RE: In praise of sluggish play

[OzerskyJA <OzerskyJA@cmog.org>]

Boy, you should have heard Tommy last night.  man do I love him.  It's
totally like listening to a fan, a member of our email group who happens to
be an ex-celtics hall of famer who is also an ex-Celtics coach and also is
very close to the players and organization.  I wonder what the team would be
like if he coached it.  I bet there would be three set plays, absolute
discipline, and minimal video work.

Josh Ozersky	
Marketing Communications Specialist 
Corning Museum of Glass

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> Sent:	Wednesday, October 25, 2000 11:38 AM
> To:	'OzerskyJA'
> Subject:	RE: In praise of sluggish play
> 
> Kenny is the single biggest reason this team fares so poorly on the road
> and
> in back-to-backs. He brings absolutely no energy to the game and the team
> follows his lead. Get Herren and Brown in there and use Kenny as offense
> off
> the bench when needed. I don't care if he doesn't like it.
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: OzerskyJA [mailto:OzerskyJA@cmog.org]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 25, 2000 11:01 AM
> To: 'Berry, Mark S'
> Subject: RE: In praise of sluggish play
> 
> 
> Battie was pretty good -- active on defense, blocked/changed a few shots,
> and pulled down a few rebounds in traffic.  Kenny was Kenny; 
> it's like he's trying to move the ball upcourt but thinks you have to
> dribble
> to do it.  Of course, since everybody was standing around on offense,
> it was all dump-ins or perimeter passes anyway.  Brown tried to make
> something happen, and had a couple of nice penetration passes, but
> it was like trying to light wet firewood.  He has a better jump shot than
> advertised.  The team didn't press much, 
> but when they did it was very effective with him starting it.  I wish we
> could press for the whole game; I feel that would be our best chance to
> win
> in the NBA. Put Vitaly on the bench and use him to punish opposing big
> men.
> Or use him in the press.  Why not?  he can run.
> 
> Josh Ozersky	
> Marketing Communications Specialist 
> Corning Museum of Glass
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> > Sent:	Wednesday, October 25, 2000 10:52 AM
> > To:	'OzerskyJA'; Berry, Mark  S; 'celtics@igloo.igtc.com'
> > Subject:	RE: In praise of sluggish play
> > 
> > Well, I don't want to jump the gun on giving Walter a roster spot. The
> > story
> > in either the Herald or Globe today suggested McCarty would get the spot
> > until Moiso is more comfortable. That's possible.
> > 
> > It's obvious that Pitino values McCarty's length, athleticism and energy
> > and
> > believes he can be a valuable player in the press. He was a positive
> > factor
> > that first Pitino season when he started alongside Walker. My problem
> with
> > McCarty is his failure to understand his limitations. He isn't a good
> > shooter, yet he insists on shooting a lot. Also, he should be a good
> > defender at the small forward spot, but he isn't, unless he's operating
> in
> > a
> > full-court press. There's no reason, with his length, quickness and
> > leaping
> > ability, that he couldn't be a defensive stopper against most SFs.
> > 
> > I have to agree Josh, that I'd prefer Moiso get the active roster spot.
> > Even
> > as lost as he seems right now, he provides as much as McCarty (you might
> > even argue more since Moiso actually rebounds).
> > 
> > How did Battie play last night, and what were your impressions of
> Anderson
> > and Randy Brown?
> > 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: OzerskyJA [mailto:OzerskyJA@cmog.org]
> > Sent: Wednesday, October 25, 2000 10:37 AM
> > To: 'Berry, Mark S'; 'celtics@igloo.igtc.com'
> > Subject: RE: In praise of sluggish play
> > 
> > 
> > I know this is the kind of thing we all get tired of saying (and
> reading)
> > here, but why would Moiso be on the injured list while Walter plays?
> > Moiso is talented and has something to offer, and Walter isn't even the 
> > player he was two years ago, when he was no good.  The players on the
> > IR should be Minor and Walter; if Minor is waived, it should be Walter
> and
> > either Stith or Eric, depending on who's playing better.
> > 
> > As for Vitaly, he was truly at his worst last night, with hands of stone
> > to
> > put Roberto Duran to shame.  He did cause some havoc on D with his big
> > body
> > and high energy... on offense, no one got the ball down low but Walker
> and
> > Pierce.
> > 
> > Josh Ozersky	
> > Marketing Communications Specialist 
> > Corning Museum of Glass
> > 
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> > > Sent:	Wednesday, October 25, 2000 10:19 AM
> > > To:	'celtics@igloo.igtc.com'
> > > Subject:	Re: In praise of sluggish play
> > > 
> > > Last night was the fourth game in five nights. None of us like it, but
> > in
> > > the NBA you see games like that in those situations. 
> > > 
> > > I hope this team doesn't start using the schedule as a crutch like
> they
> > > did
> > > last year when the record on the road and in back-to-backs was
> abysmal.
> > > The
> > > bottom line is every team faces the same schedule and you have to find
> a
> > > way
> > > to get it done. Last night was a great example of a game that,
> hopefully
> > > they can pull out during the regular season. They played awful, were
> > > sluggish for four quarters and still managed a tie with four minutes
> to
> > > play. Sometimes in the NBA, you have to win games when you don't play
> > > well.
> > > They didn't tough it out last night, and that's the most disturbing
> > thing
> > > about the game.
> > > 
> > > Didn't watch this one, but looking at the stats, you see why so many
> of
> > us
> > > are so down on Kenny Anderson. His energy level never is what I'd call
> > > high,
> > > but he is flat-out awful in tough stretches of the schedule like this.
> > He
> > > just mails it in. You want to know why Chris Herren will make a
> > difference
> > > in this team? Imagine his energy in that game last night. 
> > > 
> > > This is a bad rebounding team, but they're going to get absolutely
> > killed
> > > if
> > > Vitaly plays as much as he did last night without grabbing a single
> > > rebound.
> > > If he's not rebounding and he's not scoring, what is he contributing?
> > He's
> > > not an impact defender, that's for sure.
> > > 
> > > We've been holding our breath waiting for Evil Toine to return, and he
> > > did.
> > > Impossible to tell how much of it was conditioning or following
> Kenny's
> > > sluggish lead, but it's discouraging after seeing him play so well for
> > the
> > > past few games. Again, if this team is going to have a chance, he has
> to
> > > rebound, and he can't take nights off.
> > > 
> > > Moiso grabbed seven rebounds in his short stint on the floor. I know
> > it's
> > > looking more and more likely that he ends up on the injured list, and
> it
> > > makes some sense, but that is one thin frontcourt without his
> > > availability.
> > > Pitino has a tough decision to make, especially since it sounds like
> > > McCarty
> > > may not be the automatic injury casualty most of us assumed.
> > > 
> > > Anyway, this is one of those games you forget about (although I'm glad
> > > Pitino made the team practice today so the players don't forget about
> > it).
> > > If it continues to be a trend during the season, then we worry. For
> now,
> > > I'm
> > > hoping for a good outing Friday to wash the bad taste out of our
> mouths.
> > > 
> > > Mark