RealGM

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 12:46 pm**

From the shoulda coulda woulda department

http://lexnihilnovi.blogspot.com/2008/0 ... ssell.html

Cassell was still on the board when the Celtics made their pick at No. 19. The choice? Acie Earl.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 1:00 pm**

For some reason I got a slight shock when I first read that title, GWVan!

Whew...

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 1:25 pm**

From the sizeable Not-In-A-Million-Years-Would-Danny-Make-That-Mistake Department...

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 3:41 pm**

cloverleaf wrote:From the sizeable Not-In-A-Million-Years-Would-Danny-Make-That-Mistake Department...

Actually, Danny probably would have made the same deal. The Celtics at the time had Dee Brown and Sherman Douglas, who were both very good PGs. So they had absolutely no need at the PG. At SG/SF, they had Rick Fox and Kevin Gamble, both players who were pretty good at the time. And Dee Brown could even play the 2 with Sherman too. Then our PF was Dino Radja backed up by Pickney. Dino brought a lot of scoring and rebounding, but not much D. That means, we needed a defensive big to play alongside Dino.

But at C, Parish was getting old and Acie Earl was coming out of Iowa as a big time shot blocker. So that was the player that made sense there. In fact, most of the draft magazines at the time had Acie Earl going to the Celtics to eventually take over for Parish. It seemed to make sense to me at the time, except no one realized how slow Acie Earl was.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 3:53 pm**

Damn, what a weak draft looking back in hindsight...

Most of the players washed out or ended up injured throughout their careers.

Also...Mark Murphy should do some fact checking before writing his articles.....he has the C's taking Jon Barry the year Sam I Am came out. Wrong Mark....Sam came out in 93.....not 92.

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1077182

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:01 pm**

I've yet to see Danny stumble with incomplete scouting, go for the bad big player over the good small player, or fall prey to drafting purely by need. I just don't see Acie as being Danny's kind of pick at all.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:01 pm**

Acie Earl's NBA highlight came in his first game. Season opener against the Knicks. He went for 20 and 10 against Ewing and mangIna thought we had our center. ahhh... alas twasn't meant to be... b

Acie Earl also started the tradition of goofy galloping celtic bigmen

after Acie came Pervis, Perk, and Powe

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:11 pm**

cloverleaf wrote:I've yet to see Danny stumble with incomplete scouting, go for the bad big player over the good small player, or fall prey to drafting purely by need. I just don't see Acie as being Danny's kind of pick at all.

Were you old enough to remember that year's draft? Because at where we were picking, Earl was the best pick. And he filled our need as a young center to backup Parish and eventually take over. He just didn't work out.

But don't act like we were picking 3rd and chose Acie Earl ahead of Penny.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:12 pm**

Dee Brown was a 'good' PG? Dee was the first in a long long line (that is still kinda going with Del West and now Tony Allen) of SGs that the Cs try to make into PGs but it never really works. And it set Dee Brown back a few years... then he got hurt and never became the player he coulda-woulda...

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:52 pm**

GreenMachine wrote:Dee Brown was a 'good' PG? Dee was the first in a long long line (that is still kinda going with Del West and now Tony Allen) of SGs that the Cs try to make into PGs but it never really works. And it set Dee Brown back a few years... then he got hurt and never became the player he coulda-woulda...

You're right about Dee Brown being more of a SG, but you can't tell me that looking at that team, you needed a PG more than a C. While, looking at hind-sight, Brown got injured and lost his explosiveness, but before that, he was a pretty good player.

I was just looking at the stats and the year before we drafted Acie Earl, Dee Brown put up 11 points and 6 assists. The year before that, he averaged 12-5. The year before that, he was on the first team all rookie. So why would the Celtics feel the need to draft a PG, when there wasn't a can't-miss one available there and we clearly needed a defensive C?

Maybe you can make an argument for NVE because he was pretty good coming out of Cincinnati and only dropped because of his attitude. But Cassell? Cassell was pretty good coming out of FSU and they had a pretty good season with Edwards, Sura and even Charlie Ward, but Edwards and Sura (who won the ACC freshman of the year) were the stars of that team.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 5:56 pm**

tombattor wrote:-= original quote snipped =-

You're right about Dee Brown being more of a SG, but you can't tell me that looking at that team, you needed a PG more than a C. While, looking at hind-sight, Brown got injured and lost his explosiveness, but before that, he was a pretty good player.

I was just looking at the stats and the year before we drafted Acie Earl, Dee Brown put up 11 points and 6 assists. The year before that, he averaged 12-5. The year before that, he was on the first team all rookie. So why would the Celtics feel the need to draft a PG, when there wasn't a can't-miss one available there and we clearly needed a defensive C?

Maybe you can make an argument for NVE because he was pretty good coming out of Cincinnati and only dropped because of his attitude. But Cassell? Cassell was pretty good coming out of FSU and they had a pretty good season with Edwards, Sura and even Charlie Ward, but Edwards and Sura (who won the ACC freshman of the year) were the stars of that team.

I was a big Doug Edwards fan! He was great in college.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 6:11 pm**

Forget Dee Brown we had Sherman Douglas who was a hell of a point guard.

Danny never would make the mistake Boston made with Earl. Those in charge at the time, I think it was Gavitt, took him because he was a lottery talent by reputation because he had put up big numbers in the Big 10. When he fell the Celts jumped on him not having had him in for a workout.

The first time Chris Ford meets him he comes staggering and limping over toward Ford to introduce himself, and Ford asks him if something is wrong or if he is hurt and the kid tells no I feel great.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 6:15 pm**

sully00 wrote:Forget Dee Brown we had Sherman Douglas who was a hell of a point guard.

Danny never would make the mistake Boston made with Earl. Those in charge at the time, I think it was Gavitt, took him because he was a lottery talent by reputation because he had put up big numbers in the Big 10. When he fell the Celts jumped on him not having had him in for a workout.

The first time Chris Ford meets him he comes staggering and limping over toward Ford to introduce himself, and Ford asks him if something is wrong or if he is hurt and the kid tells no I feel great.

I remember reading about what Ford said. If we only brought him in for a visit we would have seen that the guy had trouble WALKING~

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 6:25 pm**

tombattor wrote:-= original quote snipped =-

Actually, Danny probably would have made the same deal. The Celtics at the time had Dee Brown and Sherman Douglas, who were both very good PGs. So they had absolutely no need at the PG. At SG/SF, they had Rick Fox and Kevin Gamble, both players who were pretty good at the time. And Dee Brown could even play the 2 with Sherman too. Then our PF was Dino Radja backed up by Pickney. Dino brought a lot of scoring and rebounding, but not much D. That means, we needed a defensive big to play alongside Dino.

But at C, Parish was getting old and Acie Earl was coming out of Iowa as a big time shot blocker. So that was the player that made sense there. In fact, most of the draft magazines at the time had Acie Earl going to the Celtics to eventually take over for Parish. It seemed to make sense to me at the time, except no one realized how slow Acie Earl was.

Don't forget, Reggie was still around too. I believe he had just gotten or was in the process of getting that infamous third opinion that he could play. So, you had him at the wing position as well.

At the time, the Celtics were still all about size, so taking Earl isn't a shock. Ervin Johnson was the only player still on the board who they should have taken over Earl, and even he took a while to develop. You gotta remember, that was a pretty weak draft in the end.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 6:26 pm**

Muresan was there as well, but you can't fault the C's for not taking that risk with a first.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 7:22 pm**

BlamePitino wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
Don't forget, Reggie was still around too. I believe he had just gotten or was in the process of getting that infamous third opinion that he could play. So, you had him at the wing position as well.

At the time, the Celtics were still all about size, so taking Earl isn't a shock. Ervin Johnson was the only player still on the board who they should have taken over Earl, and even he took a while to develop. You gotta remember, that was a pretty weak draft in the end.

I think Reggie Lewis was gone by then... I forget though.

I also remember hearing about Ervin Johnson, but Acie Earl was the more established player in college from a big conference.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 8:04 pm**

He had just died. 7/27/93

Earl was supposedly lottery talent (at one point the Pistons were allegedly going to take him with either of their 1sts <10 or 11>) and the Celtics needed a big.

Looking back Ervin Johnson would have been a better fit, but so would Michael Jordan and Clyde Drexler on the Blazers.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 8:30 pm**

sully00 wrote:Danny never would make the mistake Boston made with Earl. Those in charge at the time, I think it was Gavitt, took him because he was a lottery talent by reputation because he had put up big numbers in the Big 10. When he fell the Celts jumped on him not having had him in for a workout.

How is this different than Danny drafting Gerald Green? Gerald was a consensus lottery pick who Danny never had in for a workout, and who got drafted on upside. Danny took Gerald over a whole host of better players, because (at least in part) of his "talent by reputation".

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 8:45 pm**

All I ever remember Dee Brown doing was shooting those threes when he should have been taking it to the rack.

Posted: **Mon Mar 3, 2008 8:51 pm**

floyd wrote:All I ever remember Dee Brown doing was shooting those threes when he should have been taking it to the rack.

True, but he did tie Larry Bird's Celtic record for the most 3-pointers made with 7. I remember because I was at that game!

RealGM

Cs Choose Acie Earl over Cassell

Cs Choose Acie Earl over Cassell