Daily Babble: The Saddest State of One Minny Celtic
by Steve Weinman on Feb 8, 2008 11:24 PM EST
in NBA Articles
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PrintIn the midst of last night's reunion affair between the Celts and Wolves, as expected, one couldn't help but take note of the myriad of former C's running around to the applause of the Target Center crowd.
Al Jefferson looked frustrated for three quarters -- credit the Celts for doubling Jefferson most of the way and forcing the Wolves' poor shooters to beat them, which they largely could not -- but turned it up down the stretch.
Ryan Gomes had a typical Ryan Gomes game: a quiet 13 points and 6 boards. And lots of hustle.
Sebastian Telfair and Gerald Green did what Bassy and Gerald do. Bassy shot and missed with regularity (1-for-8 from the field), and Gerald rode the pine.
But perhaps the saddest and the most unsung former Celtic image of the night was that of a man a couple more seasons removed from his days in the Kelly green and white.
Even if Pat Riley was right about nothing else this season (debatable either way, but loyal reader Who will have you believe this is the case), he was right on the money about one particular point: Antoine Walker is in a sorry shape.
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The most stunning part of watching Walker play last night was realizing after a while -- and some Internet research for verification -- that he is only 31 years old. How quickly his body has aged and his skills have atrophied is truly something to behold.
Yes, Walker has been regarded on the downside of his career for a couple of seasons now, so perhaps this doesn't come as particularly new news. But he was at least both a significant and productive part of the Miami title run in 2006, and even though his game really started to take that final major dive last season, at no point did he ever look the way he does now.
Antoine Walker's physique barely even resembles that of a basketball player anymore. It was clear last night that he is even more horrendously out of shape that Pat Riley billed him to be, as he has picked up significant weight over the years and spent his 14 minutes on the court having immense trouble getting up and down the floor.
Really, this shouldn't be all that upsetting. Walker's days in Boston are long gone, and the team only went so far as the Eastern Conference Finals while he was in town, and even that happened only once. That said, as I wrote back in October when I nostalgically mused about the possibility of Walker returning to Beantown as a reserve, this is a guy who may always mean something to Celtics fans. He wasn't the best, and he certainly wasn't the brightest during his days in town. But in a tough era of Celtics basketball, he played hard every night and always wore his heart on his sleeve. His is the classic case of the individual who came to Boston a cocksure kid and left a far more focused man, and the learning process that he experienced under the watchful eyes of the Celtics' faithful for the better part of a decade is one that isn't easy to forget. He was a big part of the face of this team for a long time, and he did do much to endear himself to the fans toward the end of his tenure in town.
Part of the result of this is that, despite the fact that he went to Miami and won a title, and the fact that he fell out of shape completely of his own accord, there is something unsettling about seeing 'Toine in such a reduced form. This is the man who used to be the concurrently enthralling and frustrating swingman in a power forward's body. Frustrating because he would insist on playing out on the perimeter and wouldn't use his size to as much of an advantage as he sometimes should have. Enthralling because he was capable of doing much of what he liked to do. He could shoot the ball with some touch, although not always with the greatest selection. He had a very nice touch passing the ball. He was even deceptively quicker than expected (albeit not actually quick) for a man of his physical stature.
Now, he's just a scrub in a body slightly less refined than that of Glen Davis. He doesn't have that athleticism that belied his appearance, and the appearance is worse than ever. He can do little towards attacking the rim, he can't get to rebounds as effectively as he once did, and even his shooting touch has suffered a marked decline (he is shooting 37 percent from the field this year).
To think that this is a guy who recently had his agent suggest that he would welcome a trade to a contending team for whom he could play big minutes is utterly baffling.
And it's too bad, really. Because he could have been so much better, and he could have done it for so much longer.
But all that said, for better or for worse, Antoine Walker will always be represented by the shimmy in this fan's heart.
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I think Glen Davis is in much better shape than Toine is. He’s a much bigger body, and a lot of what you see is muscle and not body fat. For that matter, I think that they have worked on his explosiveness (that was mentioned often in the early season) and it pays off right now. He’s done stuff in recent games that he couldn’t do in the beginning of the season: fly in from the foul line to dunk a cleanup rebound, throw it down after a quick one-dribble drive along the baseline. He’ll never be a big leaper, but if he has this sort moves with regularity, that will be huge for the Cs.
Another nice article, Steve. I agree with everything you wrote, except the “he was at least both a significant and productive part of the Miami title run in 2006”. I agree he averaged 13 points per game in the Finals, but he shot a bleak 39% and Riley played Posey in the clutch (probably because of Antoine’s 55% free throw shooting).
I loved Antoine when he was a Celtic, at the same time he left me wondering when he kept calling out Ainge and the Boston Celtics again and again. He complained Ainge wanted to tear his career apart when he was dealt to Dallas (not to the Clippers!), then he thanked Ainge when the Celtics got him back, andagain when Ainge helped him to reach Miami and to win a title. He could have been gracious, then, but he made a “melonhead” series of remarks on how Pierce would have never won staying in Boston, because the Celtics didn’t have a clue. I can understand the fact that he felt like a wounded animal, being traded while a team captain, but I also understand that the Celtics had paid him salaries for 55 million dollars throughout his years in green. The problem with Walker is that his problems were, are, and always will be somebody else’s fault.
Very well thought out article, Steve. I, too, was shocked to see the apparent state of decay in Antoine’s body and game. He was huffing and puffing like a 50-year-old in a rec league game. Wittman mercifully took him out of the game before he collapsed. Antoine will always have a special place in this fan’s memories of past Celtics teams, but a third time around would not be charming.
As an aside, in the last two games we’ve seen a little of how sometimes reputations that follow players are deserved. After Sam Cassell got ejected, Brendon Knight was a very lackluster player Wednesday and pouted on the bench when coach Dunlaevy removed him in favor of Dan Dickau down the stretch. Reportedly Tim Thomas did not play because of “effort” issues.
Last night, we saw Rashad McCants play some matador defense that earned him the ire of Wittman, though McCants did his best to ignore the coach when removed from the game (twice).
As with Antoine Walker, some guys just are what they are to paraphrase a currently trendy expression.
by lemonadesky on Feb 9, 2008 7:50 AM EST reply actions
Legend, you are incorrect. Antoine’s average MPG in the playoffs for Miani was in the high-30’s (particularly in the Finals) and he was almost always on the floor to close games out. He is a shell of his former self but Antoine did what many in Boston said he could never do….and that was to contribute to a championship team.
by HRB on Feb 9, 2008 10:19 AM EST reply actions
Good article, Steve. I remember reading an article in one of the papers not that long before ‘Toine left the first time. He was working out in the offeseason with Michael Jordan, of all people, and MJ tried to tell him what so many of us felt about Walker’s game. MJ said that he was letting other teams off of the hook by standing out on the arc so much. That he was a great offensive rebounder, and an excellent passer, with a soft shooting touch. That he needed to be down underneath the basket to take advantage of that. That shooting some threes is OK, but to make that his main weapon was just wrong. ’Toine laughed at him. Yep, ’Toine blew off the greatest player in the history of the league, when MJ was just trying to help him out. I think that it was a very high probability that MJ allowed ’Toine to work out with him simply because he had hoped to have a positive influence on him. When I read that article, I wanted ’Toine off the team the next day. When Danny dealt him, I was pretty much happy that he was gone.
‘Toine could have been an excellent player, maybe even a borderline Hall of Famer, if he had actually had a Tim Duncan-like approach to the game. Tim does whatever works best, and doesn’t give a damn if it is sexy or not. If Tim was playing a “must win game” of one on one, and he could beat you by back you down and throwing a hook shot in, he’d back you down 21 times for that hook shot. ‘Toine is the kind of guy who would do all kinds of crazy things “to make it fun”. ’Toine didn’t work on the things that he should have. He didn’t maintain his body (an athlete’s greatest asset). He didn’t work on the areas in which a guy like him could have had great impact (low post moves, free throw shooting, etc.). He wasted his great talent. I think that if he had the right attitude and mind set that he could have been a consistent 17ppg, 10 reb, 5 ast, 1.5 st guy who could have spotted up for the occasional three. With his quickness and herky jerky style he could have made it to the line quite often, and have been a very efficient player overall. He didn’t care about that, though. He wanted to play his way, and his way got him to where he is today. It is very sad.
by MikeDfromNP on Feb 9, 2008 10:34 AM EST reply actions
Good thoughts Steve.
Nice to see my boy (you – not Antoine) making good.
Walker is a walking maze of contradictions.
He was (and is) capable of making the best play of the game and follow it right up with the worst play.
It seems for many ( including me) he wasn’t an easy player to embrace, though I have wondered why. He did play hard and I remember in his first year or two he played every position on the team but point guard. He did whatever the coach asked of him and did it to the best of his abilities.
Whatever Walker isn’t….forgettable won’t be part of it.
best,
T
Antoine was the price of dumping Blound and Ricky Avis. He never had a defined body and as we 40 and 50 somethings know it
becomes harder and harder to stay in shape and keep strong.
But you would think Antoine could maintain his wind and still be
able to run. He was and is a classic tweener hybrid. Not quick
enough to play the 3 not powerful enough to play the 4. That has not changed.
by Greg37 on Feb 9, 2008 2:23 PM EST reply actions
I doubt it will ever happen but it certainly could happen.
If Walker ever figured out how bad he looked on the court and really wanted to do something about it, he could lose 40 or so pounds in an intense off-season conditioning program and resurrect his career. He is not that old that he couldnt have a few good years left.
He is apparently content to be what he is-washed up like a whale on the beach. 8)
Even Scottie Pippen or perhaps reggie Miller can beat Fatoine now…He has completely regressed and to think that Antoine could have been one of kind Celtic talent, he has the skillset of a Larry Bird and you can actually see it right there from 97-01, he was the proud face of the franchise, he just did not have the dedication and I.Q of Larry, not even half of it….
And this is why I truly Believe Danny’s knock on talent, I guess he knew what most of us could not believe then that Walker has reached his pinnacle and its time to head in a different direction, a sequence of moves that has landed us where we are now….
And yet Walker managed to do something that not even DANNY HIMSELF believed he could do : Contribute to a Championship Team which he did.
No matter what is said about him in the future, he has one more ring than KG, P-Squared(the player…lol), and Jesus Shuttlesworth combined. And that’s all that needs to be said.
There’s no guarantee that this “big three” will accomplish what Toine accomplished…..
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