JUST VIN, BABY!

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Crisp Celtics wilt Heat: New era starts with well-balanced rout
By Steve Bulpett
Thursday, October 30, 2003

You are fully correct to say it's just one game. You won't get an argument if
you say the opponent was less than imposing. But what the Celtics threw on
stage for opening night was some fairly remarkable stuff when placed against
recent history.

     Putting a 98-75 hurtin' on a Miami outfit without Caron Butler and Lamar
Odom is one thing. Doing it with the type of surgical precision the Celts
displayed is quite another. Six Bostonians found their way into double figures
on the scoresheet during a 50.7 shooting performance from the floor.

     And that last figure is nothing to sneeze at - sniffle even. The Celtics
shot 50 percent or better just five times last season. They batted in the 30s
on 26 occasions. Three times they hit in the 20s.

     In the last few years, the C's haven't gotten this many good looks in
layup lines.

     You want to talk crisp? The Celts had just four turnovers at the end of
three quarters. And of their mere 10 for the game (four fewer than their
nightly goal), four were on offensive fouls.

     ``You like to dream it up that way, but it really came unexpected,'' said
Paul Pierce [news], who led with 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

     True to the Celtics' new collective conscience, assistance came from
nearly every precinct. Eric Williams was near flawless off the bench with 15
points on 6-for-7 shooting from the floor and five rebounds. Vin Baker
(standing ovation upon his exit) made 6-of-8 on the way to 15 points. Tony
Battie was perfect on four attempts from the floor on the way to 10 (with a
team-high seven rebounds). Raef LaFrentz had 12 points and three blocks in 25
minutes. Mark Blount started at center and had just two points and two
rebounds in 19 minutes, but he blocked four shots and handed out five assists.

     Antoine Walker [news] wasn't in the building, but the traded co-captain
was raised more than a few times in the aftermath. Pierce said the style on
display came as a dictated result of the deal.

     ``I think we've pretty much gotten over that,'' he said when asked if it
felt strange to be on the floor without Walker. ``We've moved on. We're
playing with the cards that we're dealt right now, and I'm confident in the
ballclub that we have that we're going to be successful.

     ``I think we really move the ball well together,'' Pierce added. ``We
play as a unit. We don't have guys out there trying to force up shots. It
shows that our shooting percentage was a lot higher. Our assist total was a
lot higher. We really don't care who gets the credit on this ballclub. I mean,
the egos are all out the window. This team is just all about winning.''

     Last night it was about winning with ball movement and a defense that
chilled the Heat to 36.6 percent from the floor. The C's blocked nine shots.

     ``We knew they were banged up and they were on a back-to-back game,'' Jim
O'Brien said, ``so we tried to do everything we could to take their legs out
of it from the standpoint of moving them with our passing game and trying to
push the tempo a little bit.''

     Decked out in white sneaks for the first time since the early days of the
Red Auerbach administration, the Celtics shook off some early sluggishness and
moved the ball and their bodies with enough precision and energy to waste a
Miami crew that last night looked Eddie Jones (22 points) away from spending
the rest of the season in Secaucus waiting for the draft lottery.

     The Heat were within seven with four minutes left in the third quarter
when the Celts threw up a 12-0 run to wave goodbye.

     ``Must be the shoes,'' Celtics director of basketball operations Danny
Ainge said.

     Then again, maybe it was the fact the Shamrock AC played a game as clean
as any since Larry Bird roamed these shores.
Thanks,

Steve
sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx