Re: The Boston Celtics Mailing List Digest V7 #279

[bird <bird@pixi.com>]

>From: "Gene Kirkpatrick" <gkir@tjc.tyler.cc.tx.us>
>
>I'm interested in how the Celts' brass will pull off the numbers game.

Me, too.  I think the new CBA has made player movement a little more 
difficult for teams.  And it's clear we would benefit from some help. 
So where does that leave us?  If we're going to go to war with the 
same bunch of guys (which seems clear), save a few, and with a few 
new additions, who are those guys (other than the all-but-signed Mark 
Blount),  I wonder.

What looks most likely to me is picking up one or two guys from the 
summer league, and the $2mil exception.  For some reason, I think 
Fortson leaves with no compensation, though I hope that's not the 
case.  Or maybe he leaves in a sign-and-trade with cap trash or two 
for two or three journeyman-type players, one of which we'll cut 
immediately to free up a roster spot for the CBA-type guy that wowed 
us in the summer.

>And if ...[Blount]... makes the 12 man roster, doesn't
>that mean Walker will be at the three spot much of the time?
>How can we have Walker, Battie, Moiso plus Vitaly and Blount when
>Antoine will play over 35 minutes?

Um, the same way we've done it for the last three years?  Walker gets 
most of his minutes at PF, V gets 20-25 minutes, and the rest of the 
guys (especially Battie and maybe Moiso) get the leavings.  Blount is 
the 12th man.  That the C's management is raving about him now is 
like them raving about John Thomas, Fortson, Banana Boy, or [insert 
Pitino-era big man only a weight room trip away from stardom here].

All of this adds up to business-as-usual.  I hope that our guys 
improve (what would it be like if Tony Battie could play closer to 
his potential, especially shotblocking?) or that one or two of the 
new guys can seriously contribute to the team.  Some sort of 
combination of the two would be ideal.

Regards,

Bill