Springer on Sundial

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I like the signing of Sundov, but an ironic thing and a  typical Pitino
- Wallace
screwup,  they ink him to a one year deal. Now, if he improves as a
player
this season and acquires value and interest from other teams, with Vin
Baker's bloated
contract likely around, how do the Celtics re-sign him?

Sundov newest Celtic

Odds of re-signing Rogers decreasing

By Shira Springer, Boston Globe Staff, 7/19/2002

A  more complete version of the Celtics' regular-season roster began to
take shape yesterday. Free agent center Bruno Sundov decided to leave
Indiana for more playing time in Boston, while general manager Chris
Wallace conceded he is ''not overly confident'' about re-signing Rodney
Rogers.



Although Rogers remains the Celtics' priority, the franchise could not
afford to be a bystander with five free agents testing the market and at
least three roster spots to fill, especially not with Sundov interested.
During the next week, the Rogers issue should be resolved.

''I think the next week will be a big week for us,'' said Wallace.
''Things will start to break in the league a little bit. Our situation
will probably be a little bit more formed within the next week,
complete.''

Since Sundov was more concerned about playing time than money, he fit
the Celtics' plans perfectly, even without his outside shooting ability
and 7-foot-3-inch frame factoring into the equation. Boston offered
Sundov a one-year contract at the veteran minimum for a four-year player
of $637,435 with a player option for a second year, and the 22-year-old
Croatia native gladly accepted.

Sundov turned down a better deal with Indiana that would have guaranteed
him three, possibly four more years with the Pacers. Sundov arrives in
town today to officially sign and look for a place to live for next
season.

''The factors were that he thinks there was a better chance for him to
have playing time with the Celtics than with Indiana, because he feels
that Indiana has a lot of good players at the same position,'' said
Sundov's agent, Boston-based Frank Catapano. ''He would have to take
over for guys who are already established and playing a lot of minutes.

''He felt that [Pacers president] Donnie Walsh and [head coach] Isiah
[Thomas] were very forthcoming with him. They told him that he was going
to play this year. But he just decided that he'd rather try here.''

Sundov played only 88 minutes over 22 games last season, averaging 1.5
points per game and 1.0 rebound. During a four-year NBA career that
includes a stint in Dallas, Sundov has played only 50 games. Still, the
Celtics have been interested in the European center since 1998, when
they tried to draft him. They are confident that given the opportunity
he can be a strong scoring presence from outside, including from beyond
the arc. According to some scouts, Sundov could have been drafted in the
top 10 this year if he entered the process as somewhat of an unknown
from overseas.

''We don't promise anybody playing time, but we think that Bruno,
because of his ability to shoot the deep ball, is going to be helpful,''
said Celtics coach Jim O'Brien. ''I think he's a guy that we were very,
very impressed with ... I think he has the ability to score. He needs to
improve defensively, as he well knows. You can't take anything away from
his height. He's going to be able to rebound the basketball. With Vitaly
[Potapenko] being banged up and the difficulty we're finding in signing
Rodney, we don't have a lot of people at the 4 and 5 right now. So, it's
very, very nice to get him.''

In the words of O'Brien, the Celtics are ''trying desperately'' to sign
Rogers, one of the integral players in their run to the Eastern
Conference finals. But when told it appeared as if Rogers was slipping
away, O'Brien said, ''Yeah, I think that's accurate.''

At this point, all the Celtics really have to offer Rogers is a contract
well below his worth (about $1 million), with the contingency of more
money in the future.

''We don't want him to slip away,'' said O'Brien. ''We will try to the
11th hour to sign Rodney Rogers. There has been nothing more important
to me, personally, than to sign Rodney Rogers. That's the No. 1
priority. That's one of the few things in my life I think about right
now. From the moment we got Rodney, this [re-signing him] is all that
I've wanted to do.

''There was a reason that we went 18-6 down the stretch and then went to
the finals of the East. It was because we surrounded Antoine [Walker]
and Paul [Pierce] with quality players ... To lose Rodney Rogers is
difficult for me to stomach. If we didn't sign Rodney Rogers, I would be
extremely disappointed. I would do whatever it takes to sign Rodney
Rogers.''

Added Wallace: ''Rodney has got suitors and is one of those guys where
it's never over till it's over, till anything is reduced to writing. But
I'm not overly confident at this point.''

Last weekend, O'Brien flew to Phoenix to visit with Rogers and his
family. He also spent time with Tony Delk, and the three had dinner.
Walker and Pierce have also called to express how much they would like
to see Rogers return. When O'Brien was asked if he had made a personal
appeal to owner Paul Gaston about spending money on Rogers that would
likely push the team over the luxury tax threshold, the head coach had
no comment.

''Paul's running a business and he has to do the things that he thinks
are necessary to make the business as solid as possible,'' said O'Brien.
''He's got to make that decision ... However it falls out, we feel we're
going to build a very, very competitive basketball team. When things are
still as wide open as they are, we've got to concentrate on doing what
we have to do to get the people that we know, not that we speculate,
will get the job done.

''The way around it is that Rodney knows it is a different situation
this year than it would be next year. He has to make a decision whether
he can live with what is on the table this year in hopes that we will be
fairer the next year, pay him what he's worth later.

''I went away [from my weekend in Phoenix] understanding fully what I
knew going into that situation. He has to do the smart thing for his
family and his future. That's the bottom line. He loves the Boston
Celtics. He loves the chemistry, but he's got to make the right
decision.''