Pierce

["Josh Ozersky" <jozersky1@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I saw where Ravi put quote marks around Pierce's
"star."  Pierce is a star; I don't think you can help him
by bringing in another guy (e.g. Ray Allen) who plays
his name position.  If Pierce doesn't start playing like
himself again, it won't matter who we get.  And if he
does start playing to the level we're used to, he won't
need another all-star 2 or 3 to help him.  I'm comfortable
with the idea of Pierce being the featured scorer in a
motion offense a la the Jordan Bulls or the Karl Malone
Jazz.  But obviously, you need the whole team to play
well around him, and a point guard to run the show and
handle the ball.  A veteran would help a lot right now.  I
believe in Banks, but I would like to put James on the
bench and let an experienced PG run the first unit.  The
guy can't be a defensive liability like Brevin Knight, either;
he needs to be big and aggressive and sturdy, or at least
long.  If only Jiri weren't so slow, he would be a good
stopgap; when he's out there, he's the de facto point
because his floor game and court sense are so good.
I really would like to see him get some of James' minutes,
much like I would like to see Hunter get minutes from
Walter, Brown, and LaFrentz.  We could've used a few
rebounds last night.  But again -- what does any of this
matter if Pierce can't make big shots for us?

Josh