jlp@inmet.UUCP (10/08/85)
{} Here's the latest from the Hub of the universe: There is nothing wrong with Bird's elbow. Although he had a poor shooting game against the World Champion Lakers on Sunday, Bird's form and rhythm were on Friday night against the Sixers. This reporter watched the Sixers' game. The first quarter was played by the starting team, which looked a little sluggish. About halfway through, Head Coach K.C. Jones substituted Bill Walton, Scott Wedman, Sly Williams, Carlos Clark, and Sam Vincent. Carlos blew a good assist opportunity after Walton set two picks and popped up weak side baseline under the basket. Carlos then proceeded to shoot a brick. Walton looked good. This man lives to play Celtics' style basketball. He was in constant motion. He connected well with Bird. His outlet passes were already in mid-season form. He played 19 minutes in this game, giving fine performance in response to several standing O's. Could Bird be losing a lot of his ink this season? Sly Williams worked hard this game. He looks fat, and was sligtly slow. Nevertheless, the clever NBA veteran forward managed to get four straight rebounds without having to leave the ground, entice Rookie Terry Catledge into a handful of fouls, and just generally raise ruckus with the Philly frontline. If he can be this consistent in his intensity throughout the season, Boston may have come up with quite a steal. Jerry Sichting showed up in shape for this game, but since he only had one day's practice, was not a contributing factor. Sam Vincent has impressed Boston watchers so far. Although he tends to pull out of rebounds pretty quickly at this point, the first-round guard had an excellent point game. He pushed pretty well. At this point he doesn't come down the middle until well after halfcourt. He layed off well, and has quick hands. The Celtics may have found the replacement for Tiny Archibald. Tracy Mitchell is QUICK. He beat his way through two blind screens and still found his man on an upcourt push sequence. Scott Wedman was much improved on D. He's reading situations better. Perhaps they have no intention of using him at the Guard spot this year, allowing him to concentrate on Forward defense skills. Rick Carlisle was a big suprise. Apparently the 25 year old 2nd year man had a much better summer than we realized. His offense-to-defense transition is much improved, as is his defensive footwork. This could be a boon for the Celtics- a young(?) fifth guard who is able to fill in for the aging starting backcourt in a few years. On Monday, the Celtics released Rick Lamb, Ronnie Williams, and Andre Battle, all of whom did not play against the Sixers in the opener. David Dupree played 42 seconds at the opening of the fourth quarter. Look for his article (first installment) in the October 8 issue of USA Today, with a sidebar by some guy named Kevin McHale. The Current Depth Chart ( in this reporter's estimation ): DEFINITE WORKING Larry Bird Sly Williams Kevin McHale Rick Carlisle Robert Parish David Thirdkill Dennis Johnson Greg Kite Bill Walton Tracy Mitchell Danny Ainge Carlos Clark Jerry Sichting David Dupree Sam Vincent Scott Wedman The Organ Keyboard of Jerryl Payne {ihnp4,esquire,harpo}!inmet!jlp