Re: The Celtics Report HOOPSWORLD.com NBA News and Information

["Greg Odegaard" <grodeg@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Because many have applauded attempts in the past to get Josh to behave with
some respect to others, I am going to post his ACTUAL article here and not
require those who can't or won't have to click on a link to read this "fine"
writing.  Is it because it is somehow copyrighted that Josh is afraid to
post the ACTUAL article here and not just the link or he is so insensitive
or stupid, or both to not truly concern himself with the efforts of others?
Well if so, he did write it and copyrighted or not, I couldn't care less.

Josh, you have begged, pleaded and kissed your own butt so many time for
virtually the entire time I have resided on this list, hoping for some shred
of feedback on your writings, to boost your clearly fragile ego, so why not
post the ACTUAL article in an email and not just the link?  Your writing
isn't bad, but with all due respect it isn't "that" good either.  Is shows
promise and it does show a sense of being on topic and brief, which can be a
challenge, but in the end it is nothing more than another Celtic's fan
attempt at speaking his peace, and in your case so clearly for he purpose of
receiving praise and feedback and some tiny hope to stroke the Polish Ego
that is Joshua.

I don't say much anymore, as most people probably appreciate, but then again
neither does virtually anyone else around, except maybe to brag on Banks,
rag on Ray or wax the ridiculous on how we should track the preseason wins
predictions.  I bet no more than 5 people here really care about that, yet
we somehow need to outsource the effort to Microsoft to spit polish the
relatively useless information.

Let's hope the preseason goes well, the season goes better and we get a step
closer to #17.  What more is there to really concern ourselves with anyway?

Maybe Joshua will finally get a clue and we won't need to have this
discussion again someday.  Fat chance.

Take care all and have a nice week.........really,
Greg

And now the ACTUAL article in question, provided to you by someone who won't
insist you have to click on a link.  Feel free to give Josh the honest
feedback he so clearly is dieing to have:

The Celtics Report
By Josh Ozersky
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Sep 27, 2003, 20:57

Summer is over, and not a minute too soon! Training camp starts in two days.
Hallelujah! After having suffered under the burden of baseball, blackouts,
and the Great Boston Media Omerta, Boston fans are ready for the return of
the green.

They'll be plenty to talk and think about in the coming weeks. But in the
meantime, here are five things to think about as we go into training camp:

Obie's Guys vs. Danny's Guys
If there is one thing that has endeared Jim O'Brien to his players, it is
his intense loyalty to them. If they do what he asks, take the right
attitude, accept their roles and play hard on defense, he will go to the
wall for them. Why do you think Walter McCarty got a raise two days after
management said they could only offer him the minimum? Why has Eric Williams
gotten extensive minutes every year, despite the fact that he rebounds like
a point guard, passes like a backup center, and has a single NBA offensive
skill which is basically wasted in the Celtics' offense. (The coaches run a
play for him, what, twice a game?). Williams, McCarty, Tony Delk: these are
going to be very hard guys to dislodge from O'Brien's substitution patterns.
On the other hand, if the Celtics are going to become an effective running
team, they are going to need the athletes that Ainge added to the roster
this year, or has special plans for: Marcus Banks, Brandon Hunter, Kedrick
Brown, and Jumaine Jones. Every one of these guys provides something that
the Celtics need desperately. But we're already hearing about how they will
probably be "practice players." Unless the Celtics are practicing to bite
the pillow for the Nets again this year, that can't happen.

The T-Formation or the Shotgun?
This brings up another point. The Celtics have been running the basketball
equivalent of the T-Formation for three years now. That's an effective style
 if you happen to have 400-pound linemen; but the Celtics are bantam-sized,
even in basketball terms. They have no business trying to grind it out in
the half-court. Antoine Walker is a finesse player; Paul Pierce is a
shooting guard. The Celtics very rarely get any of those lightening strikes
which seem as much intellectual triumphs as athletic ones, and which make
the game sweet for players and fans alike. And this despite the fact that
Walker, Williams, Pierce, and Battie have developed a nice chemistry and get
a few backdoor dunks and layups in each game. But defenses know to load in
on the two main guys, and O'Brien's ridiculous overdependence on three-point
shooting has been as public a failure as was Pitino's much-reviled press. It
turns out that there are only a handful of players in the league at any
given time who can be counted upon to make open jumpers after not touching
the ball for long stretches. Dana Barros.  Steve Kerr.  Craig Hodges.  They
are rarely good defenders. Walter McCarty is probably the Celtics' best
double-duty defender / three-point shooter, and he can only hit when he gets
the ball right on the numbers and perfectly in rhythm. (And then, of course,
he's not around to rebound.)

So the system has to go. But who says that O'Brien knows how to install a
new one? Not much coaching on the basic level goes on in the NBA; the
practices are short, and mostly stress team defense, which slips
surprisingly easy without constant drilling. Then there are the installed
plays. To first start teaching uptempo basketball to players who don't
already have a solid grounding in it takes a lot more than yelling "run,
run, run," like Tommy Heinsohn does.  "For a running offense to work," Ainge
told me at Shaw, "all five players have to be committed to it. It doesn't
just happen." The Celtics of old used to practice full court passes, filling
the lanes, making the right decisions at every point of the break. Will O'
Brien's constipated system accommodate such a radical 180-degree shift in
midgame? Especially when his favorites are glowering on the pine?

Cross your fingers.

What Do You Hate Most About the NBA Preview Channel?
I could go on about this for days. Is it that excruciating, unbearable,
retarded Adam Sandler commercial, which begins "Bibby takes it to the
hole..." and gets more painful with every second? Or the Christina Aguilera
promo? Or that shmaltzy "I'm gonna watch you shine" PR video? How about the
"highlights" of women's basketball, still a symphony of klutzy lunges,
shot-put heaves at the basket, and ready-to-snap ACLs? It would be one thing
if they got strippers to play, and had them do it in high heels, as in a
memorable commercial from some years past - but these women, aside from
being so slow and mechanical and graceless, are ugos to boot. What a torture
chamber this station is!  To make its uselessness complete, it didn't even
show the Pan-American games.

"The Veteran Forward Hopes to Prove His Critics Wrong"
These words, which you will almost surely see printed in the Boston papers
as frequently as "tot-slay suspect" in their New York counterparts, could
describe either Walker or Baker. Both guys are in major show-me mode: Walker
to keep his status (and his salary) as an elite player, and Baker just to
stay in the league. Both guys are completely capable of performing at a
higher level than last year's; but can they do it without the deck being
shuffled? I think Walker needs to play at least some minutes at three. It's
not so much that he can't contend with the leagues better big forwards;
despite his undressing by Kenyon Martin, he did a great job on Jermaine O'
Neal, and has had good games against other big forwards, few of whom can
cover him when he faces the basket with a live dribble. But it takes a lot
of energy out of him, and with 25 pounds less body mass, it will be that
much harder for him to contend around the rim. But even at 25 pounds less,
he should still be able to overpower threes. And since few of these are tall
enough to block his shot, he should be able to pass out of the post with
greater frequency - his most valuable skill, in many ways.

Of Baker, what can you say? If he's sober, he can play. But even last year,
he showed flashes of competence, and even talent - when he got the ball.
Baker, I think, is the kind of guy that needs to score some to feel
involved. That means running plays for him. He's going to have some
defensive lapses, and he's going to miss some easy shots. If Obie will stay
with him, he has a good chance to become a legitimate player again. But as
with so much else on this team, it will be rebuilding this team from the
ground up, and going against the very principals that made O'Brien and the
team succeed to begin with.. How I wish the Celtics had hired a top-flight
offensive assistant for O'Brien! They're a good team, but their coach, and
his bosses, have to put them in a position to succeed.


----- Original Message -----
From: "Josh Ozersky" <jozersky1@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "celtics list" <celtics@xxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2003 2:41 PM
Subject: Fw: The Celtics Report HOOPSWORLD.com NBA News and Information


> New column up about the Celtics -- more than Peter May can say....
>
> Josh
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Josh Ozersky
> Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2003 5:38 PM
> Subject: The Celtics Report HOOPSWORLD.com NBA News and Information
>
>
> thought you might enjoy this one...
>
>  http://www.hoopsworld.com/article_5413.shtml
>
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