Re: Celtics Center season wrapup

["John @ Nancy Heydt" <jheydt@monmouth.com>]

Josh - I agree with your assesssment of our players.   I think you hit the
nail on the head regarding keeping Battie over Mercer if push comes to
shove.  I also saw enough of Damon Jones to think that he is a "keeper".
I also think that Anderson does have the point guard skills necessary to run
this team but certainly needs a new mindset.

As far as trades in the offseason I'd pretty much rather stand pat than
bring in players who may or may not be as good as the players we presently
have.  I would look for improvement by having a full training camp and
another year of experience of our young players.

Looking forward to offseason maneuvers and next season.

John
----- Original Message -----
From: Ozersky, Joshua A <OzerskyJA@corning.com>
To: <bskball@bskball.com>; <celtics@igtc.com>
Sent: Tuesday, May 18, 1999 12:28 PM
Subject: Celtics Center season wrapup


> A Dry Green Season
>
> The time has come, as the Walrus once  said, to talk of many things.
This
> columnist has been shamefully delinquent in updating Celtics Center, but
> with the strange state of affairs in Boston this season, who can blame me?
> A disastrous March was followed by a suprisingly good April, which
included
> two hoop-o-liscious victories over the Miami Heat, the first of which was
a
> statement game for Antoine Walker, who had been booed by know-nothing
boston
> fans irate at being distracted from their gay jumbo-tron dances.
>
> With the season safely stowed away in history, however, now is a good time
> to look back and forward.  It seems clear that the Celtics' woes in 1999
> were the result of fat players, no practice time, and youthful panic.
> Everything that went wrong this season can be traced to one or more of
these
> three culprits.  I will deal with indivdual players below, but the fact
> remains that the Celtics squad which finished the season was a much better
> one than started out in February as a .500 team.  This bodes well for the
> future, even if we have to trade Ron Mercer for economic and competitive
> reasons.  Talk of the team being better without Antoine and Kenny
Anderson,
> both of whom were sidelined by injury during a winning run at the end of
the
> season is wrong, but has grasped an important point not wasted on Rick
> Pitino.  The team must play selflessly and fluidly to win.  Antoine does
try
> to take over too often, but this is not nearly the problem that Kenny
> presents with his slow-down, ball control style -- a fact clearly shown by
> the hyper tempo of Dana Barros and Damon Jones, the latter a CBA pickup
cast
> off by the Nets, of all people.  With all the parts in place, and possibly
> with a veteran power forward added (with Antoine at three and Paul Pierce
at
> 2)  we could see a really destructive team at work next season.  (I for
one
> would prefer to see Tony Battie start at four, blocking shots while Vitaly
> Potapenko doles out punishment in the paint.  But what do I know?)
>
> Player Grades
> Antoine Walker:  you've got to start at the top, and Antoine remains the
> Celtics' best player and the team's leader.  Antoine didn't perform up to
> last year's all star level in the early going, owing to his fatness from
the
> lockout.  This prompted the microcephalic Peter May of the boston globe to
> fulminate in print that Walker hadn't improved in three seasons, and that
he
> remained an immature star with gaudy stats but no Bird-like game sense.
> Pure bullshit from the smug curmudgeon wannabe and demonstrably false.
> Antoine this season has toned down his attitude, moved the ball better,
> taken smarter shots, become a much better foul shooter, and become a much
> better three point shooter into the bargain.  His defense needs some work,
> but the guy can flat out play on both ends of the court, as evidenced by
his
> one on one stop on Timmy Hardaway at the top of the key in the 4th quarter
> against Miami -- a season highlight play if ever there was one.
>
> Kenny Anderson:  Ok, we all know by now that Kenny let us down by hogging
> the ball, walking it up court, looking for his own shot, and other point
> guard no-nos.  But Pitino seems to believe that Kenny's game results from
> his being out of condition, and Pitino will see to it that Kenny gets in
> shape no matter what.  Of course, the attitude that brings you to camp out
> of shape to begin with, along with the attitude that keeps a guy from
seeing
> streaking players waving hysterically for the ball upcourt, is a mental
> state, but Kenny if he isnt traded should rebound pretty well.  I think he
> needs practice too, given that his whole career has been based on his
> passing only after he was done dribbling.  Kenny has to learn to release
the
> ball faster, and to penetrate with an eye towards passing.  This is a
> decision he has to make, but for all his shortcomings it has to be
> remembered that this guy has some of the best point guard skills in the
game
> buried in him somewhere, and that if he could get on it would make the
> celtics a 100+ scoring team almost every night.
>
> Ron Mercer:  I like Ron, as we all do, but the fact is that his game is
> essentially limited.  He has no three point range to speak of, a huge flaw
> in your starting shooting guard, and his drives to the hoop, when not
> unopposed are circus shots much of the time.  Nor can he be called a
> defensive stalwart.  Having seen him for two years, I think that while he
> still has the promise of something better, his career looks to be a 2nd
tier
> star along the lines of Doug Christie or Allan Houston or Kerry Kittles.
> Which isn't bad!  But we may not be able to afford him, and a veteran
tough
> guy like PJ Brown or Horace Grant would probably help us more.  (Pierce
can
> play his position, if he loses a little weight, and probably play it a lot
> better by overpowering other guards.)  We really have enough scoring, and
> the screens and so on that Ron requires to be effective hurt the ball
> movement the team needs.
>
> Vitaly Potapenko:  I love this guy.  He can go out and get you 15 and 9
> every night, and shut down any center in the game not named Duncan or
> O'Neal.  The guy is legit, selfless, tough as nails, big as a mountain,
and
> a workoholic with coaches and in the weight room.  He is our cop, our low
> post threat, and a damn fine passer too.  Fundamentally solid.  He has bad
> hands, but not when he gets the ball low.  He shouldn't be out on the
> perimeter setting screens -- that's not where he belongs.  V gives us the
> chance to play the inside out game in teh halfcourt set, which is what
makes
> Sacramento so effective with Divac.  The only thing he can't do is block
> shots.  Which makes
>
> Tony Battie:  so effective.  Tony is fast and a shot blocker and can shoot
> and loves  the system.  What more do you want?  He's only a so-so
rebounder,
> but he gives us the swatting capacity we so desperately need at the back
of
> the press, particularly if guys are going to gamble on steals  (which they
> are).  I think Tony is far more important to the team's future than Ron
> Mercer is, and I don't think he can be easily replaced.  (Esp. now that
> people see what Theo Ratliff is doing for Philadelphia.)   A real key.  If
> he is moved I will be very upset.
>
> Paul Pierce:  Pierce was annointed as Slam magazine's Rookie of the Year,
> and I suppose some argument could be made on his behalf for the wholeness
of
> his game, his skills, and ability to cook in pressure, etc.  But he also
> showed some mental softness and a tendency to hang his head which has to
go.
> (Vince Carter deserves the award on testosterone alone, IMHO. )  This is
> where having Antoine as a locker room leader really helps, because
Antoine's
> will to power will suffer no self-pity.  Pierce also shows a certain
> weakness in having fallen in love with two basic offensive moves:  a spot
up
> three point shot, and a lefty spin to the baseline which he isn't really
> quick enough to pull off, given that everybody knows it's coming.  Don't
get
> me wrong -- Pierce has greatness written all over him, but he needs to be
> pushed, and his game needs to be mixed up and deepened, particularly on
> offense.  Obviously, though, he is an incredible find and with his
> lockout-molded rookie contract we have him for three more years at a
> reasonable cost.
>
> Dana:  played great, is effective as a point guard for long stretches,
> pushes the ball, is still improving at the position, gives you some pesky
D,
> and of course is still one of the all-time greats at three point shooting.
> Also a veteran leader. Well worth his 4 mil a year, and I hope he doesn't
> get traded.
>
> Riley, Shintzius, Garnett:  didn't show much.  Shintzius of the bunch is
the
> most interesting with his size, shooting, and passing skills, but he can't
> seem to get off the bench. Garnett has been waived.
>
> Damon Jones -- interesting pickup.  Good size, fast, good shooter, and
> beloved in the locker room.  Good reserve find.
>
> Bruce Bowen:  love Bruce on defense, but he's helpless on offense.  We
can't
> afford that, really.  Not at his position.
>
> Greg Minor:  really benefited from Pitino's fine coaching and his own
great
> attitude.  an excellent defensive player who can shoot and rebound, and
> doesn't care about minutes.  Again, the kind of guy you love to have on
your
> bench.
>
> Popeye Jones:  probably about washed up.  We should get some cap relief on
> him if there's any justice.  Another Haggar's Big and Tall model, along
with
> Pervis.  Too bad, because he really could have added a lot to the team.
>
> Walter McCarty:  had a bad year due to injuries, and didn't seem to know
> what he was doing.  Pitino thinks he has regressed since his senior year
in
> college, and indeed his role as energizer bunny and disruptive defender is
> about all you can commend him for this season.  But the guy is a
legitimate
> track star, can shoot, plays defensive like the world is coming to an end,
> and doen't require minutes or shots to keep him happy.  He just needs to
> play with a little bit of composure.
>
> All in all, a very disappointing and painful season, especially since we
are
> no longer needing young players.  But hope springs eternal, and with a lot
> of practice and conditioning, the talent we have, under the kind of
coaching
> we have, shoud be more than enough to propel us into the playoffs and
maybe
> even further.   We are as good as Philadelphia if not better, and
Sacramento
> strikes me as being about the same level as we are, if we can just move
the
> ball around, get that chemistry going, and play like we are capable of.  I
> expect the Celtics to play very well in stretches next year, have a few
> losing streaks (inspiring Peter May to deride their chances in the
playoffs)
> and win between forty and fifty games.  Much depends on keeping guys
> together and adding veteran mental toughness and gamesmanship.  And not
> trading Tony Battie.  But I'm not worried.  I keep the faith from year to
> year, and I still believe that the style that won 13 championships is not
> osbsolete.  If you bleed green and understand basketball, you will too.
> Joshua Ozersky
> Marketing Communications
> Environmental Products Division
> Corning Incorporated.
> HP-CB-02-C6A
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>
>
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