RE: Thoughts after the game (long)

[OzerskyJA <OzerskyJA@cmog.org>]

I've enjoyed today's discussion as much as any since
I've been on the list.  So much good news!  So refreshing!
It's amazing what a win can do -- and how glad I am that
the boobirds seem to have flown the roost for a few hours.

Josh Ozersky	
Marketing Communications Specialist 
Corning Museum of Glass

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> Sent:	Tuesday, October 17, 2000 1:36 PM
> To:	'Hironaka'; Berry, Mark  S; celtics@igtc.com
> Subject:	RE: Thoughts after the game (long)
> 
> Joe, 
> 
> Great points on Herren. You're right, we should keep his performance in
> perspective. It's just easy to get caught up in a pass-first point guard
> after what we've seen the last three years.
> 
> I'd say the point about Herren being a "guess hitter" is pretty close. He
> doesn't have natural point guard instincts just yet (remember, he's only
> been playing the point for two seasons). There was one occasion when he
> came
> off a pick and roll and had a wide open 18-footer, but he drove the lane
> instead and committed an offensive foul. It was the kind of decision I
> think
> he'll make differently given a little experience.
> 
> I'm not suggesting the guy is ready to take over and play 40 mpg at the
> point. I am saying that, in concert with Randy Brown, he is an improvement
> over Kenny Anderson, if not in numbers, at least in impact on the
> unselfishness of this team.
> 
> You're going to enjoy watching him.
> 
> Mark
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Hironaka [mailto:j.hironaka@unesco.org]
> Sent: Tuesday, October 17, 2000 11:38 AM
> To: Berry, Mark S; celtics@igtc.com
> Subject: Re: Thoughts after the game (long)
> 
> 
> 
> "Berry, Mark S" wrote:
> 
> > Chris Herren. OK, the numbers aren't pretty (1 point, 5 turnovers), but
> a
> > few of those TOs weren't his fault. He drove the lane twice on
> > pick-and-rolls with Battie and twice laid the ball back for a rolling
> Battie
> > and Tony was still standing at the foul line. Tommy H. made the point
> that
> > the Celtics big men aren't used to getting the ball on those plays (zing
> > Kenny) and once they realize Herren will make that pass, you'll see them
> > rolling hard to the hoop. Of course, that implies active brain waves in
> Tony
> > Battie's noggin... Anyway, even with a so-so debut last night, Herren
> > convinced me he's good enough to make Kenny expendable. I believe I
> heard
> > Mike Gorman say a knowledgeable basketball source told him that Herren
> has
> > the best point guard instincts on the team, and that's true. The guy
> pushes
> > the ball hard, passes upcourt and thinks pass first every time. He had a
> > beautiful touch lob pass to Battie from the top of the key that Tony
> fumbled
> > (surprise) before retrieving and laying it in. I'm sold on Herren. Let
> the
> > guy learn his teammates and he could be a legit starting point guard.
> 
> Thanks for that great game summary, Mark. I would love a Jason Williams
> style
> point guard on a team like the Celtics. I hope we don't expect too much of
> Herren right away though. He's here as a third point guard and anything
> better
> than that should be treated as a bonus (as with Blount).
> 
> Last summer before Herren's rookie year, one of the Denver papers printed
> a
> roundup of the Nuggets summer league play and in essence described Herren
> as
> the
> pointguard equivalent of a "guess hitter" in baseball. You all know the
> type. A
> guy who would be thinking dish from the moment he started a drive to the
> hoop,
> but if the defense took it away he'd blow the easy layup or turn the ball
> over.
> The other extreme is someone who is looking to make an acrobatic layup all
> the
> way to the hoop and won't even notice you if you are wide open under the
> basket.
> 
> On either of the two extremes, if you guess right you always look pretty
> damn
> cool. But I've seen Jason Williams blow open layups for this reason (he's
> preprogrammed to make the slick "he must have eyes in the back of his
> head"
> highlight pass even if the opportunity just doesn't develop). I don't know
> if
> Herren has improved or if the report was unfair (I think Herren himself
> acknowledged it).
> 
> In any case, I think you can count on one hand the number of  NBA
> basketball
> players who weren't some sort of guesser when driving to the hoop at full
> speed.
> It is like the number of baseball hitters who can actually read the
> rotation
> of
> the pitched ball. I truly believe Magic, Bird and Isiah could make
> instantaneous
> "pass, shoot or continue dribbling" decisions every split-second they were
> moving on the court. I wasn't around to watch any others (like Cousy or
> Oscar
> Robertson).
> 
> It sounds absolutely logical, however, that once teammates learn that
> Herren
> will drive-and-dish 90% of the time, they will roll to an open spot by
> instinct
> and have their hands ready for the catch. It will be nice to see that
> style
> of
> playmaking in Boston, but again let's not put extra expectations and
> pressure on
> him to spark the rebirth of the Cousy era. Herren already gets a lot more
> of
> the
> praise and spotlight than any 25-year-old, second round pick coming off a
> 3.1
> ppg season and a history of drug/alcohol abuse and college flunkout grades
> could
> possibly have earned (my point is not that he was or is a bad guy but
> rather
> that we wouldn't pay much attention to other NBA journeymen who fit a
> similar
> profile). I think it will just cause resentment on the team if the Boston
> media
> and fans try to anoint him before he's actually accomplished anything.
> 
> -----
>