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Peter May On: Pitino-Union Problems; Ketner; The Chinese Potapenko; $10 M. Over The Cap
[The Boston Globe Online][Boston.com]
[Boston Globe Online / Sports]
NOTES
Pitino is pushing it with workout plans
By Peter May, Globe Staff, 04/18/99
The Celtics have a new workout
facility and it's a beauty. It's
got every bell and whistle, and Rick
Pitino has already ironed out a summer
schedule for his players to use it.
He's blocked out two days in May and more
time in June, July, and September for what
he says are ''voluntary'' sessions. Just a
couple of hours a day.
It sounds innocuous and, in truth, it is.
The players probably are going to work out
anyway - most of them should - and those
who stick around will likely use the
facility on their own. It's all part of
Pitino's plan to have his players in top
shape for the 1999-2000 season.
''This is a voluntary thing,'' Pitino
said. ''If people want to get better, we
will work with them. Just playing
basketball is a detriment.''
Pitino went on, ''This is for people who
want to work with us.'' Asked if the
players would be paid, the coach said,
''No. Nor should they.''
Oops. Boston, we have a problem. The NBA
Players Association isn't thrilled with
Pitino's ''voluntary'' summer plan -
without remuneration - and, in fact, says
it's against the rules.
''We would have a problem with it,'' said
union attorney Ron Klempner, who plans to
discuss the matter with Billy Hunter, the
union's executive director. ''We bargained
for a season that ends in the spring and
begins in the fall. If a team wishes to
have skills and workout sessions in the
summer, there must be individually
negotiated bonuses for those who attend.''
Pitino ran afoul of the union in his first
summer because some of Boston's contracts
contained language that actually docked
players who did not attend workout
sessions. He apparently has done so again;
prohibitions against such policies are
spelled out in the not-so-fine print in
the just-completed Collective Bargaining
Agreement.
The league, too, has kept an eye on the
coach's ''voluntary'' summer sessions. Two
summers ago, it warned him that it viewed
such gatherings as unfair because it gave
his team a competitive advantage.
Pitino has a history of envelope pushing,
and this is just the latest example. He's
got the right idea; getting the players in
shape is important. The union just feels
it might be a good idea if he and his
people checked the rules first.
Up and down
There were a lot of familiar names on
rosters at the just-concluded Nike Desert
Classic in Phoenix. One of the more
intriguing is that of Lari Ketner, the
Massachusetts big man who alternately
fascinates and puzzles NBA scouts. The
early returns on Ketner, courtesy of
Celtics general manager Chris Wallace,
were encouraging. ''He's looked a lot
better than he did in college. He's more
alert, more active,'' Wallace said. ''He's
slowly crawling out of the hole that he
dug for himself. I don't know how far he
still has to crawl or where that puts him
in the draft, but he's taken the first
step at coming back from the dead.''
Ketner measured only 6 feet 8 1/2 inches
(in socks) and weighed a svelte 282 pounds
at Phoenix, a predraft showcase for
seniors, although the top ones rarely
participate. Ketner said he felt he had a
lot to prove. ''I have to start playing
the way I played when the scouts were
first attracted to me,'' he said. ''That's
what I'm trying to do. I had a bad season,
I know that. I know there are a lot of
guys who know what I can do, but question
whether I can do it on a consistent basis.
I've got a lot to improve on and I'm going
to make the most of it.'' Wallace said
there were seven or eight others who
showed well in the early games. James
Posey of Xavier probably made the biggest
impression and now might be the fourth
senior taken after Wally Szczerbiak, Andre
Miller , and Jason Terry. Wayne Turner
also is there. ''Wayne is still Wayne,''
Wallace said, referring to Turner's
reputation as a point guard who cannot
shoot. ''He can defend. He can push it.
The big question is always going to be if
he can develop into a shooter.'' ... One
more interesting name at Phoenix: Menk
Bateer. He's a 6-10, 270-pound Chinese
version of Vitaly Potapenko. He's also a
free agent, which means he could go
anywhere anytime. He has played for both
the Chinese National Team and the Beijing
Ducks. He was the second-leading rebounder
in China this past season, but Wallace
says he doesn't anticipate anyone rushing
to sign the kid. ''Then again,'' Wallace
said, ''he's one of the few big men who's
free as we speak.'' ... <SNIP>
Antoine Walker is right about
one thing: If the Celtics keep adding five
and six players every year, they're going
to spin their wheels forever. Last year,
Pitino's first, we saw too many new people
to track. This year, we've got Paul
Pierce, Potapenko, Tony Battie, Eric Riley
, Dwayne Schintzius , Marlon Garnett ,
and, for their first full years, Kenny
Anderson and Popeye Jones. Next year,
there are bound to be more. The only free
agent of any note the Celtics have is
Bruce Bowen, and don't be surprised if
they let him go. First, they tried to
trade him to the Clippers. Second, the
play of Greg Minor is making Bowen
expendable. Minor may not be as good as
Bowen on defense, but he's much better on
offense. And he's locked up for two more
years, and how many teams would want that
salary even if they wanted the player? The
Celtics, by the way, have about $43
million-$44 million committed in salaries
next season, including a freshly minted
$2.5 million for Walter McCarty (why they
moved so fast on him in still a mystery)
and $1.5 million for Schintzius, although
less than half is guaranteed. The salary
cap is $34 million ...
<SNIP>
Globe on 04/18/99.
© Copyright 1999 Globe Newspaper Company.