Bulpett: Sum Of The Celtics Less Than The Parts

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

      Boston Herald
      Sum of the Celtics less than its parts
      NBA Notes/by Steve Bulpett 
      Sunday, June 6, 1999
      The following question may make you more encouraged with the Celtics.
      Or more annoyed.
      Whose roster - top to bottom - would you rather have, Boston's or 
      Philadelphia's?
      The fact that I and two Eastern Conference general managers queried would 
      take the Celtics conglomeration serves mainly to point out that there will 
      be a fine line between success and failure for this franchise in the next 
      few years. The key will be finding and maintaining a level of cohesion 
      that allows the individual talents to come to the surface.
      Allen Iverson is an explosive talent, and as Celtics coach Rick Pitino 
      pointed out, the 76ers do have a better defense, but Antoine Walker, Paul 
      Pierce, Ron Mercer (either in person or what he would fetch in trade), 
      Vitaly Potapenko and even Kenny Anderson present a more valuable package 
      than Iverson, Eric Snow, Matt Geiger, Theo Ratliff and George Lynch. 
      Ratliff is still the inside defensive presence Pitino loves, but Tony 
      Battie has the potential to grow into that kind of player - and Battie's 
      offensive repertoire is clearly superior to Ratliff's.
      Yet the Celtics finished in the lottery and the Sixers won a playoff 
      series and gave Indiana a hard time. So what gives? Well, the largest 
      difference between the clubs is that the Sixers were on the same page 
      while the Celts sometimes weren't even on the same chapter.
      When Iverson got the ball, one Sixer spotted up on the perimeter as a 
      safety valve and the other three went looking for an offensive rebound. 
      Just knowing who was going to be taking all the shots removed any 
      uncertainty and allowed the outfit to work coach Larry Brown's plan at the 
      defensive end.
      The Celtics, on the other hand, couldn't seem to decide from night to 
      night which of its talented scorers would be featured. Instead of sharing 
      the ball - a concept they'd been preached since kindergarten - the Celts 
      played in fits and starts.
      ``Philly played great defense, but you look at some of the games the 
      Celtics played and you know they have it in them,'' said one GM. ``They 
      just have to realize what it takes to win.''
      And then the Celts have to be willing to execute it, even if it means 
      expending a great deal of energy on defense or passing up an open 
      15-footer to a cutting teammate.
      <snips>