Re: Fortson, Battie signings

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

> Camby both second guessed himself (for signing) and begrudged Van Gundy (for 
> limiting his playing time) because he and many in the media felt that his 
> play over the last 10 games of the season plus in the playoffs would have 
> earned him the max had he not already signed.  

True, but these same media members were blasting the Knicks for overpaying
Camby earlier in the season when he wasn't even in the rotation. I think
in each case they were overreacting. Owners weren't thrilled about paying
a young player based on two years' performance; paying Camby the max based
on 20 games is even sillier.

> There are many who feel that 
> Battie has a "sweeter" shot than Camby and is more versatile offensively even
> if his scoring averages have not yet proven so.  Camby also came off the 
> bench all season and most of the playoffs for the Knicks.  I think if Battie 
> was willing to take less he'd already have his extension.

Battie is going to come off the bench for the Celtics. I am excited about
his potential (and he does have a better jump shot than Camby) but I hope
the Celtics don't overpay based on potential. I am guessing that the Celtics
haven't even negotiated much with him because they wanted to resolve the
Mercer situation first. We certainly haven't heard anything in the papers.
Or Pitino may feel that he hasn't seen enough and is willing to wait another
year, since Battie may have a more reasonable agent than Mercer, and less
trade value.

Alex