Re: Celts-Spurs

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

My thoughts:

1.	Banks... He's pretty much as advertised by the non-Celtic draft
analysts. Athletic, extremely quick, pushes the ball and penetrates very
well. BUT... If last night is any indication, he has no outside shot to
speak of. I'm not worried about the 3-point range, but I expected him to be
much better from inside 20 feet. Also, he's still not what I'd call a
creator for teammates. He looks to penetrate, but he's not one of those guys
who keeps an offense and his teammates moving. He's the best option for the
Celtics at point guard, but that's as much a testament to the other
candidates as it is to Banks. I think he's going to be a good point
guard-maybe a great one-but he's not going to make a huge difference this
season. As usual, the Celtic hype machine has been in overdrive. Banks
reminded me of a young Mookie Blaylock, which isn't a bad thing.

2.	Kedrick... Stick a fork in him. He just doesn't have it. He doesn't
work hard enough when he's out there and just doesn't get much done.

3.	Hunter... He clearly was the best rebounder on the Celtics' team,
but, again, that's not saying much. I like a lot of what I saw, but I don't
think he has done enough to earn a roster spot yet. I think he probably
should make the team, but with Walker, Battie, Blount, Baker, Sundov,
Perkins all guaranteed roster spots, and John Wallace maybe on the way, I
think Brandon may be out of luck. I do think he'll find a place in the NBA,
if not this season, then next. He reminds me of a young Malik Rose/Clarence
Weatherspoon type player.

4.	Everyone else... Ugh. There's no one else on this summer team with
even a remote chance of making the team or helping the Celtics at any point
in the future. Everything has been said that needs to be said about Bruno.
Yet another "top seven" draft bust. ;) I wish I had been keeping a list of
the dumb thing Wallace and/or Papile have said over the last three years.

5.	General thoughts on the game... It was just like watching a regular
season game---the Celtics get brutalized on the boards, walk the ball up the
floor, make one pass on offense, someone misses a jumper and we go back and
do it all again. Really a terrible, awful game to watch. If you were at all
hopeful that there was a "new day" simply because they drafted Banks and
hired Ainge, this was a splash of cold water in the face. It was the same
stand-around offense. I saw Banks give up the ball and move to the elbow
area, waving for kickouts far too often. And this was with Kedrick Brown and
Brandon Hunter at the "scoring" positions. Just imagine how stagnant it will
get when it's Walker and Pierce. This was the most discouraging thing about
a discouraging game. Thankfully, it's just one summer league game.

6.	John Wallace... Probably not a bad signing for the minimum. He's a
guy who could always score in the low post, and that's something the team
needs desperately. But he's a notoriously bad defender and doesn't bring
much else to the table other than low post scoring. He's not a great or even
good rebounder. He's a tweener forward. He'd replace Walter as the swing
forward off the bench, while bringing better low-post scoring but not much
3-point shooting. Of course, the Celtics haven't posted up anyone other than
EWill, Pierce or Walker in three years, so Wallace probably will end up
standing at the 3-point line most of the time.

7.	Direction of the team... I'm really hoping there's something else
going on right now. I could accept a step back next season if it meant
long-term improvement (dumping Baker with Antoine; an Antoine trade for a
younger player who isn't quite ready, clearing cap room, etc.). I could
accept "going for it" this offseason and using the mid-level exception and
trading to fill spots with veterans. The one thing that's tough to accept is
status quo. The team was borderline unwatchable last season, and no rookie
point guard is going to change that. They're not going to flip a switch and
turn Obie into a Doug Moe disciple or Antoine into Scottie Pippen. If this
is the team they take into the season, then expect more of the same.

Sorry to be such a downer. I'm hoping for much better tonight, and for much
bigger things from Ainge before the season starts.

Mark