Re: Tell me where is sanity

[KK <Kestutis.Kveraga@Dartmouth.EDU>]

R. Bentz Kirby wrote:

> How many games did the Celtics
> win two years ago?  

Let's put this one to rest. They won 15 games because, and only because, the
organization tanked the season. The group that included Wesley, Fox, E.
Williams, Radja, Montross, Ellison, Lister, Brown & Barros, among others, had
won 33 games the year before, coached by M.L. no less. For '96-'97, they only
lost Montross, added Walker and Brickowski, and lost 18 MORE games because
they were a 15-win team??  

> How many did they win last year?   Why did we, and
> apparently the media, expect them to do better this year?  

Because we'd added Pierce, Popeye Jones, Kenny (the end of '97-'98 version, we
thought); because last year's core had had a year's worth of experience
together learning "the system" and the ways of the NBA; most importantly,
because we'd added Garnett & Schintzius to the mix (just kidding!). 

> I mean
> really.  I think I picked them to win 30 games or so.  What the hell was
> I thinking.

I don't think your prediction was all that unrealistic, given the above, and
Pitino's record of improving dramatically in the second year (granted, earned
mostly in college basketball).
 
> The main problem with this team is our expectations.  

Oh, our expectations are making this team perform poorly? 

> We expected the
> same quantum leap that happened between the last two years and that was
> a bad expectation.

No, we only expected SOME improvement this year. Correct me if I am wrong, but
wasn't the mean prediction for '99 somewhere around 27 wins on this list,
which translates into roughly 44-38 regular season record? That's an expected
improvement of 8 wins, far from the 21-win "improvement" in '97-'98.