Boston Globe - Springer

[Eggcentric@xxxxxxx]

Figuring out Obiebs mindset has become a personal challenge to
many of us.   

My FAVORITE QUOTES from donbt make-a-wave-I-need-this-job 
Shirabs morning column include:

< We probably have too many plays in right now> - Obie 

A crash course in offense during the last 48 hours?

< We're concentrating so much on defense we're not drilling our 
plays. > - Obie

Our STARTERS appear DEFENSIVELY AWARE but OFFENSIVELY 
CHALLENGED.  OUR SECOND TEAM (Sundov, McCarty, Baker, Shammond, 
and Bremer) appears OFFENSIVELY AWARE but DEFENSIVELY
CHALLENGED.  Never the twain shall meet?

< I thought our starters did a real good job of rebounding the basketball 
against a very big team. > - Obie

We had 36 rebounds vs. their 45... Obiebs placement of our big guys at 
the perimeter? We also allowed a depleted Minnesota to shoot 42.5% 
to our 39%, and achieve 21 assists to our 22 in a game that they were 
missing their best two point guards - Terrell Brandon and Troy Hudson.  
Should I rub it in and add that Minnesota was also without starting PF 
Joe Smith, scorer Wally Szczerbiak, Randy Livingston,  and that Lopez 
was carried off the court in the first period?  

A good game for us?  How about shame on us?  Or should we patient 
jurors be instructed to simply disregard all preseason DNA as 
being inconclusive evidence?

Egg

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CELTICS NOTEBOOK
It's something to shout about 
O'Brien wants to see better defense

By Shira Springer, Globe Staff, 10/20/2002  

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Jim O'Brien liked most, but not all, of what 
he saw from the Celtics last night. 

At one point, the coach cursed as his players appeared unorganized on 
offense. He became increasingly agitated about his team's offensive 
play as the game wound down, yelling for J.R. Bremer to ''wake up'' 
and for Shammond Williams to take an open shot. 

Still, he was pleased with the Celtics' 95-83 win over the depleted 
Timberwolves, the only team from the Western Conference on their 
exhibition schedule. With the victory, Boston improved to 3-2. The 
Celtics broke the game open in the third quarter, after entering 
halftime ahead, 48-40. 

''We probably have too many plays in right now,'' said O'Brien, 
downplaying his frustration about execution. ''We're concentrating so 
much on defense we're not drilling our plays. I felt very good about our 
effort and the way we played. I thought our starters did a real good 
job of rebounding the basketball against a very big team. I thought 
they got out and really ran well ... We had 22 assists and we have a 
phenomenal record when we have that many assists.'' 

The Celtics, however, allowed the Timberwolves to shoot 42.5 percent 
from the field, while they shot 39 percent. Boston was outrebounded, 
45-36. Paul Pierce led the charge on offense with team highs in 
points (27) and assists (5). He was 12 for 13 from the line and 3 for 
5 from beyond the arc. At the end of the third, he was the only Boston 
player in double figures, though by the end of the game all 10 players 
who saw action scored. Bruno Sundov was the only other Celtic in 
double figures (10 points with a pair of 3-pointers), while Vin Baker 
rebounded from his poor performance against New Jersey with 6 
points, 5 rebounds, and a pair of assists. 

Ruben Wolkowyski was the only player not to see any time due to a 
coach's decision. 

As the Celtics continue to barnstorm through the NBA preseason, 
O'Brien remains most concerned about defense. The Celtics spend 
most of their waking hours focused on defense. And Antoine Walker, 
Eric Williams, Pierce, and Co. must hear O'Brien barking about 
defense in their sleep. They want to have the best field goal defense 
in the league, but two games against the New Jersey and last night's 
contest against a weakened Minnesota team showed Boston just how 
far it has to go. New Jersey shot 54.4 percent from the field in Game 2. 

''We're not happy with our defense,'' said O'Brien. ''I'm not happy. 
The players aren't happy. We're nowhere near where we need to be 
defensively. Is it a concern? It's a concern to me. The thing that 
dominates my thoughts is team defense.'' 

Entering last night's contest, Boston was allowing more points per 
game (103.3) than any team in the league. That takes away from the 
fact that Boston ranked first in the NBA in points per game with 103.3 
and third in the NBA in 3-point field goal percentage (42.0 percent). 
The Celtics also ranked near the bottom of the league in rebounding 
with only 39 per contest. 

''I'm not so much concerned about how many points the other team 
scores, I'm worried about our field goal defense percentage,'' said 
O'Brien. ''I'm worried about improving on the defensive glass.'' 

Health points 
The Celtics have been fortunate when it comes to injuries to key 
players. Walker and Pierce have remained remarkably healthy during 
their careers. Last season, Pierce played all 82 regular-season games 
and all 16 playoff games. Walker missed just one regular-season 
game, because of a sprained left thumb, and he could have played if 
necessary. 

Last night, the Timberwolves were without Joe Smith(strained 
left groin), Wally Szczerbiak(dislocated bone in left foot), Randy 
Livingston(sprained left ankle), Troy Hudson(strained left groin), 
and Terrell Brandon(cartilage fracture left femur, suffered last 
season). Minnesota's injury list got longer last night when Felipe 
Lopez was carried from the court after colliding with Pierce in the 
first quarter. The early diagnosis was a sprained left knee. 

Looking back 
With last night's game, and tonight's contest in Toronto, the Celtics 
are in the middle of their first back-to-back set. They will play 17 
back-to-back sets during the regular season, starting with the season 
opener against Chicago at home and a game at Washington the next 
night. Most of Boston's back-to-back sets will be home/away (10). 
They have a pair of away/home and five with both nights on the road. 

This story ran on page E6 of the Boston Globe on 10/20/2002. 
B) Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.