Re: complete players

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

I think the points made here about none of the Celtics (except Pierce)
being "complete players" is true. On the other hand, there are really
very few "complete players" in the league. We are rightfully excited
about Pierce because he is one of them. Antoine's game would certainly
be elevated by having a good jump shot, but the criticisms leveled at
him could have been directed towards similar multitalented players Jason
Kidd and Grant Hill, who have only recently developed good jump shots.
It definitely helped their games, yet they were excellent players without
it also.

I think that it'll be something that Antoine will add during his career.
I mean, the guy just turned 23 a few months ago, he's not exactly a 
finished product yet. More important than trying to become a complete
player is knowing your limitations, too. If Antoine doesn't have a great
jump shot right now, he needs to take advantage of his other skills:
ballhandling, passing, rebounding. I mean, if he never took a single
jump shot this season and only scored on putbacks, fast breaks, and
strong moves to the basket (say 16 ppg), yet averaged double figure 
rebounds and five or six assists per game and played solid defense, he's 
still be one of the premier players in the game. 

Alex

-- 

> As for Antoine, his glaring weakness is that THE GUY
> HAS NO JUMP SHOT TO SPEAK OF.  He can dribble, has good quickness, but
> has difficulty getting off a good shot becuase of his failure to elevate
> when he shoots.  This aspect is often overlooked. Imagine Walker with the
> sweet jump shot of a Reggie Lewis and you have one of the top 5 players in
> the NBA.  Walker has trouble getting off the ground and this is why his
> shot is blocked so often. That clumsy set shot requires him to be very
> open to get a good shot off. Throw in that chuck of a shot referred to as
> his hook and it seems like he is in over his head at times.  This glaring
> weakness of no jump shot will keep Walker from ever being one of the great
> NBA players.