As we go into this off season, Danny will have a lot of decisions to make. We have a lot of young talent who could be about to break out or they could be close to their ceiling. Danny needs to make that determination as to who to keep and who can be traded. Will Gerald finally get it together and show some consistency on offense and show that he can play defense? Will Tony Allen come back from the knee injury with his same explosiveness and ability to get to the basket? Will West improve his right hand and be able to stay healthy for a season? Has Gomes reached his ceiling? Will Ray or Powe be solid players? Will Perk continue to improve? Is Rondo the PG he has been looking for? What to do with Telfair? All these questions and more have to be answered this off season.

To Danny's credit, he has been patient to see which players will step up and become part of the core group of this team. He hasn't made trades just for the sake of making trades and he hasn't traded away our future for a quick fix. This summer, Danny may need to trade away some of our young talent to bring in a veteran to help the team. But which players have proved that they are keepers and are going to become players who will help take the team to the next level?

First of all, Al Jefferson proved this year that he is for real. Last season, there were a lot of people who gave up on him. But this season, when he was finally healthy, he proved that he is going to be one of the best big men in the league. His instincts on offense can't be taught. He still needs work on defense, but he is determined to spend the summer working in Boston and come back even better. Watching Al this season brought back fond memories of McHale in the low post. We absolutely should not trade Al, not even for Garnett or Gasol. He is very close to their level already and has many years ahead of him to dominate in this league.

Rajon Rondo is second on my untouchable list. He is a pure point guard with all the skills and instincts it takes to become a top PG in the league. The only knock on him is that he can't hit the jumper. But he has worked hard on it and we saw great improvement over the season and over the last 9 games of the season, he put up 14.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 5.7 apg and 2.44 spg down and he shot .57% from the field. He is a very hard worker and is going to come back even better next season. He is the point guard that Danny has been looking for and the point guard this team needs to take it to the next level. He made great strides in his rookie year in spite of not getting much playing time early. He will make even bigger strides next season.

Delonte West is a keeper in my opinion as well. He is a combo guard who can play the point when needed and who can also play the 2 guard. Rondo and West make a very good back court. Both play good defense and they seem to play well off of each other. Delonte is the heart of this team. He is a vocal leader who keeps this team together and who is an example on and off the court for the rest of the team.

Perk would complete my top 4 of the core of this team. Just as Al broke out this season when he was finally healthy, I expect the same to happen with Perk next season. Perk is a hard worker and he gives us a defensive presence in the paint. He is going to be even better next season. Perk and Al play very well together and Al has said several times that he plays better with Perk on the court. Perk is going to be an absolute bargain because he is going to break out next season and if we get Oden, Perk will be one of the best back up centers in the league. If we don't get Oden, Perk is going to be a very good starting center. He is tough, he is loyal, he is a hard worker, and he is a team player, willing to play in pain to help his team.

These 4 are my core players for this team, the Untouchables. I didn't include Pierce, although he is pretty much untradable with the contract he signed and because Wyc really likes him and I doubt he will be traded. He is valuable to this team if he can learn to trust his teammates and can stay healthy.

Tony Allen is on the cusp depending on whether he can come back from the knee injury and depending on how his legal issues are settled. He was just getting to that next level with his play, becoming a leader on the team and becoming a force on both ends of the court. He is our best perimeter defender and if he can come back from his injury to get to where he was when he went down, and if he can get out from under the legal problems, he should be a part of the core group.

I have gone back and forth on Green. He has so much potential and we have seen flashes of what he can be, but we have also seen him absolutely clueless on the court. He probably has the best trade value of any of our young players other than Al, but I would hate to trade him and then see him become a perennial all star on another team. I guess I have to trust Danny to make the right decision here since he has seen him play in practice day after day and knows more of whether he will reach that potential or forever struggle with consistency.

Wally brings a veteran presence and can help the team if he can stay healthy, but this is a big if. I wouldn't hesitate to trade him if we could get an upgrade. Wally isn't a very good defender and has proved that he isn't very durable. But if healthy, his ability as a scorer could help to open up the floor for our inside game. Scal would be a good 10-12th man but not a starter where Doc has insisted on using him. He is a good locker room guy and has a good basketball IQ but should not be a starter.

I would love to see Danny keep Powe and Gomes along with our other young players. All of the young players have some great chemistry going and have grown very close. They all want to stay in Boston and all are good character people and hard workers. Powe brings toughness and rebounding and defense, all of which we need. Gomes is a player who makes very few mistakes on the court and is versatile in that he can play both the 3 and 4 effectively. I like Allan Ray, but don't feel that he offers enough to keep him. Telfair is as good as gone after his arrest. Kandi is more than likely gone also since he played very little this season. If we don't get Oden, he may be kept on as a 3rd string center as insurance since he is cheap. Ratliff is talking about coming back next season and playing. However, his biggest value to the team could be his expiring contract.

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Lower Hudson Online has a story with some additional information on Telfair's arrest yesterday. As stated previously, Telfair's passenger, Al Eden Fuentes, 28, of Queens, denied possession of the gun along with Telfair.

I thought at first that Fuentes would take the rap for the gun but after reading this article, I revised my thinking.

Fuentes' lawyer, William Aronwald, said his client works as an assistant to Telfair and is a student at Kingsborough Community College. Fuentes is on probation for criminally negligent homicide as a result of a fatal car crash. Aronwald would not comment on the charge of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. Telfair's lawyer, Ed Hayes, could not be reached for comment.

With Fuentes on probation, there is no way he would claim ownership of a loaded gun.

The article also went on to say that Telfair and Fuentes spent the day in the county police lockup before being taken to Yonkers City Court. Bail was set at $7500 each. After their court appearance, Telfair and Fuentes were taken to the Westchester County jail. They were expected to make bail last night or this morning. Their next court appearance will be May 17, just in time to be a distraction from the lottery.

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A couple things caught my attention today. Every paper in the country had stories about Telfair's arrest but the Herald included this:

“Believe me, he’s not going to wear green again,” said a team source who requested anonymity.

The Globe article included the information that the gun wasn't registerd in Telfair's name as well as a quote from his attorney cautioning against a rush to judgement. What judgement is there to rush to? He was driving with a suspended license. He was going 77 in a 45 mph zone at 4 am. And he was illegally carrying a loaded 45 under the seat. I can see his friend taking the rap for him and gaining a big bank account, but I don't see Telfair returning to Boston. If he earned a spot with his play, maybe. But I honestly feel he was on shaky ground before this and this incident will push him out the door.

The Southeastern Texas Record reports that Perk is being sued by his trainer.

On Sept. 7, 2006, Ryals and Perkins entered into a written contract for services executed in Jefferson County. The contract stated that Ryals would provide training and advice including physical, mental, health, lifestyle, financial, investing and tax matters. In exchange for the services, Perkins would pay Ryals .066312997 percent of his pay from the NBA, but excluding monies he received from endorsements or incentives.

Then, on Sept. 11, Perk signed his 16 million dollar extension and the article says that he is refusing to play the trainer sums due to him. If he owes it, Perk should pay it. If the percentage is correct, it would be 10,610. However, I think they meant to say 6.6312997 percent and that would be 1,061,007, which is a considerable amount. Was someone from the Celtics advising Perk? Did he enter into the contract not realizing the amount? As with many things, time will tell.

The Globe has their predictions for the playoffs. I love the way the article starts:

Welcome to the NBA playoffs. Or, as it's known in Boston, passover. (That's an old Bob Hope line.)

I have a feeling that this is the last offseason where that line will be appropriate. If Danny can't do something with a top 5 pick and all the assets this team has gathered, then something is wrong. Hopefully that pick will become Oden or Durant and we are set. If not, it can be traded for a veteran who can help. With the players we have now improving yet another year and everyone healthy, we should be able to go deep in the playoffs next season.

Finally, there are a couple of articles concerning players who have been linked to the Celtics in trade rumors. The Indy Star reports that Jermaine O'Neal is scheduled for knee surgery. That could lower his trade value, but it is always iffy when a player has knee surgery. They could return just as good or better, or it could be something that will follow them for years later. And TwinCities.com reports that the Wolves owner is open to trading Garnett. This follows on articles last week saying they were looking to sign him to an extension. Depending on where our draft pick falls, Garnett, O'Neal, Gasol and others may be targets for Danny. This is going to be one interesting and important off seasons.

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It is that time again when we give out grades for the Celtics for last season. In grading the players, I can see a lot of improvement over the last season. Here is my 2006-2007 report card:

Tony Allen B-minus Tony was playing very well and was becoming a leader on the team when he went down with the knee injury. He was our best perimeter defender and was playing the best ball of his career. If he had stayed healthy, he would have gotten an even higher grade.

Ryan Gomes B-minus Gomes has shown that he can play both the 3 and the 4. He has increased his range and even added a fairly reliable 3 pointer to his game.

Gerald Green C-minus Gerald got a lot of playing time because of the injuries and showed that he is not quite ready for prime time. He still struggles with defense and in his last few games, seemed to lose his shooting touch as well. He showed flashes of brilliance but just as many games where he looked completely lost.

Al Jefferson A-minus After being written off by many as soft and a bust last season, Big Al came into the season on a mission. He averaged a double double (16 ppg and 11 rpg) this season and has proved to be one of the best young big men in the league. He still needs to improve his defense but next year, expect him to be even better.

Michael Olowokandi D plus He played well when he got the minutes but he was injured much of the season and didn't really contribute all that much. But he was a good locker room guy and didn't cost all that much.

Kendrick Perkins B In spite of a painful case of plantar fasciitis, he continued to play and as the foot got better towards the end of the season, he started to show some excellent defense, taking on Dirk, Duncan, Shaq and others and playing them very well. He is an excellent passer for a big man and showed some decent moves on offense toward the end of the year as well. Al and Perk showed some great chemistry when they finally got to play together. Perk is poised to break out next season just as Al did this season.

Paul Pierce A minus Pierce is still the star of this team, but missed significant time due to injuries for the first time in his career. He came back from the injury out of shape but still proved his importance to the team on his return. His injury gave his teammates time to grow and learn and it also gave Pierce more trust in his teammates.

Kevinn Pinkney Incomplete Pinkney played well during his brief 10 day stay with the Celtics. He may get a shot in summer league and depending on what moves are made this summer, he may get another shot next season.

Leon Powe B Powe proved that he can play in this league. He plays hard and doesn't back down from anyone in the paint. He has a knack for rebounding and his huge wingspan allows him to out rebound taller players. Hopefully Danny keeps him around. He is a character guy who works hard and can only get better. He brings energy, toughness, rebounding and defense to the team, all of which we very much need.

Theo Ratliff Incomplete Ratliff was supposed to be the starting center and would help to mentor our young bigs. He only played in 2 games and wasn't around enough to do much mentoring. He is still planning to play next season but his biggest value may be his expiring contract.

Allan Ray C He came in as a scorer but he struggled at times with his shot. The experiment with Ray at the point wasn't very effective, unless you count the fact that it gave us a couple of key losses down the stretch. His shot improved toward the end of the season but it may not be enough to keep him on the roster. Danny likes scorers though, so who knows.

Rajon Rondo B-plus Rondo started the year behind both Telfair and West at the point but by the end of the season had won the starting spot. He has all the tools to be one of the top PGs in the league. He is a very exciting player and his only knock is that he needs to work on his jumper but even that improved over the course of the season. Over his last 9 games he put up 14.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 5.7 apg and 2.44 spg and he shot 57% from the field. He is our starting PG of the future.

Brian Scalabrine C minus Scal came into the season in much better shape than he did last season. He would be a very good 10th - 12th man and good locker room guy. He plays with energy and his teammates think highly of him but he isn't a starter and that is what Doc constantly tries to make him.

Wally Szczerbiak C Wally was playing well before he was hit with the injury bug but he missed more than half of the season and the games he played in were mostly trying to come back from injury. If healthy, Wally's outside shooting could be important to the team.

Sebastian Telfair D plus Telfair lived up to his reputation as a poor defensive player and wasn't able to effectively run the offense except in brief spurts. Add to this his off court exploits and he should be gone this off season.

Delonte West B Delonte is the heart and soul of this team. He plays hard and encourages his teammates to do the same. It couldn't have been easy for him being shuffled back and forth between shooting guard and point guard, but he never complained and gave 110% every second he was on the court. Rondo at PG and West at SG was our best back court duo and they played well together. He needs to learn how to avoid injury, though.

Doc Rivers D plus Doc is a great person. He is great working with the young players but he is not a good defensive coach and he isn't a good in game coach. I could see keeping Doc for next season if we could bring in a defensive minded assistant. One of our biggest weaknesses is that we don't play defense and Doc is not a defensive minded coach. He also doesn't use his players strengths and often tries to put round pegs in square holes. One of Red's main tenets of coaching was to keep it simple. Doc has multiple offensive and defensive sets that seem hard for the players to keep straight and he would be much better off sticking to Red's theory and keep it simple.

Danny Ainge C Danny deserves credit for having patience and not making trades for the sake of making trades. He has stood fast as far as not giving away our young talent for a quick fix. He has drafted well, but his trades and free agent signings haven't been as successful. But many of his trades had hidden agendas that we don't see all the results from right away. This off season is going to be the most important of Danny's tenure as GM and it will go a long way toward his overall grade as GM.

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Sports Illustrated is reporting that it is now official that Greg Oden is entering the NBA draft this season. Now that Oden and Durant have done their part and have entered the draft, it is up to the ping pong balls to give us one of these two franchise players.

Mike Conley, Jr and Daequan Cook, both OSU freshmen also will make themselves available for the draft but will not hire an agent and so will still have the option of returning to school. Oden is expected to sign Mike Conley, Sr as his agent.

"This is a very tough decision for me," Oden said in a statement released by Ohio State. "I love OSU and love being a Buckeye, but I also have a great opportunity to take my game to the next level and compete with the best players in the world. I've discussed this with family, friends and Coach (Thad) Matta, and I feel the time is right."

History has been unkind to the Celtics from the death of Len Bias in 1986 to the deaths of Red and DJ this season along with the 312 player games missed due to injury this season. The Celtics are way overdue for some luck. And so, we can only wait on pins and needles for the result of the May 22 draft and hope that one of the top 2 picks will be ours.

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The Lower Hudson Journal reports that Telfair was arrested early today after he was stopped for speeding and police found a loaded hand gun in his car. The article reports that he was clocked going 77 in a 45 mph zone. He also produced a Florida driver's license that had been suspended. Florida? He is from NY and plays in Boston and he has a Florida license?

Telfair and a passenger in the car, Al Eden Fuentes, 28, of Queens, were both charged with second-degree possession of a weapon, a felony. Telfair was also hit with a misdemeanor charge of second-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and issued summonses accusing him of speeding and driving without a license violations.

"He was very polite and cooperative with our officer,'' O'Leary said of Telfair, who along with Fuentes was being held by county police this morning.

Both men are expected to be arraigned later today in Yonkers City Court.

Reached shortly before noon, Celtics spokeswoman Erica Hunt said the team would have no comment at this time

I would have to say that Telfair may find himself playing for a different team next year. This, combined with his play this past year and Rondo's rise, may be reason enough for Danny to decide to move him. Either way, I wouldn't be expecting a Sebastian Telfair night at the Gahden any time soon.

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Bill Simmons tosses out a conspiracy theory complete with video proof that David Stern fixed the '85 draft. I don't doubt that there are a lot of conspiracies going on in the NBA to achieve the desired results, whether in the draft, or in games, or in the playoffs. I have watched too many games where the officiating is so one sided that it just leaves you scratching your head. It may be because of a directive from the top or the preferences of a particular ref, but it happens.

While I am on this, one of the things that upsets me most about the NBA is the absolute untouchability of the refs. Coaches, players and owners can't say a thing about the refs, even when there is an obvious miscarriage of justice, without getting fined or suspended. Even in the case of Joey Crawford's tossing Duncan for laughing on the bench, Duncan was fined after the incident for comments made about Crawford. The NBA needs to put a governing authority over the refs, and not just David Stern. They should have a committee of coaches, players, and owners to oversee the officiating so that when there is a problem, it can be fairly assessed. I believe if that were the case, we would be seeing a lot less complaining by everyone and a lot more equity in the calls being made.

Getting back to Simmon's column. One of his readers sent him a video from YouTube of the 85 draft and he points out some disturbing irregularities on it.

Just in case they pull down the clip between the time we post this blog and the time you read this, here's what happens: when an accountant from Ernst & Whinney throws the seven envelopes into the glass drum, he bangs the fourth one against the side of the drum to create a creased corner (we'll explain why this is relevant in a second). Then he pulls a handle and turns the drum around a couple of times to "mix" the envelopes up. At the 5:23 mark of the clip, Stern heads over to the drum, unlocks it and awkwardly reaches inside for the first envelope (the No. 1 pick). He grabs three envelopes that are bunched together, pretends not to look (although he does) and flips the three envelopes so the one on the bottom ends up in his hand. Then he pulls that envelope out at the 5:32 mark ... and, of course, it's the Knicks envelope.
If you look closely right at the 5:31 mark, right as the commish yanks that Knicks envelope out, there's a noticeable crease in the corner of the envelope. You can see it for a split-second -- as he pulls the envelope up, it's on the corner that's pointing toward the bottom of the jar.

There's a giant crease! It's right there! The same one the accountant created as he was throwing the envelopes into the drum!

So you're telling me that, out of the seven envelopes in that glass drum, during a lottery when the NBA desperately needed the most ballyhooed college center in 15 years to save the league's marquee franchise, the commissioner coincidentally pulled out the envelope with a giant crease in the corner that happened to have the Knicks logo in it? This is the Zapruder film of sports tapes, isn't it?

Now the question we have to ask is, since we no longer have envelopes that can be marked, is there a way to fix the lottery now? Would there be a reason to? Just as Stern is very serious about protecting the integrity of the league with his dress codes, fines, and protection of the officials, he needs to be very careful now that there can be no possible appearance of inpropriety in the lottery process. If Stern's integrity comes into question, teams tanking or Danny sitting next to Durant's mom would be the least of his worries.

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It's time for the media to put out the season's report cards and both the Herald and the Patriot Ledger have theirs out today. I am working on one to post here soon and I am sure we will be seeing them everywhere during the lull between season's end and the lottery. I was very surprised to see Bulpett give Ray a higher grade than Rondo.

The Globe is reporting what ESPN and FoxSports reported yesterday: Oden is set to declare for the draft. The official announcement is expected to come today. Teammates Conley and Cook will also be declaring but not hiring an agent. This sets the table for one of the strongest drafts in recent memory with not one, but two franchise players available. Let's hope that after all these years of tragedy and bad luck for the Celtics, we finally have something go our way when the lottery comes.

While a lot of talk has been thrown around about the Celtics tanking, the team who has tanked the most obviously the past two years has been the Timberwolves. Who can forget Madsen's three point barrage last season to give them the pick above the Celtics. Or this year's tank job of losing their last 7 games and the grand finale of being blown out by the Grizzlies in the final game to keep their pick this season. If they had fallen out of the bottom 10, they would have had to surrender their pick to the Clippers and 2 years later a pick to the Celtics. But by masterfully dropping to the bottom 10 teams for the second season in a row, they keep their pick. If the Celtics are questioned about Gomes' comments, they HAVE to question the Wolves.

The Indy Star points out that Rick Carlisle has likely coached his last game in Indiana. In spite of his success as a coach, Bird stepped down after 3 years because he believed that after that period, a coach loses his team. Carlisle just finished his 4th season in Indy and their finish out of the playoffs would seem to seal Carlisle's fate. Hey Danny! Doc has been in Boston for 3 years now and it would be a great time to bring in a coach with a Celtics pedigree.... If Carlisle is available, Danny should go get him.

A few other links to check out include a few articles on Al Jefferson from the Herald, Patriot Ledger and Can Danny. Also, several articles call for optimism with an eye on the upcoming lottery, including The Patriot Ledger, Projo, and the MetroWest Daily.

There is this from the Patriot Ledger article.

Think Pierce was the leader of this team? Think again. Allen’s on-court electricity carried over to his teammates - once he turned himself loose after his original knee surgery. ‘‘As the light went on, as a coach, it was probably for me the proudest stretch I had for individual players,’’ Rivers said, ‘‘to watch him go from where he was to what he was becoming. Probably the biggest disappointment for me was when he went down because I saw where he was about to go, even this year.’’

The lowest point of the season for me was seeing Tony crumble to the floor after that blown dunk. Tony has the ability to become a leader on this team as long as he doesn't end up in jail (his legal problems still haven't been solved) and as long as he can come back from the injury and regain his previous form.

Finally, in spite of the fans booing Doc when he was introduced for the final game. In spite of all the calls from fans and press for Doc to be replaced, the Patriot Ledger has an article calling for his return. One of Danny's biggest decisions this season may not be who he picks in the draft or what trades he makes, but what he does about the coach of the team.

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The End? Shhh! Is it over? Have the tanks all gone? Is the Doc still in the house? Dammit, Doc's still here. And he's speaking for some reason. Speaking about the 91-89 loss to Deroit and the "Flip Shot" (pun intended) heard 'round the world, um well, at least around the local sports bah's. C's Coach Doc Rivers had this to say, "You know, fitting end. That's how the season has gone." My how the season has gone. A last minute loss, as usual. Just another day in the life of Doc's Celtics. I think the gunmen who shot at Detroits' Flip Murray, were actually disillusioned Celtics fans looking for Doc! But is it possible Rivers feels as bad as us!? Do you give a dump? “You just didn’t feel like you had a lot of control over winning,” Rivers said, “and that was tough. I don’t ever want to go through it again.” Ready! Aim! ... Feeling under the gun, Doc? The bad jokes only get worse folks! The truth is, if Doc didn't feel under the gun before, he's in front of the firing squad now, he knows it. He knows because he led the C's to the second worst record since going a franchise-worst 15-67 in 1996-97 (see, The Duncan Conspiracy). But the big but here is the extension talks. Should he stay or should he go (cue Clash record)? If this Ainge quote is any hint to Doc's future, I'd say he is staying, “Doc is a good coach. Doc did a good job actually in my opinion, and that’s why we’d like to keep him as coach of this team and give him a real opportunity and chance to coach. That doesn’t mean he’s perfect, but I think he did a very good job of coaching this team.” Maybe the poker-faced Ainge is playing a hand. But let me say this, if he does get an extension, I'm taking bets on how many games into the 2007-08 season before Ainge tosses Doc...on his...but I digress. Even Doc is asking for his last request. He's banking on a playoff promise in exchange for Ainges ink, “I think I should be,” Doc speaking of the possibility of being fired. "I think we’re going to be in the playoffs. If we’re healthy and with what we have and what I think we’re going to be adding, we’re going to make the playoffs. I have no doubt about it. I think we are set up to make a nice jump, hopefully a Toronto-type jump. I believe in that 100 percent.” Just Say No! Personally, I think Doc shouldn't even make it that far. Despite his player rapport and patience for the young guys, he's otherwise a failure. The fact that he used 25 different starting lineups, compared with 18 last year and 12 in 2004-05, proves his horrible, dare I say, rotation system. You, me, and everyone else has taken the injuries into consideration. Hell, I'm probably legally blind after watching this broadcast season. But listen, I've been sitting here writing this high school editorial to you for a couple hours. I did it because Ainge expects Doc to keep his word. And as usual, I am required to believe, “I won’t be satisfied until we’re playing deep into the playoffs. I’d be very disappointed if we’re not,” Ainge said. Disappointed! I must have a lower tolerance for disappointment. With every bad coaching decision, I turn green and then have to turn the channel. I always come back like some sucker. Hustle & Powe And what I'm a sucker for is some of the C's players future possibilities. I mean, despite this season and this finale against Detroit, and the tank talk, and the Doc extension talks. We Celtics fans do have a bunch of positives to keep us interested long enough not to care that the ship is sinking with Doc. Namely, Al Jefferson Rojon Rondo, and Leon Powe. At least some of Ainges draft picks are actually panning out. Hope that I didn't just curse us! Oh wait...phew! I'm not the jinx. Is it you, Tommy? Naw! Ahem, let's get back to the positives. Like I mentioned before Al Jefferson has really been dedicated to improving and making his name. And his name just may be Mr. Hard Work, Big Al Jefferson, "The only good thing about this season being over is that I'll count down the days until training camp," Jefferson said "I'll just count down the days, get the playoffs over with, the summer league over with and get right back up here and get ready." Gotta love Big Al! Also, Gerald gave us a glimpse. There's lot's of analysis from C's fans about Green. Mostly, that GG was inconsistent and lacks physical presence. All true, but I also point to his flashes of his great potential, which were unfortunately, overshadowed by our losses. “When I see that Al’s improved and Gerald’s improved, but we lost, I don’t come to work the next day feeling good,” Rivers said. Al's Not Pointing Fingers Jefferson is not. Maybe his play of this season affords him the luxury of not being pointed at. According to Big Al, you better point them at your mirror! “Who are you going to point the finger at?” Jefferson asked. “You’ve got to look in the mirror. We’re the ones out there playing. So I think everybody on this team knew we couldn’t point the finger at anybody." Mr. Jefferson bring about a good point. We don't know what it was like all season with the injuries and crazy rotations Al made sure he got his thoughts off his chest further, by saying, “This is a young team. We haven’t been in this league long enough to point fingers at each other or blame somebody else for why we’re losing. It’s all us together as one unit.” Does Jefferson just know the right things to say or is the kid great!? I think he'll be great. He's just real good right now. He's got a real motivational leadership way about him. His youthful enthusiasm is refreshing. Paul Spotting Now if all this mess hasn't been bad enough, we've got our Super-Star in the papers because of rumors of unhappiness and trades. Pierce is at least being frank and is exhibiting more patience, “I haven’t come to those types of speculations,” Pierce said. “Right now, I’m waiting to see what happens with this ballclub over the summer, waiting to see if certain moves will be made to better this ballclub. I’m just focused on this ballclub getting better.” Was he reading from a cue card? Summer ballclub. Lottery ballclub. Focus ballclub. Rivers also sticks to the script, “I think Paul can sit back and watch what we do this summer,” Rivers said, “and after the summer, I think it will be easy for him to want to stay.” Tommy At The Point If you hadn't already heard, Tommy Heinsohn will represent the Celtics at the May 22 lottery. Rivers seems happy with the decision then says some interesting and uninteresting things, “He’s been pretty lucky his whole life,” Rivers said speaking of Tommy. “I think we should send Tommy, I think we should send (Bob) Cousy, I think we should send (John) Havlicek. Just don’t send any of the guys from this year, but that luck has not been very good.” Heinsohn has been lucky? Who would've guessed our Mascot "Lucky" has been Heinsohn all this time (rimshot)! Oh no, just don't send this years team. They're responsible for all bad luck, past and present. Ladies & Gentlemen! Coach Rivers! If you were one of his players, would that be funny to you!? My sense of humor is probably different. Or so I've been told. In any event, just do me a favor and make sure you turn off the lights before you leave. Thanks. source: Celtics Green [Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!]

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It was a bitterly disappointing campaign that saw us drop 8 or 9 games in the standings after it was thought that last year was as bad as it could get. Over 300 man games were lost due to injury. An opportunity was squandered to get off to a good start with a pansy opening month schedule. The coach failed to set his lineup and used combinations that seemed to defy matchup logic. As a result, the team went through one of the worst stretches in NBA history and thoroughly depressed it's fans. How the Garden crowd managed to stay supportive is beyond me, but I suspect it is the kids of old schoolers from the 1970's and 1980's that inhabit this place and are clueless to what Celtic Pride really means. They just don't seem to hear Johnny Most's irrascable voice yelling at the referees. We became doormats in our building. The low point of the year was the Kobe bandwagoners shouting MVP MVP. Losses to preserve our 19.9% chance to get Greg Oden or 38.9% chance to get Oden or Durant became revered. I found myself rooting FOR THE KNICKS TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS just so they deny the Bulls a higher pick and that Isiah will be extended. I got one out of two wishes there.

The win in San Antonio and the win Monday night in Miami were two of the memorable wins. There was that 5 game winning streak in December to put us in the Atlantic Division lead at 10 and 13 just before Christmas. Then Pierce got hurt and the rest of the team got hurt. We had the talent to win this division but not the coaching and certainly not the front office. Yet the owners support both (I guess the goody two shoes image sold enough tickets to make them money).

For this summer and the future:

Yes, May 22 will be a very important day in our history as Celtics fans. We can pick anywhere from 1 to 5. The key will be how well Danny Ainge and his scouting staff prepare for all the possibilities and opportunities that have presented themselves. It is possible that the Celtics could get totally screwed by drawing the #5 pick and not being able to package it with Ratliffe's contract for a suitable veteran and Pierce demands a trade out of Boston. In which case - 40 cents on the dollar plus a couple of future #1's. Then Doc will have to rely on Rondo, West, Green, Jefferson, and Perkins with Tony Allen, Gomes, Scalabrine, and flotsam from Pierce's trade to carry next years load. The team will improve only because of experience. Then decisions have to be made about who to extend and who to let go. The roster will keep turning over and over with no improvement just like the Pitino Era. Pierce is trying to sell Boston to his veteran NBA friends but they will tell Pierce to get his ass out of Boston. There are 10 NBA franchises that cannot rise up unless they get a lucky draft pick or trade or free agent signing. One or two of those get out of the bottom ten every year. Is it our turn?

Success is never guarenteed in the NBA or anywhere else in todays turbelent world. Take care and God Bless Celtics Nation.

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The Celtics scrapped and played hard and stayed with the Pistons, who sat Billups, Hamilton, and Webber, from start to finish. Along with all the other players the Celtics had on the bench with injuries, Delonte West sat with pulled ligaments in his left hand. So, even in the last game of the season we were still dealing with injuries. The Celtics tied the game at 89 on two clutch free throws by Rajon Rondo with just over 3 seconds left. But as happened so many times this season, we couldn't get a stop when we needed one and Flip Murray hit a jumper at the buzzer.

It is hard not go get excited about this group of young players. Rondo has gotten better and better as the year has worn on. Tonight he had 19 points, including 2 clutch free throws to tie the game at 89, along with 4 rebounds, 9 assists, and 6 steals. This kid is just so exciting! Telfair finished with 2 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist. I get the feeling that he is trying so hard to prove himself that he just pushes things too much and ends up making mistakes because of it. Allan Ray started at shooting guard in place of Delonte and finished with 18 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists. Donny Marshall said in the post game show that he thought Ray was playing for a job with another team next season.

Al once again proved that he is one of the best young bigs in the NBA. He finished with a double double, putting him 3rd on the all time list for double doubles per season. He finished with 17 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. He showed a very nice give and go game in the low post with both Rondo and Gomes that will be a very effective weapon next season. Perk had another good game finishing with 4 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal.

Gomes had a solid game with 19 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1 block. Green once again struggled shooting only 2-10 from the field for 5 points to go with 2 rebounds and 1 assist. He seems to have lost confidence and hesitates before he shoots. He is best when he shoots off the catch or stops and pops without putting so much though into it. He seems as though he has regressed over the last part of the season and I hope he can regain his confidence over the off season and come back next year with a leap like Al made this season.

With all the tragedy and injuries we have had this season, it is good that it is over. But we have much to look forward to next season. Ratliff says he is coming back and feels he can still help the team. Wally and Pierce should be healthy next season. Every player should come back better. We will have a top draft pick or another veteran who will be able to help the team. As we draw the curtains on this season, we can look forward to next season with great anticipation of good things to come. And so we end the 2006-2007 season and we begin the most important off season in the past 20 years.

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The Sixth Star Award is given to the Celtic who best exemplifies Celtic Pride. It is an award voted on by the fans. Last season, Delonte was the winner and tonight they announced that Al Jefferson has won the award for this season. Al certainly has exemplified Celtics Pride with his work ethic and hustle this year. His development is one of the bright spots in this season marred by tragedy and injuries. Congratulations to Big Al for winning the Sixth Star Award for the 2006-2007 season.

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The Celtics announced today that Rich Gotham has been promoted from COO to team President. Previous presidents include Red Auerbach and Rick Pitino (one good and one bad). In his role as president, Gotham will be responsible for all aspects of the Celtics business operations.

Gotham was named COO in June of 2006. As team president, Gotham will continue to be active with community outreach and fundraising for the Celtics Shamrock Foundation along with his other responsibilities with the team. For more about Gotham, you can check out the story from the Boston Sports Review on him from last summer, or the Globe article from July 2006.

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Celtics.com has announced that Brian Scalabrine has undergone successful right hand surgery at the New England Baptist Hospital this morning. Since Scal was sitting out with a hamstring injury, the hand surgery comes as somewhat of a surprise. No mention was made before this of a problem with his hand so it leaves me wondering when and how he injured his hand. The Globe has added that it was to remove scar tissue from the hand.

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We are finally at the end of this long and draining season. I know that if it was draining for the fans, it had to take a lot out of the players. We saw a lot of lows this season with so many injuries that started in training camp and never let up. As of tonight, the team has lost 304 player games to injury, a figure that has to rate up there at the top for games missed by a team. We saw Telfair regress from starter to 3rd string and Ratliff play exactly 2 games while watching Brandon Roy lead the ROY race. We lost Red just before the season began and we lost DJ in the middle of the season. We had the league's longest losing streak with 18 consecutive losses. Finally we have to endure all the tanking talk and accusations leveled at the Celtics, along with comments from Gomes and Doc that validate these accusations.

But it wasn't all darkness for the Celtics this season. The brightest spot has to be the emergence of Al Jefferson. He has averaged a double double for the season and of late has become a handful for any team to cover in the paint. We haven't seen low post moves like his since Kevin McHale walked through those doors. And we hear him say that he hasn't even scratched the surface of what he can accomplish. We hear about how hard he is going to work this summer and we can't help but get excited.

Another very bright spot is the play of Rajon Rondo. Danny has been looking for that perfect point guard for this team. Marcus Banks wasn't it. Gary Payton wasn't it. Sebastian Telfair wasn't it. But with the recent play of Rondo, we are seeing the point guard of the future. He has instincts that you just can't teach and even as a rookie has impressed. His only knock has been his shot but he has been working hard on his shot all season and we have seen a great improvement as the year has worn on. He just has everything it takes to become a top PG: instincts, the ability to see the floor, great decision making, huge hands and incredible defense. He is for real and another reason to be excited about next season.

Finally, we have a chance to draft one of 2 franchise players expected to be in this season's draft. For 20 years this franchise has been under a dark cloud starting with the death of Len Bias and continuing with the death of Reggie Lewis, the Pitino fiasco, the loss of the 1997 lottery and on and on. It is time for things to turn around and the sun to shine on the Celtics again. Next season, we will have a top draft pick in the fold. The patience with the young players will begin to pay off and the luck of the Irish will be back with the Celtics. This season was dark, but the future is very bright.

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David Stern was on Sports Center and addressed the topic of teams tanking to get a better draft choice. The comments that Gomes made were central to the discussion and actually were the lead in to the story. Stern plans to meet with Gomes to discuss his comments.

Hopefully when he meets with Gomes, he will decide that the comments were just the result of a young player who was frustrated with not playing at the end of a game. Let's hope that Gomes doesn't throw his team and coach under the bus. If Stern decides to somehow punish the Celtics, then he will have to also deal with Milwaukee, the Timberwolves, the Grizzlies, and others, although they didn't have players and coaches shooting their mouths off about tanking. It is a real shame that the once proud Celtics have come to this.

In his chat on ESPN, Stern addressed the lottery in a couple of questions and mentioned that they would be looking at the system after this season to see if it should be changed in some way. When asked outright about teams tanking, he had this to say:

I like a system that gives the teams that don't make the playoffs the best chance to improve. What we deal with in all sports is trying to foster competitveness, particulary for those teams that have done very poorly. But there has been a lot of comment about this year and I think it merits our going back and seeing whether the system needs some adjusting.

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Carnival of the NBA #43 has been posted over on Red's Army! John has outdone himself with a very creative offering of NBA Idol. Be sure to head on over and check it out.

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According to ESPN, Jerry West is stepping down as the GM of the Memphis Grizzlies. It seems like a strange time to step down with the Grizzlies close to getting a top pick in the draft which is sure to become a franchise player. He came out of retirement to take over the Grizzlies and his contract is up at the end of this year. He may just be tired of all the hassles. With the Grizzlies for sale and the situation there very much in flux, I can't say as I blame him.

I know there are many who are calling for Ainge to step down as well but I feel that Danny has done a good job with this team and has brought them a long way from where we were when he took over. We have a very exciting team with a ton of potential. This summer will be the most important off season in recent times and I expect Danny to make the right moves for this franchise in the draft as well as considering any trades that come up. The Celtics could very well come in next season as a surprise contender.

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There is an interview with Danny Ainge in this morning's Herald. A couple of things stand out to me in this interview.

“I had hoped we’d be doing some things now, but one thing that Red (Auerbach) always told me was that sometimes the best deals are the ones you don’t make. But it’s difficult to be patient. Initially we were just trying to acquire as much talent as we could, and even though we traded Antoine (Walker), I don’t think that took away from the thought that we were trying to add talent and young athletes. We’ve kind of stuck to that plan, and now I think we do have young talent that’s developing. At this point we’re grateful that we’ve not done some deals, and even as tough as this year was, there are some very bright spots for our future. I think we’ll be rewarded for being patient.”

Reports were that Danny was including Al in trade talks for Iverson. Al has proved this season that he is certainly one of the top young big men in this league and he can only get better. I agree with Danny that we will be rewarded for being patient and not trading our young core players before we knew which ones are capable of taking it to the next level.

When asked if he regrets any of his moves, he had this to say:

A: “I do. There’s some things that we have done that I would like to take back. But I don’t really feel like there’s anything we’ve done that has set us back or that’s going to prevent us from accomplishing our goal.”

He wouldn't specify which moves he would like to undo, but I would hazard a guess that maybe the Ratliff/Telfair trade might be one of them. Or maybe it was bringing Walker back for his second stint with the Celtics. Or maybe letting Payton get away. I can't see him wanting to have Blount back but maybe he is second guessing the Ricky or Wally part of it. It is hard to tell, but the important part of his statement is that whatever move he would like to take back, he doesn't feel that it will prevent us from accomplishing our goal.

My favorite quote in the interview is this one:

“Some people may disagree, and I feel like the statement I’m about to make opens up a whole can of worms for discussion, but I believe without question that this group that we have right now is a playoff basketball team . . . with no changes. But that’s not our only objective. Just being a playoff team is not all we’re looking for. In order to be better than that, there’s two things that have to happen: We need to speed up the process with our young players so they can give us what we need, or we need to make trades for more experienced players.”

I also believe without question that this grop is a playoff team, with no changes, other than to have everyone healthy. I also like the fact that he is thinking of speeding up the process with the young players instead of a wholesale trade mentaltity to bring in veterans. As we have seen too many times in the past, we have traded young talent to bring in veterans and then have seen the young players we traded become All Stars while the veterans we brought in were no longer in the league. I believe that every one of our young players have a great work ethic and every one of them will work hard in the off season to speed up their development.

As for his thoughts on the draft, this quote is interesting:

"I believe that it is a deep draft and I believe there are some potential All-Stars -- and some are even more prepared to play than the No. 1 and No. 2 picks in the draft.”

If this is the truth and not just "Danny Speak", Danny has someone else in mind beyond the big two. Danny's trades and free agent signings may not have been the best in the world, but his drafting is second to none. I have faith that wherever we draft, Danny will get us the piece that will put us on the next level. He is a good judge of young talent.

Finally, there is this:

"I think Doc has done a good job. I watch Doc in practice. I watch the players respond to him. I watch what he does and what he’s teaching them. When I watch the games, it’s my job to determine whether it’s the player that’s causing the execution issues or is it the coach. And right now I’m at the stage where I think almost all the mistakes that are being made on the court are more related to the players than they are to the coach.”

I have been really down on Doc this season. I have mixed emotions on bringing him back but am leaning toward giving him a chance next season but wait on the extension until he proves that he can coach. I haven't watched the team in practice so can't say whether Danny is right or wrong. But Doc's rotations and in game decisions haven't been very good and that has nothing to do with the players. Maybe Danny is just waiting for a particular coach to become available (Carlisle, maybe?) to replace Doc and until then he has to be positive and keep him in place. Whether or not Doc gets an extension and if he does, how long, will tell us alot about Danny's real feelings about Doc.

It is a good interview and you should read it if you get a chance.

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The Celtics finished up their final road game of the season in style. They fought back from a 10 point deficit to take the lead and keep it close throughout the 4th quarter. With the score tied at 89, the Celtics had the ball with 19 seconds to go. Green's shot on the baseline was blocked out of bounds with 2.6 seconds on the clock. Rondo inbounded the ball to Big Al who hit a hook shot with the defender in his face to put the Celtics on top with .1 second to go. Perk blocked the alley oop pass by the Heat and the Celtics got their first win in 8 games.

Doc is certainly using different strategies in the last 2 games then he did in the previous 5. Rondo, West, Gomes, and Al are playing big minutes. Ray is back down to 3 minutes, Powe played only 11 minutes and Telfair played only 17 minutes. It is also interesting to note that when he should be getting more minutes and playing strong going into the off season, Green seems to be getting fewer and playing worse. Tonight he played 19 minutes and shot 1-9 from the field for 3 points to go with 2 rebounds and 1 steal.

Rondo just gets better and better. His shot is improving and he just seems to be everywhere, going for the steal, scrapping for loose balls, and grabbing rebounds. Tonight he drove into the lane and ran into Shaq. He looked like a rag doll hitting the floor. The Heat announcers said that they bet he wouldn't try to venture into the lane again. Three plays later, there he was again, drawing another blocking foul on Shaq and hitting the floor again. He also was involved in a collision with James Posey and he hit the ground hard after having Posey land on him. But he was up and manning the point for the next play while Posey went to the locker room with a sprained wrist and shoulder. Rondo finished with 17 points on 5-10 shooting to go with 6 rebounds and 8 assists.

Delonte started off slow, shooting airballs on his first two shot attempts but came on strong to finish with 28 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 1 block and the Tommy Award. He and Rondo make a great back court duo. Telfair finished with 3 points, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. Allan Ray had only 1 foul and 1 turnover to show for his 3 minutes of playing time.

Perk played only 25 minutes and came out of the game when Shaq did and finished with 2 points and 9 rebounds. Doc put him in for the last play and he blocked the Heat's attempt to tie the game on their last shot. Powe had 7 points and 1 rebound in 11 minutes. Gomes finished with 11 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists.

The Celtics out-rebounded the Heat 43-30 and hustled the whole game, never giving up, even when down by 10. This game gives me hope for the future even without a top 2 draft pick. Rondo is for real and he will be even better next season. Al Jefferson is also for real and with tonight's game winner proved that he can be a go to guy at the end of games. He is a vocal leader on the floor and that is something we very much needed. Of course, getting a top 2 pick sure would be nice, but if we don't, we still are going to be a very good team next season.

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It was interesting to see that Doc didn't experiment with Telfair at the 2 and Ray at the point down the stretch. Al Jefferson played 37 minutes. West played 41 minutes. Telfair and Ray were on the bench and Doc kept his starters in down the stretch. What a difference a clinch makes.

The Celtics started off playing well, up on at the end of the first quarter. Then, they couldn't seem to hit a shot in the second and fell behind by 19 at the half. They chipped away at the lead to come back to within 1 in the final minute but with the refs as well as the Magic against them, they came up just short of the win. They had the ball with 4.2 seconds and a chance to tie and even though West was very obviously fouled on his drive to the hoop, there was no call and his shot was blocked and the Magic clinched a playoff spot with the win.

Rondo shows more and more that he is the point guard of the future. He played 43 minutes and is showing poise and maturity in running the point as well as showing that he is a defensive threat as well. He finished with 16 points on 5-9 shooting to go with 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. His jumper is coming along and he looks much more confident shooting it and he has proved that if they back off him, he is a real threat to get to the hoop. Telfair played only 7 minutes and had nothing to show for it in the box score except 2 fouls.

West started at the 2 and played 41 minutes. He finished with 19 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. I like having West start and play at the 2 guard. Our back court of Rondo and West will cause problems for a lot of teams next season. Ray played only 16 minutes and finished with 3 points, 3 assists, and 1 steal. Green had a very off night and scored only 5 points on 1-7 shooting along with 2 rebounds and 1 assist.

Just before the game, Doc said that Al would be starting but that he didn't expect him to play much or very well. Al played 37 minutes and was dominant in the paint finishing with 28 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. It was almost as though he was never injured (wink, wink). We haven't seen moves like his since Kevin McHale walked through those doors. Perk had 6 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 4 blocks in 25 minutes. He was limited by foul trouble but he also played excellent defense on Howard. I love the combination of Perk and Al as they have great chemistry and play very well off of each other.

Gomes played only 24 minutes. I wonder if maybe that was a message for talking too much about not playing because the Celtics were in the hunt for ping pong balls. He finished with 6 points on 3-10 shooting, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal. I don't expect any quotes from Gomes after this game. Powe played 20 minutes, mostly due to foul trouble for Perk and Al and as always, he made the most of his minutes, with 3 points and 5 rebounds and some good defense in the paint.

It was great to see the Celtics fight back from 19 down to almost win the game. But it was the starters on the floor and not Ray playing point guard down the stretch. I am excited about these kids and feel that next seasons, even without any changes, this team will be in the playoffs if they can stay healthy. They played an interview with Al during the game and he said that we are just scratching the surface of the player he is going to be and that next season he will be much better because of the work he plans to put in during the offseason. We have some of the hardest working young players in the league and I believe they all will come back much better.

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Doc just announced that Al will play tonight. He doesn't expect him to play very well or very long but Al feels he is healthy enough to play and so will play. Conveniently, it comes after we clinched the 2nd worst record. He will be in the starting lineup. Also announced is that the team didn't pick up another 10 day contract on Pinkney and let him go back to his D-League team. Kevinn Pinkney, we hardly knew ye....

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Apparently, I am not the only one who is upset by Doc's creative lineups at the end of the games lately. Lineups that would guarantee that we wouldn't be competitive down the stretch. Consider having Allan Ray at the point during crunch time against the Bucks and not calling a time out to set up the final play. Am I wrong in believing that these kids deserve better? Ryan Gomes has been rather outspoken lately about Doc's coaching and the attempt to gain the best possible drafting position. In the AP Post Game report after the Bucks game, Gomes had this to say: "I probably (would have played), but since we were in the hunt for a high draft pick, of course things are different," Gomes said. "I understand that. Hopefully things get better. Now that we clinched at least having the second-most balls in the lottery, the last three games we'll see what happens. We'll see if we can go out and finish some games." This morning's Herald has another quote from Gomes: “The players weren’t thinking about the lottery and all that,” said Ryan Gomes, “but reality is reality. Now that our position in the lottery is set, hopefully we can go out and win some games. “Things could change now, but another thing you’ve got to think of is that he (Rivers) was doing that for a reason. It could be for that reason (lottery position) or it could be for getting the younger guys some playing time or seeing who’s going to be here next year. There’s a lot of things that go into that.” It is obvious from reading these quotes that Doc's rotatons haven't set well with at least one of the players. With the players giving all they had, I imagine it didn't set well to see the coach obviously not trying as hard to win. I would say that they have lost some degree of respect for Doc judging by Ryan's words. Speaking of players giving all they have, Leon Powe almost won that game against the Bucks by himself. I love this kid. And apparently, so does Delonte. He had this to say about Powe after the Bucks game: “He’s a beast. He’s man-child. He’s going to be a great player in this league. He can rebound the ball. He has a nose for the ball. He’s always getting the and-one’s, and he’s causing havoc down in the paint. That’s the type of player you need to build championship-type teams. You need guys like that.” I hope Danny realizes this and keeps Powe around because he is going to continue to get better and will be the physical force every team needs. The knock on him is that he is undersized but he plays much bigger than his size because of his huge wing span. Clifford Ray heard the same thing over his career and because of his long arms he also was able to play much bigger. And a player of Powe's integrity is good to have around. I have been greatly dismayed by the number of articles out recently saying that Danny is ready to give Doc an extension. Doc is the only coach in NBA history to lead 2 different teams to 18 game losing streaks. His disregard for defense has been a thorn in my side since he came here. A team doesn't just pick up defense by playing it while working on offense and Doc seems to think they do. His rotations and in game decision making has been driving me crazy for years, not just during the past few tanks. I just don't see where bringing Doc back will be a good thing. Now, it appears that he has drawn contempt from at least one player who didn't like sitting by and watching Doc throw games. Maybe the others aren't as vocal as Gomes is, but I am sure they feel the same way. Adrian Wojnarowski examines coaches in question in an article on Yahoo Sports today and feels the same as I do. Extending Doc is a waste. Even bringing him back for the last year of his contract is a stretch in my opinion. Wojnarowski has this to say: If Boston does this, it must believe its players are stupid. So the Celtics give Rivers an extension this summer, and thus, the players say to themselves, "Now we have to play hard for him, have to listen, because we're sure he'll be around for the long term?" He mentions that Doc tries to take credit for Jefferson's improvement this year. Doc had nothing to do with Al's improvement. It was Clifford Ray, who has proved himself with team after team that his coaching gets the best out of big men. If anyone should be extended, is should be Ray, who is the most valuable coach we have on the staff. Doc is an offensive minded coach and said as much last season when he said that he works mostly on offense in practice because that is the hardest to get through to players. The defense works itself out because after all, half the team is playing defense when they are working on the offensive sets. Doc is all about his offensive sets and his system. A system that doesn't use the strengths of any of his players. I go back to the success of Red Auerbach's teams. His motto was keep it simple. Doc mentioned at the end of training camp that he was introducing 8 new offensive sets. Is it any wonder the players have trouble keeping up? He micromanages the team and we would be much better off with a coach that has Red's mindet. Keep it simple. Use a player's strengths instead of trying to fit them all into square holes. Wojnarowski also addresses Doc's inability to coach defense. For now, Rivers doesn't need more money to make his team better. He could use a better coaching staff, especially a savvy defensive mind on his bench. Instead of paying Rivers for a year or two that he'll probably never coach, the Celtics would be wiser to invest in a Dick Harter-type aide to sit with Doc next season. If Rivers really wanted to solidify himself in the locker room, that would be a smarter way to go. All I can add to this is a hearty AMEN! [Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!]

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