Anyone care to play in Boston?
If I'm Dee Brown, C.J. Miles and Rafael Araujo, I'd make sure my agent has Danny Ainge's telephone number.
In the aftermath of Monday's nearly completed blockbuster trade between Boston and Minnesota that will send Kevin Garnett to the Celtics for nearly half of the Celtics' roster -- not to mention two future first-round draft picks -- my initial reaction is that Boston needs to find some players ... and fast.
As the executive director of basketball operations for the Celtics, Ainge mortgaged the Celtics' not-too-distant future for a chance to acquire Garnett, team him with All-Stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and win a couple of Eastern Conference championships before the shelf life of all three players near or in their 30s expires.
To do so, Ainge's next job is vital.
He must find some players who can be happy and productive while caddying for the most highly-publicized "Big Three" in Boston since Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish won the Celtics' last NBA title in 1986.
As it stands, Boston's point guard is Rajon Rondo. The Celtics' power-types behind Garnett include Brian Scalabrine, Leon Powe and second-round draft pick Glen "Big Baby" Davis." To spell Pierce and Allen, Boston can count on another second-round rookie, Gabe Pruitt.
That's what I mean when I say Brown, Miles and Araujo -- and players like them -- could find a new lease on their professional lives by signing on with the new-look Celtics.
Can Garnett, Allen, Pierce and a bunch of minimum-wage guys win the East?
Sure.
Can they win a world championship?
Unlikely.
After two decades of suffering, however, the buzz that accompanies contention has returned to Boston and, for the time being, that will be enough to keep everyone happy and for Ainge to keep his job.
-- Steve Luhm
In the aftermath of Monday's nearly completed blockbuster trade between Boston and Minnesota that will send Kevin Garnett to the Celtics for nearly half of the Celtics' roster -- not to mention two future first-round draft picks -- my initial reaction is that Boston needs to find some players ... and fast.
As the executive director of basketball operations for the Celtics, Ainge mortgaged the Celtics' not-too-distant future for a chance to acquire Garnett, team him with All-Stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and win a couple of Eastern Conference championships before the shelf life of all three players near or in their 30s expires.
To do so, Ainge's next job is vital.
He must find some players who can be happy and productive while caddying for the most highly-publicized "Big Three" in Boston since Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish won the Celtics' last NBA title in 1986.
As it stands, Boston's point guard is Rajon Rondo. The Celtics' power-types behind Garnett include Brian Scalabrine, Leon Powe and second-round draft pick Glen "Big Baby" Davis." To spell Pierce and Allen, Boston can count on another second-round rookie, Gabe Pruitt.
That's what I mean when I say Brown, Miles and Araujo -- and players like them -- could find a new lease on their professional lives by signing on with the new-look Celtics.
Can Garnett, Allen, Pierce and a bunch of minimum-wage guys win the East?
Sure.
Can they win a world championship?
Unlikely.
After two decades of suffering, however, the buzz that accompanies contention has returned to Boston and, for the time being, that will be enough to keep everyone happy and for Ainge to keep his job.
-- Steve Luhm
7:50 PM
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2 Comments:
You are right, but you fail to mention TA. He will be a very solid 6th man. He had to carry the C's on his back when Pierce went down; he can absolutely come of the bench in a huge role to spell Piece and Ray and play solid defense. Past that you have a hustle player in Scal. Doc loves Scal and he's going to play ALOT this year. Good and bad, but you can count on him to give you rebounds, some long defense and absolute hustle. Maybe a occasional three. Not a bad option when you have 3 studs on the floor. I think the real weakness is a veteran point guard. Even a european with solid skills and a good baskeball iQ would help. Rondo has potential, but i would have love to seen derek fisher mold him. A good guy that knows how to play the game. Perk will break down adn can;t play big minutes so look for the C's too go with speed and hustle in Leon Powe or the athletic brandon wallace. On the bright side Doc won't beable to juggle a rotation and will let him focus to teaching the kids on the team how to play. The other three (22 all star appearences) will be just fine on their own.
Steve,
You have failed to mention another pressing problem for Danny Ainge. The Celtics, as has been reported by the Boston Herald, will want to also avoid the luxury tax this year, with the understanding that they are going to be hit hard over the next several years by the dollar-for-dollar tax. With that said, they are only about $1 million away from that mark. The speculation by both the local Boston media and the national media, following telephone conversations with Celtics brass, is that they are looking more to long-term veterans to sign to the one-year minimum deals. The league pays a portion of those salaries and such does not count against the Celtics for the luxury tax threshold, thereby avoiding the tax, at least for this year.
In fact, local newspapers in Boston have suggested that one such player may include former Jazz man Keith McLeod (Boston Globe) or another former Jazz player, Troy Hudson (Boston Herald), who recently agreed to a buyout with Minnesota. Hudson may be more amenable to signing for a veteran minimum as he still gets his buyout check from the T'Wolves and gets to reunite with former teammate Kevin Garnett.
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