LaFrentz roles with punches

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

LaFrentz roles with punches
By Dan Ventura
Thursday, October 30, 2003

Raef LaFrentz looked like he had gone 12 rounds with Mike Tyson instead of 28
minutes against the Miami Heat.

     Long thin scratch marks adorned his torso, while the left side of his
body sported an ugly bruise the size of a golf ball. When asked about the
extent of his body bruisings, LaFrentz looked at the bandages and started to
chuckle.

     ``A few scratches and scars, but that's just me and my skin,'' said
LaFrentz, who scored 12 points in a 98-75 season-opening triumph over the
Miami Heat last night at the FleetCenter. ``These sort of things happen to me
all the time, it's no big deal.''

     A big deal is precisely what brought LaFrentz to Boston in the first
place. LaFrentz was one of the key components in the trade which sent All-Star
forward Antoine Walker [news] to Dallas.

     LaFrentz heard the critics claiming the deal appears heavily tilted in
the Mavericks' favor, but he doesn't feel like he has to be the second coming
of Larry Bird and John Havlicek rolled into one.

     ``There are two schools of thought to that,'' said LaFrentz, who played
with Paul Pierce [news] at Kansas. ``Antoine and I are not the same type of
player. He does a lot of different things on offense, while I'd like to think
that I can shoot better from the outside.''

     Given the fact that LaFrentz has been a Celtic for just a little over a
week, coach Jim O'Brien made the decision to bring him off the bench, a role
he relished last night. He teamed with Eric Williams and Tony Battie to give
the Celtics 37 points off the bench, a luxury seldom seen last year when it
was basically the Walker-Pierce show.

     ``Without a doubt, it is easier for me to come off the bench for now,''
said LaFrentz, who logged 28 minutes in a reserve role. ``It's good that they
haven't thrown everything at me right away. It's a lot different situation
from where I came from. There are a lot of different things I am still
learning.''

     The one thing LaFrentz has always been able to do is stick the 18-footer.
He played a large part in helping the Celtics pull away from the Heat late in
the third quarter as he drilled a pair of outside jumpers in a 14-3 run to
give the Celtics a commanding 79-61 lead entering the final quarter.

     ``There is a lot of potential for open shots with Paul Pierce out
there,'' said LaFrentz, who drilled 6-of-11 from the field. ``So far with the
play calling, we have been getting the shots and when you can step up and
knock them down, you start feeling good about yourself.''
Thanks,

Steve
sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx