Re: The Boston Celtics Mailing List Digest V6 #123

[Michael Joseph Byrnes <mbyrnes@leland.Stanford.EDU>]

Joe Hironaka wrote:

> Good point from Zhi Zhi.  My take on "Battleship Potapenko" is that he was
> consistently leaning back to clear his guy from the paint, rather than actively
> chasing the caroms. From the limited amount I know about playing the actual game,
> textbook boxing out and getting lots of boards are actually kind of antithetical,
> no matter what your coaches always claim (I guess Potapenko is a classic
> "sucker"). That is to say, when you box out well it's often your teammate that
> gets the boards and the glory. 

This is something that could be looked for in the statistics.  Will the
Celtics, as a team, average more rebounds per game when Potapenko is in
the lineup?  Also, will individual players like Walker and Pierce average
more rebounds in the Potapenko era?  And, what effect does Potapenko's
presence have on the rebounding totals of opposing teams (and opposing
centers) centers?  

> 2) As for Elton Brand, you better show me first that he's not another
> Antawn Jamison. 

Whoa, there!  Is this a criticism of Antawn Jaminson?  Bite your tongue!
When all is said and done, Jamison is going to be a *great* player in this
league.  I would offer the Warriors Ron Mercer for Jamison and their first
round draft pick.

The only thing Jamison and Brand have in common is their height: 6'8".
Brand is a widebody who should be able to play power forward in the pros
at that height (haven't seen enough of him to know how good he'll be).

Jamison is a lot thinner, and more athletic.  He is currently working on
becoming a small forward and trying to develop an outside shot.  These
things will take time, but he is already a terror on the offensive glass,
and a great athlete with a great attitude and work ethic.  

I think he will eventually be a better player than Dennis Rodman - great
defense, great rebounding, with more scoring than Rodman has ever
provided, although I suspect he won't miss as many practices or accumulate
as many fines as The Worm.

Down the road, I think Antawn will be one of the best five players to be
drafted in 1998.

Michael Byrnes
mbyrnes@stanford.edu