Re: Walker Trade

[Joe Hironaka <j.hironaka@unesco.org>]

Hi list:

Re: the "Walker Trade" debate, I might be missing something so please
fill me in Kim Malo etc:

How does trading for Rasheed Wallace (or any other under-performing 13
million dollar player) for our cap hogs (Chiquita-boy etc.) give our
Celtics more room to pursue other free agents like Ike Austin?

I've always assumed the germane issue/factor was that Gaston doesn't
believe a young NBA player should be paid a Rasheed Wallace monster
salary (more money than a Pedro, Favre etc). If Gaston is now finally
ready to thumbs-up a 13 million paycheck on a single player, then IMO
what a totally moronic and un-Celtic-like waste to spend it on a Rasheed
Wallace. If we pay our team's third or fourth leading scorer (Rasheed)
that much money, then of course the Celtics will likely have to be
broken up when the agents of natural scorers like Mercer and Pierce come
to bat (hard cap or not).

For the sake of the still living Red Auerbach (may he live forever),
let's all - at the very least - discuss a trade of Antoine Walker for
one of the under-performing major head-case players out there who are
Celtics-material (DJ, Parish-type guys ), not some under-performing but
well-adjusted kid who essentially "led" what I thought was a
mega-talented Dean Smith squad straight to Nowhereville. I can't believe
list-members are even entertaining this idea seriously. While you're out
there, tell me what you all think of Rasheed's 4.8 boards-per-game
against the Fakers in the playoffs last year...

Antoine needs to be evaluated in this league at least one more year
before we summarily judge him. Antoine is a freaking Boston Celtics-type
basketball player. He is practically as greedy,
prone-to-saying-dumb-ass-things-in-public, un-handsome, multi-skilled
and (above-all) as eerily  hyper-competive and big-game trustworthy as a
young Larry Bird.  Mais oui, baby! I say give the kid a break and just
watch him grow on you. Trade him after his second season for 26-year-old
Rasheed Wallace? Puh-lease. If RP pulls his itchy trigger finger on this
one, I'll be commiserating big-time alongside Paul M.  I am so sick of
the Celtics losing. I'm so sick of trying to be optimistic without
reason.

Also, remember that Antoine Walker played on a rebuilding club last year
that traded away about 60ppg in stable, veteran offense (Fox, Dino,
Wesley, Eric Williams) for a grand total of about 6 ppg in "veteran"
offense (McCarty and Travis).  How can this NOT be relevant in any of
our analysis/criticism of Antoine Walker genuine shortcomings last year
as a 21-year-old player? (Oops, I forgot about the big seasons DeClerq
and Edney had the year before Pitino signed them to help take pressure
off Antoine.) I mean would you all trash Brett Favre's game if he had me
and say, Jim Meninno (or pick a name), blocking for him?

Look folks, I actually KNOW that I can get way too carried away on this
particular topic (Antoine Walker). Seriously, if any of you are a bit
sick of my pro-Antoine bias, feel free to just delete any of my future
posts if you see such words as "Walker", "AW", "Driver 8", "Peter May is
SCUM" etc. in the subject line :-)

"Beat LA in 2000",


JoeH