May sets the record straight

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

Here's the latest from Peter "I read stuff of the internet and reprint it as 
trade rumor" May.  I also don't understand the headline.  Pitino not only 
doesn't "run" from the rumor, he faces up to it and shoots it down in 
flames.

Jim

Pitino runs from Walker rumors
By Peter May, Globe Staff, 2/1/2000

WALTHAM - The trading deadline is still more than three weeks away, but that 
hasn't stopped Antoine Walker's name from popping up in rumors.

An NBA general manager told the Globe that the Celtics fluctuate when 
Walker's name comes up for discussion. A GM told Sports Illustrated that the 
Celtics are trying to ''give away'' their captain.

Yesterday, an intriguing rumor popped up on the Internet: The Celtics would 
send Walker to Chicago for a No. 1 pick; the Pacers would send Jalen Rose to 
Boston and acquire Toni Kukoc from Chicago. It's even cap-friendly.

So, what about it, Rick Pitino?

''Antoine Walker will not be traded unless Michael Jordan considers to come 
back. Then, I would consider it,'' said the Celtics coach before flying out 
to Indiana for tonight's game with the Pacers.

''All these rumors about Antoine Walker are false, [coming from] people who 
don't understand the salary cap,'' Pitino said. ''And, more important, he's 
playing exactly the way I want him to play now. So, I didn't go through all 
these pains, from Kentucky on, to finally start to get him that way, and 
then trade him away.

''If he wasn't progressing the way we hoped, that'd be a different 
situation. But it's totally opposite.''

The coach said Walker wants to remain a Celtic.

''We're not interested in retarding our growth,'' said Pitino. ''That's what 
that trade would do. We want to be patient. But we also want to win. If we 
let Antoine Walker go for a first-round draft pick, all we're doing is 
making excuses. We don't want to do that. We want to stick with what we have 
right now and build on that.''

There you have it. The trading deadline is 6 p.m., EST, Feb. 24.
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