Re: Los Angeles Box Score

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

> It's kind of a Catch-22 for Fortson. If he continues playing 12 minutes per
> game, at what point will he be in shape? Next training camp? In the middle 
> of a long season, I think it's hard for any player to get into condition 
> unless he's eventually allowed to play some consecutive minutes (like a 
> Ewing or a Kobe). It's not like team's hold many training camp style 
> practices between games.

A couple things here. Kobe had a hand injury, so I'm sure he was able to
keep his cardiovascular conditioning up. And Ewing evidently took quite
a long time getting his conditioning back up and playing in practice 
before he even tried playing in a game, because he didn't want to look
bad.

Joe, you've made reference to the incredible physical demands put on
NBA rebounders so I'm sure you believe what Jim said about Fortson looking
like he was going to puke after only a few minutes. I don't think that
playing Fortson until he pukes or until he reinjures himself is the 
answer. He can continue to condition himself outside of games while his
minutes gradually increase. I don't buy the theory that Pitino is trying
to keep Fortson's minutes down as a negotiating ploy either, because I'm
sure that Pitino is more desperate than anyone to win this season.

Alex