1981-82 Boston Celtics
Why Terry Duerod, anyway? The situation wasn't a desperate one, on the surface. The Celtics were trailing by just five points (102-97) with six minutes left. It wasn't as if the Celtics needed some three-point shots, or anything.
"It was an offensive substitution," explained Bill Fitch. "The shot was there for that guard all night, and we weren't taking advantage of it." Indeed, Fitch had even started the fourth period with a 6-foot-9 off guard by the name of Larry Bird, so eager was he to exploit the situation. That move lasted for more than five minutes, during which time Pistons' mentor Scotty Robertson had yanked Ronnie Lee and made Kelly Tripucka a guard.
Duerod paid immediate dividends, sticking in a 22-foot sky swisher from the left to make it 103-99, Detroit, throwing in another jumper to make it 109-107, Detroit with 3:37 left and capping his 3-for-4 night's work with a game-tying fadeaway from the left with 1:34 to play. And after the game Fitch declared himself quite pleased with his shooting guard.
"He has played as well as anybody on our basketball team the last five times we've played," said Fitch. "People are acting awfully premature when they assume he'll be one of the people to go when we have to cut the roster."-
Rookie Charles Bradley logged five first-half minutes that included a spectacular charge, during which he took out two Pistons (Isiah Thomas and Ronnie Lee) and a ballboy. It was truly a spectacular shot, and it's too bad he left the seven pin standing . . . Cedric Maxwell was immense on the offensive boards, picking off eight offensive rebounds, good for 11 second- chance points out of his 23 . . . Robert Parish continued his rebound assault, hauling in 17 more. That gives him 40 in two games and 50 in three . . . Fans coming early (actually, not that early), got to see Danny Ainge and M.L. Carr conclude a workout with a full court one-on-one game . . . The Celtics out-rejected the Pistons, 13-1, led by Kevin McHale's five.
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