Thank You Sam (But Don't Come Back)
by Jeff Clark on Jun 23, 2008 9:22 PM EDT
in Boston Celtics News & Links
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Two days after soaking in the love of the fans in his basketball home, Sam Cassell bathed in the admiration of the fans in his real hometown. And after spending most of Saturday evening as the center of attention at a celebrity charity game at the Towson Center, Cassell proclaimed that neither Boston, Baltimore nor the NBA had seen the last of him in uniform.
"I'm playing next year, playing my 16th year," Cassell said without hesitation, minutes after the conclusion of the game put on by his friend and fellow Dunbar alumnus Kurk Lee, benefiting Lee's foundation.
"After winning a championship, it's just so hard to walk away from that," Cassell said, describing the title he contributed to with the Celtics last week, their 17th in franchise history and Cassell's third. "Certain guys did it, but as I tell the guys, every great movie has a sequel. And since we consider ourselves a great team, we've got to go and repeat."
This is kind of sad really. If you are anything like me, you were hoping that Sam would be happy with his third ring, a nice way to go out on a high note. But you didn't really want him back on the Celtics.
By all accounts he's not a bad guy. It was just that every shot he put up was like nails on a chalkboard for Celtics fans. It was typically too early in the shot clock and out of the offensive rhythm. Sometimes they went in, giving you that awkward "no, no, no... well, ok" moment. Then after his next 5 misses, Doc would pull him out and you thought, "good, Doc's finally done with him." Except he'd be right back on the floor a game or two later.
So in the end, he helped us win a couple games in the regular season, didn't do anything to permanently hurt us in the post season, and we were all sort of hoping to see him go with a smile on his face. Maybe even come back as an assistant coach.
Now he wants to come back to the Celtics. It remains to be seen how much the Celtics want him back. I suppose it is possible that with a full preseason and training camp under his belt, he could understand the offense a little better. On the other hand, he's pretty much the definition of an old dog that isn't about to learn many new tricks.
Thanks for the memories Sam. It was a fun ride, but I'm hoping that you don't get your wish to come back as a player. I just think we should see other people. It's not you, it's me. (I can't stand seeing you shoot 6 times in 10 minutes while Ray gets cold standing in the corner wide open) It's better this way. Thanks for being part of a special season. Keep smiling.
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I think he would be good for the team provided Doc keeps him in check and he doesnt play that much. He wasnt that bad. I remember a few games in the playoffs where it seemed he was the only one who could make shots. I think that was against Atlanta, but still. Plus, I loved how he encouraged the team during that time out in Game 4 against LA. That’s all positive stuff. But the bottom line is Doc must realize that he is unequivocally not an adequate replacement for House.
by murphman on Jun 23, 2008 9:35 PM EDT reply actions
Sam coming back mean prob no Eddie House…
Do you think Sam is saying things like this to put pressure on the C’s to take him back over House?
by PRIDE on Jun 23, 2008 9:44 PM EDT reply actions
I’m with you, Jeff.
If he does come back, I’ll convince myself that nobody is as bad as Sam played in his time with us. I mean, he’s only half a season removed from being fairly decent with the Clippers, right? Almost all of us were psyched when he came aboard, so he must have some skills, right?
Hopefully, the answers to those questions can be provided somewhere other than Boston.
You’re seriously underestimating what Sam gave us in those Atlanta and Cleveland series. We might not even make it to Detroit without a few huge 2nd quarters from him.
That said, I don’t want him back, mostly because I don’t see this team carrying 4 PGs again next season, and I have a voracious man crush on Eddie House.
However, I believe cap rules stipulate that we can sign as many players as we want to vet minimum contracts, which makes a player like Sam very useful in the sense that we can fill out our bench without costing parts of the MLE, which presumably we’ll need for Posey. In that regard, Sam may be the best we could hope for.
by teddykgb on Jun 23, 2008 10:51 PM EDT reply actions
History has shown that Cassell has worn out his welcome at every stop. Let’s make this a clean break, shall we?
Does anyone seriously believe that Sam Cassell provides “veteran leadership,” particularly with young Rondo? I sure don’t. What could he possibly be telling him during timeouts? “You need to shoot waaaaay before the shot clock runs down, yo.”
I would take him back, but he wouldn’t play too much during the regular season. Depending on different match-ups out there with so many different teams he may come in handy. Give Rondo full control at the point though and make sure Tony Allen gets some burn and keep Ray down to like 30 minutes a game during regular season. I am a big fan of teams that stick together and don’t break up as soon as they do something, even though they have only really been together one year.
CsfanNH
I made a post on the ESPN forum about how Cassell reminds me of that fat kid you play pickup games with who you never want to pass the ball to because you know he’s going to jack up a really bad shot every time. Cassell, to his credit, is a former All Star and scary as it is to say, one of the best scorers from the PG position in his career. Could post up and get to the charity stripe at will in his prime. Unfortunately, age gets the best of us, more often than not. He still plays like he’s young but he’s just really old. I’d bring him in as an insurance policy like Lindsey Hunter was with DET and what Avery Johnson was to DAL before becoming a head coach but he should not be playing backup minutes. Period.
by TradeProposalDude on Jun 23, 2008 11:38 PM EDT reply actions
sam is expendable and useful at the same time. he’s a better last option than scal. we don’t have to sign him right away or compete for him. see what happens with house, or if there’s a cheap lue type out there dangling. if sam comes back, he’s company for the big3 and occasional offense. no big deal.
Jeff hit the nail on the head – “a mini-Antoine”.
I’d like to see the C’s go in another direction next year for back-up PG’s. I am hoping they will give Pruitt a real shot at backing up Rondo. They may also want to go after another free agent vet PG as a third option. Eddie and Sam made significant contributions to the championship team, but it’s probably time to move on.
by DJ to Bird on Jun 24, 2008 8:00 AM EDT reply actions
Jeff, I’d rather have the original ANTOINE here than have Sam “I should’ve retired after Hakeem did” Cassell.
Walker would’ve given this team more positive contributions in the postseason than Mr.2nd Quarter(Sam Cassell)…Heck, he would’ve even single-handedly win a playoff game or two for us(and we all know he’s still capable of that). Has Cassell ever done that for us? didn’t think so.
Hit the Road, Sam.
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