The Colby Echo

Issue date: 2/16/07 Section: Sports

If there ever was a good time to have an eighteen game losing streak in the NBA, it would be now, especially in Boston. The way I see it, Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers, both of whom should never work in basketball again, are taking a dive and doing it in between football and baseball seasons to fill the void and grab some Herald headlines. The Celtics' consistent sub-mediocre play has left them relegated to the daily box score and nothing more. With the success of the Patriots and Red Sox no one seems to care about a team that cannot win.

Yet, there is a difference in a team that just stinks and a team like this year's Celtics. Their streak has created an intrigue and somehow drawn me back to a team that was last fun to watch when they were on Sports Channel. The losses put me back in front of the TV and I discovered a young group of guys that are developing into respectable players. Some will not be able to handle the losses, but those that can will last a long time in the NBA.

Over the streak, the Celtic's have given significant minutes to eleven players under the age of twenty-five, with two of the best players being Al Jefferson at age twenty-two and Gerald Green at twenty-one. Ryan Gomes and Jefferson have each been in double figures in points and rebounds, respectively, in fourteen of the eighteen loses. The Celtics are developing these young players into strong contributing teammates; one can only hope that the Green are truly rebuilding. Young players seem to be getting quality minutes and proving themselves in game situations.

The front office and the media have talked extensively about building character and losing with pride; owner Wyc Grousbeck even gave every member of the team a book called "The Adversity Advantage" about a blind dude who went hiking. I think that is a lot of crap; these players did not get to where they are without having some determination, pride and character. After Ricky Davis' dagger Sunday night Tommy Heinsohn put it perfectly, "Pick your head up, don't suck your thumb, and you're going to win games." I thought Davis was a bum even when he was on the Celtics.

Even with the positive of player development, some of the statistics from the past eighteen games are so atrocious they are almost funny. Against the Miami Heat the Celtics shot a mind-blowing thirty-two percent from the field and out-shot the Heat by thirty three shots. How does a team shoot ninety-seven shots and fail to score eighty points; at least they all know how to spell HORSE. The one redeeming stat from the Miami game: Antoine Walker, 0-5 from behind the three point line. When Toine was asked why he shot so many threes, he replied, "Because there are no fours." Sweet wiggle.

It is true that the Celtics have struggled without their veteran leader Paul Pierce, who, despite looking like he had gained a layer of fat thick enough for Siberian hibernation, showed some glimpse of his former self against the Timberwolves. Pierce still has some years left in him. His challenge for the rest of the year will be not only to carry this team, but also help these young players develop, something he has not done well in the past.

So are the Celtics going to get the seven-foot Greg Oden? It is unlikely; we are not even to the All-Star break and with the return of Pierce the Celts are bound to win at least a couple more than the Bobcats. I think they should just dive, look at the last time the Celtics were in this situation; they could have drafted Tim Duncan. At any rate, it is good that people are even talking about this team again, I missed it.

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