You add $15 million and 220 miles and everything changes. Brian Scalabrine, a fan favorite in New Jersey, is not greeted that warmly in Boston these days.
“I think there were unfair expectations,” said Scalabrine, who returned last night to the Meadowlands for his first regular-season game since he signed his five-year, $15 million pact.
Despite the money, anyone paying attention shouldn’t have set the bar too high. While Scalabrine was loved in New Jersey, it was in a mascot kind of way. Scalabrine – who when he sported his curly locks looked like a 6-9 Ralph Malph – would come into the game and the crowd would go wild. In Boston, when Scalabrine enters, they basically tell him to sit on it.
“The exact opposite,” said Scalabrine, who wasn’t complaining but just honestly answering question. “What are you going to do?”
In Boston, Scalabrine isn’t doing that much less than what he did with the Nets. The 1.8 points are just below his 3.6 per game career average. He is averaging just under 10 minutes per game, which is the same as he played in his four seasons with the Nets.
Scalabrine pointed out Friday night in Boston that he is not the next Larry Bird, which should surprise no one because really the only similarities are their skin color and they play basketball.
Given the lottery ticket money, it is hard to imagine the 27-year-old Scalabrine having any regrets about leaving for Boston, which he doesn’t.
“I really felt like, at the time I made my decision, I really felt like, no matter what I did in New Jersey, I was always going to be that one guy,” Scalabrine said. “I wanted to see for myself, if I could be something. My goal in the NBA is to start for 82 games.
“For a guy like myself, that would be tremendous. I mean, if a guy didn’t get hurt, or get suspended or whatever, I wanted just to be able to start for 82 games. And that’s my goal. Hopefully, I can get to that point where I’m playing on a consistent basis. I thought probably I’ll never get that in New Jersey, but maybe I’ll have an opportunity here.”
You would think for $15 million, the Celtics would want to give Scalabrine that opportunity.
“I can go out there and help the team win, without scoring 20,” Scalabrine said. “Not that I can’t score 20, but more than likely I’ll help the team win by not doing that. I really haven’t played more than like eight minutes at a time in any significant game. It’s tough. It’s tough getting over that transition phase. It’s tough breaking into a [new] lineup.”
Boston coach Doc Rivers does have some faith in Scalabrine. At the end of Boston’s 99-96 victory over the Nets Friday night, Rivers put Scalabrine in for defense. After Vince Carter missed a running one-hander, Scalabrine wrestled with Nenad Krstic, which helped Ricky Davis snag a rebound with 3.1 seconds remaining.
After two made free throws, Carter had a chance to tie it with a 30-footer. While Carter’s shot appeared to be on target, Scalabrine’s long arm may have distracted Carter just enough to throw the shot just off and seal the Boston victory.
Scalabrine knows how quickly things can change in the NBA. A year ago, the Nets were still without Jason Kidd and were reeling from losing Kenyon Martin.
“You remember last year, when we were struggling without Jason,” Scalabrine said.
“There were a lot of things going on. The whole Kenyon thing was a big issue at the time. We didn’t get Vince yet. That was a big deal. It felt like what were we doing? We’re just trying to stay above water before Jason comes back. The difference is we have our team here. We’re full strength. You know, it’s tough sitting on the bench at that.”
Additional reporting by Fred Kerber
andrew.marchand@nypost.com
