RE: After sleeping on it, some draft thoughts...(very long)

[OzerskyJA <OzerskyJA@cmog.org>]

I don't know.  I'm a little more optimistic, particularly
about our center committee.  Last year was really just a 
Vitaly/Blount platoon; adding Battie and maybe somebody else
in should help a lot.  Both VP and Blount were rebounding much
better in the 2nd half of the year; if Tony Battie and Jerome
Moiso can do some decent board work and block a few shots, we'll
definitely be in as good a position frontcourt-wise as Milwaukee
or Charlotte.  Which brings up another point -- that Coleman for
Anderson deal is still on the table.  I think it's a little more 
attractive now, although I still don't see where there are minutes
for Walker, Moiso and Coleman at 4.  Maybe you package Moiso and 
Coleman together for a young 4, or whatever...who cares?  I'm just
glad the draft is finally over.  I think that the roster will undergo
at least one more change before the season starts, but if it doesn't,
we still stand to do very well in terms of both increased offense
with the draft picks, and the addition of Tony Battie to the center
rotation.  And who knows, maybe we'll get an animal somewhere.  

Of course, the other thing that could change is that, with these perimeter
players, we can now afford to keep Antoine down low, and that would 
help our rebounding problems considerably.  OK.  Over and out.

Josh

-----Original Message-----
From: Berry, Mark S [mailto:berrym@BATTELLE.ORG]
Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2001 10:19 AM
To: 'celtics@igtc.com'
Subject: After sleeping on it, some draft thoughts...(very long)


OK, here goes...

I'm pleased with all three picks because I do believe that each guy was the
best player available at that point. You can't go wrong taking the best
player. Let's look at each one:

Joe Johnson... A no-brainer. I was sitting there hoping to hear Battier and
Diop go before the Celts simply because I'm not sold on Battier being more
than a solid role player and because I don't think the Celts would have
taken Diop. If Diop had slid instead of Johnson, I think we might have seen
a Troy Murphy or VladRad, and I didn't want that. Funny how we kept hearing
about guys who were climbing into the top 10, but the top 10 players were
the same group everyone expected a month ago.

Kedrick Brown... Who knows? The highlights looked good. I like everything
the Celtics are saying about him. He excites me more than anyone in that
next tier-Murphy, VladRad, Richard Jefferson, etc. We'll just have to wait
and see. Some of the things I like about both Johnson and Brown... neither
of them fall into that "need to hit the weight room" category-the have the
bodies for the NBA right now; both seem to be good complementary players who
don't need to be the focal point of the offense; both have the size to
succeed-no 'tweeners here.

Joe Forte... OK, I've made it clear how much I fear undersized shooting
guards. They hardly ever work. Forte is a little short (not quite 6-4) and
not especially strong or athletic to make up for his lack of size. Having
said that, I think he probably was the best player on the board. I was
hoping for one of the big guys, but Woods slid so far, you have to think
there's something going on there. I also was excited about Tony Parker, but
it's hard to argue with Forte. I think Kenny Smith made a great point that
he's going to a team where he can play off of Pierce, Walker and others.
That's a huge advantage, because at his size, he's not going to be a guy to
carry a team. One thing I love about him-he seems oblivious to the 3-point
line when he's on the floor. I love that mid-range game.

Having said all that, as a group, what do we have? Too many 2/3 men. This
has to mean no more Stith, Griffin or Carr, which is fine. But we still have
Eric Williams and Walter McCarty under contract and playing those spots, as
well as Pierce (I'll get to Toine in a minute). Plus, we have Kenny, Randy
Brown and Palacio under contract at the point.

This team is the smallest, weakest in the league. The center-by-committee is
terrible. Let's stop kidding ourselves. It's awful. The only true power
forward on the roster is Moiso, and it doesn't matter because this draft
just locked Antoine Walker into the power forward spot. My dreams of ever
seeing him at small forward are over, because some combination of
Pierce/Johnson/K.Brown are always going to be at small forward. That means
Toine at power forward all the time (except when he's playing point guard).
A PF-C combo of Toine and Battie/Pot/Blount is going to get murdered. The
Celtics like to say they're modeling after Sacramento and Milwaukee, but
Sacramento, despite all the flash, has Divac and Webber up front. Milwaukee
has Ervin Johnson, who, as pedestrian as he is, still is better than anyone
on the Celtics' roster. And they recognized the need to improve there when
they made the move for Przyzbilla last year. For a look at different
philosophies in building a team, look at Philly. Iverson, technically, is a
2-guard, but outside of him, their 2/3 guys are role players-McKie, Lynch,
Jumaine Jones. But they stockpile big people-Mutombo, Geiger, Ty Hill,
McCullough, and before that, Ratliff and Nazr Mohammed. The Celtics probably
think they can run with their new guys, but you have to rebound to run, and
they will be among the 2-3 worst rebounding teams in the league.

My problem isn't with the draft, because the Celtics got three talented
players. My problem is with the way this team is coming together. It's not
sexy, but you need big people to win in the NBA. Papile says the league is
dominated by the Kobes and McGradys and Carters, but look more closely...
Kobe has Shaq, McGrady's Magic were middle of the road because they lacked
size, and Carter's Raptors would be lost without Antonio Davis and Charles
Oakley. 

I think the Celtics will learn this during the upcoming season and sort it
out eventually. Which brings me to my last point: Last night's draft
signaled the eventual end of Antoine Walker's days as a Celtic. It's clear
he's not going to ever be a small forward in Boston, and they're going to
discover they need, as Josh says, "an animal" up front, either at center or
power forward. Might they dangle some of the swingmen like Johnson or
Kedrick Brown? Maybe, but that means Toine stays at PF and they're dangling
those guys for a center. Good luck. Power forwards are easier to come by.
You know who would be perfect? Jermaine O'Neal. I know it won't happen, but
a Toine for O'Neal and (pick one) Harrington/Croshere/Bender/Tinsley/Best
deal would be great for the Celts.

So, I'm happy with the three picks, but I think the Celtics are going to be
disappointed in their improvement in the upcoming season. I think the Hawks
have eclipsed them in the East, and the Wizards could do the same if Jordan
comes back. I think we're in for one more non-playoff season before we fine
tune this improving roster by adding the big men we need. Of course, that
outlook could change dramatically if they make a bold move over the summer.

 Mark