RE: Paul's right

[OzerskyJA <OzerskyJA@cmog.org>]

I guess this clarifies it for me.  I do consider Pierce a special player.
And I don't know if I wouldn't take him over Marbury.  I think Pierce can
create a shot against just about anybody, and I am amazed at how good he is
defensively at this stage in his career -- much better than Marbury, I would
say.  He's fundamentally sound, not a head case, not given to wiggles and
tantrums...I don't know what more he could be doing.  I will say he's not in
a league with Kobe Bryant as far as talent goes.  But that's about it as far
as young swingmen go.  Vince is an amazing dunker, and has a great attitude,
and is a better player than Paul right now owing mostly to his work ethic
and his situation as the Man in Toronto.  But I see he and Paul as being on
about the same level.  There's no comparing any shooting guard with KG.
Odom I agree has an amazing talent from what I've seen, although I haven't
seen enough to be sure he's not a more athletic Toni Kukoc.  

Count this as my vote of confidence in Paul Pierce.  And if he doesn't get
with the program this year, I'll sit in the corner wearing a funny hat.

Josh Ozersky	
Marketing Communications Specialist 
Corning Museum of Glass

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> Sent:	Wednesday, September 13, 2000 4:59 PM
> To:	'Kestutis.Kveraga@dartmouth.edu'; 'celtics@igtc.com'
> Subject:	Re: Paul's right
> 
> Kestas, 
> 
> Your points are well made. I'm sure it seems like I'm willing to trade
> Pierce for a song, but I'm not. My point, and I think Paul's as well, is
> that Pierce, at his very best, is going to be a good player. He's not a
> player that makes his teammates better. Someone mentioned Marbury, and
> that's dead-on. Marbury doesn't get it yet, but someday soon he's going to
> be a guy who dominates games by scoring, passing and defending. He's a
> special player. Kobe, Vince, KG, even Odom... those guys are special
> players. Pierce, as good as he is, in my opinion is never going to be
> special. He lacks something those other guys have... maybe it's a killer
> instinct, maybe it's as simple as the ability to consistently create his
> own
> shot, maybe it's a combination of a lot of things. You can't measure it in
> stats, but watch them and you know.
> 
> Now, would I love to have Pierce on this team if we also had a Marbury,
> Vince or KG? Absolutely. But Pierce also happens to be the most valuable
> bargaining chip we have in bringing that kind of talent to Boston. If the
> right deal came along... and I'm not saying Pierce for Houston is right
> (or
> even Toine for Houston, although in my opinion, you'd have to seriously
> consider either proposal), but just holding onto these guys waiting for
> them
> to improve... I don't like that idea.
> 
> I admire most of you on this list for your patience, but I don't think
> we've
> reached the point where patience is all we need. This team needs talent.
> Difference-making talent. The only guy we have who really qualifies is
> Toine, and he can't be counted on. We can keep waiting for these guys to
> become the kind of players we hope they'll be (but I don't believe they'll
> ever get there) or we can make some moves to speed the process along.
> 
> I understand where you're coming from, but I hope you can see my points,
> too.
> 
> Mark