10.06.2013

Chuck Daly's Pistons Struggled against Pitino's Knicks

June 8, 1997

As commissioner Bob Ryan noted, new Orlando coach Chuck Daly wondered aloud, without provocation, how his team was going to get the ball in against Rick Pitino's scrambling, pressing Celtics. Told of Daly's comments, Pitino chuckled. "I know why he said that. We were 4-0 against them the first year they won it all," Pitino said. "There were two guys in the league who had trouble with our press: Isiah Thomas and Magic Johnson. That's because they tried to do it themselves." Pitino has a good memory. There was only one team that the world champion 1988-89 Pistons did not beat: his Knicks. However, his Knicks also were 3-3 against Jimmy Rodgers's Larry Bird-less Boston Celtics

3 comments:

FLCeltsFan said...

It's funny how some matchups just stifle a team. Like the Bobcats always seemed to be able to beat the Celtics in the early years. I agree that a team that has one player who tries to do it all himself won't ever beat a team that plays as a team with everyone involved.

Lex said...

the 07-08 Cs struggled against the bobcats too

FLCeltsFan said...

Yeah, it was weird. Even with that team I was always nervous playing the bobkitties.