Re: A quote for Mark Berry

["Jim Meninno" <Jim_Meninno@hotmail.com>]

----- Original Message ----- From: Berry, Mark S <berrym@BATTELLE.ORG>

> Do you have an opinion, Jim, or did you just want to question mine?

I'll answer your last question first, if you don't mind.  My opinion is that
if this team fails to improve dramatically this year (and it's getting more
and more likely by the week that they will fail) then Rick Pitino should be
bought out or fired and some Celtics should be hired to run the team.  If
the team has to be sold to LB et al to get that done, even better, but I'm
not holding my breath.  I want the team basically left in tact for the rest
of this year, so that the new GM can make the moves he wants to.  I don't
think it's feasible that you can find a permanent GM right now, in the
middle of the NBA season, even if the coach you wanted was available.  I
also don't want to try to trade Antoine now because he still has BYC issues,
and that will affect what you get in return.   I also don't think that
you're going to trade Antoine, Kenny, Vitaly or Battie for a better player
unless you include a lottery pick in the deal.  Packaging some of them
together gives you a package that might acquire an aging, overpaid star,
like Mutombo, if you're lucky.  I like those draft picks as much as
bargaining tools as I much as I do them as draft picks.  Picking in the 8-12
range, you get a project, even in a deep draft.  Antoine was, what, a number
6 pick in a very good draft? He wasn't a project, but he's, shall we say,
flawed.  Not only is the kind of talent this team really needs only
available in the first few picks, even in a deep draft, but I'm not sure we
really know what we have until we see them play under a different coach.  Of
all the things that Pitino has said, the one that I agree with the most is,
"I picked these players, so if they don't get the job done, get rid of me,
not them".

> Living in the clouds?
>
> Because I don't want to trade a lottery pick for Jerome Williams?

No, because I keep thinking you're suggesting that trading some combination
of Antoine or Paul and some of this team's excess baggage, without adding
good draft picks, could net a really, really good player.

> Now, if something dropped in Pitino's lap--say Garnett
> became available--then, certainly you sacrifice whatever draft picks you
> need to sacrifice. But not for Jerome Williams. And I don't package those
> picks with Walker for Dikembe Mutombo. We traded for Kenny Anderson
because
> he would "make us win quicker." We traded for Vitaly Potapenko because he
> would "make us win quicker." So, yes, I want change. But based on Pitino's
> history when he wants to "make us win quicker," I have a little concern.
Am
> I making my position clear?

Sort of clear.  But there's a lot of players between Jerome Williams and
Kevin Garnett, and I have no idea where your cut off point is.  There's a
lot of common ground in our positions, though.  Neither one of us wants to
see Pitino shuffling around merely potential all-star level talent.  But we
keep running into this misunderstanding that I can't figure out exactly what
"major talent" you think is available for a Paul Pierce, Bryant Stith type
offer.

Jim