Thanks, Tammo

["Berry, Mark S" <berrym@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for posting those analyses from Kelvin Sampson. I hadn't seen them,
and thought they were interesting.

I'm one of those who never gives Kansas much credit for its defense. I'll
watch more closely this weekend. I've said before I'm not sold on Hinrich
and Collison as NBA players, but I'm keeping an open mind. Effort can mean a
lot in the NBA, because not many guys give maximum effort every night. A guy
like Jon Barry, with extremely limited skills, can be an impact player
because he brings great effort every time he steps on the floor. Hinrich
certainly has more talent than Barry. As for Collison, if he were two inches
taller, I'd love him. But he's kind of a tweener, which is why I have my
doubts. A lot of guys never overcome that.

As for Sampson's take on T.J. Ford, I thought I couldn't be more excited
about the guy, but now I'm practically hyperventilating. I loved his comment
about the outside shooting. Unfortunately, the current coaching staff
wouldn't change the "system" to allow a point guard like Ford to excel. In
fact, I think Obie believes Bremer is his point guard of the future. Ugh. I
fear the only way someone like Ford would be valued and effective in Boston
would be under a different management team altogether. And although I
believe Wallace is gone, I don't think Obie will be swept out with him.

Regardless, I'd love to see the C's get their hands on Ford. No more BDT,
get TJ Ford, trade Walker. That's my offseason to-do list for the Celts.

Mark

P.S. I was terrible in my pool this year, so take it for what it's worth,
but I really like Marquette to win the whole thing at this point. That's a
hot team with a lot of answers.