If Mikki Moore is the answer.....

[Tammo29@xxxxxxx]

*  Then I don't want to know the question!
I watched Moore (pronounced Mike-e not Mickey) play under Danny Nee at 
Nebraska and then with Detroit and was never impressed.  He's never been 
physical.  He is so skinny he makes Battie look like the incredible hulk and, 
unless he's improved dramatically in the last two years, he can't hit 
anything outside 4 feet from the basket.  He'll get you a few blocks, maybe 
even a few rebounds, and he can dunk.  That's it.
To compare him to Battie talent wise is ridiculous.
I just can't believe Mikki Moore is the best this group could come up with.

-TAM

With signing, Celtics will have Moore to work with



By Shira Springer, Globe Staff, 1/6/2003

ALTHAM - The Celtics will sign center/forward Mikki Moore to a 10-day 
contract today, expanding the roster to 13 players. 

The coaching staff wanted a tough veteran who could play multiple front-court 
positions. For now, the 7-foot, 230-pound Moore will fill that role. Moore 
arrived in Boston yesterday. He will undergo a physical this morning, join 
the team for its shootaround, and be in uniform tonight against Washington.

Grant Long, a player frequently mentioned as a candidate for the 13th roster s
pot, was the Celtics' top choice until it was learned he had a broken left 
hand. Long, however, visited the Celtics training facility yesterday and was 
evaluated by the medical staff. Depending on how Moore plays, Long may be an 
option once his hand heals.

''We had a desire to bring in Grant Long, but Grant has a broken hand, so we 
are not going to sign a player with a broken hand,'' said coach Jim O'Brien. 
''He's coming in to have our medical people examine the break and give us the 
best understanding as to when [he'll] be ready to play. We are in a situation 
where if Mikki Moore is the guy, then there will be no Grant Long.

''If Grant Long is able to play 20 days from now, and we don't think that 
what Mikki is giving us is [good enough], then we'll look at our options and 
they may or may not include Grant. My hope is that we don't have to be in a 
position to sign Grant, that Moore will be everything that we want, that he 
will be the guy that will be our 13th man. If Long was healthy, he would be 
coming in right now, but he's not, so we're bringing in the next-best 
thing.''

The 27-year-old Moore is ready to compete. He played 145 games for Detroit 
over four seasons and spent the 2002 preseason with San Antonio. He comes to 
Boston from the NBDL Roanoke Dazzle, and was widely regarded as the top 
player in the minor leagues this season. He was averaging 15.0 points per 
game, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks for the Dazzle.

''We played against him a lot when he was with Detroit,'' said O'Brien. ''I 
remember being impressed with him then, with his strength and athleticism. He 
can help us on the glass, help our low-post defense. I think he's got the 
mobility to be able to play the type of defense that we need him to play. I 
am not a student of Mr. Moore. I certainly will become one over the course of 
10 days ... or the rest of the year.''

Beginning today, NBA teams can sign players to 10-day contracts. The Celtics 
can sign Moore to two 10-day contracts before they must make a decision about 
whether he will remain with the team the rest of the season.

Moore saw his playing time with Detroit drop dramatically last season, so he 
arranged a buyout of his contract. San Antonio released him after the 
preseason and he went to the NBDL.

Moore played well against the Celtics early in his career. General manager 
Chris Wallace likened Moore to Tony Battie in that he is a lanky, athletic 
player who can run the court and block shots, though he is not especially 
physical. Moore has started at center and also can play power forward. But 
most important, Moore is eager to play and in shape to contribute 
immediately.

''He's sharp right now,'' said Wallace. ''He played as late as [Saturday] 
afternoon and he's been playing well the last couple weeks in particular. 
He's sharp and he should be moving ahead right now. The more we started 
investigating and looking around, he was by far the best guy in the minor 
leagues. He came highly recommended. San Antonio was very complimentary of 
him.''

Moore has a collection of reptiles that includes two red-tailed boa 
constrictors, a Burmese albino snake, and three American alligators. Wallace 
joked that maybe they wouldn't last long in the New England cold. But the 
real question is how long Moore will last with the Celtics.

This story ran on page D1 of the Boston Globe on 1/6/2003