I Like Bread and Butter

[Josh Ozersky <josh_ozersky@yahoo.com>]

I agree about Bread and Butter plays.  Vitaly
Potapenko should be the first option on offense, and
he should never venture more than five feet from the
box under any circumstances.  Nothing good ever
happens with him getting the ball on the outside. This
is my new theme of themes.   On the inside, he will
make things happen, and attract defense that will keep
whole defenses from collapsing on Antoine.  (Who
doesn't throw "hand grenades" so much anymore, and
when he does he's often getting uncalled fouls.  Last
night's ref should be reprimanded by the league for
arbitrary vindictiveness toward Twon.)

Interesting watching the game on TV.  There was a
series of thrilling plays including a Paul Pierce
drive/dunk that went undescribed as Tommy and Russell
gassed on for possession after possession about the
old days.  Struck me as the young celts dilemma in
miniature.  They are playing the first acts of their
basketball careers, and everyone in Boston is in the
third intermission.  Russell himself however says that
he is a Celtics fan, and that they don't have to win
championships to please him.  He just wants to see
them play well.  I would submit that any team that had
Antoine Walker who wasn't judging him by the standards
of Larry Bird and John Havlicek would have different
attitudes.


--- Michael Gooen  wrote:
> 
> <<a larger issue IMHO is whether it is productive
> for Rick Pitino to
> continue seeking out Kentucky-style
> players (guys who jack up three-pointers like
> Mashburn, Rodney Rodgers and Dontae Jones)>>
> 
> Not sure I'd classify Rogers (I don't think he
> spells it with a "d" -
> he shouldn't, since he doesn't tend to play any) or
> Dontae' (MUSTN'T
> FORGET THAT APOSTROPHE!) as "Kentucky-style"
> players.  According to
> nba.com, Rodney's attempted only 40 3s in 30 games. 
> That doesn't put
> him in Mercer-land, but it hardly qualifies him as a
> chucker.  Dontae',
> on the other hand, was nothing BUT a chucker.  Don't
> see how that makes
> him "Kentucky-style".  Of course, Mashburn is
> Kentucky-style, but I'll
> repeat my question -- where's the evidence that
> Pitino has tried to get
> Mashburn?
> 
> 
> <<improving on his perceived NBA coaching
> weaknesses (sticking with and developing genuine
> low-post big men,
> actually using said low-post guys in a half-court
> set offense,
> effectively designing
> and teaching more than a half-dozen offensive plays
> etc.)>>
> 
> Completely agree with you here -- except that I'm
> not sure whether he
> needs to teach more than a half-dozen offensive
> plays as long as
> they're the right offensive plays.  For example, it
> was a revelation
> watching Antoine against NJ in an otherwise
> horrendous game for the
> Celtics.  Apart from one bad three, it seemed as if
> every shot he took
> started out with a catch in the low post.  He showed
> almost McHale-like
> efficiency.
> 
> Pitino and Walker should watch a tape of that game
> over and over until
> they both realize that Antoine can take just about
> any NBA small
> forward, most 4s and even some 5s if he stays on the
> block and gets the
> ball with enough time on the shot clock.  The day he
> starts doing that
> consistently (and making the free throws when he
> invariably gets fouled
> the way he did against NJ), I will cheerfully accept
> whatever wiggling,
> chest-puffing, whining and summering-in-Chicago
> Antoine cares to do.
> 
>  
> <<I think one reason why our Celts sometimes carry
> solid leads into the fourth quarter only to have
> quality opponents
> calmly catch up and beat us
> is because those teams wake up to the urgency of the
> moment 1) by turning to bread and butter offensive
> options we don't
> have;>>
> 
> Agreed. Bread & butter offensive options should be
> priority #1.
> 
> <<and 2) by figuring out after the first 40 minutes
> how to contain our
> playground offensive antics,
> just when our key guys have started to run out of
> wind.>>
> 
> I'll take Pitino at his word (for once) that running
> out of wind won't
> be a problem next season.
> 
> 
> <<We can complain all we want about "youth versus
> experience" and "wait 'til we get practice time"
> etc., but I'm quite
> sure both Daly and Riley could
> coach the young Celtics better than Rick Pitino
> could coach the frankly
> mediocre on paper Orlando Magic or the
> injury-depleted Miami Heat.>>
> 
> Disagree there, since (i) the Orlando Magic are far
> from mediocre (on
> paper or otherwise) -- their stars have been
> rejuvenated, their rookies
> (contrary to popular expectations, including my own)
> are for real and
> on paper they would have Bo Outlaw and (ii) there's
> no way Riley could
> handle the Celtics.  He's allergic to any player
> under age 25 who isn't
> named Earvin.  That's why he trades away draft picks
> at every
> opportunity.  He's the George Allen of the NBA. He's
> also an overrated
> coach -- an excellent (to the point of serious
> psychosis) motivator but
> a lousy tactician.  Take away Magic and Kareem and
> he's nothing. 
> Riley's 1994 Nix got into the Finals solely on the
> strength of a lousy
> foul call against a Jordanless Bulls team.
> 
> Michael Gooen
> 
>
_________________________________________________________
> Do You Yahoo!?
> Get your free @yahoo.com address at
> http://mail.yahoo.com
> 
> 

_________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com