RE: Celtics trade options

["Ozersky, Joshua A" <OzerskyJA@corning.com>]

Tom,

When you come right down to it, who are these physical teams?  I think it
means LA, Vancouver, and Portland, now that Zo is a jump shooter.  The point
anyway is that we need a goon, a "cop," not an overpriced, elephantine post
player a la Ike Austin.  There will always be bigger centers in the league
-- but you don't dismantle your team to fight them.  I think a more
significant problem is that neither Kenny nor Antoine are really first class
defenders (or second class, in Kenny's case.)  But I will admit that a great
shotblocking five would allow us to gamble a lot more.  Still, I have hope
that Riley/Andrew can get the job done.  Denver is actually a pretty
important test for us.  They just beat Utah and LA, and if we get by them we
have Toronto (Kevin Willis, with his giant body and tiny hands, and Charles
Oakley, who played like a berzerker last time around.)  If we can run those
teams down (the proverbial "teams we're supposed to beat") we will be in
good shape.  When our guys play good man to man defense and, in Tommy
Heinsohn's phrase, "unleash the speed" of the fast break, we can beat
anybody.  Anybody!
Joshua Ozersky
Marketing Communications
Environmental Products Division
Corning Incorporated.
HP-CB-02-C6A
Corning, New York 14831
Phone:  (607) 974-8124
Fax:      (607) 974-2233



> ----------
> From: 	Thomas Murphy[SMTP:tfmiii@worldnet.att.net]
> Sent: 	Wednesday, March 03, 1999 6:49 PM
> To: 	Ozersky, Joshua A
> Subject: 	Re: Celtics trade options
> 
> Dear Joshua,
> 
> Usually I couldn't be in more agreement with you - but the current
> situation looks rather
> bleak. The Cs (and their center rotation) can currently more than hold
> their own against less physical teams (of which one must now include the
> Knicks) but against the more physical one's they look like boys playing
> against men. You're right to note that the options don't look that
> appealing. The question is, does one try and do something about it now?
> Sometimes the best trade is the one that isn't made (GS Warriors and Mitch
> Richmond). But if one does not address the problem now, then when? 
> 
> I haven't seen your column - yet. I'm going to look it up right after I
> mail this letter. It promises to be interesting and well informed!
> 
> I'd be happy to join the email group as well. Thanks for extending the
> invitation and thanks for the comments. 
> 
> Best wishes
> -TomM
> 
> ----------
> > From: Ozersky, Joshua A <OzerskyJA@corning.com>
> > To: 'tfmiii@worldnet.att.net'
> > Subject: celtics trade options
> > Date: Wednesday, March 03, 1999 4:13 PM
> > 
> > Dear Tom,
> > 
> > I really enjoyed and appreciated your analysis of the celtics trade
> options,
> > although I think the Cleveland deal just awful.  For years I have been
> > preaching against the trading of talent for size, especially when the
> size
> > is a slow white guy like Potapenko, who can't even hit his free throws. 
> I
> > don't believe a team needs a big center to win -- a declerq/riley/battie
> > committee will give you comparable stats in comparable minutes, and we
> have
> > two excellent post up players in Pierce and Walker.  But I'm writing to
> > invite you to join the celtics email group, which is just the place for
> this
> > kind of speculation, and has far fewer retards than the usenet list. 
> Please
> > join by sending a subscribe celtics message to majordomo@igtc.com.  Have
> you
> > seen my celtics column at bskball.com?
> > 
> > yrs
> > Joshua Ozersky
> > Marketing Communications
> > Environmental Products Division
> > Corning Incorporated.
> > HP-CB-02-C6A
> > Corning, New York 14831
> > Phone:  (607) 974-8124
> > Fax:      (607) 974-2233
> > 
>