Re: [Celtics' Stuff ] Blount will cost.-Globe

[Celtic4Hire@xxxxxxx]

I just want to say that it just could have easily have been Mihm getting that 
20 and 20, except for the foul trouble potential. But Peter, that is why 
Danny would prefer Mihm get the minutes because he also thinks that Blount is a 
goner. Comprende? But I for one still haven't forgot the Hands of Stone, Arms of 
Glass Blount of five games ago. Yes, Blount was better than the guy who was 
commanded by Obie to try to rebound all by himself with the rest of his 
teammates getting back or spread out around the three point line. It surprising he 
would want to go back to that. But Hunter is the guy drawing all the attention. 
Mihm, has better hands and is a better rebounder, whould have had a 30-30 game 
against the Magic that night playing next to Hunter.....

DJessen33

<< Blount has shot for a big score
 
 By Peter May, Globe Staff, 3/4/2004
 
   This time around, Mark Blount feels there will be opportunities.
 
 The Celtics center has been a free agent before, including last summer. 
 He had a few offers, but none that blew him away.
 
 But after what could loosely be described as a "breakout" year, Blount 
 should be in a much better situation this summer when free agency 
 beckons again. Technically, he has a contract for next year. But it's 
 his option for short money ($1.09 million), so when July 15 rolls 
 around, his phone could be ringing.
 
 "I'll be looking at all the options," Blount said yesterday.
 
 Will one of those options be Boston? Possibly. But Blount has been 
 outspoken about the turnover this season both in personnel and the 
 coaching ranks. One of the main reasons he re-signed with the Celtics, 
 probably the main reason, was coach Jim O'Brien. Another was rejoining 
 the teammates with whom he was comfortable and familiar, a few of whom 
 have since been dealt.
 
 "It has been a long year," he said. "It's just unfortunate all the 
 trades and everything that happened. People finally got to see what I 
 can do, but look at everything else. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. It 
 has been a long year."
 
 Athletic, young (he turned 28 last November) 7-foot centers are a rare 
 breed in the NBA, especially in the height-challenged Eastern 
 Conference. You could envision several teams with a need for a big man 
 -- Indiana, Orlando come to mind -- who might be willing to give Blount 
 part or even all of their mid-level exception, which should be around 
 $5 million.
 
 And if O'Brien resurfaces in one of those center-starved places?
 
 "I got to give that a 99.9 percent look-at," Blount said. "Definitely, 
 I gotta do it. That's my man.
 
 "Wherever Obie comes up, I'm definitely looking at that. I know I need 
 to be in a system that is something like Jim brought in. It's not about 
 going to just any team. It's about going to a team that fits your 
 style."
 
 Danny Ainge, the Celtics' executive director of basketball operations, 
 said yesterday that he hopes Blount decides to stick around.
 
 "Mark Blount has had a great year," Ainge said. "I would hope that Mark 
 would want to stay in Boston. It's a great opportunity for him. He has 
 had a great year and enhanced his quality of play. He has improved. He 
 feels comfortable here. I'm sure there are questions that Mark will 
 have for us and questions that we will have for him."
 
 Blount is answering a lot of those questions with his play this season. 
 He had a 28-point, 21-rebound game Monday against Orlando, a feat he 
 said he hadn't accomplished "since AAU. Maybe." He's averaging 9.3 
 points and 6.2 rebounds in 27.6 minutes a game. He has started 53 of 62 
 games, one of two Celtics (along with Paul Pierce) to have appeared in 
 every game.
 
 At the close of yesterday's workout, the Celtics worked on some 
 last-second plays. Blount actually was the first option in one of them 
 (a catch-and-shoot).
 
 "Mark got a lot of baskets [Monday]. I didn't run one play for him and 
 he had 28 points," said interim coach John Carroll. "When you're 
 unselfish, and you get 30 assists, and everyone scores and everyone 
 passes, then everyone is a weapon."
 
 Blount is all of that. No one's going to confuse him with Shaq, 
 Jermaine O'Neal, or even Brad Miller. But he's going to make some team 
 happy next summer, and, in all probability, he's going to do so with a 
 big, fat contract. He won't say it, but you listen to him and you read 
 between the lines and you have a hard time believing that team will be 
 the Celtics. >>