61-21, But Many Questions to Answer this Summer

May 4, 1980

For a 61-21 team, the Boston Celtics are uncommonly deep in issues.

Evaluations, signings, draftings, more signings and more evaluations are in store before the 1980-81 season begins. Red Auerbach, Bill Fitch and Harry Mangurian are aware that the Celtics must seek to improve themselves, if only to keep the victory total within a half-dozen of this year's gaudy figure. The brass is not living in an illusory world; it realizes the Celtics were both good and lucky, and that the latter quality is never a permanent feature of anyone's program.

Try this for a quick analysis of the team's position-by-position situation:

GUARD - A source of great concern before the season began, the backcourt became a team strength, with both Nate Archibald and Chris Ford enjoying fine seasons. However, the Philly demise did raise some questions in this area. Did Archibald just have a bad series, or did he demonstrate unreliability against prime competition? Was Ford as bad as he looked in the final two games, when he scored four points and was beaten by Lionel Hollins at the other end? Is Gerald Henderson, as Hollins claimed, really "Boston's best guard?" We do know that Henderson is the only one of the trio capable of pressing, and that were Darrell Griffith to come here, he wouldn't have any trouble finding playing time for himself.

FORWARD - If Cedric Maxwell, who is a free agent seeking big money ($350,000-$400,000 a year is a good guess), re-signs, the Celtics will again be strong. Granted, it's an odd group, and not one without weaknesses. Nature never intended for Larry Bird to guard a Julius Erving, or a Walter Davis, but with Maxwell as the other starting forward, Fitch had no choice.The Maxwell-Bird duo poses enormous defensive problems for the opponents, however, and only Philadelphia, with the Jones Boys, could combat Bird so well. M.L. Carr rounds out a strong cornerman trio, but should Maxwell absent himself, the entire picture would be jumbled. Rick Robey provides insurance as a big forward, in addition to his pivot duties.

CENTER - Dave Cowens regained his All-Star status, but he is a time-worn 31, and next season will be the final year of his contract. Hence the team's desire to augment the center position with a young stud. Robey posted a 20-7 won-loss record as a starter this year, but Fitch's confidence in him was evidenced by his initial entrance into Game 1 of the Sixer series - with two minutes to go in the first half. Robey will please the coach very much by hitting the Nautilus room this summer and bulking up. Not to do so will be translated as a lack of desire.

The college draft (to take place on Tuesday, June 10) will be a topic of great interest, and the Celtics will be doing an extensive amount of homework. "Do we take the big guy (Purdue 7-footer Joe Barry Carroll), Griffith or make a deal," inquires Auerbach, "and you don't make a deal unless you get some sort of big man in return." To be sure the club knows exactly whom it is drafting in the number one spot, Auerbach plans on making some personal visits. "I want to talk to the first three or four prospects, eyeball to eyeball," Auerbach promises, "and I'll probably start in a week or so."

The Archibald contract signing is likely to be trickier than Maxwell's. Tiny is coming off a long-term contract that paid him over $400,000 last season, and there is no way the Celtics are interested in paying him anything like that again. Tiny is represented by Irwin Weiner, a notorious hardball player. But, as one rival points out, "They need Tiny until they can replace him." Henderson showed great promise, but he is not ready to run Fitch's club yet.

The summation is that the Celtics have some hard decisions to make. That's assuming, of course, that they can find a place to play next year.

K.C. Jones is a candidate for both the Detroit and San Diego coaching vacancies. The Fitch-Jones union was a shotgun wedding that didn't work out very well. Jones was brought here by his friend Satch Sanders, and when Sanders fell, Jones was left in an uncomfortable position. Fitch would obviously prefer to have an alter-ego type of his own to work with next season . . . Gus Williams reportedly has a contract stipulating that his presence is guaranteed only as long as Lenny Wilkens is also in the Sonics' employ as coach, general manager or player-personnel director . . . Kyle Macy, the Phoenix Suns' number-one draft choice last year as a junior eligible, will be represented by Norman Blass. Sun general manager Jerry Colangelo will meet Blass in New York tomorrow to discuss contract terms for the Kentucky guard.

Rick Barry walked out of Mass. General Hospital the other day following knee surgery performed by Dr. Bert Zarins. The latter removed an amazing amount of junk from Barry's knee and said he was surprised Barry could play at all this past season. Barry, who at age 36 just completed his 14th professional campaign, is a free agent . . . In addition to LSU's DeWayne Scales and Iona's Jeff Ruland, there may be a third first-round draft possibility in Wisconsin guard Wes Matthews, a former standout at Harding High in Bridgeport, Conn. . . . Hubie Brown on the Boston-Philadelphia series: "I said before it started that if Philly could get the games between 85 and 95 points, they would win. You can beat Boston if you stop Archibald from breaking the foul line within seven or eight seconds after you score. Now you have stopped their transition game and have forced them into a half-court game, where they can be beaten." . . . What with all the charges and denials being issued by both Dick Motta and the Washington Bullets over whether he will be coaching them next year, or even whether he wants to coach them next year, be advised that Motta has, in fact, been given permission to talk with other clubs.

There is no doubt that Dave Meyers is sincerely religious, and his feelings must be respected, but he has really left Milwaukee in a bad spot by retiring now. They spent oodles of money to get Bob Lanier on the assumption that the Big Tuna was the only missing piece to the puzzle, and now they discover they need a power forward, as well. Unless Pat Cummings or Richard Washington are better than people think, the Bucks are hurting . . . Maybe frustrated ticket buyers in Los Angeles and Philadelphia could be satisfied by paying $2 or so to see a three-on-three battle between the Philly trio of Bernard Toone, Jim Spanarkel and Clint Richardson and the LA squad of Marty Byrnes, Brad Holland and Butch Lee . . . Where is C.J. Kupec when we really need him?