Avoiding the urge to push the panic button...

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

Like Josh, I'm trying to avoid the impulse to throw myself into oncoming
traffic. It's not easy.

Here are the things that concern me:

1. What happened to that tough-minded, defensive-oriented team that started
the season? The Celts were a great defensive team. They were tough in close
games. They bounced back from tough losses strongly. Now we're seeing none
of that. They've lost their edge. Remember they way they played the first
half of the Dallas game? Doesn't that seem like forever ago? The timing,
coinciding with the trade, seems coincidental. No one who left was playing
anyway. Rebounding probably is part of the problem. It's discouraging to
play good defense and force a missed shot only to see the opponent score off
an offensive rebound. It's happening too often.

2. Is Antoine running out of gas? We know this is a bad rebounding team, but
if Antoine isn't boarding-and he isn't-the Celts are in BIG trouble. In the
four-game losing streak, Antoine is averaging 7 rebounds per game and he has
just five offensive rebounds TOTAL in those games. It actually is a
longer-term trend. Whereas October, November and December, Antoine was a
double-double machine (17 of them in 29 games), in January, February and
early March, he has just eight double-doubles (also in 29 games). Antoine's
assist numbers are suffering as well. He's averaging 2.5 in the four-game
slide, and just twice in the last 18 games has Antoine managed more than six
assists (the two triple-double games).

3. Where are the captains at crunch time? They've been disappearing in the
fourth quarter. Are they that worn out? Has the league figured out the
two-trick pony? I don't know.

Having said those things, I'm not without hope. There were some encouraging
things said by Wallace and Obie about Rodney Rogers over the weekend. They
at least seem to appreciate what they have here. If they can work Rogers and
Delk in, and recommit to rebounding and defending, they can turn this thing
around.

One thing I want to address: Paul M., who I really respect, insists Rogers
and Delk are just two more stiffs and if they take shots away from Pierce
and Walker, that's a bad thing. I couldn't disagree more. These are
legitimate NBA players. They've proven it for years for different teams.
They aren't products of any crazy system that inflated their numbers or
anything like that. They're players. And on top of that, they have been good
complementary players for years. They understand how to fit in and play off
of other people. Again, they've proven that.

If this team continues to flounder as Rogers and Delk are integrated into
the rotation, then it's time to break up the captains. If they can't play
with Rogers and Delk, just who can they play with? They complain about a
"third scorer..." Well, if Rogers and Delk don't qualify, I don't know who
does. This suggestion that these guys have somehow made Pierce and Walker
tentative... what a load of crap. If the only way the "stars" can succeed is
to put a bunch of no-talent scrubs around them so the "stars" can shoot
every time they touch it, then get rid of them. Wallace actually put some
NBA talent around them, and the "stars" haven't figured out how to use it
yet. I'm still hopeful that they will, but we'll see. If not, then get rid
of one or both of them. And I'm not kidding. If they need all-star caliber
talent all around them to be successful, just how good are they anyway? Is
anyone else starting to wonder just how much their numbers are inflated by
big minutes, constant touches and free reign in shot selection?

We can blame Obie-and he deserves his share-but if this team collapses down
the stretch and Rogers and Delk end up as spectators like every other Celtic
not named Walker or Pierce, then I've had it with our "stars." Pitino,
O'Brien... Mercer, Fortson, Delk, Rogers, Johnson, Billups... the names
around them keep changing. If the constants are Pierce and Walker... and the
results don't really change... then what does that say?

BUT--- Let's see how things play out. There's still time to right the ship.

Mark