Thursday, March 03, 2005
run, don't Walk(er)
Well, not to sound like a complete piss-ant and complain after a good win, but last night had plenty of reminders about why Antoine was shipped out of here to begin with. Those fucked-up turnovers where he runs the length of the court instead of passing, the ill-advised (and comically inaccurate) three pointers, and his bizarre inability to finish around the basket after getting good position. Not to mention the strange way team ball movement just seems to go away whenever he and Paul are on the floor together.
On the other hand, the team is inarguably better NOW with him on the court. If Doc has the balls to bench Blount completely and give 20+ a night to Big Al some of my concerns might be quelled. Of course, that will mean that our prized rookie, (who, according to the pro-Toine spin has now become delicate, impressionable, and in Dire Need of Guidance) will have to play out of position for the rest of the season as an undersized center. And, of course, it also means the end of the great Kendrick Perkins renaissance.
Looking at the remainder of this season, I maintain that Philly and Washington are paper tigers, but even playing at our very best, does anyone think these Celtics can take out Cleveland, Miami or Detroit in a seven game series, let alone any Western Conference team? Remember, the Laker team we barely beat last night in our building is on the cusp out in the west and probably won’t make the playoffs. The Mavs, Spurs, Kings and (full-strength) Phoenix would decimate this team and any of its possible AW/PP-and-supporting-cast iterations. Why is that important? Because the Ainge plan was to win an NBA championship, not settle for the shameless OB-era “we did play for a championship… the Eastern Conference Championship” spin.
Fuck it, I guess. I don’t know. What can you do? We’re going to win enough to look respectable, but we still have the same gaping flaws that kept this team from being a serious contender three years ago. Ownership is obviously going to return to the “add the pieces around Paul and Toine” mantra, and that pretty much dooms the Ainge vision to becoming the punch line to many fine jokes about the veracity of billionaires who say, “I’ll pay you to make decisions for me.” Instead we become caretakers to a fan-base that Wyc didn’t think had the attention span to endure a five-year plan, and will now have to content ourselves with being the Rockets of the East. Enjoy.
On the other hand, the team is inarguably better NOW with him on the court. If Doc has the balls to bench Blount completely and give 20+ a night to Big Al some of my concerns might be quelled. Of course, that will mean that our prized rookie, (who, according to the pro-Toine spin has now become delicate, impressionable, and in Dire Need of Guidance) will have to play out of position for the rest of the season as an undersized center. And, of course, it also means the end of the great Kendrick Perkins renaissance.
Looking at the remainder of this season, I maintain that Philly and Washington are paper tigers, but even playing at our very best, does anyone think these Celtics can take out Cleveland, Miami or Detroit in a seven game series, let alone any Western Conference team? Remember, the Laker team we barely beat last night in our building is on the cusp out in the west and probably won’t make the playoffs. The Mavs, Spurs, Kings and (full-strength) Phoenix would decimate this team and any of its possible AW/PP-and-supporting-cast iterations. Why is that important? Because the Ainge plan was to win an NBA championship, not settle for the shameless OB-era “we did play for a championship… the Eastern Conference Championship” spin.
Fuck it, I guess. I don’t know. What can you do? We’re going to win enough to look respectable, but we still have the same gaping flaws that kept this team from being a serious contender three years ago. Ownership is obviously going to return to the “add the pieces around Paul and Toine” mantra, and that pretty much dooms the Ainge vision to becoming the punch line to many fine jokes about the veracity of billionaires who say, “I’ll pay you to make decisions for me.” Instead we become caretakers to a fan-base that Wyc didn’t think had the attention span to endure a five-year plan, and will now have to content ourselves with being the Rockets of the East. Enjoy.
# posted by Dr. Chestnutt @ 10:16 AM 
