Voice of Reason
Ok, I've had a night to sleep off my hangover -- and re-think every little detail of the 2007 NBA Draft...
Last night's draft-day trade for Ray Allen was clearly a move of desperation, a move guided by Paul Pierce. Not necessarily a terrible thing.
Who received the better end of the deal? Oh, Seattle absolutely did...that goes without saying. For Ray Allen (who turns 32 next month)...who by the way, is coming off ankle surgery of both cankles (the same surgery as Wally), the up-and-coming Sonics landed themselves the PERFECT complement to Kevin Durant in Jeff Green (at #5 overall), Wally Szczerbiak's contract which expires in 2 years ($12M and $13M, respectively), & Delonte West, whose game I dislike...but let's be honest, (besides Rondo) West is the only other player that could have gotten both Pierce and Allen the ball in favorable spots (it's worth noting that Allen has never been able to create his own shot, and Pierce is becoming more-and-more that way). No??? Then, please tell me why the Sonics have sucked for years now??? After all, Pierce and Rashard Lewis are more comparable players than anyone in Boston would like you to believe.
And, Suds...please don't even mention Glen "Big Baby" Davis as part of this deal, as his fat a$$ is (at best) a 9th Man in the NBA -- which isn't good news for Celtic fans -- remember, Doc Rivers refuses to set a rotation, as he wants to keep every player happy (yes, even stiffs like "Big Baby").
But, at the same time...as a Celtics fan, I am 75% on board with this trade (assuming Ainge completes at least one more BIG trade this offseason). Allen's contract is TERRIBLE -- he's signed through the 2009-2010 season ($16M, $17.4M, $18.8M for the next 3 seasons), BUT he clearly makes the team better offensively...when healthy.
Bottom line...my primary concern about this team's current roster is DEFENSE (rebounding is another area which requires immediate attention). As an Ainge supporter in the past, I'm beginning to wonder if he even watches the NBA playoffs. For the past decade (Miami being the lone exception), defense has won EVERY year. With the exception of Rondo and Tony Allen (an injury question mark with no minutes on this team now), they C's don't possess a single other player that could lock down The Commodore.
The best move of the night by Celtics' management? The drafting of Gabe Pruitt!! As I mentioned in yesterday's Final Mock Draft (http://thewincolumn.blogspot.com/2007/06/final-2007-nba-mock-draft.html), I was praying that Pruitt somehow dropped to #32. As it stands now, Pruitt must add muscle (and, thus, is a few years away from making an impact)...but, believe me -- Pruitt can stroke it...he's a very smooth player (but again, he can't defend)! Quick...when's the last time the C's had a PG that could shoot a jumper??? And no, Kenny Anderson doesn't count.
Ok, I've done some research now (actually a lot of research)...the hope around Boston last night was that the Ray Allen trade could eventually make way for another trade, thus, landing Kevin Garnett. The most discussed option included a package of Theo's expiring contract ($11.7 M) and Al Jefferson ($2.5M next season, and a qualifying offer of $3.5M in 2008-09) FOR "The Big Ticket" ($22M for next season, and a player option for $24M in 2008-09).
Call me crazy, but $14.2M doesn't come close to matching KG's $22M salary next season (and yes, I'm well aware that contracts don't need to match EXACTLY if trades are made during the offseason). You want to know what the rest of the Celtics roster is scheduled to earn next season?? With no further ado...
Last night's draft-day trade for Ray Allen was clearly a move of desperation, a move guided by Paul Pierce. Not necessarily a terrible thing.
Who received the better end of the deal? Oh, Seattle absolutely did...that goes without saying. For Ray Allen (who turns 32 next month)...who by the way, is coming off ankle surgery of both cankles (the same surgery as Wally), the up-and-coming Sonics landed themselves the PERFECT complement to Kevin Durant in Jeff Green (at #5 overall), Wally Szczerbiak's contract which expires in 2 years ($12M and $13M, respectively), & Delonte West, whose game I dislike...but let's be honest, (besides Rondo) West is the only other player that could have gotten both Pierce and Allen the ball in favorable spots (it's worth noting that Allen has never been able to create his own shot, and Pierce is becoming more-and-more that way). No??? Then, please tell me why the Sonics have sucked for years now??? After all, Pierce and Rashard Lewis are more comparable players than anyone in Boston would like you to believe.
And, Suds...please don't even mention Glen "Big Baby" Davis as part of this deal, as his fat a$$ is (at best) a 9th Man in the NBA -- which isn't good news for Celtic fans -- remember, Doc Rivers refuses to set a rotation, as he wants to keep every player happy (yes, even stiffs like "Big Baby").
But, at the same time...as a Celtics fan, I am 75% on board with this trade (assuming Ainge completes at least one more BIG trade this offseason). Allen's contract is TERRIBLE -- he's signed through the 2009-2010 season ($16M, $17.4M, $18.8M for the next 3 seasons), BUT he clearly makes the team better offensively...when healthy.
Bottom line...my primary concern about this team's current roster is DEFENSE (rebounding is another area which requires immediate attention). As an Ainge supporter in the past, I'm beginning to wonder if he even watches the NBA playoffs. For the past decade (Miami being the lone exception), defense has won EVERY year. With the exception of Rondo and Tony Allen (an injury question mark with no minutes on this team now), they C's don't possess a single other player that could lock down The Commodore.
The best move of the night by Celtics' management? The drafting of Gabe Pruitt!! As I mentioned in yesterday's Final Mock Draft (http://thewincolumn.blogspot.com/2007/06/final-2007-nba-mock-draft.html), I was praying that Pruitt somehow dropped to #32. As it stands now, Pruitt must add muscle (and, thus, is a few years away from making an impact)...but, believe me -- Pruitt can stroke it...he's a very smooth player (but again, he can't defend)! Quick...when's the last time the C's had a PG that could shoot a jumper??? And no, Kenny Anderson doesn't count.
Ok, I've done some research now (actually a lot of research)...the hope around Boston last night was that the Ray Allen trade could eventually make way for another trade, thus, landing Kevin Garnett. The most discussed option included a package of Theo's expiring contract ($11.7 M) and Al Jefferson ($2.5M next season, and a qualifying offer of $3.5M in 2008-09) FOR "The Big Ticket" ($22M for next season, and a player option for $24M in 2008-09).
Call me crazy, but $14.2M doesn't come close to matching KG's $22M salary next season (and yes, I'm well aware that contracts don't need to match EXACTLY if trades are made during the offseason). You want to know what the rest of the Celtics roster is scheduled to earn next season?? With no further ado...
- Kendrick Perkins - $4.5M
- Brian Scalabrine - $3M
- Sebastian Telfair - $2.6M
- Tony Allen - $1.9M
- Gerald Green - $1.4M
- Rajon Rondo - $1.4M
- Ryan Gomes - $770K
- Leon Powe - $687K
- Allan Ray - $687K
And, oh yeah...if Ainge is somehow able to land KG (and convince him to re-sign), the Celts will have $59.4M locked up between just 3 players (KG, Pierce, and Allen) in 2008-09. Newsflash...that doesn't work, especially when you consider that the C's current payroll for the upcoming season is ALREADY $63.4M, the 10th highest in the league. Granted, I don't know what the salary cap will be in 2 years (no one knows for certain), but I can assure you that the NBA salary cap does not increase at an exponential rate.
FYI (updated information)...this past year's salary cap was officially $53.135 million. Additionally, the mid-level exception was $5.215 million.
In the end...for the next 3 months, Ainge will need a new phone plan. Last night was a start...but by no means, the end. At the very least, it's an exciting time to be a Celtics fan, as this is the most publicity the team has received since the Rick Pitino Era.
7 comments:
we can always keep al and use theo to trade for kirilenko. We can be good and still have young talent in rondo, kirilenko, green, and big al.
i have to agree with chieftain here. the trade on paper looks unreal for the celts. ray allen has and hopefully will continue to be a great nba player. however, our defense is just getting worse and delonte was the only point guard on the team who could dish the ball at the proper time. while everyone in beantown keeps blowing rondo cuz he actually plays defense, hes clearly not a starting point guard...not yet. i think the trade is great though. we managed to keep big al, dump shitbum wally and make the team better. thats a key point here...this trade definetly makes the celts better. with our luck, though, jeff green will become the next stud in the league, and we will spend the next ten years wondering what if...like with duncan. all in all, we have paul pierce and ray allen, both proven studs in the league, with an up and coming star in big al. ainge makes another good move to pick up a veteran point guard or beast in the middle other than kendrick perkins and the celts looks pretty nice in the terrible atlantic. we all know they're far from winning a championship...but as a diehard, i at least want to be competitive and make the playoffs. so far, i think this is a step in the right direction assuming allen's ankles are fine and his game is as good as it was last year---raining threes all nite.
another point....where does gerald fit in now? pierce allen, tony allen, gerald green all play pretty much the same position more so 2 guards. gerald may good trade bait.
if we ever got kirilenko, I am going to buy a jersey and run around boston posing as his little brother!
another commment...how is our defense getting worse? I love him but who gives a sh*t about delonte! Our defense sucks and it still sucks. Lets just say it didn't get better. But it didn't get worse
Gerald is as good as gone. Good riddance! He'll never be consistent in this league. He can shoot, but has no other offensive game. And, on defense...forget about it - he's worse than Nash defensively. Essentially, all he does is run around the court doing jumping jacks at every ball fake.
You guys realize that Kirilenko has one of NBA's worst contracts, right?? AK-47 is scheduled to make $13.7M this year, $15.1M in 2008,$16.5M in 2009, and $17.9M in 2010.
Despite his defense, I want nothing to with Kirilenko. Acquiring Kirilenko would hamstring the C's from being able to eventually offer Big Al max money (when his contract is up)...and Kirilenko surely doesn't put the C's over the top.
agreed with chieftain....kirilenko is way overpaid and way overrated. no reason to bring him to boston at this point.
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