C's brace for tough stretch

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

C's brace for tough stretch

by Mark Murphy
Tuesday, March 11, 2003







Jim O'Brien closed out yesterday's practice looking not only for signs of
self-belief, but also a grip on reality.




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``How many of you have been to the NBA Finals?'' the Celtics coach asked.

Only one player, Mark Bryant, who had been to the NBA's ultimate series twice
with Portland, raised his hand - and even then a little hesitantly,
considering the number of heads that looked around, searching for someone who
had made the trip.

``And who is going to make it there this year?'' O'Brien asked, with his mind
on the wide-open Eastern Conference race.

To a man, and very quietly, the Celtics said, ``Us.''

The right answer, obviously. But O'Brien was looking for more than blind faith
with his little pop quiz. With the Celtics set to play a hearty slate of
playoff teams in their next six games - New Orleans tomorrow night at the
FleetCenter, Detroit, New Jersey twice, Indiana and the surging Lakers in Los
Angeles - there's no time like the present to measure mental toughness.

That's what O'Brien was poking at yesterday, a day after a particularly sloppy
loss to San Antonio, one of those title contenders.

``If they want to get to the Eastern Conference finals, then they have to do
it,'' O'Brien said of the Celtics' need to regain the toughness they displayed
during last season's stretch run - a quality he believes needs some
improvement.

``Overall, I think that in the NBA, the teams that get there are the most
mentally tough teams,'' he said. ``Those are the teams that are doing all of
the things offensively and defensively they know how to do, and are executing
the plans that they've worked hard on.

``I mean, it's a very long season. You let the season beat you down, and then
you lose,'' he added. ``I think we have a very good opportunity to build
momentum over the last 19 games, and it will be based on mental toughness,
because you're not going to fool anyone at this point. They already know all
our schemes.''

O'Brien hopes his players are reading newspapers and watching SportsCenter at
this stage.

He wants them to follow the lead of Antoine Walker, who on a moment's notice
can tell you where the Celtics are in the conference and division standings,
and how many games they need to move into first.

``I absolutely want them thinking about things like that,'' O'Brien said.
``That's all about the goal that we want to set. Here you are in a fight for
homecourt advantage. Hell yeah, I like that.

``The East is wide open, and all you need are eyes - read the papers,'' he
added. ``But as far as I'm concerned, these are the playoffs right now for us.
You have a chance to compete for the Atlantic Division title, and the Eastern
Conference. Last year we got homecourt advantage in the first round, we didn't
for the second, and that can eventually kill you.

``But I think our guys realize that this is the time to enjoy that we have a
difficult schedule. These are the teams that you have to beat.''

Celtics notes

Eric Williams, tossed from Sunday's loss for a foul on Spurs guard Tony Parker
that referee Bob Delaney considered excessive, stood up for his intent - or
lack of the same - yesterday.

``It was just a foul - I don't think it was a flagrant two,'' he said,
referring to the league's code for a foul that warrants ejection. ``I'm an
aggressive player. I went for the ball. I tried to catch (Parker).

``I'm surprised - that's not my character,'' Williams added. ``I thought I was
playing chess out there for a moment. David Robinson was out, so I guess they
had to eliminate someone from our side.

``I've played this game for eight years now, and I've given out harder fouls
that that. They thought I was going for his head. Well, I wasn't trying to do
that - if I did, I would have knocked it clean off.''

Said O'Brien: ``I can't say the call was completely wrong. I talked to Bob
Delaney about it at the half, and he and Billy Oates (tracking official) both
agreed on it. You're dealing with an angle, (Williams) is tying (Parker) up
with his arms, and he did hit him in the head. It's an unfortunate thing.''

Williams didn't spend much time fretting about it.

``I went out, had a good dinner and went home,'' he said. . . .

Paul Pierce, after playing through noticeable pain in his lower back Sunday,
ran through a lively practice yesterday without any trouble.

``Paul reacted well,'' O'Brien said. ``He was evaluated after the game, and he
was no worse for playing. He was fine.''

Thanks,

Steve
sb@maine.rr.com

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