New Boss is batting .500 here

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

New Boss is batting .500 here

By Peter May, Globe Staff, 5/15/2003

anny Ainge's first two executive pronouncements sound a lot like those that
would have been made by his predecessor.



 He's not even going to investigate moving Antoine Walker (bad idea).

 He's going to keep Jim O'Brien around for next season and beyond (good
idea).

Think Chris Wallace would have handled things any different?

Now, assuming we can take Danny at his word -- and he has been known to be
candid in the past -- he won't even pick up the telephone to see if there's
any interest in Walker? Someone could have a weak moment, you know; in the old
days that team was Golden State. More recently, it was Dan Issel in Denver.
You won't know if you don't try. Ainge could have said that he's evaluating
everyone and will make his decisions over time. He could have said there
aren't many untouchables on a 44-win team in the Eastern Conference. He said
neither.

Does he have a Nixonian secret plan for a point guard, or does he ascribe to
the Leo Papile theory that point guards are like backup quarterbacks and need
only a few snaps before they're ready for prime time? Or has he already
decided that there is nothing close to fair value out there for Walker?

He sounded pretty adamant. ''I have absolutely no intention of trading Antoine
Walker,'' he told the Globe's Shira Springer. ''I will never make a phone call
in that regard. I had a talk with Antoine [Tuesday] and told him what I
expected of him this summer, his preparation coming into training camp next
year.''

Let's hope Ainge knows he's taking a similar approach to that of Rick Pitino,
who also said he never would trade Walker. But Pitino then spent the summer on
the phone trying to make deals everywhere -- and word eventually got back to
Walker, which understandably did not sit well. So Ainge had better be true to
his word. What's equally revealing about Ainge's statement is the final
sentence. He wants Walker to come back next season at least looking more like
Kenyon Martin, tattoos aside.

Look, we all understand Walker's inherent value to this team, both on and off
the court, and that may well have been the major reason behind Ainge's
decision. We can safely speculate that O'Brien would have pitched a fit if
Walker was moved, unless it brought in Jason Kidd. Simply, Walker's value to
this current Celtics assemblage is much, much greater than it would be to just
about any other team because of his status and seniority. He has earned the
trust and respect of his teammates. That counts for something.

No one is suggesting Ainge go out and dump Walker. That would be ludicrous.
But if you buy the assumption that Walker is the team's best tradeable
commodity, and you know that your team just finished sixth in the Eastern
Conference, wouldn't you at least explore what's out there?

I'm more interested, frankly, in what Ainge & Co. decide to do with Walker
when agent Mike Higgins calls and suggests they discuss a contract extension.
The possibilities go from mind-boggling (an extension that would start at
around $16.5 million) to humbling (allowing Walker to enter free agency in two
years and see what the market bears). That will be the real judgment call on
Walker's value to the franchise. How do they handle it?

The O'Brien decision was a no-brainer and it's a sign that Ainge doesn't have
an agenda about needing to have his Own People In Place. Sure, he could have
not extended O'Brien, which would have sent a message that he was looking for
someone else. We can safely speculate that if Ainge had his choice of coaches
for Team A, O'Brien might not even be on it. But O'Brien has to be at the top
of Ainge's list to coach this particular Celtics team because of the
well-entrenched relationships.

In many ways, O'Brien is to this team what Chris Ford was to the 1990-91
Celtics. At that time, you may recall, newly minted Celtics boss Dave Gavitt
went hard after Mike Krzyzewski, but came up short and settled for Ford, the
only coach who survived the April bloodletting that year. For that particular
Celtics team, Ford was the perfect guy because he understood the internal
dynamics of a club laced with fading Hall of Famers. O'Brien has a similar
bond with these guys, liberating many of them from the Pitino silliness. But
he also made his pact with these guys awhile ago -- and he's living with it.

As a former coach (and assistant), Ainge knows the general rule of thumb about
NBA coaching gigs -- you try not to have your coach enter the final year of a
contract because it makes him a lame duck. Sure, there are a lot of things
about the way the Celtics play that make you reach for the Maalox. But O'Brien
has gotten them to at least the second round of the playoffs in his two, full
years of coaching, and he did so this past year under the most ridiculous of
circumstances.

Even in the East, that's saying something. Larry Brown, George Karl, Doc
Rivers, and Pat Riley can't make that claim. O'Brien has more than shown he is
deserving of their company, and the fact that Ainge recognized that out of the
box is an encouraging beginning.

This story ran on page C1 of the Boston Globe on 5/15/2003.

Thanks,

Steve
sb@maine.rr.com

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