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http://www.gomemphis.com/mca/basketball/article/0,1426,MCA_466_1106415,00.html




Celtics guard finally gets it
By Jimmy Golen, The Associated Press
April 24, 2002

WALTHAM, Mass. - Kenny Anderson is scoring less and enjoying himself more now that he's in the NBA playoffs again. 

The Celtics point guard has a more limited role this year, an adjustment that has helped Boston return to the postseason for the first time since 1995. 

Anderson has accepted his new role and even taken pride in helping the team in ways other than scoring. 

"After 11 years in the league, I get it," said Anderson, the only Celtics' starter with playoff experience. "I'm sacrificing. My scoring's down. Certain nights, I don't even know how many attempts I get. But my main thing is wins. Whatever I have to do, I'll do." 

What Anderson gets most of all is that there is only one high-scoring point guard in this first-round series: Philadelphia's Allen Iverson. 

As for the Celtics, they're doing just fine with Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker handling the scoring. 

"I'm not chasing any scoring titles," Anderson said. "Sometimes, you have to look in the mirror and say, 'How can I help the team?' " 

Iverson, who did lead the NBA in scoring, missed the last 14 games of the regular season with a broken left hand and returned rusty for Game 1 on Sunday, when he missed 11 of 15 shots in Boston's 92-82 victory. 

"He really didn't get a chance to practice. He came in trying to give us the best he could," Sixers center Dikembe Mutombo said after practice Tuesday. "We're going to see a different Allen. 

"He got a nice four days's rest, a chance to watch film, and shoot more." 

The second-overall pick in the 1991 draft, Anderson averaged 17 points in his second season and never less than 12 until last year, when injuries limited him to 33 games and 7.5 average. 

As a starter in two playoff appearances for New Jersey and Portland, he had 16 and 17 points, respectively. 

But Anderson missed 16 games near the beginning of last season after breaking his jaw, an injury that limited him to liquids and weakened him even after he returned. 

He missed eight more games in the middle of the year and then the last 26 with a sprained ankle. 

All that time off gave him a chance to think about his NBA future. 

The conclusion he reached was that he wasn't going to help the team by taking scoring chances away from Pierce and Walker. 

"They're two important players, they're young, and they'll be here longer than I will," Anderson said. 

This year, he was healthy enough (though he did miss six games), and scored just under 10 points per game. He also averaged five assists and had his highest rebound (275) and steal (141) totals in four full seasons with the Celtics. 

Anderson had four points and five assists Sunday in Game 1 of the best-of-five series, playing only 25 minutes after getting into foul trouble early. 

"He was ready to play last year, but he went through a lot of injuries," Walker said. "In the beginning, he was the third scorer. Sometimes, you want a little more, but he's accepted a role and it's paid off. 

"And that's why we're in the position we're in now."