1983-84 Season Preview

1983-84 Boston Celtics
Preseason

Rick Robey, Tiny Archibald, and Charles Bradley are out. Greg Kite, Dennis Johnson and Carlos Clark are in. Bill Fitch and Harry Mangurian are out. K.C. Jones, Don Gaston, Paul Dupee and Alan Cohen are in. The old Garden is out. The new Creamsicle Garden is in. Paranoia, video casettes, closed doors and crybabies are out. Communication, flashdance-aerobics, laughter and Red Auerbach's favorite "one play" play are in.

As you undoubtedly recall, the 1982-83 Celtic season was pretty ugly at the finish. Broom-toting Rhinelanders howled "sweep, sweep, sweep" as the Milwaukee Bucks danced on the Celtic carcass for the fourth and final time. Grace, dignity and that old Celtic pride were missing. A coach in turmoil and a bench full of unhappy warriors broke the promise they'd been making all year. They waited too long for their playoff drive.

After the fall, several decisions and changes were made immediately. This isn't Fenway Park, where lethargic ownership can serve up the same slop and expect people to keep coming back for more. The first four-game collaspe in franchise history called for action, and the result was the busiest off-season in Celtic history. All of which leads us to the 1983-84 Celtics, also known as K.C. and the Sunshine Band - a talented and thus far tightly knit group intent on burying last year and bringing a 15th NBA championship banner to the newly painted Garden rafters.

It is impossible to assess the prospects of the '83-84 Celtics without addressing the change of coaching administrations. It may not matter, and it may even prove detrimental in time, but it's clear that these Celtics like their coach. That can be important in this age of pampered players. You don't teach Cedric Maxwell how to box out, you just hope that when the time comes, Maxwell feels like boxing out.

"I think we're better this year because of our attitude," says Kevin McHale. "The top three or four teams are pretty even on paper, but the big difference can be a team's willingness to play together . . . Also, a lot of people want to vindicate themselves and our team from last year's disaster." Obviously, Jones isn't the chain-gang leader Fitch was, but he also lacks the head-coaching experience and exhaustive league knowledge that Fitch worked so hard to maintain. Jones' strengths are his defensive strategies, his willingness to do things the Celtic (read: Red Auerbach's) way and his ability to communicate with players.

You'll notice Jones' defensive wrinkles immediately. Blessed with nine potential starters, Jones has implemented a full-court pressure defense designed to force rival teams to expend as many seconds as possible before getting into their offensive patterns. Watch the midcourt stripe when the Pistons are bringing the ball up tonight. Look for a big man to help Gerald Henderson or Dennis Johnson force a trap near the 10-second line. The pressure defense requires rested players, and Jones hopes to alleviate some of the potential playing-time problems by exhausting his troops. This is how he thinks he can keep Quinn Buckner and Danny Ainge happy while starting Johnson and Henderson. The four-guard setup failed last year, but the Celtics weren't pressing much, and Archibald simply refused to contribute unless he was being introduced before the anthem.

The backcourt remains the team's biggest question mark, but the addition of Johnson should make a considerable difference. He is an All-Star guard, and folks from the Western Conference still can't believe the Celtics got him for Rick Robey. Johnson picked up a "headcase" tag out West, but he's been the consummate team player thus far. Meanwhile, Buckner had the best preseason of any of the guards. He's 10 pounds lighter and may benefit from the absence of Fitch more than anyone.

Lest we forget, the Celtics are going to need outside shooting from Ainge and Henderson. Remember those embarrassing drop-back defenses the Celtics faced in the playoff last year? Little has changed up front, where the Celtics still boast the most potent weaponry on the planet. True to his word, Larry Bird "punished" himself all summer and is playing harder than ever. Maxwell looks like he's come to play this year, and Robert Parish should benefit from a steady backup named Kevin McHale. McHale was sensational in eight preseason games (62 percent from the floor) and appears much more comfortable in the middle than he was last year.

Jones is not afraid to use Scott Wedman and Bird simultaneously. That'll mean more minutes for Wedman and more time for McHale in the pivot. Unlike 1982-83, when the Celtics operated under the more-is-better Dense Pack theory, this 38th Celtic addition has been carefully sculpted. When he looks to the end of his bench, Jones will be looking at veteran M.L. Carr, and rookies Kite and Clark. They will not be sulking. They will not refuse to go in for the final two minutes of the half. They will remind you of Terry Duerod and Eric Fernsten and the type of people who played for the Celtics when they last won a world championship. "Let's put it this way," says Ainge. "I don't think this team would be swept by Milwaukee if we played them now."