Everyone agrees about one thing regarding Sam Cassell, he exudes confidence. I was a little worried about the amount of confidence, however, when I heard snippets from his press conference.
Cassell described the scene he expected reporters to witness upon the Celtics winning the championship in June. It was unclear from the snippet exactly what verb tense Cassell had chosen, and, if you believe KG, Cassell isn't known for choosing his words all that carefully.
As it turns out, Cassell did precede his answer with the word "if," as in "if we win the championship in June, a boatload of people will be crying in the Celtics locker room."
I wasn't an English major in college, so I'll have to take the liberty of making up lingo to describe the verb tenses I have in mind.
If-then statements might be described as future conditional. If some particular condition happens in the future, then I will react in a certain way.
This is the verb tense Celtics players and fans alike have been using all year: If the Green wins number 17, we'll sure all be happy.
But since Cassell's arrival, and in particular since joining the team in person last Friday, a new verb tense has entered the dialogue.
I call this the "we're so close we can visualize the celebration and taste the champagne" verb tense. Even KG seems to have modified the way he talks about the upcoming months.
This is where y'all (all six of my readers) get to point the finger at me and shout "pot calling the kettle black!"
It's one thing for an obscure blogger like myself to casually mention dusting off the dilapidated equipment at the banner factory and contacting the seamstress who will sew the next banner, but it is an entirely different thing for the players themselves to start taking the next step.
The 1985-86 team was one of the cockiest in the history of sports, and I don't recall them ever using any thing but the future conditional, at least until said banner was actually in hand.
I'm not saying it's wrong, but it does worry me a little bit.
When I say foolhardy things, it's just Lex going off on one of his daily rants.
When players start talking about “the writing on the wall” and such, concerned fans might wonder if their focus has been compromised.
Most close observers will concede that the PJ Brown and Sam Cassell additions have dramatically increased the team's chances to hoist a banner next November. But the games still must be played, and the players must maintain their tunnel vision to accomplish the mission. Just ask Tom Brady.
Putting the cart before the horse, even if only by using a subtlely different verb tense, worries at least this writer.
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