RE: Pitino haters alert

["Berry, Mark S" <berrym@BATTELLE.ORG>]

Josh, to say Antoine Walker gave Pitino his all for three whole seasons is
ridiculous. Pitino asked him to bulk up. He didn't. Pitino asked him to slim
down. He didn't. Pitino asked him to shoot fewer 3-pointers. He didn't.
Pitino asked him to pass more. He didn't. Pitino asked him to defend. He
didn't. To say anything else is revisionist history. And through all this,
Pitino did what? Yell? He didn't bench him, didn't fine him for showing up
out of shape. That's being too rough on him? That's not soft soap?

Yes, there have been plenty of players who have run off coaches, but don't
lump Magic and Bird in with this bunch of Celtics. Ask either of those guys
how many times they gave less than their best effort, even when they clearly
disliked their coach. You know the answer to that question. There's a
difference between taking a disagreement with a coach to management and
laying down on the floor in order to drive the guy away. And what exactly
had Antoine and Co. accomplished that led them to believe they alone
possessed the secret to winning basketball, and Rick Pitino, a man who had
been to the playoffs as a head coach in the NBA, didn't?

Remember when Don Nelson was an idiot and out of touch because he yelled too
much for Chris Webber's liking? He wasn't an idiot in Milwaukee, when they
were in the playoffs. He isn't an idiot in Dallas, where they will be in the
playoffs. Seems to me Nelson was a pretty good coach who was broadsided by
one player (a player who very nearly ended Nelson's career). Now, Webber has
gone on to be an MVP candidate, but does that change what he did to Don
Nelson, or make it right? No, and if Antoine Walker goes on to be an MVP
candidate, it won't change what he did to Rick Pitino. Or make it right.

Most everyone on the list is willing to chalk all the problems up to Pitino
and celebrate the change since he stopped holding down these shoulda-been
"All-Stars." That's the easy thing to do, and it helps you feel good about
rooting for the players on the floor. I'm here to say that these "All-Stars"
inexcusably held themselves down, and a month of improved play doesn't
change that fact.

Mark



-----Original Message-----
From: OzerskyJA [mailto:OzerskyJA@cmog.org]
Sent: Friday, February 09, 2001 10:53 AM
To: 'Berry, Mark S'; OzerskyJA; 'celtics@igtc.com'
Subject: RE: Pitino haters alert


I just can't summon up any loathing of the players
or "today's NBA" because the players quit on Pitino.
They gave him their all for three whole seasons, without
any success.  Magic Johnson submarined Paul Westhead,
and Bird pushed Jimmy Rodgers off the window.  It happens
with the best, it happens with the rest.  If Red Auerbach 
were coaching today, he would be doing that too -- that's 
just how he handled Russell, in fact.  He used to tell him ahead
of time that he was going to yell at him at practice, for appearance'
sake.  At this point in Celtics' history, I can't brook any ill-will
against the team because they didn't kill themselves for Pitino.
The hell with him.  There's something to be said for soft soap,
after all.

Josh Ozersky	
Marketing Communications Specialist 
Corning Museum of Glass

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Berry, Mark  S [SMTP:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
> Sent:	Friday, February 09, 2001 10:17 AM
> To:	'OzerskyJA@cmog.org'; 'celtics@igtc.com'
> Subject:	Re: Pitino haters alert
> 
> I guess it all depends on how you look at it. Check out this from the
> Herald's Gerry Callahan for a different take, and one I tend to agree
> with:
> 
> http://www.bostonherald.com/sport/golf_tennis_more/gc02092001.htm
> 
> Look, I like some of the things O'Brien has done: shortening the rotation,
> keeping strong defenders around Toine and Pierce, playing Blount... but
> that's not the reason the team is winning, and it's not because O'Brien
> isn't yelling or because O'Brien's picture isn't on the front of the media
> guide ... the biggest reason for the turnaround is the team, specifically
> our two captains, have decided to play hard. They wouldn't do it for
> Pitino.
> In fact, they quit on him. Some say that's Pitino's fault. I disagree. 
> 
> It seems, as Callahan correctly points out, that the only way to coach
> Antoine Walker is to not coach him at all. Roll out the ball and let him
> play... shoot whenever and wherever he wants, and kiss his rear end
> whenever
> you get the chance. There's no question he's the team leader on the floor,
> and the rest of the players, including Pierce, are following his lead.
> Let's
> just hope O'Brien keeps blowing the smoke, because if Toine quits again,
> the
> rest will follow again.
> 
> The bottom line, of course, is that it doesn't matter. Pitino is gone and
> the players who drove him out of town are still here. The NBA is all about
> the players, and it's true that Pitino didn't see that soon enough. He
> made
> the mistake of trying to coach them. Go figure.