Bulpett On Battie, Who's Expected To Be The Starting Power Forward

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

Orlando's looking to release Gilliam. Surely, he's better than 
Marty Conlon....

      Boston Herald 

      Battie now a good bet: Unexpected punches can't stop feisty Celtics 
      forward
      by Steve Bulpett 
      Sunday, October 24, 1999
      LEXINGTON, Ky. - Things have been fairly constant and routine for Tony 
      Battie in the last several days. The Celtic foward knew he would never 
      have to wait very long before the next relatively major event in his 
      basketball life.
      A week ago Friday, he was given a six-year contract extension worth some 
      $25 million. In Monday's practice, he sprained a ligament in his left 
      knee. On Tuesday, he learned that the man ahead of him in the rotation, 
      Danny Fortson, would be out anywhere from 6-to-12 weeks with a stress 
      fracture in his right foot.
      Battie got back into practice on Thursday and was part of the Celtic mix 
      last night in an exhibition duel with Utah. From the prospect of playing 
      the year for a contract to the burden of holding the inside fort for 
      Fortson, it's been a dizzying time.
      ``I mean, things happen,'' Battie said.
      And what's happened lately has put a great deal of emphasis on the 
      6-foot-11 runner who added some much-needed muscle to his frame over the 
      summer. The key to the Celtics remains Antoine Walker and whether he can 
      rise to his coach's plan and his own wish to move to small forward. And if 
      all goes well there, that means Battie has to play a large role on a team 
      desperately in need of a strong start.
      ``I keep saying this about Antoine, but if we get him in small forward 
      condition, then Tony probably will start up at the power forward spot, 
      which I think would be great for him,'' said Celtics coach Rick Pitino. 
      ``I think he's good enough to do it. He's ready to play.''
      The knee problem was taken care of swiftly on this trip, with daily care 
      from trainer Ed Lacerte. That gave Battie four games, beginning last 
      night, to ready himself for the regular schedule.
      ``My injury was minor with the way it all worked out,'' he said. ``And 
      we're sad to hear that Danny's hurt, but I guess since it had to happen, 
      at least it happened in the preseason, so we'll be able to get him back as 
      soon as possible.
      ``The rest just comes with the territory. Anything can happen, whether 
      it's in a game or in practice. I mean, it's times like that when guys just 
      have to step up and play.''
      While Battie claims he's prepared to do just that, he sounded wary of 
      providing the same effect Fortson did in two preseason appearances (23 
      rebounds in 40 minutes).
      ``Just looking at our basketball team, there's probably nobody on our team 
      that can rebound like Danny,'' Battie said. ``I mean, he's a force. He's a 
      bull down there.
      ``So it's not just one man's job to try to replace Danny. It's going to 
      have to be a whole team thing from the big players - me, V (Vitaly 
      Potapenko), Marty (Conlon), Antoine. And some of our guards are going to 
      have to come out a little bit, stop leaking out so much, to help us 
      board.''
      But mostly it will be on Battie.
      ``Yeah, I'm looking forward to it,'' he said. ``It's all about getting the 
      job done. As long as we win, it's all right with me. I want to get to the 
      playoffs. Everybody on the team thinks that way. It's all in our control 
      now. Our destiny is what we do with it.
      ``We have to get ready and do all the things we have to in the preseason. 
      Then when the (regular season) games start, we've got to win all those 
      games down the stretch that we sort of slipped up and let go last 
      year.''