Re: Hornets' dominance on boards sinks Green

[Eggcentric@xxxxxxx]

``It's a physical size problem,'' O'Brien said. ``They're bigger and
stronger than every one of our guys.'' - Obie (via Michael Gee)

What a crock. Ibm maybe a day late, but still feel this worth noting.

    HORNETS             CELTS
PF  Brown  (6-11 239)       Vin Baker  (6-11 250)

SF  Lynch  (6-8  235)       Eric Williams (6-8  220)

C   Magloire (6-11 259)     Mark Blount  (7-0  250)

PG  Davis  (6-3  223)       Mike James  (6-2 188)

SG  Wesley  (6-1  203)      Paul Pierce  (6-6  230)

I feel a good snit coming on, because you know what, I am sick 
of all the false promises. 

I am sick of each year's early hype and subsequent poster rantings 
followed always by the inevitable reality.  I am sick of the wishful 
thinkers each and every preseason taking to task national sports 
writers for being so bold as to think the Celts might not finish quite 
as high as Celt fans predict. I am also sick of survivor Obie being 
considered some sort of modern-day Svengali able to squeeze lemonade 
from lemons, sick of fans beatifying impetuous Danny prior to even 
seeing how both his executive skills and trades/draft choices eventually 
pan out, and sick of our chintzy bottom-line owners who when you 
really think about it, make Gaston appear as some sort of benevolent 
Santa Claus for shelling out the dollars he did to Pitino, Walker, 
Pierce, etc.  

Especially, I am frustrated over just what our present mediocre and 
dysfunctional Celtic team holds for the future.  On paper, our bench 
appears to be deep(er), but maybe that can simply be attributed to 
our overall mediocrity since aside from Pierce, there is little to no 
talent difference among our top ten, maybe even our top thirteen 
players.  Is that a sign of strength or of weakness?

I am also frustrated with all the Neanderthal posters who continue to 
bemoan the trading of AW and couldn't wait to pin just about every loss 
this season on PP.  If there is one victim of this classic Ainge/Obie 
tug o' war and our restrictive team budget, it is Pierce. He really 
deserves a better supporting cast.  Walker had Pierce to take on the 
double/triple teaming; Pierce presently has no one to take the pressure
off him.

B  O  R  I  N  G is what best describes Wednesday's contest.  And here 
I was expecting that after Monday night's loss, Wednesday's game 
would rival in intensity the Rape of Nanking, the sacking of Troy, 
the eruption of Krakatoa, the Black Death, the Punic Wars, the siege 
of Leningrad, the Killing Fields of Cambodia, the autodafes of the 
Inquisition, the fall of Constantinople, the revolt of Spartacus, 
the Battle of Jutland.  

I wouldn't mind us losing every game if I truly believed we were making
at least one-baby-step-at-a-time progress in our transition to the old 
and venerable Celt style.  But are we doing that ... NOPE.  The addition 
of Ainge, much like the addition of any new CEO to any company, has 
caused nothing less than chaos.  Could he have made this transition 
smoother by being more honest and direct with (i.e. not alienating)
his coaches and players ... YUP.  

While wholesome but indecisive Danny has been auditioning for the role 
of honest Sheriff Andy in Mayberry RFD , we now find our team 
somewhere between dysfunctional and starting over.  Examples: Keeping 
Obie yet getting rid of Walker; drafting Banks as the rocket- propelled 
missile of our future sprint team yet adding bball savvy slowpokes 
LaFrentz and Welsch; touting youth while attempting to sign AARP 
member Karl Malone; not spending an additional red sou on a quality PG 
while gleefully signing the ''electrifying'' James on the cheap;  frittering 
away the difference in dollars between signing an Antonio Daniels vs. 
Mike James by re-upping Obie favorite Walter McCarty.   Etc., etc.,  etc., 
etc. I am in full agreement with Danny's theories; I just don't see them 
being implemented in any logical sequence.

The delicate balance inherent in gradually transforming this team's 
character to Ainge's preferred style has been compromised by 
Ainge's allegiance to -

1) Re-signing Obie for the sake of appeasing his players
2) Abiding by the team's luxury tax constraints
3) Retaining fan excitement and loyalty  (box office $$$'s) 
4) Making the playoffs this season 

Such a criteria is all but an impossible dream to achieve... he may win 
the first two while losing the last two.  Miami, in desperate need of a PG, 
chose not to re-sign Mike James.  Cleveland, who finished last in the ED, 
chose not to re-sign Jumaine Jones.  Yet due to our reverence for past 
Celtic players and our desperation to finally see our team play exciting 
Bball with upside promise for the future, we continue to look upon these 
Danny do's as major coups, the works of a genius set on building our 
glorious future.  

Mindful that ''veracity is the heart of morality'' - which is it, Danny - 
are you rebuilding for the future or going for the gold (well at least 
silver) this season?  If this is a makeover year, then stop the 
compromises and please complete the job.  Obie is also a bit confused 
over your mixed signals.  He wonders if one can really be both a builder 
and a contender at the same time? 

Oh Danny boy, the pipes are calling from glen to glen and down the 
mountain side.  The summer's gone and all the flowers are dying.

Egg