Did This Get Posted?

[D Parker <danp@town.ipswich.ma.us>]

Whoa, can't believe I haven't seen this yet.  Asbestos suit donned, and
away we go...

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By JOE POSNANSKI - Columnist
Date: 03/20/99 22:15

NEW YORK -- In the NBA, they promise gold and fame and constant joy and
the sound of your name chanted again and again. But there was Boston
rookie Paul Pierce waving his arms Saturday at Madison Square Garden, and
nobody would pass him the ball. His ankle throbbed. His Celtics trailed by
20.  His coach was about to yank him out of the game again. 

"Man," Pierce would say, "it was a lot more fun at Kansas." 

This is the part they don't talk about, the part that you never see in
the "I Love This Game' commercials, the part the kids never think
about when they leave college before graduation day. No, the kids
believe this league is all glamour and Spike Lee and the
Waldorf-Astoria, much the same way some high schoolers probably see
the television commercials and then join the Marines figuring they
will be given swords and will fight fire monsters.

No, the NBA may be fantastic, but it is also a whole lot of sweat and
drudgery and room service and 20-second timeouts.

"They just wouldn't get me the ball," Pierce said Saturday. He shook
his head angrily. He played 13 minutes Saturday, took two shots,
blocked one, waved his arms quite a bit and sat down a whole lot
during New York's 96-78 drubbing of Boston. He was angry when it
ended.

"They wouldn't get me the ball," he said again. "It's a big
adjustment, you know, coming from college where I was, like, a major
scorer. But you know, I think I can be a top scorer on this team, too,
if they would give me a chance. I think I've proven that. They just
wouldn't get me the ball. I guess it goes like that sometimes. I
guess."

It's a different world here. The NBA is a show, and it's a business,
and it's four games in five nights in four different cities. Everybody
was a star in college.  Everybody thinks they should get the
ball. Everybody thinks they're too good to sit on the bench.

Pierce thought he had it licked. He had dreamed the NBA all his life,
and then he got his Celtics green uniform, and he was an instant
sensation. First day, it seemed, he had the complete game. He could
score, rebound, pass, block shots, shoot three-pointers, make
steals. He was a star. He was having a blast. Celtics coach Rick
Pitino was ecstatic.

"Paul can do so many things," Pitino said. "He's a rare player."
 Someone from a Celtics fan magazine asked Pierce how he would describe
himself. Pierce said simply "I can't be stopped." 

 That was two weeks ago. Since, Pierce twisted his ankle, missed a
couple of games, played sparingly in the other games, grew more and
more annoyed.  Saturday, Pitino was going to put Pierce on the injured
reserve list. Pierce told Pitino that he felt fine, he could play, and
he jumped up and down on the ankle to prove it.

"I was very, very surprised," Pitino said. 

So, Pitino did play Pierce on Saturday, but not very much, certainly
not enough to suit Pierce. For the first time this season, Pierce did
not start. He felt hurt afterward, betrayed even. "I'm a talent," he
said. "I have too much talent to be sitting there on the sidelines."

When Pierce did play, he always seemed to be standing on the wrong
side of the court. He moved, the ball moved the other way, as if they
were repelling each other. The Celtics play an awful lot of one-on-one
basketball, like so many teams in the NBA, and Pierce couldn't get in
the middle of it.

"We've got to pass the ball more," Pitino said. "We're a young
team. We get guys who think `I'm hot, so let me take my man.' They
have to learn that passing is better than scoring."

Yeah, well, good luck teaching that in the NBA. 

Someone asked Pierce if he was having fun. He shook his head
slowly. The Celtics are losing a lot. He's not playing as much as he
would like. His teammates are not passing the ball to him much. He's
having a hard time getting in the flow. He loves basketball. But is
this fun?

"Everybody liked each other at Kansas," he said softly. 

This is the adversity. Nobody comes to the NBA ready for all of
this. A guy gets used to playing this game for fun, with pep bands,
with pompons, with all his friends, with cheerleaders shouting
"Defense," through megaphones. Then he hits the NBA with its thumping
sound and intense pressure and 20-point losses, and, well, it's a
job. It's a good job, of course, a high-paying job, but a job just the
same.

"I've been playing basketball all my life," Pierce said. "I know how
to play basketball. The basketball part hasn't been that much of an
adjustment. It's all the other stuff that has been tough."

He shook his head sadly. After Kansas' two big tournament losses in
'97 and '98, Pierce was despondent. He takes losses so hard. He sat in
the locker rooms those two years, stared at the floor, spoke so
quietly that it was impossible to hear. Nobody could comfort him.

It's like that a lot for Pierce these days. 

"I was close to tears on the bench today," he said . "That's how much
I want to win.... I could have played more. I could have played a lot
more. It's frustrating. I wanted to help the team. It's frustrating
when they won't let me help this team."

This, of course, will pass. The NBA season bounces all over the
place. Pierce is just a rookie, and already he has been through a
lockout, stardom, an injury, a benching. Saturday, he was resentful
and tired. Next Saturday, he might be a star again. The Saturday after
that, who knows? This is the NBA, and it never stops, and the Celtics
play Chicago today, and Pierce says he will be ready to go. You always
have to be ready to go. That's the secret.

"I've got to put this behind me," Pierce said. "You've got to be
prepared to play another game of basketball. That's how you survive in
this league."

Joe Posnanski's column normally appears Monday, Wednesday, Friday,
Saturday and Sunday. To reach him, call 234-4361 or send e-mail to
jposnanski@kcstar.com

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The Good:  Wants to play when hurt, gets really upset after a loss.

The Bad:  "They wouldn't get me the ball."

The Ugly:  "I'm a talent.  I have too much talent to be sitting there on
            the sidelines."

Some major cracks in Saint Paul's foundation.  It's really hard to judge
what these comments mean without knowing the guy.  Is he selfish and cares
only about his career (i.e. stats & glory) or is he simply dying on the
bench when he wants to get out there and help the team.  I could see it
going either way at this point.

He should be informed, though, that major talent or not, sometimes he'll
need to sit on the sidelines.

It's looking more and more like the new big three don't play well
together.  Walker and Pierce both seem to need to be "the man" to be
effective.  Mercer's and Pierce's games clash badly.  I think Mercer off
the bench makes the most sense, starting Battie, but how well will Pierce
handle the SG spot?

Another disappointing loss tonight.  The losses have been especally
depressing 'cause the C's just *collapse*.  Last year they'd fight until
the final buzzer, this year if they're down by fifteen that's it - lights
out.

Dan