Man love.

So, um, those Al Skinner discussions with Doc Rivers about the assistant coaching position were apparently completely bogus. (Boston Globe)

“I haven’t talked to them,” Skinner said. “I wouldn’t mind talking to them. But I haven’t talked to them.”

Asked about a report that said he and the Celtics held preliminary discussions about the coaching vacancy left by Tom Thibodeau, former Boston College head coach Al Skinner said he hasn’t talked to with the defending Eastern Conference champions.

Hopefully, it’ll be Lawrence Frank’s job. He knows defense and he’s kind of wired a little bit like Thibodeau. At the very least, he’d be harder-working than Skinner, widely known as the college basketball equivalent of me: Super lazy.

In the end, my final reaction: Damn it, I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen when Skinner suggested that Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett run the flex.

Maybe the Celtics are planning to run a whole lot of Flex next season.

Former Boston College coach Al Skinner is being mentioned as a possible replacement for Tom Thibodeau on the Boston Celtics bench. (ESPN)

Here’s a name to keep in mind for a possible spot on Rivers’ bench next season: Al Skinner. The former Boston College coach was rumored to be in contention for a number of college jobs, but none came through for him. Sources indicate Rivers and Skinner have had preliminary talks. The Celtics coaching staff has been decreased by one with Tom Thibodeau’s move to Chicago. Rivers has talked to former Nets head coach Lawrence Frank as well.

Skinner probably would NOT be the best choice. I always thought he was a good coach — his teams always seemed to over-perform and he had a way of turning decent recruits into studs (see: Dudley, Jared and Smith, Craig). But then Bob Ryan explained exactly why the lazy son of a bitch was fired from BC:

Al is Al is Al. I had to smile when I saw that St. John’s was interviewing Al. Doesn’t St. John’s understand that Al is the least-hard-working guy in show business, that in the world of Division 1 college basketball, there is absolutely no one like him? In a world of 24/7/365 basketball zealots, Al is Mr. Casual.

Al works Al hours, arriving around noon, playing some pickup ball, and going to a practice that, more than likely, had been planned by an assistant. Don’t they know how infrequently Al is seen on the recruiting trail during the offseason, when games are really won and lost? Don’t they know that if you hire Al, you must supply him with a first-class recruiting assistant, one who totally understands Al’s likes, dislikes, and peculiarities? Don’t they know, that, when it comes to offense, Al is, ahem, inflexible?

I don’t know about you, but my ideal Thibodeau replacement isn’t exactly “the least-hard-working guy in show business.” But maybe that’s just me.