Re: Catching up... The Mailman didn't deliver Celts news to me over t he holiday weekend

[Kim Malo <kimmalo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 11:16 AM 7/7/2003 -0400, Berry, Mark  S wrote:
> I'm still processing the Karl Malone news. I want to think that's a good,
> low-cost effort to acquire a legit power forward, and that Malone would beat
> up on the smaller players in the Eastern Conference. But my mind keeps
> whispering "Dominique Wilkins... Dominique Wilkins... " We all remember how
> that free agent acquisition of an aging former superstar turned out.

Bad comparison IMO though, starting from very different situations and 
intent (we won't even get into my feelings about the respective heads of 
basketball ops). ML did the 'Nique move strictly to bring in a name to a 
team full of non-entities so that it might put some fannies in the 
increasingly empty seats. I don't think even ML thought he had much game 
left or was looking in terms of building a team to improve it in terms of 
playoffs. While even if Malone came here, there was no idea of his being 
*the* star turn and the one people came to see. Malone is a lot less than 
the player he once was, or we wouldn't even be having this conversation, 
but I think the move would have overall been closer to bringing in Walton 
than 'Nique.

>  And now that we know
> the Celts are willing to spend the exception on the right player,

We've known that since Danny came in here, since he said as much in a post 
press conference interview. He just pooh poohed using it for someone whose 
worth was only the dollar amount of the exception since the cost would be 3 
times that, because of the luxury tax.

> are the
> Celtics beat writers beating the bushes to see if Ainge might have any other
> secret meetings? Nope. Go to RealGM and check out their newswire. It's
> filled with news from virtually every team in the NBA. Just news and notes
> about free agency, trades, etc. Anything from the Celts? Nope. Other than a
> report from a paper in Las Vegas that Marcus Banks will be in Boston today
> to sign his rookie contract. I'm telling you, the guys covering the Celtics
> in Boston are terrible. Simply terrible.

Cripes, WHY does everything have to be looked at in only the most negative 
light possible. Maybe they are beating the bushes and don't have a lot to 
say because maybe we have someone in charge for a change who is not 
allowing a million leaks. That may frustrate the fans, but is a very good 
thing in a lot of other ways.

> We're still talking about this stuff? Isn't it time to realize we're banging
> our heads against a wall? If Antoine didn't listen to Pitino, who was coach,
> GM, President and Ruler of the Free Celtic World, why would he listen to
> Danny Ainge?

Different people, different approaches and VERY different situation - 
including a Walker who no longer has his whole career in front of him and I 
think is smart enough to realize that this next contract decides what his 
NBA career ends up being. Look, I'm not saying Antoine will definitely 
respond (although I actually think the refusal to give him the extension he 
wants - NOT a tactic Pitino used - might motivate him a great deal to 'show 
people'), but just as you can find a million excuses for him if you want 
to, you can also find a million reasons not to make excuses for him if 
you're prejudiced that way. You say po-tay-to, I say po-tah-to and all that...

It's also really not fair to Danny to keep slotting him with the screw ups 
(ML and Pitino) we've had before him before he's had a chance to show why 
he's different (although ( think he already has started to to some degree)

> Just to come full circle... Look at Antoine and look at Karl Malone. Antoine
> is the better dribbler, passer and shooter. Would anyone argue that? Neither
> guy is very athletic. Yet look at their careers. Malone embraced physical
> fitness and bodybuilding and turned himself into a physical specimen.

And played with one of the best PG ever leading the team for him and making 
him individually better and developed his game in a different era when 
fundamentals mattered more than show and...

*shrug* I don't know what's going to happen with Walker this season. But 
while I do think he has some serious ego and self discipline issues, I also 
think he's smart enough to recognize that some things have changed 
significantly around this team, starting from the fact that there is now 
someone in charge vs leadership by committee. Which should make it a lot 
harder for the inmates to get away with running the asylum. Even when we 
had Pitino as the one man in charge, hindsight has pretty clearly shown 
that he was concentrating too much on other things that making the Cs the 
best he could and that his ego problems were as much of a hinderance as any 
ones Walker has. While he and Walker reminded me a couple whose marriage 
has gone past the point of any love and caring until all that's left is 
arguments and sniping and trying to get back at each other. Danny is a 
different person, with a different situation and without some of those 
outside interests to interfere. I also happen to think he has more 
integrity - there was a clear issue with players, staff, fans, etc not 
trusting Pitino and with some reason. I think that's enough to give him 
some rope to make the right changes, and get others to do the same, or deal 
effectively with the results of not being able to. WITHOUT deciding what 
will happen because of what people before him did.

Kim