what's gone wrong

["Greg Davis" <pakpoy@one.net.au>]

I am long time list lurker who rarely contributes to this list. Running my
own business, two kids under 4 and the fact that I don't see any games from
Australia are reasons that limit my contributions. Thanks to everyone else
who contributes especially Bill. For what it's worth I'm the guy who
predicted 29 wins. 

I haven't seen the Celtics play for over three years, apart from one
abysmal game whilst on  business trip to Toronto last year. However, I
nevertheless would like to offer an opinion on the woes of this team.
Obviously a lot of it is not original.

Right up front I'll state that I don't think Pitino is a good coach or an
assessor of talent at the NBA level (emphasis on NBA level). No doubt the
Celtics would have been an immeasurably better team with Tim Duncan.
However, I have my doubts that Pitino would have been able to put together
a supporting cast of players to make the Celtics a really good team.

Not getting Duncan in the draft was a major major body blow to the Celtics.
Such is the odious financial nature of the NBA that ML Carr was given the
responsibility to tank a season or two to put the Celtics in the position
to draft a franchise player in Duncan. It didn't happen and Pitino didn't
have a plan B. History has shown that he has been making indiscriminate
moves ever since.

To make a couple of bad trades in a relatively brief tenure as an NBA coach
could be put down to bad luck. To make a whole litany of bad moves (whether
they be on his judgement or on advice given to him) clearly shows that
Pitino doesn't have a clue. Ultimately each successive move has burden the
team further – eating up valuable cap space and saddling the club with
mediocre players. To those of you who point out that the current team is
better talent wise than the team of three years ago – well it should be,
because that team was intentionally stacked with CBA types so that the
Celtics could draft Duncan!! ML Carr was rewarded with a well paid
ancillary role afterwards for taking the fall.

Pitino's strategy of full court pressure also doesn't make the transition
form college basketball to the NBA. In college basketball you have a core
team of ten young, eager, impressionable, committed and inexperienced
players aged between 18 to 23 who can run all night and not get tired. More
importantly this type of swarming pressure will be more effective against
less seasoned ballhanders – which is what college players are. It doesn't
work against the more experienced and more skilled players in the NBA.

A great college coach does not necessarily make a great NBA coach just like
a great college player doesn't necessarily make a great NBA player. Think
of all the draft busts – barring injuries - over the last ten years.

Finally, I would like to add that I am an armchair critic and I'm sure it
wouldn't be easy doing what Pitino does regardless of the pay.

Greg