ESPN Celtics Sportlight

["Josh Farber" <nbaj2k@home.com>]

There's no link to it on the main ESPN NBA page, but here it is.

Josh F
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Underachieving Celtics should be better
 By Eric Karabell
ESPN.com

So how many years has Rick Pitino been here? The answer is the much-heralded
former Kentucky coach has had three seasons in Boston, and he and the fans
have seen nary a postseason game. And it's not like the Celtics have just
missed, either. In three years, the Celtics have finished 10, 12 and 12
games under .500, safely tucked in the lottery. So what's going on in
Beantown?
Antoine Walker led the Celtics in scoring and rebounding, but could he be
better?
On the heels of our spotlight on another team that played golf during the
playoffs, the Atlanta Hawks, we profile the Boston Celtics in our second
offseason team spotlight. However, smile Celtics fans, your team appears
closer to getting to the playoffs than the Hawks. We have our opinions,
which are below, but we also want yours. Let us know your opinion on the
Celtics by filling out the form below.
Why the Celtics were 35-47: It all starts with the star player, Antoine
Walker. Is he supposed to be a perennial all-star stud, a guy who carries
the team to wins by shooting, scoring and leading on a consistent basis, or
is what you see what you get? Walker has nights when he looks fantastic,
scoring in the 20s with good rebounding and passing totals. Then he has
nights when he shoots 5 for 20. Also, Walker doesn't appear to have what it
takes in the personality department to be a Charles Barkley-type leader. We
wont ask if he wants to be a role model.
For better or worse, it's Walker and Pitino who bear the brunt of these
lottery seasons. Not Paul Pierce, who the city of Boston has embraced. Not
Kenny Anderson, who nobody likes as person or player. And after actually
seeing him play, fans expect very little of the harmless Vitaly Potapenko,
who in a roundabout way cost the Celtics a shot to draft Andre Miller. The
Celtics stunk again because they lack leadership, rebounding, passing, and
to some degree coaching. Pitino has to be blamed for some of this. The
Celtics were knocking on the playoff door in March until a 10-game losing
streak settled the matter.
Current projected top 6
PG Kenny Anderson
SG Adrian Griffin
SF Paul Pierce
PF Antoine Walker
C Vitaly Potapenko
6th Eric Williams
Team MVP: Pierce. Team LVP: Calbert Cheaney. Talk about overrated. Averaged
a meager 4 ppg. Surprise! We thought Danny Fortson would really help the
team. But he battled injuries and Pitino, and now he's a free agent. Up and
comer: A few choices. Pierce might overtake Walker as the first scoring
option soon. Adrian Griffin should be well rested to make it through an
entire season. And top pick Jerome Moiso should get an opportunity.
What they need: Every team would love a Tim Duncan manning the middle. Oooh,
that one really stings Pitino, who probably wouldn't have this job had he
known he was going to lose out on getting Duncan in the draft. Potapenko is
serviceable, that's all. What the Celtics need is a big man who scores and
rebounds and scares opponents when they drive the lane. The overly slender
Tony Battie led this team in blocks with 70, and Walker was the only player
who averaged more than 6.7 boards. This is a soft team. Maybe Armen Gilliam
can be brought in -- he'd fit right in.
At the same time, Walker has to figure out if attempting 285 three pointers
(and hitting only a quarter of them) is really what he's about. He has to be
more consistent and not disappear in some games. Walker did shoot .430 from
the field and .699 from the line this season -- below average percentages
but both career highs, believe it or not. So maybe he's going in the right
direction. That's what the Celtics need. A better point guard (Anderson
averaged a lame 5.1 assists per) wouldn't hurt either.

What the plan is: The first thing the Celtics need to know is whether Pitino
is staying. Of course, he has a contract, but that hasn't stopped coaches
and teams from parting in the past. Every time a major college opening
becomes official, Pitino's name is mentioned. And some of that has to be
coming from Pitino.
Next, the team has to decide if Walker is staying. He won't be easy to deal,
however. Moiso, a 6-10 forward from UCLA who looks and plays a little like
Battie, could get time right away. The Celtics have three free agents
(Fortson, Pervis Ellison and Doug Overton), and Pitino won't miss any of
them. Huge salaries from Walker, Anderson and others handicaps the team from
being aggressive on the free agent market. So what you see now is pretty
much what will start the season. And that's not entirely bad, since the
Celtics appear to have the talent to win half their games. But why do they
never seem to?
Direction heading: The Celtics should be better than 35-47, but not much
better. In the average Eastern Conference, producing Pitino's best season
isn't far-fetched, but the playoffs probably are.
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