Globe/Herald coverage

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

I just read the Boston Herald/Globe coverage and there is a wealth of info 
therein. Good stuff. I've condensed it, cutting most of the text and 
leaving all of the quotes:

There is a lot of info here to spark debate on this list (unable to help 
myself I've already added several brief comments in parentheses).

But in general I very content as a fan with what I'm reading, after a night 
of admittedly mild concern about a "Dominique Wilkins II" scenario 
involving the 11th pick for 36-year-old Scottie Pippen. How does that fit 
into Wallace's four-year blueprint to win our 17th championship?

Joe

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Copyright Globe/Herald

''We're sort of masters of our own fate, which is good,'' said director of 
player personnel Leo Papile. ''There are 12 players in my lottery, and 
we've got Nos. 10 and 11. We've just got to see what other people do above 
us. 'I'm of the `quantity is better than quality' mind-set. To me, the 
dropoff between 1 and 12 is virtually nil in terms of talent quotient.''

In a move that Papile said ''speaks volumes,'' Boston exercised the option 
on Blount's contract for the 2001-02 season.

(comment: one can surmise that the 12-deep draft Papile refers to includes 
the consensus ten MINUS Sagana Diop, plus Kedric Brown, Radmanovic and 
Murphy. Of course Wallace has the final say.)

''We think the wing position, where we've got Bryant Stith, Chris Carr, and 
Adrian Griffin as free agents, needs shoring up,'' said Papile. ''We think 
there's a bunch of big-time wings. Shane Battier is a big-time wing. I 
think Jason Richardson is a big-time wing. I think Joe Johnson is a 
big-time wing. I think Kedrick Brown is a big-time wing. So, if a couple of 
those guys are there, great.''

(comment: for once, my own views seem to mesh with what a basketball expert 
actually thinks)

Still, owning three picks makes the Celtics the subject of persistent trade 
rumors. One that made the rounds this weekend had Boston selecting Brown at 
No. 11, then trading him to Portland. In exchange, the Celtics would 
receive the 19th pick and $3 million. They would then select point guard 
Tony Parker at No. 19 and step to the podium again at No. 21.
But Papile said, ''We're not drafting for anybody else. We're drafting for 
the Celtics.''  They also maintain that packaging picks to move up is 
unlikely.

(comment: did you notice that Peter May in the Globe today is still 
predicting the draft scenario where Boston trades the 11th pick for cash 
and Bonzi? He even suggests that getting Bonzi that cheap, major knee 
surgery and all, sounds like wishful thinking on Boston's part. Gawd, I 
hope Peter May falls flat on his face on this one.)

Another subject of persistent speculation was, as always, those players 
expected to fall into the Celtics' vicinity. Papile tagged Battier, 
Johnson, and Richardson as potential ''sliders,'' Troy Murphy as a 
''flatliner'' and Vladimir Radmanovic and Brown as ''risers.'' They feel FC 
Barcelona 7-footer Pau Gasol has ascended out of reach.

(comment: I can't wait for the draft! If you support Papile's talent 
evaluation, then one thing we should all look for/ hope for during the 
draft is for Sagana Diop to got in the top nine. He could go to Detroit for 
example. Michigan even has a city named after him, I believe. ;-)

At No. 21, the names Parker, Omar Cook, Will Solomon, Joseph Forte, Richard 
Jefferson, Trenton Hassell, and Damone Brown make the short list.

(comment: I'm not too thrilled with the first three names on this list. If 
we do draft "Poodle Junior" Tony Parker, at least Moiso will have his very 
own "Mini Me" to sit next to. If Jefferson is there, I'll do back flips. 
Same with Forte. This is the first mention I've heard of Damone Brown, 
which could give us three Brown's on our roster next year.)

''We have guys we like and we are in a position to absorb them,'' said 
Papile. ''We're not in any frenzy to trade. We're probably the calmest of 
them all. We like what we see at all three positions. We have a list of 
candidates that we're very happy with.  We're in a win-win situation. We've 
said this for a long time. It's certainly not going to change on the eve of 
the draft.''

(comment: Music to my ears. I'm finally ready to kick back and enjoy the ride.)

``It's absolutely a good situation for us because of the degree of talent 
and depth in the field,'' said Celtics director of player personnel Leo 
Papile, who ranks this year's draft among the best in recent history. ``You 
look at the small forward position, the power forward position - there's a 
talent pool there that you'll see maybe once every 10 years.''

(comment: not if you ask Peter May! This is another rare instance where I 
was right in my analysis starting last year with the "perfect storm" posts, 
or at least that someone who knows basketball better than me agrees with me).

``We're at the mercy of nine teams that are going to come to the podium 
before us at 10 and 11,'' said Celtics general manager Chris Wallace, who 
will call the shots with Papile and head coach Jim O'Brien at his side. 
``And in between there and 21, nine other teams are going to make a pick. 
So we don't know exactly who everyone will choose. There are always a few 
surprises.''

``I don't see us putting a package together to move up,'' said Wallace. 
``We're very comfortable in whatever happens at 10 or 11; we'll just let 
nature take its course."

``If we chucked everything overboard for one guy, then we've got a lot of 
chips on one person - probably a very young person. Hopefully, if we roll 
the dice three times, we're not unlucky enough to go 0-for-3.''

Said Papile: ``Quality is always more important than quantity, but in this 
particular draft I feel having the multiple picks is a huge plus for us. I 
see a lot of guys out there who have the talent to make an impact in this 
league. Yes, in some cases, it will take time for that to occur, but you 
can't ignore the talent of this group.''

``Although there's no consensus No. 1 pick in the mold of, say, a Tim 
Duncan, there is a group that has formed at the top of this draft and it's 
a good one,'' said Wallace. ``Of all the players out there, if you had to 
create a morning line on this draft, that group (Brown, Chandler, White, 
Curry and Griffin) would be there at the top.''

Gasol's mere presence in the draft helps the C's. If he's gone before the 
10th pick, the C's can at least get somebody who would not have been 
available had Gasol not pursued this year's draft. It's the trickle-down 
effect that three years ago produced Paul Pierce in the same draft slot.

``The latest information we have is that if he's selected 1-6, he's coming 
(to the NBA) this year,'' said Wallace, who was scouting Gasol extensively 
in Europe last month. ``With that as a definite, I don't see him lasting 
past the sixth pick.''

``My philosophy is to take the most talented player out there,'' said 
Wallace, lending credence to the theory the Celtics would not draft a big 
man simply for the sake of filling a need. ``Obviously, this team has a 
number of needs, but the first priority is always to bring in a player who 
we feel will have the best NBA career. Historically speaking, teams that 
have drafted on a specific positional need over talent have regretted those 
decisions.''

****