Re: don't see nobody

["j.hironaka" <j.hironaka@unesco.org>]

At 10:36 02/08/01 -0500, Gene Kirkpatrick wrote:
>We need a major upgrade at center, not a journeyman or an aging star.  Gene

Really I guess it depends on what you have to give up in return. Olajuwon 
excelled in the final three months of last season, averaging close to 15 
points and 9 boards over that significant period of time.

On a team like the Celtics, in theory he would have fit in quite well 
alongside the young nucleus. I guess it depends on coaching philosophy. An 
intelligent player all the way....brilliant in his prime. He's the only guy 
I'd put alongside Kevin McHale in terms of the range of post moves, 
explosiveness and automatic nature of his game. They don't make them like 
that anymore. And you are talking about a career 3.2 blocks per, although 
that's a smaller part of his game now.

I'd make very few exceptions to the rule of not trading a young guy 
(Potapenko presumably) for a 38-year-old, 3-year multi-million contract 
guy, but the Dream might have been one exception. He has so much to teach 
other players in the league, he's intelligent, and he'll play to win.

I'd wager he has something slightly less left in the tank than a Bill 
Walton, but maybe less than you think. I dunno.

Joe

p.s. BTW there is an article in ESPN magazine on the Jordan comeback that 
offers a number of insights, such as how MJ's team regularly beat on 
Walker's team in a full day of scrimmages.

Also I enjoyed all the Celtic-like quotes from Paul Pierce in today's 
Globe. He certainly said all the right things. Well, I might as well go 
ahead and paste them below. Cheers.

http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/214/sports/Pierce_raises_expectations+.shtml
''I'm not overly blessed with super athleticism so that I can jump from the 
free throw line,'' said Pierce. ''But I can just push myself each and every 
summer, to get better and smarter as a player. If you look at Larry Bird, 
he wasn't the most [athletically] gifted player out there. But each and 
every year, he just outsmarted his opponents. He did the little things to 
help motivate his teammates, to help them become a great team and himself a 
great player. I think I can be somewhat in that mold, with the attitude 
that he took each and every year.''

''I really didn't know what to expect coming in, but I knew I was coming to 
an organization rich in tradition,'' said Pierce. ''Each and every day you 
go to practice and see the banners hanging up. Coach [Red] Auerbach coming 
around, Bill Russell, Bob Cousy. There are so many great names ... This is 
just a great city to be in. I'm happy that I'm going to be here for the 
long haul."

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