L'il Al's muscles et al

[Kim Malo]

Well, having just gotten home from the Celtics picnic for season 
ticket holders I can certify from live and in person that Al 
definitely looks in great shape. And for those bemoaning the loss of 
bulk to throw around on the boards and in the paint, I'll add that 
it's clearly muscle based cut and not just a matter of dropping 
pounds - he's not skinny, he's lean, and there is a real difference. 
Skinny is what his arms and upper body looked like when he first came 
here. I still remember looking at a picture then of him side by side 
with Marcus and it wasn't the new PF who had the more built up, 
powerful looking shoulders, chest and biceps. Even when he was using 
the prior bulk, a point JB made was correct - it was really his 
quickness with things like spin moves on offense that made it 
effective because he was through people before they were set up to 
stop him more than because of the bulk per se. So replacing it with 
muscle could make him more effective rather than less. Anyway, we'll 
see how it translates into play on the court. But if nothing else it 
should help him get the lift back that he lost on his shot last 
season because of the ankle, and that left too many of his shots 
clanging short.

The bad news is that I couldn't get close enough to verify for sure, 
but Telfair does look alarmingly close to eye level with me, which 
doesn't exactly make him a munchkin but does mean the 6'0" he's 
listed at is not pessimism.  Rondo is slightly taller. Telfair 
guaranteed making the playoffs to the crowd. Didn't hear Danny's 
speech as I was talking with someone, but heard most of Doc's. His 
emphasis was on the players learning to trust each other, which isn't 
as left field as it might sound. It's a non-finger pointing way of 
flagging things like the one man seeing the ball offense and attempts 
to do everything yourself that were genuine problems. He also went on 
to say the main issues were improving on defense and running more 
consistently  (noting that you had to have the right personnel - 
presumably his seal of approval on the new PGs), which again isn't 
exactly earth shattering news, but I'd rather hear him admitting they 
were problems and big enough to flag and focus on rather than 
pretending (or even really believing) they weren't.

That being said, this used to be a really nice perk of being a season 
ticket holder, with a genuine this is to thank you for supporting us 
and you're part of the Celtics Family feel, but felt more this year 
like just another marketing tool. It wasn't at the practice facility 
as it's been the past few years, but at the Waterworks outdoor club 
in Quincy "sponsored by Harvard Pilgrim" with corners cut on the food 
and the give aways there used to be and a bit less freedom of casual 
access to people. Even when you'd see a player in the crowd unless 
they were complete unknowns they would have a handler nearby, 
although the Dwayne Jones of the world were left to fend. New 
cheerleaders *cough* -I mean dancers- were prominently on display 
(No, get your minds on out of the gutter - bared navels but not an 
excess of skin elsewhere) of course...

BTW, just downloaded a rather distinctive ring tone 
http://preview.moviso.com/PreviewContent/540/178961/4456621.mp3 
Couldn't resist and if nothing else it should stand out in a crowd...
Kim