06/17/08

17. What a ride. RIP Red.

05/30/08

BEAT LA! BEAT LA! BEAT LA!

Totally worth the wait...

07/30/07

When all hope had faded, and I mean ALL HOPE, Danny emptied the bank account, hitch hiked to Foxwoods and made the wager that will alter the future of the Celtics' franchise for the next ten years. Was it a good gamble? I think so, but only time will tell. Was it a necessary move? Absolutely. I have no doubt Al Jefferson will become the next Hakeem Olajuwon, but by the time Al fully blossoms, Pierce will be well past his prime. So let's stop talking about the future. Enough about this team's upside. No more developing youngsters. Let's talk about now. We know what Pierce, Ray Allen and KG can do TODAY. Together, if healthy, that's a championship-caliber nucleus. And I'm thrilled Rondo wasn't part of the trade as I truly believe he can carry the load of PG.

So what's left? Well, we need a backup center and we need a bench with a combination of youthful energy and veteran reliablity. Personally, I don't think this will happen this year, but give Danny one more year and I truly believe #17 will be well within our reach.

For those of us C's fans who have endured the last 20-years of turmoil, let's just hope that 05/22/07 was the peak of our misery and for next decade, we'll finally be able to reap the rewards of this great franchise. The future is bright, and more importantly, the future is now.

05/22/07

#5!? The misery continues.

02/16/06

I've been meaning to say this for a while, but haven't had the time. Paul Pierce has always been a great player, but this season he has earned the right to have his number retired a Celtic. Don't take those words lightly. I honestly believe Pierce has elevated his game to legendary status this year. I'm not just seeing a great player, I'm seeing greatness. It seems as though the game has slowed down for Paul. Suddenldy, he reminds me of Michael Jordan - no wasted motion. Paul is so smooth on the court. He's not forcing shots nor is he hogging the ball. He's passing, rebounding, running the court and picking apart defenses like he was Keanu Reeves in the Matrix. And it doesn't hurt that he seems to have accepted his responsibility to the Boston media. Or maybe, they've just come to terms with what he's willing to give them.

Paul, you're holding the entire franchise on your back and still finding a way to win games. I hope Danny and Wyc surround you with a championship caliber cast next season. You deserve a chance to raise number 17.

01/27/06

I haven't posted anything this season nor have I had the time to update the C's schedule or roster. But I've been watching every game. Every heart breaking game. And now I figured I'd come out of hiding to share my thoughts on the seven player trade.

I really loved Ricky Davis. Sure, his shot selection wasn't perfect and he was, at times, sloppy with the ball, but the guy could flat out play. He was a better defender than he ever got credit for, he looked to pass (sometimes to a fault) and most importantly, he was entertaining. If I can't have a championship team, I want an entertaining team. After twenty years without a banner, is that too much to ask for? So, no, I'm not happy about losing Ricky Davis.

Ricky, you will be missed.

What about the rest of the guys we traded? Mark Blount? Screw him. A center needs to play like a center. Mark Blount isn't a terrible player, but he's a terrible center. Justin Reed? I liked him, but he never got enough PT for any fan to judge his upside. Marcus Banks? Here's what I said at the end of last season (actually, in the post just below this one) "Marcus is either never gonna get it, or by the time he gets it, he'll be with another team." Man, someone should be paying me for these predictions! Well, just as long as I don't owe money everytime I'm wrong! ;)

How about the guys we got? Wally is solid, but kinda reminds me of Keith Van Horn. From what I've seen (and I could be wrong) he kinda half-asses the game and doesn't have the passion that it takes to be a champion. I've seen KG yell at him too often to have a ton of faith in the guy. KG has passion. If KG is unhappy with Wally, it should be noted. That said, I'm still ready and willing to let him prove me wrong.

Olowokandi is fine. We all know he's just a salary dump. The C's got rid of Blount's HUGE contract for an expiring Olowokandi contract. You can't complain about that move.

So, you trade Ricky's 20ppg with Wally's 20ppg, you commit to Perk/Big Al (and Orien Green as a backup PG) and you create a little wiggle room when it comes time to find a mid level free agent. It's certainly not the worst trade I've seen (Hi Vin!), but my patience is wearing thin. Twenty years will do that to a man.

I still have complete faith in Danny and I still love Doc Rivers. Paul Pierce is playing the best ball of his career. Hands down. The future *has* arrived in Delonte, Big Al and Perkins. Now I want to start making moves to complete the puzzle *today*. No more long term plans. Let's raise number 17 already.

As I told some friends of mine, the C's are the Red Sox - "there's always next season." The only difference is that there's only five of us C's fans still hanging on to the belief that this is the greatest sports franchise in the world.

5/7/05

And so it ends.

Losing by 27 points... at home... in a game seven... against an old, injured team lacking one of their star players. That certainly wasn't the way I hoped this season would end, but let's face it, the C's are the new Red Sox.

Let's start with the good... The Celtics have a fantastic core of young players. Ricky is fantastic and will only get better. Al and Delonte are potential all stars. Marcus has proven his worth defensively, but I'm losing hope on his offense. Tony Allen either slammed into the rookie wall, or just doesn't have the maturity and focus to play at this level right now. Perkins needs more experience and needs to get control of his emotions, but he's definitely a keeper. And Justin Reed sure looks like he has game. When was the last time, the list of young players with proven worth and infinite potential was that long? The future is bright.

So what else is good? Doc is good. Sure, he got out-coached by Rick Carlisle, but Carlisle is one of the top three coaches in the NBA. The C's don't need and X's and O's type of coach right now - they need someone who can develop young players, while remaining competetive. And that's just what Doc brings to the table. I applaud the job he did this year and can't wait to see what he does as his players begin to "grow up." Finally, I'll miss his post-game interviews during the off-season. I could listen to Doc talk about his team for hours.

And the final good note is that Danny Ainge knows what he's doing. He's completely revamped this team in two years time and has still managed to collect some fantastic future draft picks. Danny has a rough off-season ahead, but like I've said from day one - have faith.

Now, how about the bad?

Let's start with the obvious. Antoine Walker was atrocious in the playoffs. He must have missed 20-30 layups and probably committed 20+ turnovers. Contrary to popular belief, Antoine can not take over a game - not unless he's jacking up 3-pointers and having a lucky night. Sure, he's a leader and he's as competetive as they get, but his biggest fault is that he thinks he's better than he really is. He honestly believes that he can make half of the horrible shots he puts up. When Antoine dribbles the ball off his foot, he immediately tries to right the wrong by forcing something.. which inevitably leads to a second mistake. Within minutes he's compounded the problem another five times. Not good. Antoine, I love ya, but you gotta go. Al Jefferson needs the opportunity to develop and you just don't fit into the C's offense. If the C's resign employee #8, it will be a giant step in the wrong direction. I am 100% positive of that.

Mark Blount fittingly finished the season with three DNP's. Doc finally realized that it'd be easier for Blount to get zero points and zero rebounds without having to leave the bench. OK, maybe that's a bit harsh. Maybe Doc just didn't like the matchups with Blount against the Pacers, but I have to believe there's more to it than that. Have the C's given up on him? Will they ever be able to free themselves of his contract? Only time will tell, but without a doubt, the Mark Blount situation is something that needs to be addressed by all parties involved.

Paul Pierce played some of the best ball of his career in this series. After playing a great game six, he lost his head and acted like an idiot. It happens. I'm amazed that some of the idiots in the Boston media have tried to compare that to Bill Buckner. That's just laughable. Firstly, the C's won the game. Secondly, it was a game six in the first round of the playoffs, not a game seven of the NBA finals. That being said, I was more disgusted by Pierce's post game interview then the technical against Tinsley. Once again, Paul and his pathetic, cocky attitude towards the media has left a terrible taste in my mouth. This team would NOT be better with out Paul Pierce, but I would not shed a tear if he were traded.

Finally, I'm assuming Gary Payton's days in Boston are over with. Gary was instrumental to the teams success this year and earned my utmost respect in the process. Unfortunately, his best days are behind him and he was unable to take over any of the games in the playoffs. I also wonder if Gary lost some of his leadership control once Antoine came back into the scene. Regardless, it was a great hollywood marriage - one great year, but no need to do a second :) I hope you get yourself a championship next year, GP.

So that's it. Much more on the positive side than the negative side. I'll be looking forward to next season more than I was at this time last year, that's for sure.

3/17/05

With 17 games left in the regular season, we've all had a chance to get a pretty good read of this year's squad. Here's my 2 cents on every player on the C's roster:

Al Jefferson - Big Al hit the rookie wall around the halfway point of the season. Can you blame him? Going from a high school schedule to an NBA schedule is no easy transition. Forget about the level of the competition - the travel and frequency of games alone is enough to take its toll on a rookie who came straight from high school. While the Antoine trade may be hampering Al's development, it's also giving him a chance to rest up for the playoffs. As for the future, I expect Al to be a key component of the C's for several years to come. He has great hands, a plethora of low post moves and a knack for rebounding. He needs to work on his conditioning and he has plenty to learn on the defensive end, but this kid's a keeper.

Tony Allen - Tony is a bit of an enigma to me. I have to assume that he's yet to recoup from his ankle injury because he just hasn't been the same since he went down. When healthy, Tony is energy. He's a Waltah with talent (sorry, had to be said). I love his spirit when he's on the bench and I love the energy he provides while on the court. He's one of the better defenders on the team when his head's in the game. I always hear coaches talk about focus, but focus never seemed like a huge issue to me until now. Tony needs to focus. He's the type of guy who could blow all of his potential by getting ahead of himself or by getting caught up in the NBA "lifestyle." If he keeps his head on straight and works on his offensive game during the off season, Tony's going to be one hell of a player.

Marcus Banks - There were plenty of times this season when I thought, Marcus is either never gonna get it, or by the time he gets it, he'll be with another team. The jury's still out, but it looks like I was wrong. The last few weeks Marcus has finally shown that he can combine his speed with an understanding of the game. He's always been able to blow by any defender, but now he blows by his defender then makes the right pass to the open man. He's also learned when to pull up for the jumper. Sure, he has a _long_ way to go, but Marcus has earned the right to stay. Defensively, he's a gem. With GP's mentoring, Marcus is becoming The Glove 2.0.

Mark Blount - Saying that Blount cashed in and then got lazy just seems to easy me. I think too many people judge a player based on their emotions on the court. Mark doesn't show a lot of emotion, but does that mean he's not working hard out there? If he ran up the court screaming and shouting, but still left the game with no points and no rebounds, would you feel any better? What Mark did in the latter part of the 2003-2004 season was a bit of an aberration, wasn't it? Maybe he was always capable of it, but he never put up those numbers before and there was no guarantee that he's put them up again. The C's do not run their offense through Mark Blount, so forget about the scoring. Some nights he'll be in the right place at the right time, some nights he won't. The rebounding is another story though. Rebounding is about effort and body control. Mark's a big man, but has horrible body control. As for the effort, I don't see it. If Mark treated every game like his last and really used that body to knock his opponents off the box, he'd easily pull down 10 boards a night.

Ricky Davis - I'm a huge fan of Ricky. Here's a guy who came to Boston with a losing mentality - not because Ricky was a loser, but because he had only played for losing teams. Remember, Ricky played for the Cavs team that was paving their path to drafting Lebron James with each loss. I remember the C's playing them that year and even though the C's were up by 20 in the fourth quarter, nobody in a Cavs uniform seemed even a little bit upset. But that was then. Ricky is now surrounded by players who want to win and a franchise that refuses to be embarassed. He's brought back the 6th man role to the C's and leads that second unit like a team should be led. He's constantly showing the youngsters how they should've reacted to a play without coming down on them. His gentle leadership combined with fierce competetiveness and athletism that goes on for miles, makes Ricky the pick-up of the decade. He can defend, pass, teach, lead, create his own shot and hit the clutch buzzer beater. What more can you ask for? Anyone who dislikes Ricky Davis either needs to get over what happened three years ago, or simply needs to watch more Celtics games.

Raef LaFrentz - Raef brings what Rodney Rodgers brought a few years back - a big man that can pull down some boards, score inside and shoot the three. He's not going to wow you every night, but Raef has been everything I'd hoped he'd be. He's a smart vereran who knows his physical limitations. My assumption is that Raef will take his game to another level come playoff time.

Gary Payton - Let me reiterate something - I truly hated GP before he joined the Celtics. I respected his play, but I thought he came off as an unhappy SOB. The constant scowl was too much for me. I've changed my mind. GP has shown that he puts the game of basketball above his personal goals. Sure, he wants to win a championship, but I think he feels that his legacy could be in the future of Marcus and Delonte. GP has also brought fearless leadership to this team. Without him, I think Doc may have a tough time keeping Walker & Pierce from reverting back to the way they played with Jim O'Brien. GP may have never won a championship, but he's a winner and a vereran. He knows how to play the game, knows the tricks of the trade and brings a feisty spirit to the team. I see him smiling and making his teammates smile all the time now. I'd love to see GP finish his career in a C's uniform.

Paul Pierce - I've been a huge fan of Paul Pierce from his college days on. I was at the Fleece on draft night when Red came out and announced they were picking him. Paul Pierce was never the "the truth," to me, he was the "the future." It's taken a long time for me to accept it, but now I know - those days are over. I've finally come to terms with the fact that Paul Pierce needs to be traded this off season. There have some been long stretches this season where Paul Pierce looked like he had blossomed into the player I'd always hoped he'd be - a true team player. Unfortunately, the rest of the time he's reverted back to the guy who tries to dribble through tripple teams, jacks up off balanced fall aways with a hand in his face and plays horrible defense. Once Antoine came back, I really expected Paul to become an MVP candidate. Without the pressure of dealing with the Boston media and not having to be THE leader, I thought he'd be able to go out and play the best ball of his career. It hasn't happened. He still doesn't trust the majority of his teammates, refuses to listen to his coach and the man he's supposed to be defending is constantly having career nights. Hey Paul, if Troy Brown can play both offense and defense, so can you. It really kills me because I like Pierce and I KNOW that he could be averaging a tripple double. He's an incredibly gifted player and he's as competetive as they get, but he's been in the league for too long to still be acting like a rookie. I'm tired of him acting like an ass when Doc RIGHTLY reprimands him. I'm tired of him scowling at the Boston media. I'm tired of him walking up the court. I'm tired of his deplorable defense. And most of all, I'm tired of his arrogance. Doc Rivers & Danny Ainge will produce a championship IF Paul Pierce joins the program in the next month or is traded during the off season. Sorry Paul, but nobody is bigger than the franchise.

Antoine Walker - Antoine, Antoine, Antoine. You make me feel like an abused spouse. I don't know whether to trust you. I want to believe you've changed, but I'm just not sure if that's possible. Sad, isn't it? What I do know is that you're a team leader, you're competetive as hell, you love playing in Boston and you're a fantastic mentor. What I don't know is whether you'll ever get over your ego. Every time you make a mistake, you make another five mistakes trying to redeem yourself. That has to stop. Play to your strengths and UNDERSTAND your weaknesses. Antoine, I'd love to keep you in Boston, but you have plenty left to prove in the last month of play in order for that to happen. I truly hope that happens.

Kendrick Perkins - Kendrick hasn't had much time to prove his worth yet, but from what I've seen, he's a keeper. He's a big boy with strong defensive skills and a hunger on the boards. The only thing that leaves me questioning Perk is the thug-like reputation he's been earning in limited minutes this year. Is this a planned strategy or is he unable to control his emotions? I'd be more apt to accept it, if it were a planned strategy. Toughness is something the C's have been lacking in recent years and having a guy that can come off the bench and intimidate, certainly isn't a bad thing. What's bad is if Perk is supposed to be a key component of the C's future and he's on the Top 10 Most Wanted List by the refs. I guess only time will tell.

Justin Reed - Having a deep team filled with young talent is nothing to complain about... unless your name is Justin Reed. This kid looks like he can play, but there's just no room for him in the rotation. He's made the most of his minutes on the court and I predict good things from him in the future, but I worry that he's going to get impatient with waiting for his time to come.

Delonte West - Best passer I've seen in many, many years. Delonte is fundamentally sound, intelligent, quiet, calm and has a great shot. As far as I can tell, the only thing Delonte doesn't have is experience. Give him a few years and Delonte is going to one hell of a player. Man, the future of this team is in GOOD hands.

2/24/05

Reactions to the Antoine/GP trade:

This one seems like a ticket selling move to me, but even if it's not, we shouldn't be blaming Danny for changing his plan for the future. Think about it this way, Danny shipped Antoine to Dallas to humble him. It worked. Antoine has been traded three times in three years. He was on a team that RAN in Dallas and he was on a team that won TEN games in Atlanta. We have 30 games to see if he's a changed man. If he is, resign him. If not, off he goes again. It's all about the green.

That said, think about what we've gotten for that original Antoine trade. Someone on the Celtics Stuff mailing list put it this way (I've updated it since we heard GP is coming back):

Two years ago Ainge traded Walker (and Delk) to Dallas for LaFrentz, Welsch, a #1 pick(first rounder), and Chris Mills contract. The Mills contract(and Mike James) was sent to Detroit for another #1 and Atkins. The Dallas and Detroit picks were used to select Delonte West and Tony Allen, both of whom are now starters. Atkins (and Jones and Mihm) was sent to LA for Payton and another #1. Welsch was sent to Cleveland for yet another#1. Payton was sent to Atlanta (with Stewart and Googs) for Walker and the lowest of the #1's Boston has in the first year they get two picks. Payton then resigns with the C's after Atlanta buys out his contract.

The final tally: Taking out minor players (and Mihm), Antoine Walker was traded for: Raef LaFrentz, Tony Allen, Delonte West, Gary Payton and (yes) Antoine Walker himself! ...plus a first round pick from either LA or Cleveland.

2/20/05

CelitcsPride.com will be fully restored asap... I've been busy working on my internet services consulting business. As soon as I come up for some fresh air, I'll be sure to get all of the old content back online as well as some new content that I've been working on.

My two cents at the all-star break: Solid first half for the C's. I really like this team's potential - they'll be a force in the east in 2-4 years. Danny Ainge had one heck of a mess to clean up and he's done a fantastic job so far.