From last week's White House visit to yesterday's charity golf tournament at Ferncroft Country Club, the Celtics have been living on the cream of their NBA title in June. Few were allowed to pick up a tab this summer. And they probably didn't protest too much, either.
``I was definitely `America's Guest' down on the Vineyard,'' managing partner Wyc Grousbeck said before heading out for the tournament's shotgun start. ``I wasn't allowed to pick anything up.''
Doc Rivers wasn't quite so confident about his golf game yesterday. It seems the Celtics coach, who recently signed a three-year, $16.5 million extension, didn't have the usual stretch of time to lower his handicap.
``The good news is that the summer is short, and the bad news is that the summer is short,'' he said. ``But when your golf game suffers because of the time you can't spend on it, then I guess that's a good thing.'' Indeed, the Celtics are about to discover just how short the NBA offseason has become.
They open training camp Monday night with a week of double sessions at Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I., and there will be issues for the team.
Last season, by virtue of trades that brought Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen into the fold, some proclaimed the Celtics preseason favorites to win the NBA title. They will be the poster boys this year as well, but now for a far different, more substantial reason. They answered all of last year's predictions with the 17th title in franchise history.
But with James Posey signing a four-year contract with New Orleans, and P.J. Brown once again retiring - this time presumably for good - Rivers will start camp in search of depth. Players like Tony Allen, Leon Powe, Glen Davis and Gabe Pruitt will be asked to make up the difference. ``Yeah, we lost Pose and P.J. - two guys who were in the trenches every night in the playoffs,'' Rivers said. ``We have to see who is going to take their spots.''
One of the newest faces, second-round draft pick Bill Walker, attended yesterday's tournament.
Along with first-round pick J.R. Giddens and free agents Darius Miles and Patrick O'Bryant - the latter two being veterans known for underachieving - Rivers is hoping to rebuild the depth that was so crucial last year. ``Of the collection of guys we have, we'll see,'' he said. ``We have to hope that one of these guys steps forward and shows us something.''
That counts doubly for Allen, who has had four seasons marred by two knee surgeries and subsequent confidence issues. ``I thought Tony was important last year,'' Rivers said. ``It wasn't his fault. He had to get over a knee injury, and then he wasn't getting regular time. He's a player who needs the minutes to produce. ``But he's playing without the (knee) brace, and he looks great. He's working out hard. Our guys know what they have to do. You don't have to tell them.''
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