Why the Celtics are playoff bound

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

I believe that the Celtics are definitely playoff bound with this roster.
Clearly last season was a disappointment, but I think that the previous
season was probably a better indication of Pitino's performance as a coach
in preparing his team. That year they were 36-46, or seven games out of
the playoffs. Let's compare the lineups:

Before		After
------          -----
5. DeClercq	Potapenko
4. Walker   	Fortson
3. McCarty 	Walker
2. Mercer   	Pierce
1. Billups 	Anderson

bench
-----
Knight   	Battie
Barros   	Barros
Minor   	E. Williams, McCarty
Bowen     	Washington, Griffin
Edney     	Turner

The starting lineup in particular has improved dramatically. Potapenko,
regardless of summer league play, is clearly a superior center to DeClercq; 
Pierce is a better overall talent than Mercer though we haven't seen him
at shooting guard yet; and Fortson is a top notch rebounder while McCarty
belongs on the bench. Battie by himself is more valuable that the 1997-1998 
bench if you ask me.

So if the 97-98 team was only seven games out, I would think that all the
upgrades should make the Celtics a playoff team since Pitino has all the
preparation time that he loves. Of course, if Walker can't return to the
same level of play, or if Pierce goes down with a serious injury, it will 
be a much different story. 

Of course, the Celtics making the playoffs means that some other Eastern
Conference team will not; beyond that, Charlotte, Cleveland, New Jersey,
and even Chicago should each be stronger next year. The obvious candidate 
for the newest conference lottery team is Orlando with a new coach and a 
rebuilding process. Atlanta with the brand new backcourt should slip a bit
too, but I still think they are a playoff team. I believe Detroit has a very
real possibility of slipping into the lottery. 

So my picks are Charlotte and Boston as the newest playoff teams and Orlando
and Detroit as the newest lottery teams. 

Alex