The Saga of Sebastian Telfair Continues....

[Vic Vega]

Telfair may be all out of 2nd chances

By MITCH LAWRENCE
DAILY NEWS SPORTS COLUMNIST

Thursday, April 26th 2007, 4:00 AM
       
 
Sebastian Telfair is caught again traveling with a gun, and Celtics have made it clear he can take a hike.

With his locker cleaned out and his nameplate removed from the practice facility locker room, Sebastian Telfair is a Boston Celtic in name only now, a victim of his own poor judgment.

His next destination is unknown. Whether anybody even wants to take a chance on him at this stage, with his history of arrests involving guns and a thoroughly unimpressive NBA résumé, is debatable. How he gets to his next NBA team, whether via a trade or as a free agent in the coming months, is just as foggy.

All that can be definitively deduced from the events of the past few days is that the Celtics are done with him after only one season, and the myth of the great New York City point guard has been shattered once again.

Nobody was built up more around here than Telfair. Unreasonable as the expectations were three springs ago, he was supposed to go directly from Lincoln High and Daily News Player of the Year to the pros, no sweat. The fact that he was a 6-foot guard without a jumper and very little knowledge of what it takes to run a team was enthusiastically overlooked by everyone who continues to promote the lie that New York City produces the world's finest playmakers.

Take a look at the origins of the point guards starring in the 2007 NBA playoffs and the very best hail from British Columbia (Steve Nash), Alameda/Oakland (Jason Kidd) and Santa Monica/L.A. (Baron Davis). To call those places "outer boroughs" would be a stretch.

As much as Telfair's rap sheet is working against him, his birth certificate is still in his favor. He doesn't turn 22 until June, so if a team has enough talent at other spots to hide his glaring deficiencies, it might take a chance on him. And if a team wants to run, there are few players who are as fast as Telfair is with the basketball in his hands.

It sounds like a ridiculously tough fit, but Denver, Orlando and Minnesota are already being mentioned as possible new homes.

"I would think that the Celtics will try to get something for him," one Eastern Conference executive said yesterday. "Once things settle down, I could see them looking to put him in a trade, being a guy who's included in a deal to make the numbers work. But somebody will take a shot on him. He's young and he made a mistake."

He isn't the first, but Telfair is up to three mistakes over the last year and change. When he was pulled over last Friday for speeding in Yonkers, police found a loaded .45-caliber Colt semiautomatic handgun in his car. He was driving with a suspended Florida driver's license and now faces a potential felony charge for weapons possession.

By removing any signs of his existence, the Celtics have let Telfair know exactly where he stands. "An extra slap on the wrist" was how one team executive put it. More like a final slap. Teams have wised up and aren't going to put up with antics that turn off their season ticket-holders and corporate sponsors. Not from guys who can't play a lick.

"It is fair to say that if the charges were true, it wouldn't make me too proud to have somebody I know who was speeding without a license and with a gun in the trunk," commissioner David Stern said Tuesday night, commenting on Telfair's case. "I don't know what the ultimate disposition of that is going to be, but our players do have an obligation to conduct themselves in a way that demonstrates the appropriate respect for the game."

You have to wonder if Telfair is aware of that obligation or oblivious to it, like many other athletes. Fourteen months ago, he boarded the Trail Blazers' charter plane with a pillowcase that contained a handgun. Naturally, police wanted to know why. Here in New York last October, he was questioned by police about the shooting of the rapper Fabolous, after a $50,000 necklace was stolen from Telfair at the same club the night Fabolous was shot. His poor judgment isn't limited to making the wrong reads on the court.

Meanwhile, the Blazers must be having themselves a good laugh. Last June they traded Telfair and converted a draft pick in the deal into Brandon Roy, a guard who is expected to win Rookie of the Year honors in a walk and has the look of a perennial All-Star. He can even play some point and, as any New York hoop fan will tell you, he's from another one of those "outer boroughs."

Seattle.

[Vic Vega]

I don't know if anybody else saw the Movie/DVD Through The Fire about Telfair's struggle to get in the NBA.

Its sort of the other side of Hoop Dreams. The part with the happy ending.

To see the guy waste the chance that he's been given considering how hard
it is to get in the NBA is kinda upsetting.

He isn't quite good enough  anywhere near good enough to recieve the kind of pass
that a Ron Artest would for similar bad behavior.

Its kinda a shame, y'know?

[D- Ruck]

I don't know if anybody else saw the Movie/DVD Through The Fire about Telfair's struggle to get in the NBA.

Its sort of the other side of Hoop Dreams. The part with the happy ending.

To see the guy waste the chance that he's been given considering how hard
it is to get in the NBA is kinda upsetting.

He isn't quite good enough  anywhere near good enough to recieve the kind of pass
that a Ron Artest would for similar bad behavior.

Its kinda a shame, y'know?

Yeah, I feel ya on that one.  It takes away the meaning of their struggle when they just piss away the opportunity

[supreme illuminati]

I barely remember this guy,lol.I feel sorry for him...even though he deserves every single thing he's getting right now.Hope he straightens himself up before it's too late.

[Vic Vega]

I barely remember this guy,lol.I feel sorry for him...even though he deserves every single thing he's getting right now.Hope he straightens himself up before it's too late.

It also puts the the final dagger in the heart of MYTH that the NYC high school system produces superior athletes.

The Spanish kid who got on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the 90's was a bust, Telfair's a bust too and you could make a case for Marbury being a bust too (I'd argue, but that another subject).

When oh, when will our B-Ball humiliation end.

Sob.   

[D- Ruck]

I barely remember this guy,lol.I feel sorry for him...even though he deserves every single thing he's getting right now.Hope he straightens himself up before it's too late.

It also puts the the final dagger in the heart of MYTH that the NYC high school system produces superior athletes.

The Spanish kid who got on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the 90's was a bust, Telfair's a bust too and you could make a case for Marbury being a bust too (I'd argue, but that another subject).

When oh, when will our B-Ball humiliation end.

Sob.   

Well stephon isn't a bust talent wise since he does have the talent to play in the NBA, but because of some bad decisions he's made, he hasn't panned out in many places.  Same with Ron Ron from Queens, if he would have kept his cool on that table in Detroit, he'd be the man right now.

[Curtis Metcalf]

I barely remember this guy,lol.I feel sorry for him...even though he deserves every single thing he's getting right now.Hope he straightens himself up before it's too late.

It also puts the the final dagger in the heart of MYTH that the NYC high school system produces superior athletes.

The Spanish kid who got on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the 90's was a bust, Telfair's a bust too and you could make a case for Marbury being a bust too (I'd argue, but that another subject).

When oh, when will our B-Ball humiliation end.

Sob.   

Well stephon isn't a bust talent wise since he does have the talent to play in the NBA, but because of some bad decisions he's made, he hasn't panned out in many places.  Same with Ron Ron from Queens, if he would have kept his cool on that table in Detroit, he'd be the man right now.

Well, since you started down that road...
I wouldn't say that Starbury has been a bust but he has been a disappointment.  He's got great skills, just no real feel for the game.  Imagine if Kidd had his athleticism and shooting touch.  That player would be in the all-time point guard discussion.  And he doesn't seem to be learning over time even under the tutelage of one of the greatest point guards ever.

[D- Ruck]

I barely remember this guy,lol.I feel sorry for him...even though he deserves every single thing he's getting right now.Hope he straightens himself up before it's too late.

It also puts the the final dagger in the heart of MYTH that the NYC high school system produces superior athletes.

The Spanish kid who got on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the 90's was a bust, Telfair's a bust too and you could make a case for Marbury being a bust too (I'd argue, but that another subject).

When oh, when will our B-Ball humiliation end.

Sob.   

Well stephon isn't a bust talent wise since he does have the talent to play in the NBA, but because of some bad decisions he's made, he hasn't panned out in many places.  Same with Ron Ron from Queens, if he would have kept his cool on that table in Detroit, he'd be the man right now.

Well, since you started down that road...
I wouldn't say that Starbury has been a bust but he has been a disappointment.  He's got great skills, just no real feel for the game.  Imagine if Kidd had his athleticism and shooting touch.  That player would be in the all-time point guard discussion.  And he doesn't seem to be learning over time even under the tutelage of one of the greatest point guards ever.

When he came out he was hailed as the classic pure point guard, but since he left Minnesota he's been on crappy teams where he felt he had to do everything.  But in Minnesota and in Phoenix when he was with Garnett and Amare respectively he flourished as a point guard.

[Curtis Metcalf]

When he came out he was hailed as the classic pure point guard, but since he left Minnesota he's been on crappy teams where he felt he had to do everything.  But in Minnesota and in Phoenix when he was with Garnett and Amare respectively he flourished as a point guard.

Yeah, I remember.  He was a shoot-first point guard even then.  That was a better fit with Garnett who doesn't need a ton of shots and a rookie Stoudamire.  I never did like the way he orchestrates from the point.  He just doesn't seem to have that innate sense of where everybody is and where they're going and finding the possibilities within.  In his defense, not many do, that's why they're special.  In his case, it seems to be his ego that keeps him from flourishing too.  He could have run most of his career alongside Garnett and he was too immature to accept that.

[D- Ruck]

When he came out he was hailed as the classic pure point guard, but since he left Minnesota he's been on crappy teams where he felt he had to do everything.  But in Minnesota and in Phoenix when he was with Garnett and Amare respectively he flourished as a point guard.

Yeah, I remember.  He was a shoot-first point guard even then.  That was a better fit with Garnett who doesn't need a ton of shots and a rookie Stoudamire.  I never did like the way he orchestrates from the point.  He just doesn't seem to have that innate sense of where everybody is and where they're going and finding the possibilities within.  In his defense, not many do, that's why they're special.  In his case, it seems to be his ego that keeps him from flourishing too.  He could have run most of his career alongside Garnett and he was too immature to accept that.

I agree, if he wasn't so hardup about being STARBURY then he would have developed alot more as a player instead of now being in the shooting guard collection agency (New York Knicks)

[Vic Vega]

When he came out he was hailed as the classic pure point guard, but since he left Minnesota he's been on crappy teams where he felt he had to do everything.  But in Minnesota and in Phoenix when he was with Garnett and Amare respectively he flourished as a point guard.

Yeah, I remember.  He was a shoot-first point guard even then.  That was a better fit with Garnett who doesn't need a ton of shots and a rookie Stoudamire.  I never did like the way he orchestrates from the point.  He just doesn't seem to have that innate sense of where everybody is and where they're going and finding the possibilities within.  In his defense, not many do, that's why they're special.  In his case, it seems to be his ego that keeps him from flourishing too.  He could have run most of his career alongside Garnett and he was too immature to accept that.

I agree, if he wasn't so hardup about being STARBURY then he would have developed alot more as a player instead of now being in the shooting guard collection agency (New York Knicks)

You think he regrets leaving the T-Wolves NOW?

The Nets didn't get good personnel until AFTER they got rid of him. He becomes a Knick and whoops Allen Houston's knees are shot. If I was Steph and my wingman was Q-Rich I WOULD'NT PASS HIM THE BALL EITHER. He left his outside game in Phoenix. He was better off with Van Horn who while being a defensive conscienious objector, at least has an outside shot.

As must as I love Steph as a player, he STILL hasn't made it to the second round of the playoffs yet. And considering Eric Snow HAS now, you'd think some self-reflection would be in order for him (Tho the Knicks recent woes are not his fault).   

Would that James Dolan and Isiah Thomas would engage in some.