Atkins feeling left out

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Chucky Atkins heard the news and took a while to digest it. He was told the Celtics left him unprotected in the expansion draft to stock the new franchise in Charlotte, N.C.

It doesn't necessarily mean he won't be back in Boston. But it does signify to Atkins that the team doesn't want him back.

"If they aren't going to protect me," he said yesterday, "then I don't want to be there. Why would I want to be somewhere where they didn't want me? If you're going to leave me unprotected, that's a slap in the face to me. I could have stayed in Detroit."

Atkins was one of five Celtics' names that was published today in the Charlotte Observer as players being made available to the NBA Bobcats. The other four Celtics are Jumaine Jones, Ernest Brown, Brandon Hunter, and Michael Stewart. The eight Celtics who were protected were Paul Pierce, Ricky Davis, Jiri Welsch, Raef LaFrentz, Marcus Banks, Kendrick Perkins, Walter McCarty, and Chris Mihm.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers, here to analyze the NBA Finals for ABC, said he had spoken to Atkins twice in the last few days. "He was fine with me," Rivers said. But, according to Atkins, the issue of protection never came up. He said no one from the Celtics called to give him a heads-up that his name would be on the list.

Rivers, told that Atkins was upset, said, "I can't comment if he is on the list or isn't on the list. But I will say this: Things will work out between Chucky and the Boston Celtics."

Atkins initially did not appear to be fazed by the development. "I've been through a lot in my career," he said. "It doesn't bother me." But the more he talked, the more upset he got.

"Of all the guys on our team last year, who contributed? Do you think I was one of the top eight guys who contributed? I'm very upset about this. I thought that [with] the way they let me play, that was where I wanted to be and that's where I would be," Atkins said.

The Bobcats can select no more than one player from any team and no more than 14 overall. The Celtics apparently figured that Atkins's contract (two years remaining at a total of $8.7 million) would make him unappealing to the Bobcats, which is likely to be the case. But the Bobcats could also act as a conduit in selecting Atkins and then moving him on to another team. If he is not picked, he stays with the Celtics.

Coach's decisions

Rivers said he was "at least a week out" from adding two more coaches to his staff. "Tony [Brown] and Dave [Wohl] have been attending all the draft workouts," he said. "Jim [Brewer] will be there shortly." Celtics general manager Chris Wallace said the team has brought in more than 40 players for workouts . . . There was a considerable amount of pregame speculation as to what Los Angeles coach Phil Jackson would do with his starting lineup. On Saturday, five players -- Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, Rick Fox, Derek Fisher, and Devean George -- went to Jackson as a unit and asked that they be allowed to start. That would mean benching the ailing (sore right knee) Karl Malone and the ineffective Gary Payton. Jackson played it coy before the game, although he did say, "we need some revitalization in our lineup. We need to get going." When the smoke cleared, however, the lineup was the same as it had been for most of the postseason: O'Neal, Bryant, Malone, George, and Payton. (Fox had not played in two of the three games prior to last night.) Malone appeared in his 193d playoff game, which tied him with Danny Ainge for third place all-time. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is No. 1 at 237 and Scottie Pippen is second at 208. Ainge appeared in 112 playoff games with the Celtics; the rest were with Portland and Phoenix . . . Kid Rock did the anthem duty. He chose America The Beautiful and, yes, he removed his hat before he sang. He dedicated the song to America's armed forces, to former President Reagan, and to the late, great Ray Charles . . . LeBron James was among the notables at the game.