MONTROSS HAS BEEN THROWN OFF

December 31, 1995

MONTROSS HAS BEEN THROWN OFF

When he was in high school, Eric Montross used to score his points with short jump shots. His coach wanted him to develop a hook shot so badly that he promised a steak dinner if Montross ever took one.

Now, that's all Montross takes. (Pass the A-1 Sauce.) That might be all he ever needs to take. Right now, however, the hook shot is not his problem. He needs to take something quite different: a crash course in Getting Back to Basics.

There are times when he looks completely lost out there, the proverbial square peg in the round hole. He doesn't seek out the offense and it ignores him. There are times when he'll play 20-odd minutes and do absolutely nothing. There are times when he'll get into foul trouble and get the quick hook. Even worse, there are times when he'll get fouled. More on that later.

Last year, of course, we all were marveling at Montross' play. Arguably, until Sherman Douglas took the team over, Montross was the club MVP, especially since the alternative was Acie (Mr. October) Earl. He did hit the wall in March, but most rookies do. The good ones recover, and he was a good one.

This year he seemingly has hit the wall, the chairs, the sofa and the radiator. It almost seems that he has taken Backward Pills or started emulating Rigor Artis Gilmore. Mechanical. Wooden. Those are the words we now hear.

Much of this is hard to accept because he was such a pleasant surprise last season. And a lot has not changed. He still works his rear end off. He still doesn't complain about anything. He would be a unanimous selection to the All-Good Guy first team.

But he is clearly not the same aggressive player he was a year ago. What happened?

According to Montross, nothing.

"There's an easy answer to all of this," he said. "My field goal percentage is up. My rebounds are up. The one (bad) area is the free throws. I also haven't been playing as much. But I don't see any problem. I'm not worried. If I was worried, anyone who's a fan should be concerned because when a player loses confidence, that's when he's in trouble. I'm still confident."

Other than the free throws, the uneven playing time has probably most affected Montross. Last year, Chris Ford didn't turn to the bench quickly. This year, M.L. Carr will call Pervis Ellison's number if, for instance, Montross picks up two quick fouls.

Montross is a minutes guy. He needs to get a feel for the game. He isn't a Microwave. He's more like a wood stove. And his minutes are down from 29 to 25 this year. He has averaged only 20 since coming off the injured list Dec. 4, much of it disjointed.

"I need to be in the flow of the game," he said. "When I get a couple fouls, most of the time, it's my fault for even putting myself into a position like that. It takes me out of the game and puts a damper on my flow."

He's also forgotten in the offense, except, it seems, on the first possession of each half. The Celtics' offense is now geared to their perimeter shooters.

"Frankly, I think, in this offense, he is considered an afterthought, and when you don't get a lot of opportunities, it puts a lot of pressure on the opportunities you do get," said Scott Montross, Eric's father and agent.

Then there are the free throws. Entering the weekend, he was shooting 39.7 percent from the line. Mothers protect their children when he goes to the stripe. No one is disputing that this is a major headache.

Has the free throw problem spilled over to the other parts of his game? Dee Brown thinks that might be the case.

"He's thinking so much about the free throws that it's taking away from the rest of his game," Brown said. "Everyone has a suggestion for him. It's putting a lot of pressure on him. He's not playing as loose as he did last year. And it's not like there's a guy behind him. But we are going with a lot of different lineups."

Asked about the free throws, Montross said, "It's a simple item of confidence. Once I knock down a few, it will turn around. I think a lot of professionals will tell you that if one aspect of your job is not going well, you don't want it to spill over. You have to isolate that thing and that's what I'm trying to do."

Too many fouls. Not enough time. More emphasis on the perimeter. A running game that, at times, doesn't seem to suit him. Free throw angst. Sophomore slump. Montross said he is concerned about none of the above.