Alabama Slamma

Tue Dec 12 12:20:28 CST 2006

Greetings from Roll Tide country. Just getting back from a trip through the
South that was mostly colder then New England (who knew) I had to catch up
on a lot of Celtics posts.  Wow, did I miss a lot while I was gone - five
game losing streak, more injuries, AI to Boston again two game winning
streak...whew.  So lots of qui9ck thoughts to catch myself up around these
parts.

Practice vs. Game playing time:  Some people are just not wired to play well
in practice.  They need the "real" competition to motivate them into their
higher playing level. Others are the same player whether in practice or
games.  Some are practice warriors (usually the bench guys in my experience
because they want to take what the starters have) and look great every
practice, but that's because they're going 1 million miles an hour trying to
get that elusive playing time that's the clichéd reward for hard practice.
It is a cliché too. I have no doubt that Pierce does not practice as hard as
he plays. I KNOW AI doesn't to use another example, but there is no way
they're not getting put on the floor major minutes every night no matter how
their practices are.  Like everything else - it's balance. You have to do
what's best to win as Ryan has said, but because it's the NBA you DO have to
keep the stars happy too. That's just the system.

Fire Doc.  My position is well known here.  My only caveat is be careful
what we wish for as I don't know if I see anyone better out there right now.
Who is the next Mike D'Antoni? Because an unknown or another lifer .500
coach is all that's available right now. Is there a college wunderkind just
ripe for NBA advancement? A hot assistant on staff with another NBA team? I
don't know and I don't know if the owners will go for an unknown either.
They're the worst kind of moneygrubbers because they have champagne tastes
on a Natty Light budget.

Fire Ainge. Again - what out there is better? Nothing I see. Isiah will be
available soon. Larry Bird ain't walking through that door and what's he
won? 

That brings me to another thing - Celtics legacy is great and all, but let's
forget this "it has to be a Celtic to lead the Celtics" crap shall we? We
succeeded from it for a long time, but that time has past - there are no
more great untapped Celtics to be either coaches or anything else (Dennis
Johnson? Are you kidding?). That ship has sailed. This team needs a
disciplinary teacher of the fundamentals.  If any "STAR" doesn't like it see
ya. Hell, the whole NBA needs that - coddling has become an art form from
coaches, to FANS, to GMs, to referees.  If ever a paradigm shift was needed
it's to the entire league to stop coddling everyone.  The product would
improve 10 million percent in a year (they caved on the new ball I
heard...more coddling).

Once again - every time we actually run (not Doc run, but real running as in
pass the ball up the floor ahead of the defense running) - we win by thirty
(or at least build up a thirty point lead). When we play inside out with Al,
Gomes, Powe even Pierce on the box - we win. It ain't rocket science. And I
don't buy the "other team took us out of our game" crap from the Brain Trust
either. I can tell when we're running versus playing half court on purpose -
it isn't the OTHER coach yelling at Telfair or Rondo to "pull the ball
out"... We could've destroyed the zone getting the ball on the blocks last
night, but we reverted to three passes around the perimeter and shoot like
we always do.

We get AI and this team will implode after about a month.  Mark my words.
Two men can't dominate the ball as PP and AI do and co-exist and the
remnants of the kiddie corps will further regress as their roles further
deteriorate with no motivation other then "play D and get me the ball" being
the team's M.O.

3rd pick in the draft ladies and gentlemen - that's our lot in life. We'll
lose six, win two; lose five, win three; lose ten, win four the rest of the
way. That's either way - AI trade or not. One path has at least a semblance
of a future. One doesn't; guess which is which. Hope y'all (as they say in
the South) are ready for it.