Celtics Want To Trade Up For Gasol... and other news

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/154/sports/Celtics_lining_up_a_three_for_draft+.shtml

PRO BASKETBALL NOTES
Celtics lining up a three for draft


By Peter May, 6/3/2001


In nine days, the Celtics will have to make their decision on whether to
take Denver's first-round pick in this month's draft. All indications
are that they already have made it and will take the pick, in part
because they are enthralled with this year's draft class.


There's one other reason: League sources say they would like to package
the picks and move up to draft Pau Gasol, the 7-foot Catalonian playing
in Barcelona who has become ultra-hot as the draft approaches. The
Celtics were aced out at the last moment three years ago in their
supposedly covert bid to snag Dirk Nowitzki. (They ended up with a
pretty good consolation prize in Paul Pierce.) They don't want that to
happen again.


The Celtics have the 10th pick and, assuming they take the Denver pick,
the 11th as well. They also have the 21st. Three picks in what some, but
not all, consider to be a decent draft gives them enormous flexibility
and some leverage as well. That is probably the strongest argument for
taking the Denver pick now: They can be major players in the draft.


No one expects Gasol to be around at 10. The Celtics would have to
target Vancouver (picking sixth), Chicago (fourth), or the Warriors
(fifth) with their two choices. Golden State also owns the 14th pick.


Coach Jim O'Brien made a not-so-veiled reference to Gasol last week when
he said the club wouldn't pass on someone who might be among the top
three next year if it meant having to wait a year for him. Gasol is
under contract for next season, but there is a $2.5 million buyout. His
agent, Herb Rudoy, said recently that Gasol would likely stay overseas
next season unless he goes in the top five. If he were to remove himself
from the draft, Gasol easily would be a top three pick next year.


If you're the Celtics, it really doesn't matter. If you have to wait a
year, you have to wait a year. Think how many trips to Barcelona you
could make in a year to check on the goods. You wouldn't even get tired
of the paella at Los Caracoles. And if the kid is worth it - Nowitzki's
success certainly hasn't hurt the cause - then it's a no-brainer. It's
not like the Celtics are going to challenge the Lakers next season.


By taking the Denver pick now, you also have the option of actually
drafting at 10 and 11 if the Gasol gambit falls through. But do the
Celtics really want or need three rookies on their roster next season
when they still have behind-the-curve players like Jerome Moiso and Mark
Blount? Youth serves in the NBA; it just doesn't win.


The Celtics also could try to package the picks to move up and get a
pick and a player as well. Vancouver (No. 6) would be a natural target,
given the presence of Mike Bibby. The problem there is that Bibby is (a)
in the same draft class as Pierce, meaning he's eligible for an
extension this summer and (b) represented by David Falk, who tends to
get his way in these kinds of things and can make life miserable for a
team. The Bulls, picking at No. 4, would gladly part with Jamal
Crawford, who this time last year was a hot commodity. His value slipped
immediately, precipitously and, apparently, irretrievably when he
couldn't beat out Khalid El-Amin.


''We're going to be open-minded,'' O'Brien said regarding a trade. ''But
he would have to have an immediate and long-term impact. We're not going
to bring in someone on the downside of his career.''


By not taking the pick, you still have 10 and 21, but you don't have
Gasol. What you might have, however, is the Next Best Thing down the
road, given that Denver isn't likely to do much of anything over the
next several years. The one good player the Nuggets have is Antonio
McDyess. They also have to face up to Falk in terms of re-signing Raef
LaFrentz, who has had his moments with coach Dan Issel. He, too, is
eligible for an extension this summer.


The Nuggets, in all likelihood, are going to go down in the West. It's
hard to imagine them displacing any of the playoff teams in the
conference. It's hard to imagine them staying ahead of Houston, a
healthy Golden State, or the intriguing Clippers. By 2004, they may be
15-67 and the pick would be unprotected.


The Warriors had the same time frame with the Pacers' pick, but they
took it now (at 14) because all indications are that Indiana will get
better in a weaker conference. All indications are that Denver will do
the opposite, especially if Issel remains in charge. He may be the only
NBA executive in the last three years to be blitzed by Rick Pitino.


There's one additional argument for taking the pick now: These guys made
the trade and they want to reap what they've sown. The last thing they'd
want is for a new regime to come aboard and get the next Tim Duncan in
the 2004 draft.


Only M.L. Carr is that benevolent.

(in other good news, May says Derrick Coleman is available for
Kenny Anderson.)

C's Looking At A Point Guard At 21

http://www2.bostonherald.com/sport/basketball/nbants06032001.htm
Steve Bulpett
Boston Herald

Flash and crash

With Shaquille O'Neal flexing his muscles for LA and Dikembe Mutombo the
major rebounding and shot-blocking force the Sixers had hoped they were
getting, it's clear that the true inside forces are rare pieces of gold
in today's watered-down NBA.

Haywood put it well.

``The flashy guys sell sneakers and posters, but the post play is where
the games are won,'' he said. ``You look at most of the teams that have
won championships throughout the years - besides the Bulls, who had the
greatest player ever - and all the rest of them have had a dominant post
player. You look at the Rockets; they had Hakeem (Olajuwon). You look at
the Lakers with Shaq. Without a good post player, it's going to be
really tough for you. The games are won in the trenches. You have to
grab those tough rebounds, and a 6-1 flashy point guard is not going to
go ahead and get that.''

Accordingly, Haywood believes he could fill a Boston need.

``I feel the Celtics would be a really good fit,'' he said. ``You look
at their nucleus. They have a good point guard in Kenny Anderson and
great wing play with Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker. They don't really
have a 5 (center) right now, and I feel I could come in there and
basically help the team out a little bit, whether it's points or
rebounds. I feel I can go in there and scrap and give them a presence
inside.''

The Celtics are, indeed, looking at Haywood for the last of their three
first-round picks, but as it stands now it is perhaps more likely they
will go for a point guard with that selection.