re: The Duck and Westphal

[Bob Miller <bob@pointofchoice.com>]

>>The Duck and Westphal
>>
>>This older guy seems to recall that the Duck went to the ABA for money and
>>then hurt a knee while Westphal was mysteriously traded for Charley Scott,
>>who was not exactly a prototype Celtic-- although he did well for us.
>>
>>We assumed at the time that Westphal wanted the ball too much and drove to
>>the hoop so often that he did not get back on D.  I don't remember either
>>the media or the Celtics explaining the deal properly but a championship
>>quickly followed and it never became a public issue.

Westphal liked to take control on offense, perhaps a bit too much for 
Coach Heinsohn. Scott, who had a reputation of a gunner, had been a 
prolific scorer in the ABA before coming to the NBA, was taller, more 
athletic, and a better defender. Since the C's had lost Chaney to the 
ABA, they felt they had to have a stopper at the two-guard spot, so 
they made the swap. Some felt the C's were taking a big chance, but 
Red liked Scott and felt he could be taught to play the team game.

In the best-of-both-worlds kind of trade, both teams made it the 
finals in 76; the Suns were a definite Cinderella team, while the C's 
were expected to make a title run, as they had won in 74 and were 
68-14 in 75 before Nick Weatherspoon and the Bullets upset them in 
the playoffs.