force Monday night
in Providence, where Rhode Island and Texas Christian meet in the opener of
the two-day, round-robin CoSIDA Classic. In fact, the turnout is expected to
be so large that scouts have been warned they might have to sit in the hockey
press box, depending on the number of media in attendance. TCU, of course, is
a fun team to watch with Billy Tubbs's high-octane offense. It also features
Lee Nailon, a 6-foot-9-inch post presence who flirted with entering the draft
last June. He even attended the pre-draft camp in Chicago but decided to
return to Fort Worth for his senior year. He should be one of the top players
in next June's draft. Rhody, of course, came within a whisker of making the
Final Four and has stud Lamar Odom making his college debut. This is the same
player who flirted with turning pro out of high school, then spent the last
two years in the hoop wilderness. ''I haven't seen him play, but all the
reports I hear are extremely favorable,'' says Wallace. ''I like what I'm
hearing about the maturity factor. He was kind of overwhelmed by the process
before, and there was no voice of reason in his life.'' Odom is an extremely
versatile player who is somewhere between 6-9 and 6-11, depending on the
source. He has turned down offers to play overseas, has dominated just about
every league in which he's played, and, if he decides to turn pro after this
season, he may well be the No. 1 pick in the draft. He's that good. The Rams
also have a freshman named Zach Marbury, brother of Stephon... Speaking of the
draft, one general manager admits to having many discussions with his
colleagues over the 1999 affair. What if there is no season? Who drafts where?
Celtics make cuts
The Celtics may not be the best team in the league, but they are out to be the
leanest. Pitino challenged some of his bulkier employees to lose weight. We're
not sure if this was prompted by his infatuation with a trimmed-down John
''Hot Plate'' Williams or just his ongoing fixation with fitness. Wallace said
he has dropped almost 40 pounds, mostly by staying away from carbohydrates and
sugar. Leo Papile, the Celtics' chief scout, also is with the program. As for
Williams, colleague Michael Holley reports that Pitino undercut Philadelphia
coach Larry Brown's bid to get him. Brown and Williams were together with the
Clippers and in Indiana, and there was never, ever any question about
Williams's playing ability. He's only 31, and if he's lost the weight and
still has his game, he could be worth a look ... The Celtics lost a longtime
valued employee last week with the passing of secretary Millie Duggan. She was
the gatekeeper for the coaches, and among those who attended her funeral were
former Celtic bosses Chris Ford and K.C. Jones. Duggan also had fans among the
players. Immediately after Larry Bird was officially enshrined in the Hall of
Fame, he was ushered to a special room with security galore. Only VIPs with
special passes were allowed in the area. Duggan was neither a VIP nor a
pass-holder, but she somehow made it back and soon was yucking it up with
Bird, Jones, and Bill Fitch. During the conversation, Duggan said she was so
upset when some Celtics workers were fired in May 1997 when Pitino arrived
that she told Pitino she was going to resign. According to Duggan, Pitino
looked stricken at the thought and said, ''Oh no, you don't. I'm not going to
be the man who fired Mildred Duggan!'' He wasn't. Duggan stayed on through
last year. She died on Halloween at the age of 77.
Material from personal interviews and the Associated Press was used in this
report.
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This story ran on page G04 of the Boston Globe on 11/07/98.
© Copyright 1998 Globe Newspaper Company.
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