OTISFIELD – Brian Scalabrine pointed to the spread on the nearby soccer field – a collection of t-shirts and other booty he had salvaged from the New Jersey Nets – and told Seeds of Peace campers they could each take one item for a souvenir.
“I went in at midnight, stole all that stuff and brought it here,” the 6-foot-9 redhead joked as a couple dozen campers surrounded him on a hot blacktop court Tuesday. “I’m going to Boston anyway.”
Indeed, Scalabrine will be heading to Boston this fall as one of the newest members of the Boston Celtics. While the power forward’s signing has not been officially announced (the NBA extended its moratorium on free agent signings again Monday, pushing it back to next week), he confirmed yesterday he will be playing for head coach Doc Rivers in the fall.
“I’m looking forward to getting with Doc and playing for (general manager) Danny (Ainge), playing for the Celtics and playing for all of the fans up there,” said Scalabrine.
Instead of Celtic green, Scalabrine was wearing Seeds of Peace green yesterday as part of of the camp’s annual “Play for Peace” basketball clinic, which is organized by his agent, Arn Tellem.
Tellem and the Celtics have hammered out a deal for Scalabrine reported to be five years at $15 million. When he joins the team, the 27-year-old California native will be the fourth oldest Celtic, younger only than Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Mark Blount.
“We have a young, young team and that’s something that I’m not used to. I was used to having older guys that kind of showed me the way it is,” he said. “I hope that I can bring that experience to the younger guys. Their talent-level is phenomenal, so it’s about showing them the little things – that you have to put in your work every day. You can’t just do it one or two days a week. I think that’s what I bring.”
“I think I’m prepared for that more right now better than any time,” he added. “Last year, me, Jason Kidd and Vince Carter spent a lot of time together. I saw their demeanor, the way they approached the game of basketball. I’m looking to bring that to Boston.”
The USC alum said he won’t mind bringing it off the bench, either. Boston could have a bit of a logjam at the power forward position, with promising youngster Al Jefferson, rookie Ryan Gomes and Kendrick Perkins all capable of playing the position. Last year’s starter, Antoine Walker, a free agent this summer, could return to the team as well.
“If those guys are playing over me, then I feel like we’ll be a real, real good team,” he said. “It’s more important to have a good team than it is to go out there and play 40 minutes a game.”
Scalabrine said the Celtics seemed like a natural fit because he has a great relationship with Ainge, who he has known since coming into the league.
A second-round pick by the Nets in the 2001 NBA draft, Scalabrine played in 54 games last year for the Nets, starting in a career-high 14. He also posted career-best numbers in most other categories, including minutes per game (21.6) points per game (6.3), rebounds per game (4.5), 3-pointers (22) and assists per game (1.6).
For his career, he’s averaging 3.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.0 assist. He’s also an 80 percent foul shooter.
“For the 15 years that I’m going to play in this league, I feel like I’ll get better every single year,” he said.
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