Re: How Can You Be Excited About The Celtics When....

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

Ray just likes to stir things up, but when you get past some of the
intentional irritation, he throws out some interesting things for
discussion:

Celtics vs. Clippers... He's probably right. I'd say just about every GM in
the league would favor the Clips, with Odom, Miles, Brand, Olowokandi,
Dooling, Maggette, etc.

Celtics vs. Warriors... Not so sure here. The two 'Ants' 'toine and 'tawn
(Walker and Jamison) are similar players in terms of production. Walker is
more versatile, Jamison more efficient. Probably close to a wash. But the
Warriors don't have a Pierce-level talent. They hope Hughes is that guy, but
it's doubtful. They do have some nice rookies, like the Celts (Richardson,
Murphy, Arenas). Neither frontcourt or PG will get anyone excited.

Buying out Kenny Anderson... Doesn't this usually happen in the last year of
a contract? The Wizards did it with Strickland to save a little cash and get
rid of him ASAP. Strickland agreed to it so he could sign with a
contender...er, the Trailblazers. I don't remember a player with more than
one year ever being "bought out" in the NBA.

When any team in the league plays the Wizards, more people will be rooting
for Jordan. That's just the way it is. In a perfect world for the average
Celtics fan (not us fanatics), Jordan would get 50 and the Celts would win
by 1.

Signing veterans... I agree with this. It seems every good young team at
some point made a move for that veteran to push them that next step. The
Cavs with Larry Nance, the Blazers with Buck Williams... two examples off
the top of my head. Sometimes it means parting with a good young player
(Kevin Johnson went for Nance), but at some point you have to GO FOR IT. The
Celtics' management doesn't seem to feel they're at that point.

The GM... I see both sides of this. On one hand, I like Wallace's
fan-friendly approach... on the other, it feels kinda' minor-leagueish.
Plus, it seems kind of hypocritical to go door-to-door handing out nets
while still charging a month's rent for tickets.

Walker... if he leads the league in 3-point misses again, I'll... I'll...
oh, hell, I don't know what I'll do. But it will be bad.

Other lottery teams... several definitely improved. I think the Celts also
improved for the long haul, but not so much for the impending season. That's
a problem because Wallace (like every other GM in the league) seems to be
targeting 2003 as his free agent summer. Hard to imagine any premier free
agents signing with a team picking in the top half of the lottery. The Celts
need to be competitive on the court before they can hope to compete in the
free agent market.

Mark