RE: [Celtic_Pride] The Truth about Cats and Pitinos

["Berry, Mark S" <berrym@BATTELLE.ORG>]

I've been quiet lately because no one likes to hear negativity (which is all
I really have for this team right now), but I have to ask you Cecil, where
are you seeing progress? We saw progress Pitino's first season (he had
nowhere to go but up), but have stagnated since. If we had built on that in
Pitino Year 2, and built a little more last year--say to 40 wins--I think
we'd all feel like progress was being made. And this season, even though Ray
can be incredibly grating, he's right. The schedule has been as easy as we
could possibly imagine and the Celts blew it. I was looking at the schedule
the rest of the way and came up with 35 total wins. Is that progress? Now,
maybe this team will come together like you say it will and surprise me with
a great second half, but I've seen no evidence of it. In fact, I think it's
much more likely the team goes the other way and completely disintegrates as
Pitino starts plotting his exit.

The worst thing about all this is Pitino seems determined to maintain this
roster and let the next guy do what he wants. That just slows down the
rebuilding process. Golden State gave up a high lottery pick at the deadline
last year for Larry Hughes. That's the kind of move the Celts need to
explore--picking up draft picks, dumping salary, adding players with
potential. In short, they need to build for the future. Instead, they're
chasing windmills while Pitino plays out the string. 

Philly showed steady progress. Jordan's Bulls showed steady progress. The
Celts have shown consistent mediocrity.

Mark

-----Original Message-----
From: Cecil Wright [mailto:cecil@hfx.eastlink.ca]
Sent: Wednesday, December 13, 2000 7:29 PM
To: Celtic_Pride@egroups.com
Cc: Boston Celtics
Subject: Re: [Celtic_Pride] The Truth about Cats and Pitinos


Who is the we you are referring to?  I can't blame anyone for the injuries
suffered by Kenny, Herren or Brown.  I think the team is quite fortunate to
have Pierce able to play at this level since, from initial reports, he may
not have been able to play at all this year after his stabbing.

The problem is that some of us (you know who you are) want this team to come
together suddenly and do not appear to be willing to wait for the team to
become a cohesive unit.  If it were that easy, it would not have taken the
Bulls into Jordan's 6th year to win.  Or the great Sixers teams of the past.
Some Celtic fans want instant gratification and anything less will not whet
their appetite.

There are things about this team which need to be improved and there are
some things they do very well.  But no amount of incessant whining, no
matter how free the speech, is gonna help them win any faster.

Either accept that gradual progress is being made or complain.

Cecil





----- Original Message -----
From: "W" <titans@ihug.com.au>
To: "Celtic Pride" <celtic_pride@egroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 13, 2000 8:40 AM
Subject: [Celtic_Pride] The Truth about Cats and Pitinos


> I'll let you all in on something.
>
> This team really blows.
>
> Our best ball handler is our power forward.
>
> Our best inside scorer is our small forward
>
> Our best defender is a bench scrub who consistently gets injured
>
> We consistently lose to teams with equal or better records
>
> We've had a very easy start to the season and yet we cant even break
> .500
>
> We're a month into the season, yet we've already had SIX different
> players play point guard (Anderson, Overton, Brown, Herren, Brunson,
> Palacio).
>
> We're consistently swapping Potapenko and Battie from the starting
> lineup hoping and praying they find that something extra.
>
> We're also hoping that a CBA player can come back to be among our top
> four or five players and to get back to the level that he displayed for
> exactly ONE month last season, a month in which he had to perform or
> else most likely he wouldn't be in the league anymore.
>
> Our most likely second unit (Potapenko, Williams, Brown, Carr, McCarty)
> combine for a pathetic 24.9ppg - and that includes the 18 total games in
> which one of them has started (well, some may have started on the same
> night)
>
> We also hope that our lottery pick, Jerome Moiso can gain some weight,
> find a work ethic and most important of all actually learn to play the
> game of basketball at a recreational league standard.
>
> We pray that Antoine Walker finally gets it, loses weight, stops being a
> grade-one jerk and ballhog and becomes the captain that Poultrino
> believes that he can be.
>
> We hope that our best player, Paul Pierce stops being a whiney little
> brat and gets back on defense before the ball gets back to our offensive
> end on the next offensive set play after yet again another poorly
> executed headless chicken outbreak defensive play.
>
> We pray that our coach decides that enough is enough and walks outta
> town.
>
> All of the above reasons is why this team blows and writing this has
> made me feel like a certified journalist for one of the Boston
> newspapers..
>
> Yours sincerely,
>
> I'm a Boston Basketball Journalist.
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> Celtic_Pride-unsubscribe@egroups.com
>
>
>


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