Over the next few weeks, we'll be examining every player on the Celtics roster. We start with Mikki Moore.
Chuck's Take:
A complete waste of roster space. He committed personal fouls like no
player I've seen in my 30+ years of watching basketball. Moore came
here in late February as the Celtics were dealing with injuries to
Brian Scalabrine and Kevin Garnett. We were told he could hit a 17-foot
jumper (which he did on occassion), and hustle on defense (which he did
frequently). The problem was...Moore couldn't play defense without
fouling. It was ridiculous. He also had a hard time adjusting to the
schemes. Even when Doc was desperate for bodies in the playoffs, he
rarely turned to Mikki Moore.
Moore joined the team about a week before the buyout deadline. A puzzling move considering Joe Smith was still rumored to become a free agent. Even if Danny had inside information that Smith was destined for Cleveland, there had to be other options (Drew Gooden). And how many teams were beating down the door for a soft, journeyman 7-footer? Ainge prematurely pulled the trigger because he had to have someone to replace another do-nothing big man named Patrick O'Bryant. Remember him?
I'm trying not to spew hate on Mikki. He seemed like a nice guy who worked his ass off. But the Celtics needed an impact guy off the bench and Moore was not the answer. I blame Danny more than Mikki.
John's Take:
I'm going to be a little easier on Mikki (and Danny for signing him)
because he never really got the opportunity to play with KG. We all
know he wasn't our top choice, but he was the square peg that could
have fit a square hole. With KG out, it became a round hole, and Mikki
was out of place. He never got a grasp of things and he never got
comfortable. The guy he was supposed to rely on for a crash course on
how to do his job wasn't there anymore, and he floundered.
But all that said, this is an easy one to reassess. Mikki had himself a nice NBA career, but his second stint with the Celtics should be his last. He shouldn't be invited to camp next year. The Celtics should find a few NBDL big men, get them on the summer league roster, and see if one of them shows enough promise to get a camp invite.
There's no doubt the Celtics need depth at center, but Mikki clearly won't provide it.
As you're typing your comments, check out these completely random pics of Bar Rafaeli.