Owning up to faults, final thoughts
Some quick thoughts after the final game of the 2007-08 season:
* If you cover the NBA long enough, you realize that your perception often differs from reality. For instance, I have long believed that Boston's Paul Pierce was overrated. I thought he was a guy who scored a lot of points on a bad team and could not help a good team win. What in the name of Allen Iverson was I thinking? Could I have been more wrong? In his first NBA Finals, Pierce was the MVP. He played well. He played hurt. He played with tenacity, determination and heart. The Celtics probably would not have beaten the Lakers without him. Humbly, I stand corrected.
* I remember Jazz assistant coach Phil Johnson telling me, back in 1996, that he thought UConn's Ray Allen was the best player in the draft. Allen slipped to fifth in the first round, where he was taken by Minnesota. The Bucks immediately traded him to Milwaukee for the rights to Stephon Marbury. Given the careers of Allen and Marbury — and Allen's superb performance in the Finals — I'm guessing the Timberwolves would like a mulligan on that trade. In any event, I was happy for Allen who, for the last decade, I have found to be one of the most polite, helpful and available interviews in the NBA. When players like him win championships, you realize that nice guys don't always finish last.
* When the TV cameras panned to Boston boss Danny Ainge in the final moments of Game 6, I couldn't help but remember the first time I met him. It was the late 1970s. I was new on my first job in Laramie, Wyo. Ainge was a two-sport star at BYU who was in town for a basketball game. Told BYU would work out the night before the game, I went to the practice at Wyoming's old Fieldhouse, hoping to talk to Ainge and get a story. I'm not sure if it was before or after practice, but at one point I sat down with him and we started talking about BYU basketball, the upcoming game against Wyoming and which sport he planned to play professionally — basketball or baseball. Things were going well, I thought, until then-BYU coach Frank Arnold saw us, asked me what the heck I thought I was doing and informed me that the interview was over and scurried out of the gym like a kid who was just scolded by a father who was incredulous over an act of such irresponsibility. I quickly thanked Ainge, who apologized for the abrupt conclusion to the interview. But I got enough for my story. I still remember my lead: "Danny Ainge can hit a jump shot and a curve ball. That's the problem." As it turned out, Ainge couldn't hit a curve ball well enough to star with the Toronto Blue Jays. But the Celtics' title is another milestone in a brilliant basketball career and I congratulate him — if it's O.K. with Arnold.
* In their first year, it turns out, the Utah Flash of the D-League were an affiliate of the NBA champions. General manager David Fredman said the Flash do not get any kind of financial reward for their ties to the Celtics, but it was ìa terrific honor for us to be associated with them. Obviously I became a Celtic fan this year for the first time in my life.î Rookie guard Gabe Pruitt was the Celtic player who spent the most time with the Flash. But it's uncertain if he will be back next season, given the promise he showed and Boston's need for some young help at point guard, where grizzled veterans Sam Cassell and Eddie House backed up Rajon Rondo this year.
— Steve Luhm
* If you cover the NBA long enough, you realize that your perception often differs from reality. For instance, I have long believed that Boston's Paul Pierce was overrated. I thought he was a guy who scored a lot of points on a bad team and could not help a good team win. What in the name of Allen Iverson was I thinking? Could I have been more wrong? In his first NBA Finals, Pierce was the MVP. He played well. He played hurt. He played with tenacity, determination and heart. The Celtics probably would not have beaten the Lakers without him. Humbly, I stand corrected.
* I remember Jazz assistant coach Phil Johnson telling me, back in 1996, that he thought UConn's Ray Allen was the best player in the draft. Allen slipped to fifth in the first round, where he was taken by Minnesota. The Bucks immediately traded him to Milwaukee for the rights to Stephon Marbury. Given the careers of Allen and Marbury — and Allen's superb performance in the Finals — I'm guessing the Timberwolves would like a mulligan on that trade. In any event, I was happy for Allen who, for the last decade, I have found to be one of the most polite, helpful and available interviews in the NBA. When players like him win championships, you realize that nice guys don't always finish last.
* When the TV cameras panned to Boston boss Danny Ainge in the final moments of Game 6, I couldn't help but remember the first time I met him. It was the late 1970s. I was new on my first job in Laramie, Wyo. Ainge was a two-sport star at BYU who was in town for a basketball game. Told BYU would work out the night before the game, I went to the practice at Wyoming's old Fieldhouse, hoping to talk to Ainge and get a story. I'm not sure if it was before or after practice, but at one point I sat down with him and we started talking about BYU basketball, the upcoming game against Wyoming and which sport he planned to play professionally — basketball or baseball. Things were going well, I thought, until then-BYU coach Frank Arnold saw us, asked me what the heck I thought I was doing and informed me that the interview was over and scurried out of the gym like a kid who was just scolded by a father who was incredulous over an act of such irresponsibility. I quickly thanked Ainge, who apologized for the abrupt conclusion to the interview. But I got enough for my story. I still remember my lead: "Danny Ainge can hit a jump shot and a curve ball. That's the problem." As it turned out, Ainge couldn't hit a curve ball well enough to star with the Toronto Blue Jays. But the Celtics' title is another milestone in a brilliant basketball career and I congratulate him — if it's O.K. with Arnold.
* In their first year, it turns out, the Utah Flash of the D-League were an affiliate of the NBA champions. General manager David Fredman said the Flash do not get any kind of financial reward for their ties to the Celtics, but it was ìa terrific honor for us to be associated with them. Obviously I became a Celtic fan this year for the first time in my life.î Rookie guard Gabe Pruitt was the Celtic player who spent the most time with the Flash. But it's uncertain if he will be back next season, given the promise he showed and Boston's need for some young help at point guard, where grizzled veterans Sam Cassell and Eddie House backed up Rajon Rondo this year.
— Steve Luhm
8:48 PM
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2 Comments:
The crazy thing is that McHale was asked in a an interview the other day about the Marbury/RayRay deal and said he'd do the same thing again under the same circumstances.
http://www.startribune.com/sports/20551749.html
That's why the Celtics are the champs and TWolves are enjoying long summers.
spencer,
You were right on with those comments.
Just to through fuel on the fire that McHale is the worst GM in basketball, he traded Ray Allen for Stephon Marbury, the year after the TWolves drafted Garnett. So theoretically, they would have had two of the three key players on the championship team together for 12 years, assuming Garnett would have been loyal with a good Minny team (as he was with the bad) and the TWolves gave Allen a max deal.
How many playoff runs would Minnesota have made? How many rings would they have?
Too bad Kevin McHale is an idiot at GM.
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