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Re: Fw: [Celtics' Stuff from hero to goat
Hi, I know in advance that I'll sound like an apologist
here (and I'm just as sad as the rest of you to read that
Paul Pierce was "despised" by his teammates) but I'd say
this much:
I thought Paul Pierce defended Peja solidly and
intensively in the first half, and that he gave a notable
defensive effort overall until the 4Q. It wasn't just
Gurovic that got hot in 4Q, Peja was also red hot with
Pierce no longer on him. The last time Karl rushed Pierce
back in to stay early in 4Q, I remember thinking "geez,
he's not even rested." You could tell by his outside
shooting that his legs were gone.
The notable dropoff in defensive intensity in the 4Q was
in my mind a team thing, and came as a surprise to me
given the importance of the game. But with the thin
bench, the game played out much like the Celtics burnout
phenomenon we saw in Game 6. Plus the Yugo's started
pulling their whole flop artist act.
I suppose I'm not the only one who finds it astonishing
that these guys were playing their fourth game in four
nights, and seventh in eight days? NBA back-to-backs
impact performance a lot, as we've all noticed.
I'm not saying that other teams weren't in exactly the
same boat. But at least they invariably played zone on
the defensive end like the Yugos. Pierce was individually
assigned to the top scorers in the past few games, and
that's pretty tiring (it also suggests he can't be quite
that bad on defense).
On top of the unfamiliar tournament schedule, I imagine
the Euro contingent don't come into it off a pro season
of 82 games.
For instance, Paul Pierce played in over 100 games in the
past season, including the exhibition season plus
playoffs. That's a ton of games. Multiply that by 40
minutes per game (the total length of an Int'l ball game).
I remember when France and other top teams got eliminated
from the World Cup. It was the same deal. The marquee
guys all play way too many club games during the year.
The top club teams are so in need of revenue, they are
constantly touring around the world or participating in
FIFA trophy tournaments, on top of league games where the
top stars are always getting dinged up.
So if I knew in advance that this was going to be a nine-
game tournament (way too many), I'm not so sure as a
Celts fan that I would have supported the idea of Pierce
participating. I still can't believe there was not one
but actually two "preliminary rounds", not to mention the
back-to-back-to-back-to-back (x4) format. You could see
these guys losing their jump shot legs in the second half
of some games, even earlier in the tournament.
But getting back to Paul Pierce, how dare these guys
scapegoat Pierce for the outcome of the tournament.
Pierce had the least to be ashamed about, if you ask me.
He took high percentage shots. He had ten assists in the
Argentina and Yugo games, and passed well the entire
tournament. (The wrap-around pass off of drives might be
a big weapon for him this coming season). He showed
really improved court awareness during the dribble,
rather than the tunnel vision of before.
Meanwhile Jermaine O'Neil was nothing less than a
national embarrassment, especially for a max contract
player playing on home court.
And what happened to Ben Wallace? I know its impossible,
but did this guy shrink three inches in height over the
summer? If Vlade's really 6-11, then Ben's 6-7.
But regardless, I just have no clue why Karl kept sending
the league's top shotblocker and rebounder out on the
perimeter chasing guys like Nowitzki and Peja. We got
crushed on the boards.
My respect for Shawn Marion and Baron Davis has cratered.
Judging by how they performed, you could have convinced
me that both were promising NBDL players, rather than
actual NBA superstars. Marion was a particular enigma.
What was the reason for his DNP, does anyone know?
Lastly, in this long-winded post, I'd like to discuss
that reported clash between Andre Miller and Paul
Pierce... Paul Pierce was dead right IMO in telling the
pointguard to stop hogging the ball. Andre Miller's a
weak shooter who shot too much.
What's more, even my wife noticed what a poor job of ball
distribution he did last night. How many times do you
have to feed Ben Wallace down the stretch, Andre? There
was that 24 second violation off a stupid dish to Wallace
down low, and that dumb pass for Ben's foul-line clanker
(both totally the fault of the pointguard IMO).
My wife, who only watches any sport because of me,
commented that Andre is a bad leader because down the
stretch he kept wearing the same droopy, loser-mentality
face. Plus he's a bad shooter. She's got a point. Imagine
the game face Magic or Kidd would have had after
Yugoslavia closed in? What was Cleveland's record last
year?
Andre wasn't the "second scorer" I had in mind in my
earlier post. The reason he did come out like gangbusters
was because they started Jaric on him in the first
period. I'll say this...Jaric isn't going to get any
playing time in the NBA until he learns how to play
defense. He moves laterally on defense with the grace of
a fourty-year-old office worker. Andre's not quick, but
he blew past Jaric on drives with room to spare.
Nevertheless, Jaric looks like another true Yugo scorer,
that's for sure. Good size, but not a good playmaker yet.
NBA point guard is a fantasy, I'm fairly sure. I really
hope they broadcast the medal games, but I doubt that
will happen.
It's very sad to see Pierce was "despised" by the team. I
hope this comment was a stretch, based on Andre's
personal animosity toward him. But if its at all true,
Pierce's teammates need to look in the mirror. He and
Brand carried them in this tournament because the rest of
them were crap, pure and simple. They were the national
embarrassments. Paul Pierce did all he could, and was
very effective at what he did. Half of these guys should
never be invited back again. I hope they take Antoine
with him next time because the rest of these guys can
kiss Paul's ass, as far as I'm concerned.
He'll be opening the same cans of whupass on them this
upcoming season that he did all tournament long. And
we'll win too.
Joe
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