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Holley: Mercer Trade Inevitable; Anderson Not Going Anywhere
[The Boston Globe Online][Boston.com]
[Boston Globe Online / Sports]
Some calls ring true; others phony
By Michael Holley, Globe Columnist,
06/09/99
One of the worst things you can do
to an NBA general manager is to
take away his cell phone. Especially in
June. Take the thing away in April and the
guy might offer you two courtside tickets.
Take it in June and the conversation may
escalate to a heated, ''I think we need to
step outside and settle this.''
You want to know the NBA's version of a
Pavlovian experiment? Show a tight-lipped
GM a calendar already flipped to June and
I guarantee he will suddenly open his
mouth. There are no quiet GMs and Trade
Makers in June. That's because this is
their Month of Atonement. They are on
their cellulars constantly, talking about
trades they are sorry to have made, trades
they are sorry not to have made, trades
they could make that would no longer make
them sorry, and trades they actually made
before they were rejected by that sorry
owner.
I did mention the worst thing you can do
to a GM this month, right? Well, this is
the worst way to begin a sentence when
using that cell phone to call Rick Pitino
and Chris Wallace: ''Hello, I wanted to
talk to you guys about the availability of
Paul Pierce ...'' Start off like that and
you'll hear all this static on the other
end. Nothing is wrong with the phone.
Somebody simply hung up on you.
''We're basically telling people that he
is an untouchable,'' said Pitino, the
Celtics president and coach, yesterday.
''I mean, if Detroit calls and says they
want to trade Grant Hill for Paul, we
might have to talk. But, basically, he's
not available.''
He shouldn't be available. Do you realize
that Pierce - not Dana Barros - was the
team's most accurate 3-point shooter last
season? Most rookies struggle to make open
20-footers. But Pierce made 41 percent of
his shots from nearly 23 feet and beyond.
No one is saying that Pierce will become
the next Reggie Miller, but even Miller
managed only 35 percent shooting from
3-point range his rookie year.
Smart GMs know the Celtics don't want to
discuss dealing Pierce. But they also know
that mentioning Ron Mercer's name will
certainly not end a conversation. It's
been that way since Mercer's rookie year.
Why is that?
''It's because of his contract,'' Pitino
said. ''He has a reasonable contract. It's
going to be unreasonable soon, but right
now it's not. If he had five years left on
his contract, you wouldn't hear his name
mentioned so much.''
Tim Duncan also has a reasonable contract,
but everyone knows not to call San Antonio
asking about a trade. The talk about
Mercer may have some contract elements,
but it goes beyond that. His name was
volleyed about in trade talk during his
rookie year, during the offseason between
his rookie year and second year, during
his second year, and now.
One rumor, which was quickly dismissed,
had Mercer and Kenny Anderson going to
Orlando for Penny Hardaway. A recent one
involves the Raptors, draft picks ... and
Mercer. ''Totally untrue,'' Pitino said.
''We haven't had any discussions with the
Raptors. None. Not even a hint of truth
there.''
Maybe no one has talked with the Raptors
about Mercer, but they have talked about
him to some team. Or teams. You can call
this kind of talk ''trade rumors'' after
the first four or five stories, but at
some point you've got to call it what it
really is: the inevitable. I think all the
cell phone talk about Mercer will
eventually result in Mercer playing
somewhere else next season. And when that
happens, Anderson probably won't be
joining him in that new city. A lot of
fans would like the point guard to go, but
his home city during the season will
likely be Boston.
''I think I'm fine,'' Anderson said
yesterday from his home in Atlanta. ''I
can't get caught up in the trade rumors.
Two of my best friends live in Boston.
They called me up and were like, `Oh, man.
You're going to be leaving us.' But I
think Coach is happy with me. I think his
system is perfect for me. I love the
situation I'm in right now.''
He's in a situation that many of us would
love. He has four years left on his
contract and is owed $31 million. Combine
those numbers with the meager ones
Anderson put on the court and you'll
understand why Pitino said, ''The chances
of him being traded are slim and nil.''
Anderson will be in town next week to work
out with Celtics strength coach Shaun
Brown. After that, the point guard said he
will hire a track coach to help him with
his speed and conditioning. When Pitino
heard that, he cracked, ''Who's he going
to hire to run for him?''
The coach may be bluffing, but he says he
doesn't believe Anderson is the problem
with the Celtics. ''I still trust his
ability,'' Pitino said. ''What I don't
trust is his durability.''
As you might expect, Anderson also doesn't
think he is the problem with the Celtics.
Last month, 76ers coach Larry Brown said
the problem in Boston is that the Celtics
''have five guys who all want to score.''
Pitino agreed with that. So did Anderson.
The point guard also said he had no
problem sacrificing his scoring and
setting up the offense.
''I know who the scorers on our team
should be,'' he said. ''They should be
Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce. We all
need to accept that. There's too much
talent on our team for us not to be in the
playoffs. Even my mother noticed that last
year. She watched us and said, `You all
play like you don't want to pass the
ball.'''
Every Celtic should now realize the
obvious. Somebody is not going to return
next season. Walker will probably be back.
''If he averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds,
and 6 assists,'' Pitino said, ''he would
be a top three MVP candidate every year.''
Pierce will be back. Anderson may, too.
But many times this summer, GMs from
around the country will call Wallace and
Pitino on their cell phones. They will ask
about Mercer. They will not be
disconnected.
This story ran on page C01 of the Boston
Globe on 06/09/99.
© Copyright 1999 Globe Newspaper Company.