NBA: The Honeymoon Is Over

As coach of the historically successful basketball program at the University of Kentucky, Rick Pitino was looked upon as a god. He was the Joe Pa of Lexington, Kentucky. Success followed him around like a swarm of bees. He was King Midas, as every time he stepped onto the basketball court with his team they were golden, winning numerous games and championships.

One day, the Celtics came knocking and Pitino answered the door.

Looking back on that day, many people seem to wish the Celts had played a dingdong ditch. Instead, Pitino came to the sacred lands of Boston hoping to add a 17th banner to the winningest basketball team in franchise history. The Celtic franchise sure hoped Pitino would bring some of his championship talent to their door. The way the nay Sayers talk about Rick on the radio, you'd think that all he has brought to the Celtics doorstep is a flaming bag of dog poo.


Rick Pitino is a fundamentalist wizard. He knows the game inside and out and can call the plays with the best of the lot. The simple fact to the matter is he has made some heinous personnel decisions. Some people have said that given the right talent, and players who believe and want to adjust to his system, he can be a very successful coach in the league. But let's be honest with one another, he his hardly working with a plethora of diamonds. Pitino has a couple of diamonds and a fistful of cubic zirconium.

While others have doubted the day the Celts drafted former Wildcat, Antoine "Employee #8" Walker, it certainly was a blessing for the Celts to land such a talented big man who can push the ball up court almost as gracefully as an up tempo point man or two guard. And besides the addition of Walker, the day the Celts were able to draft Paul Pierce out of Kansas with the TENTH pick in the first round was certainly the luck of the Irish. While some questioned the luck of the organization as they missed out on Wake Forest big man Tim Duncan (even though they had the highest amount of balls in the lottery to obtain his services), the acquisition of Pierce certainly was a nice fit for a team that was very porous on offensive and defensive skill. Alas though, after Pierce and Walker, the recipe seems a tad watered down.


Looking at some of the decisions Pitino has made in the last few years, certainly the acquisition of hard working forward Walter McCarty seemed like a nice addition to the bench. McCarty was very familiar with Pitino's system and Pitino knew what made McCarty tick. It seemed as though it made for a great marriage. What didn't seem so hot were the $30 million dollar price tag, and the multiple years that came attached to the role player.


Back in the day, Pitino drafted point guard Chauncey Billups and Kentucky guard Ron Mercer in the draft and they were seemingly going to be a cornerstone of a the franchise with Walker. Heck, Chauncey Billups became the idol of Pitino’s son. However, even that relationship with his son was not enough to appease Pitino’s frustration with the point guard’s lack of improvement and knowledge of his system. And while Billups seemed to have written his own ticket out of town, Ron Mercer seemed to be a key to a budding nucleus. However, Mercer’s camp seemed to get a little delusional when looking at the payday Celts captain Walker received and wanted a mega-million dollar contract as well. Enter today, and neither of those high first round draft choices is with the team. Mercer and Billups are good skill players but have been journeymen throughout the league...

Kenny Anderson's acquisition was an intriguing one. He was a former All Star with the New Jersey Nets and had an assortment of playground plays buried in his cache. Certainly, people were praying he would not just be a pale image of his former self. However, while Anderson has made a numerous amount of highlight reels with his no look passes, his lack of defense has clouded the love affair with the Celtics fans.


At one time, Pitino stated that guard former UCLA guard Tyus Edney was his best point guard he had on the team. Remember that shot he had in college to give his team the championship? Well, can you remember anything about his pro career...Neither can I.

Vitaly Potapenko was billed as being strong as an ox and he has lived up to that billing. However, he was traded away for gritty Andrew DeClerq and a first round pick (Andre Miller...the point guard that surely would have fit Pitino's system to a T). While Vitaly is a tough man who fills the middle decently enough, he doesn't have the mobility and offensive presence to compete with other big men in the conference and was traded for a man with almost the same talent and skill.


The selection of CBA star Adrian Griffin seems like a nice addition as he had a stellar first half of the season before hitting the rookie wall faster than a 400m runner coming around the back stretch. He was a little banged up and worn by the end of the year, but he seems to be a decent player for the Celts in the upcoming future.



Recently, the salary capped C's invest big money in Bulls championship winner Randy Brown, (I think you can thank a Mr. Jordan and a Mr. Pippen for the jewelry, Randy) and journeyman Chris Carr. With the addition of CBA big man Mark Blount, and the drafting of raw big man Jerome Moiso, Pitino feels that they will be extremely competitive in the conference. He better hope so...after all, he did say that he would leave if they didn't make the playoffs....


GULP....


It has been a certainly tumultuous situation for Pitino in Beantown. After failing to have to success he really strove to ascertain with the franchise, Pitino has seemed to meet his breaking point at times, and with due reason. The press conference debacle that saw Pitino in a rage over the booing Celtic fans who booed star player Walker with every touch of the ball, and saying that the fans booing, “stinks,” and “sucks.” He went off on a tangent exclaiming that the former Celts greats “aren’t walking through that door,” and that the C’s fans are kidding themselves thinking that they will get Bird-like results from a team of raw, young, hard working kids. While many got on Pitino’s case for his tirade, it was well warranted as the fans were way too sullen and impatient, booing their star players. This incident, among others, certainly isn’t what Pitino and Celtic fans envisioned a few years ago when Pitino walked through that door.

At Kentucky, Pitino was an extremely fortunate, successful coach and leader of one of the most storied basketball programs in all of NCAA history. Fans wanted success and someone to come in here and quickly turn around the misfortune and mess that others left for him. Alas, the Boston fans, spoiled from years of championships, have been waiting quietly for a few years for Pitino to deliver his promise of a 17th banner. While the results have been poor as of late, the grumbling and impatience of Celtics nation begins to grow louder and louder and the heat in Pitino’s kitchen becomes more and more scorching with every loss and broken promise. This upcoming season will in fact be the judgment year. It will be playoffs or bust. Anything less will be unacceptable from the owners and the fans. There are no more excuses of strikes, new systems, or team chemistry to be made.

It certainly makes you wonder what type of lucky charm Pitino carried around with him while coaching in Lexington, Kentucky. I can tell you this much at least…doesn’t appear as though it was a shamrock that’s for sure.