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RETRIEVING CONTENT...PLEASE WAIT
Odds and Ends on Saturday
Saturday, November 4, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 10:52 AM
November 4, 2006
The Herald, The Globe, MetroWest Daily, and Projo all have recaps of last night's game. No matter who reports it, it was a very disappointing loss. We played very well to begin the game and then as the Pistons turned on their defense, we wilted. Positives include Al, Perk and Kandi's play in the middle and negatives include Telfair and West's play and Wally's 6 turnovers. The defensive lapses still point back to the coach's failure to coach defense to a team that is very capable of playing it. The failure to get the ball inside to the big men when they are obviously hitting their shots also points to the coach.
The Herald also reports on the Celtics Dancers much vaunted debut. They were politely cheered and their show went off without a hitch. This signals the end of an era and the beginning of a new one.
Pierce is calling for his young teammates to grow up quickly and learn what it takes to win and what they are doing to lose. Again, some of that has to fall on the coach. I love Perk's attitude. He is willing to see where he needs to improve and then work hard to do so.
The Patriot Ledger points to some positives in spite of the loss. There were positives in that our bigs are playing better. Rondo looked better than in the opener and seemed to run the team with poise. Perk played very well in only 17 minutes with 8 rebounds and 1 block to go with 4 points and only 2 fouls in just 17 minutes. He colided with Nazr Mohammed's teeth early in the 3rd and played only limited minutes after that but looked very good in the first half.
Projo points to confidence as the key. A win tonight would do wonders for our confidence, but a loss would be devastating. An 0-3 start is unacceptable for a team with the talent that this team has. Makes you wonder how long Doc will be the coach. Orlando was 0-11 when he was fired there. Last year, Miami was off to a sluggish start when Pat Riley took over and they won the title. What a difference a coach can make.
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Celtics Fall to the Pistons at Home
by FLCeltsFan 10:00 AM
November 4, 2006
The Celtics premiered their much vaunted dance team. Doc changed the starting lineup. Al Jefferson had a double double. And the Celtics lost again.
The Celtics dancers were cheered at they took the floor. Pierce tried not to look at them from the huddle. It was rather anticlimactic after Red stole their thunder on opening night.
On to the game. The Celtics started off very well and seemed to have righted what was wrong in the opener. The Celtics were playing as a unit and things were going well. They got out to a big lead, but led by only 1 at the half. Then the wheels came off. Rip Hamilton seemed to hit everything he tossed up.
 Wally was unable to stay with him and he constantly brushed off his defender on a series of screens and got the open shot. Our defense looked alternately good and inept in spurts.
There were positives in spite of the loss, though. Perk played only 17 minutes but pulled down 8 rebounds, had 1 block and had 4 points in addition to being a defensive presence in the middle. He had only 2 fouls. Early in the 3rd quarter he colided with Mohammed and had to get 3 stitches in his head. He played only limited minutes after that.
Also on the positive side, Al had a double double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocked shots in 28 minutes. He looked very good offensively and after making several shots and looking like he would be the hot hand, the team didn't go to him again, instead settling for outside shots. But Al looked good for the second game in a row and I believe that he is going to continue to improve and finally shed that potential lable in favor of productive. Kandi played a productive 18 minutes and pulled down 3 rebounds and blocked one shot, but affected several others along with keeping the rebound alive several times when he didn't get credited for the rebound.
Pierce had 22 points 8 rebounds and 4 assists and played his usual strong game. Wally shot the ball well with 18 points and 4 rebounds to go with 3 assists. But Wally also had 6 turnovers. Wally also picked up a technical for arguing a call. In his defense, the call was a bad one in that Wally had a clean block and they called him for the foul. The no tolerance policy is in full force and the refs are very quick with the whistles.
Rondo showed great poise running the team and ended with 7 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and only 1 turnover in over 30 minutes. He played very well and took the ball to the basket seemingly at will. He missed several layups and will have to work on finishing at the basket when he gets there but overall had a solid game.
 Rondo looked poised as he ran the offense and his play drew some high praise from Cousy, who was calling the game with Mike and Tommy. On the flip side of it, Telfair seemed to struggle, drawing 3 quick fouls and playing tentatively the rest of the game. At one point, Cousy was calling for Rondo since Telfair just wasn't getting it done. Telfair has also only registered 2 assists in the first 2 games. He has to pick up his game and I believe he will. Also struggling is Delonte West. He insists that his back is 100% so I am not sure what is affecting his performance. He shot 1-8 and seemed tentative at times. He did register 4 assists, though. We are going to need his shooting to help spread the defenses and hopefully he will get his confidence back and get his shot going very soon.
I believe that a lot of what is wrong with this team comes down to defense. We gave up way too many easy rebounds on the defensive end and consequently the Pistons were able to get way too many second (and in some cases 3rd, 4th and 5th) chance points. We weren't as aggressive on the boards as we need to be. Second, our defense came in spurts. The Pistons had only 6 turnovers, showing that we didn't really press them or go after the ball. I still feel that our defensive failures point back to the coaching staff. Doc obviously is trying to put in too many defensive sets and from his own words, he doesn't put a premium on defense. Watching the Celtics and the Pistons, it is clear that the difference is defense. The Pistons are capable of turning it on down the stretch and the Celtics aren't.
Doc puts on the obligatory positive spin on these first two losses saying that this team is close. Pierce says that our young players need to grow up and realize what wins games and what loses games. It is only 2 games, but 2 very disappointing games in a season dedicated to Red Auerbach. We face a tough Wizards team tonight in Washington, but a win tonight would go a long way toward building the confidence this team needs to win consistently. A loss tonight would be devastating to a team already searching for answers.
[Recap]
[Box Score]
[Play by Play]
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Friday's Odds and Ends
Friday, November 3, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 10:53 AM
November 3, 2006
We face the Pistons in the Garden tonight and the Wizards on the road tomorrow. How the team will react is anyone's guess. Will we run? Will we defend? Will we break down in the 4th quarter and jump on Pierce's back again? Only a few more hours till we find out. Both teams lost their openers and so both teams are looking to get the win and get back on track. We have the home court advantage, so I am hoping that will help us to a win. Here is what is going on around the Celtics Nation today:
The Herald begins with an article that tells us that Doc isn't being too hard on his bigs yet, even though both struggled in the opener. Perk has such a great attitude and work ethic, that I truly believe that he is going to do whatever it takes to improve his game. The one thing he needs is consistent playing time, something he has never had up to now. John Hollinger, in his column on which players will break out, includes Perk and I agree with him.
That four-year, $16 million extension he signed might go down as Danny Ainge's best move as Celtics GM. Look at it this way -- Perkins is already one of the best rebounders in the league and projects as a top-five guy in Rebound Rate for the coming season. Now compare his contract to Reggie Evans, who does nothing but rebound and signed a free-agent deal this summer that will pay him substantially more than Perkins.
And Perkins isn't nearly as one-dimensional. In addition to the boards, Perkins can score a little around the basket -- he probably won't crack double figures, but he'll shoot around 50 percent -- and he's a physical center who provides a true defensive presence. Also, he won't turn 22 for three more weeks, so he's improving. A double-double might be out of reach unless he gets the rock more, but 10 boards and two blocks a game is completely reasonable.
Scott Souza has an article on how Ratliff is contributing even though he is injured. He is giving the young players advice and a pep talk about not getting down when they lose. I can see now why they named him co-captain. His presence is going to be very good, especially for our young bigs who can learn a lot from him.
The Globe takes a look at our close games last year and in the season opener. Wally offers these thoughts:
"We have a very clutch basketball player in Paul [Pierce] and I think we get into the habit of watching him play in the fourth quarter. We've got to be ready to make the shot when we're open and he's double-teamed. He's got to be ready and willing to give us a ball to where other guys can score and make things happen. That's a process and I think we're getting better at it." Doc mentions that it isn't entirely a negative thing that we had so many close games as it shows that we stayed in those games with a chance to win. It remains to be seen if we can take the next step and actually win those games this season.
The Patriot Ledger states the obvious that our opening game didn't answer any of the questions that surrounds the team. The point guards didn't play well, the bigs didn't play well, we weren't consistent, no one stepped up to help Pierce, and we didn't run. Hopefully we can begin answering those questions with tonight's game.
RealGM has a piece on Doc and how his time may be running out. I have to agree that many of the problems that plague this team appear to be directly related to poor coaching. I am willing to give Doc a chance, but so far, he isn't winning me over.
JB has a good article on CelticsStuff Live along the same lines with a Christmas list that includes Rick Adelman for a coach.
In that light, there is a perennial bridesmaid, currently unemployed; Rick Adelman who would come with his his trusty sidekick and early Auerbach disciple, while at Princeton in the 1950’s, Pete Carill.
Not only has Adelman taken his teams very close (a few widely disputed calls away) to the promised land, his style and manner would not be as much of a disruption, as say a Paul Silas, or a Hubie Brown.
Like with Don Nelson, if Ainge is going to make a move, he should move quickly, even to save his own job, as the really good coaches don’t stay unemployed for long and we won’t be the only team with Adelman on our gift list come Christmas.
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Our Alleged Transition Game
by FLCeltsFan 10:14 AM
November 3, 2006
Bob Cousy always is very candid when he is calling the game with Mike and Tommy. He made a very revealing statement the night of our opening game.
"I've seen pretty much what I saw briefly in the exhibition season. It's just guys run up and down the floor. No offensive cohesion whatsoever. "Everything is one-on-one moves in the half-court. And the alleged transition game that we were supposed to see, I haven't seen develop either. Occasionally they've run, and I think that's when they've looked halfway decent a couple of times. There's a lot of work to be done here."
We have heard Doc talk about our running game over and over again but we haven't seen much of it. In the preseason, often we would lapse into a half court game when our starters were on the floor and we would run with the second team, but not a true transition game. I think back to the teams of the 60's and 80's and how they ran the transition game. On many possessions, the past Celtics teams would never put the ball on the floor. Passing is so much more efficient than dribbling and yet over and over we see Telfair, Rondo, West, Allen and Pierce dribble the ball up the court. A true transition offense advances the ball with as little dribbling as possible and yet our players constantly put the ball on the floor rather than using the pass to quickly get the ball up the floor before the defenses can set up. One of the few players on this team who always looks up and gets the outlet pass up the floor is Perk. Otherwise, as Johnny Most would say, we do way too much fiddling and diddling out there.
Another thing that we can see from the classic transition offense is that the closest player will inbound the ball. Our team almost always waits for a big to take the ball out, allowing the other team's defense to set up. This is something that we need to consider if we really want to have a running game.
In a transition game, we should run on every possession. We should run after a made basket, after a free throw, on every rebound. We don't do this. Once again, our point guards, or in some cases, whoever rebounds, dribbles the ball up the court, allowing the opposing defenses to set up. We need to run and to advance the ball with a pass as much as possible. I see players running and getting ahead, but they aren't being rewarded with a pass ahead as the ball is being dribbled up the court.
Now, since Doc talks about running in just about every press conference, and we aren't running, why aren't we running? With a young team of athletic players, I just can't believe that these players can't run. Every one of these players is coachable and none have a bad attitude and so I can't believe that they won't run. So it brings me back as to why they aren't running.
From yesterday's Herald, when questioned about going to Pierce over and over in the last quarter, he said “It was the play that was called.” When the coach calls a play, the players are going to try to execute it because if they don't, experience has shown that chances are they will be on the bench for the next play. Is Doc slowing our game down by calling too many plays? A true transition game allows for the point guards to create and to find the open man. As long as they are running plays, they aren't going to be running. They are going to try to execute that play and that slows down the game.
This wasn't just first game jitters, because as Cousy said, it was what we saw in the preseason as well. Could it be that Doc just doesn't know how to run a fast break team? Maybe he is trying to micromanage the players and not letting them go on insincts. Hopefully we will get to see a true transition game this season, not just an alleged one.
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Opening Night: No Dancers....
Thursday, November 2, 2006
by Loyalist 6:06 AM
...Except For The C's Dancing Their Way To A Loss.November 2, 2006
By Loyalist
A Glorious introduction in honor of Red and with it, the sense of electricity in the air.
BOSTON - NOVEMBER 01: M.L. Carr, Tom Heinson and Jo Jo White of the Boston Celtics speak about Red Auerbach during halftime. A video tribute to the late Arnold "Red" Auerbach was shown prior to the game. And the tipoff!
Tyson Chandler wins the tip,
Perk viciously swats the Hornets 1st FG attempt.
Pierce...miss, Delonte...miss, Wally...miss, Wally again...miss, Wally once again...airball, Perk...miss. 0-6!
I'll spare you the rest as the C's eventually lose. 91-87.
However, take a look at this. The rest of the game looked like a bad dance. Here it is in pictures with some captions from the day's recap:
 Here's Pierce doing his best "Turtle Spin". Which the other "MJ" taught him.We wanted to win so bad," Boston's Paul Pierce said. "We wanted to win for the fans. I was definitely emotional in my play." In a pre-game video, fans saw Auerbach holding one of the 16 championship trophies the Celtics won during his tenure - nine as a coach. But they haven't won another since 1986. And they don't appear to be close despite a recent influx of youth and athleticism. 
This is a very fancy dance called the Telfair Tango! Viva La Loose Ball!"[Chris Paul] got us back to a point where it was slipping away a little bit and just took control of the game,'' Hornets coach Byron Scott said.
"In the second half he went from passing the ball to taking control and he went to the basket because he saw the way we were defending him," Boston's Ryan Gomes said.
"Do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around". Is this the Halftime show?
"It was a very emotional night," Paul said after the Hornets' 91-87 season-opening win Wednesday night in Boston.
Paul was born one year before Boston won its last title in 1986, but last season's NBA Rookie of the Year was well aware of how much Boston's fans adored the late Celtics icon.
"Red Auerbach, he's the man," Paul said. "Being point guard, I had to make sure we stayed under control." 
Doesn't look like this Red was the man. Eww, bad form Delonte, bad! [ Full Recap] source: celtics.comDiscuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!
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Wednesday Odds and Ends - GAME DAY!
Wednesday, November 1, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 10:02 AM
November 1, 2006
The season is finally here and Celtics play tonight at home. There will be tributes to Red before the game and during half time. With the team dedicating the season to Red, I hope they play their hearts out every game to honor him. Here is what is going on around the Celtics Nation today:
In the Herald, Ainge reflects on the highs and lows of his tenure as GM. He has had very good success in the draft, but his free agents haven't panned out. He still has hope for Scal, but I have my doubts.
In Murphy's Notebook, Doc says that he is keeping his starting lineup under wraps for now. Starters are expected to be Perk, Pierce, Wally, Gomes and Telfair but it makes you wonder if Doc is going to throw a surprise in there. Also mentioned is that West sat out practice with a flare up of his back injury. That isn't good news but hopefully he will be available for tonight's game.
Bulpett focuses on the 33 games decided by 5 or fewer points last season. Of those 33, we lost 21. Some of those games came down to a bad coaching decision but most were because of failure to execute defense in the final few minutes. Many times the ball went to Pierce for an iso and that lost as many games as it won. Hopefully this season we will have more players willing to take that final shot and more willing to play in your face defense for 48 minutes.
Scott Souza reports that Gerald Green has made great strides from the wide eyed rookie of last year but still has a long way to go. I don't expect Gerald to get big minutes this season, but do expect him to play and to be able to help the team. He needs to get some playing time to continue to grow as a player.
The Daily News Tribune reports that these young Celtics are ready to prove themselves. I truly believe that they can.
The Globe makes the point that our third year players are the ones who will have to step up and make the leap this season. Expect, Jefferson, West, Telfair and Allen all to have good seasons.
CelticsBlog announces their partnership with Hickman and Gilroy on the Celtics Pride Radio Show. This is a show that airs on ESPN radio after all home games and is a very entertaining way to undwind from a game. Celtics Blog will stream the show on their site. Be sure to catch it.
Celtics 17 presents the second part of Doc on Trial. I still have my doubts about Doc's coaching ability. He has proven that he doesn't take defense seriously enough. It is no wonder that we were such a poor defensive team last season. Also, it seems he is making the system too difficult for our young players. Red's theory was keep it simple. Doc is introducing 3 NEW defensive schemes 4 days before the first game. How many different defensive schemes do you need? I just don't have a lot of confidence in Doc after what I have seen of his coaching so far. I hope he proves me wrong since we are stuck with him for the near future anyway.
Projo clears up one thing that has been the topic of discussion lately. Ratliff, in spite of being injured for most of the preseason, has been named co-captain. The article also brings out that the team will try to make its youth a positive this season rather than a negative.
In spite of everything that has been said, I still like Ricky Davis. He gave everything he had every night when he was in Boston and that effort is what won me over as a fan. I wish him luck in Minnesota and hope he finds a home there and does well. I can't help but think that the negative reports about him that have come out recently are just another example of the Celtics propaganda machine (see Al's ankles and Telfair's incident).
The Sun Journal gives a great quote from Rondo that has to make you excited about this kid.
"I'm very confident," Rondo said. "I think my style of play fits the NBA game a lot better. I just play with a lot of energy and do the little things. I don't try to go out and score every night. The things I do you can control - play defense, rebound, take charges, the intangibles." Now this is a kid who does the things that help his team win.
The Enterprise has a short piece on Perk and how his hard work should help the team this season. In spite of very limited playing time (3,5 and 19 mpg over his first 3 seasons), Perk has developed into a force in the middle. If Doc gives him regular minutes this season I truly believe he will break out.
Tonight is Opening night for the Celtics and I am very excited about this team. Join us on Celtics Green for the play by play and for game chat and insights.
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A Day in Memory of Red
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 2:26 PM
October 31, 2006
There is an announcement on Celtics.com with more information on the tribute to Red by the Celtica and the City of Boston. Here is the Update from Celtics.com:
The Celtics and the City of Boston will pay tribute to Red Auerbach with a special ceremony at City Hall Plaza at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, November 1, officially declaring Wednesday "A Day in Memory of Arnold "Red" Auerbach."
There will also be a tribute before tomorrow night's game at TD Banknorth Garden.
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source: Celtics.com
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Tuesday Odds and Ends
by FLCeltsFan 10:17 AM
October 31, 2006
Today, the heart and soul of the Celtics dynasty will be laid to rest. Today the NBA season kicks off it's season. Tomorrow the Celtics start the season dedicated to Red Auerbach. The dance team premiere has rightfully been postponed. There will be a tribute to Red before the game. Will the Celtics be ready to play as befitting a team dedicated to a legend? Only time will tell. In the meantime, here is what is going on around the Celtics Nation today:
The Herald reports on the many great people who have gathered to pay last respects to Red. There will never be another like him.
In another article, the league bans the fan who called Motumbo names and the League is testing the ball further to see if it responds the same as the leather balls did.
The Celtics Notebook reports that Ratliff is taking it slow in returning from a bulging disc in his back. Hopefully in his absence Perk will step up and become the presence in the paint that I know he can be. Also, Green is learning but giving Doc some headaches while doing so. Dancers will not premiere until a later date which is a very good decision.
The Globe reports on family and friends sharing final thoughts of Red. He will be buried in a Celtics Green casket which is the way he would have wanted to go out. Red's impact is boundless - not just on the Celtics, but on the entire league. His contributions to the game and to life are immeasurable.
The Globe Notebook gives us a look at West moving back to the 2. After 2 seasons of retraining his brain to function as a point guard, and doing a very good job of it, West is once again back playing the 2 guard. It may take a few games to re-train his brain to shoot instead of pass, but he will very much help the second team that struggled to find offense much of the time last season. You have to love West's attitude. Scal, Ray and Ratliff will begin the season on the IL. In Scal's case, this is a good thing.
NBA.com has the Preseason Rookie Rankings out and Rondo is ranked #2. He had a very impressive training camp and hopefully he can continue once the games really count. Leon Powe was given honorable mention. If Doc gives Powe the minutes, he can help this team. He brings toughness inside and rebounding, both of which this team very much needs.
MetroWest Daily brings up several questions that still need to be answered. The biggest question is whether the Celtics will play defense this season. Defense and rebounding are the keys to whether or not we have a winning season. It was good to hear that Doc was working on defense in camp, but I have to wonder whether he is over coaching. Red's theory was to keep it simple. Doc is implementing 3 NEW defensive schemes 4 days before the season starts. I have to wonder if maybe just a could of simple defensive sets that can be learned and easily implemented wouldn't be better.
The Courant asks if the young core of players is a recipe for disaster. I believe that they have enough experience to play well and even though they are all young, I do believe that they will gel and their youth can work for them with their energy and ability to run.
Jon Duke has written a great letter to Commissioner Stern requesting the championship trophy be named after Red Auerbach. After all, no one has done more for the game than Red. It is a good letter.
Well, the season is finally here. Tomorrow the games count. How will the Celtics react? I can't wait to find out! Red, this one is for you!!
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Blog Team Previews
by FLCeltsFan 10:08 AM
October 31, 2006
In case you missed any of the Blog Previews for all 30 teams, here is a summary. Thanks to Jeff at CelticsBlog for all his work to put this together. Great job everyone!!
Pacific Division:
Southeast Division:
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Dancers Put on Hold
Monday, October 30, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 4:23 PM
October 30, 2006
The Herald is reporting that the Celtics Dancers will be put on hold for at least one night. With the tribute to honor Red taking center stage, the debut of the dancers is being put on hold. You have to think that somewhere Red is smiling.
The much-balleyhooed Celtics Dance Team - slotted to make its glitzy debut during Wednesday’s season opener - was put on ice for at least one night following an organizational meeting this morning.
Auerbach, who had spoken in resigned fashion of having to accept this creeping NBA reality - the Celtics were the last team in the league without a crew of buxom hoofers - clearly wasn’t pleased when ownership decided to finally break from tradition last spring.
A private charter carrying Celtics officials and owners flew to Washington D.C. last night to attend visiting hours with the Auerbach family. The funeral will be held this morning.
Director of basketbal operations Danny Ainge, coach Doc Rivers and at least one Celtics legend - John Havlicek - were on board. Paul Pierce, figuring he wouldn’t have time to get back for tomorrow morning’s practice, decided to stay home.
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source: Herald
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The Sports Guy on Red
by FLCeltsFan 2:50 PM
October 30, 2006
| I have read a lot of tributes to Red in the past couple of days, but Bill Simmons has what I feel is the best of the bunch. His memories of Red very poignant and his account of finding the pre-written obituaries in the Herald computer explains Peter May's extensive obituary that was released shortly after the news broke. The stories he relays to us give us a good glimpse of Red through the years from a fan's point of view. But his closing sums it all up better than anything else that I have read.
In fact, Red is doing well enough that the team asks for his blessing to have cheerleaders. Every other team has cheerleaders but Boston. And why? Because Red always maintained that the Celtics would have cheerleaders over his dead body. Those were the exact words. Over my dead body.
Unfortunately for Red, it's a different league now. You don't need one assistant coach anymore; you need five. You don't need one scout anymore; you need 10. You don't need a scoreboard anymore; you need a Jumbotron with an HDTV picture; you need a good stereo system that plays hip-hop songs during timeouts; and you definitely need cheerleaders. They call it "in-game entertainment." Red never understood this; he always thought the game should be the entertainment. Eventually, he accepted the fact that the world was changing around him, that he couldn't stop it anymore. Sure, the Celtics could have cheerleaders. He wouldn't like it. But they could have them.
The cheerleaders were scheduled to debut at Wednesday night's home opener against New Orleans. Not anymore. Red Auerbach stole their thunder by passing away. I will always believe that this wasn't a coincidence. It's just too crazy. The old man waited until the last possible moment ... and then he called it quits. He lived and died without ever seeing a Celtics cheerleader. What a way to go out.
Instead of breaking out their dance squad, the Celtics will mourn the soul of their franchise on Wednesday night. Red's seat in Section 12 will remain empty. Old players will show up. Bagpipes will be played. A tribute video will run on the brand-new Jumbotron that Red would have hated. People will cheer, people will clap, people will cry. It's going to be an emotional night. For one final game, 21 years after our last championship, the Boston Celtics will seem more special than every other NBA team.
After that? Bring on the cheerleaders. We're going to need them.
You have to picture Red looking down and smiling. As with everything else, Red did it his way. Bill's article is well worth the time to read it. [More]
source: ESPN Page 2
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A Memorial Patch
by FLCeltsFan 2:23 PM
October 30, 2006
The Herald Blog is reporting that the Celtics have decided on a memorial patch to wear this season.
Celtics players will wear a black shamrock patch with green lettering spelling out the name Red on the right lapel.
This is a very classy way to remember the greatest coach in NBA history. It also reports that the tribute for Red at Wednesday night's game will be a major production.
Wednesday night’s tribute to Red Auerbach is shaping up as such a major production, the Celtics’ game against the Hornets may eventually fade into the category of a sidelight.
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source: Herald Blog
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Monday's Odds and Ends
Red's Legacy - Keep it Simple
by FLCeltsFan 9:52 AM
October 30, 2006
In reading all of the tributes and memories of Red this morning, one thing has stood out to me. Red's approach to the game was "Keep it simple."
“He always thought the simpler you keep things the easier for the players to (remember),” Bird said. “Especially in tight situations, they knew exactly what they were going to do. He never believed in drawing up a special play at the end of games or the end of a half. He just wanted to keep it simple.
Now contrast this with the article from Saturday's Herald about Doc calling off practice. Rivers did this with Wednesday’s season opener against the Hornets only four days away, and the coaching staff attempting to put in three defensive schemes that were kept on the shelf during the Celtics’ eight exhibition games.
4 days away from the first game and Doc is instituting 3 new defensive schemes that he hadn't brought out during the preseason games. It makes me wonder if Doc isn't making this too hard. Do we have too many plays and too many defensive schemes? Red's philosophy was to keep it simple and make sure that players know their roles. Maybe this is what made his teams so great. Red's players didn't have to deal with multiple offensive and defensive sets and knew exactly what their role was. They could just go out and play ball.
The one thing that always surprised me was how he could get players off another team and they would perform better for the Celtics than they did their previous team. So he had a talent that I think no one’s ever seen before. And he did it year after year.”
Could it be that players don't do well in systems that micromanage and where players don't know their roles? When they got to Red's team, where they knew exactly what was expected of them and where they got to just play basketball, they excelled. The Celtics played as a team. Everyone had their role but they were a team and everyone knew they were a Celtic and that meant something.
The Celtics have dedicated this season to Red and anything less than a playoff appearance would be a travesty when it is dedicated to the best basketball mind that ever was. Maybe this season, Doc should take a page from Red's playbook. Keep it simple. Instead of instituting 3 new defensive schemes 4 days before the first game, teach the players their roles. Set a rotation. Teach them one or two offensive sets and let them just play ball instead of having to remember a multitude of different offensive and defensive sets. I believe that if Doc does this, he can get the most out of our young players. Most have proved that they can play basketball, but are bogged down learning all of Doc's sets.
Red's philosophy was to keep it simple. As we dedicate this season to him, it would benefit Doc a great deal to go back to basics and borrow a page from Red's playbook and just keep it simple.
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Arrangements for Red Set
Sunday, October 29, 2006
by FLCeltsFan 9:12 PM
October 29, 2006
| Arrangements for Red Auerbach have just been released by the family.
Calling hours will be tomorrow (Monday) from 7 to 9 p.m. at Joseph Gawler’s Funeral Home, 5130 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, D.C.
The funeral service will be 10 a.m. Tuesday at the grave site at King David Memorial Gardens, 7482 Lee Highway, Falls Church, VA.
The family has stated that the calling hours and service will be open to all.
After discussions with team officials, Celtic fans should expect there to be a tribute on Wednesday night as the club opens its regular season at the Garden. In addition, it is almost certain there will be a tribute at some point that will entail a night at the Garden with guests from all aspects of Auerbach’s life.
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source:Boston Herald
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