NBA: Celtics trade fallout

Remember when the Celtics traded for and reacquired Antoine Walker in the middle of the 2003-2004 season? At the time, the Celtics were slumping and might not have made the playoffs. But they made the trade, added instant offense, started winning the majority of their games, and made the playoffs. Good trade, right?

Well, the C's lost in the first round of the playoffs to a mediocre Indiana Pacers team (I attended Game 7, which they lost by 27 points). They ended up with the 15th pick in the draft, usually a spot where you will not find an impact player. Surprisingly, Al Jefferson fell to them. I remember watching the draft with my buddy Greg and we were praying that he would last that long but severely doubted it. Yet there he was.

However, most times, a stud player like Al Jefferson does not fall that low. That means teams that make first-round exits rarely have a chance to improve themselves. As stated in yesterday's Seattle Supersonics post, a team needs to know when to sacrifice the short term for the long term. Danny Ainge's Walker trade (the second one) set back the franchise 2-3 years.

The obvious question is: Has Danny Ainge repeated his mistake? I've got my thoughts on it Saj, but I'm dying to hear yours.


None of this is as bad as the Sebastian Telfair trade last year. Chew on that for a moment.

Anyway, I like Ray Allen and I wasn't crazy about any of the guys we could have gotten at five so the deal isn't terrible. Not exactly Hollinger-esque basketball analysis, but whatever. Ray Allen was awesome at Connecticut, he was awesome in "He Got Game" (sorta), and I'm pretty sure that both he and Kenny Lofton appeared on the same episode of The Wayans Brothers. What this trade does is put the Celtics in the playoffs. They're still not contenders, but, realistically, Oden or Durant were the only two players that would have cemented the foundation of this team. For all the Garnett and Marion trade rumors they weren't the players who would get us out of the East.

Oh, basketball.


The Ray Allen deal is exciting from a Celtics perspective and here's why: They'll probably win the Atlantic Division. This means a shot at the #3 seed (or #4, with the new playoff seeding rules) and guaranteed homecourt advantage in the first round. In other words, this means the inside track to the conference semi-finals and being one of the last eight teams still playing. Essentially, this trade makes them better than a one-and-done playoff team.

Boston immediately becomes, without a doubt, the best offensive Celtics team since #33 roamed the court. This is as strong of a 1-4 as you can hope for in this league, and probably the best 1-4 in the Eastern Conference (which is kind of like being the sanest person at the asylum). Rajon Rondo runs a terrific point guard and plays fantastic on the ball defense on the opposing point guard (Think a young Jason Kidd...now if he could only learn how to shoot like J. Kidd never did). Ray Allen at the two must always be guarded, which frees up room for two things. First, Paul Pierce at the three has more room to penetrate and either score or dish. Second, Al Jefferson at the four, who will command double teams all season, can only be double teamed at the expense of leaving open Allen or Pierce.

The diversity of scoring options for the Celtics means that Rondo and the center position don't even have to be scoring threats. If they can make lay ups, that's good enough.

Okay, enough offense talk, because we already know this team can average 105 points a night. The problem with this trade is that they could very well give up 106. (Think 2006-2007 Wizards.) The three great scorers I just mentioned are not good defenders...especially Ray Allen. Trading Delonte West and the potentially defensive minded #5 pick meant the only defense left on the Celtics roster was a point guard who can't shoot (Rondo), a shooting guard coming off major knee surgery (Tony Allen), and a decrepit shot-blocking center whose most attractive quality is that he's in the last year of his contract (Theo Ratliff).

This concerns me. Every good team has a good perimeter defender. Bowen, Prince, Bell, Howard. You need someone to slow down the other team's best player. For the Celtics, it's Tony Allen, but the two highest paid players on the team play his position. Not only is he coming back from surgery, but there's not enough perimeter minutes to go around. I think you'll see the Celtics go small a LOT this upcoming year, with Pierce (a good rebounder) seeing time at power forward and Jefferson sliding to center. And this just makes the interior defense that much worse.

Fortunately, their awesome offensive fire power is good enough to win the Atlantic. However, without defensive talent or defensive depth (And I didn't even touch their questionable coach), they have no shot to compete for an NBA Championship, nor did this trade put them in any position to do so down the road.

Saj, would you like to see the Celts make one more deal this offseason or go forward with this squad?

O Kobe! My Kobe! Our Fearful Trip is Done!

So Kobe Bryant is requesting a trade and Alex Rodriguez has been all but caught being unfaithful. This is like bizarro-2004 sports news. All this does is further prove that Kobe and ARod are kindred, uber-talented, douchebag spirits.

Ian, what make you of Kobe's trade demand? I really don't think he wants to leave the Lakers and this is something he won't realize until February of next year when he's playing for a 12-win Charlotte team. And isn't it about damn time we stop allowing superstars to exert such control over franchises? Why can't they be more like the polite Mr. Kevin Garnett who toils silently for a team that is both unable and unwilling to add the right players to win him a championship?


I think Kobe is right in his demands. I mean, at this point, shouldn't they have acquired a 7 foot, 300 pound hall of fame center to help win Kobe some championships? Oh, wait, Kobe ran the best teammate of his career out of LA.

And now he's angry at Lakers brass for not getting him help? When he chased away the best center of this generation? Please.

Now, Kobe Bryant is a magnificent player. For several years I've been saying he's the best player in the league and I still believe this. But the audacity he has to sign a humongous contract (read: tie up a large sum of money), obviously demand Shaquille O'Neal to be traded so Kobe could be The Man, and then complain to the front office that they don't get help for him (What is Lamar Odom, chopped liver?) is fundamentally absurd.

My prediction: Kobe isn't going ANYwhere. LA is the spot for the Kobe Bryant's of the world, not to mention the Lakers needs the Kobe Bryant's of the world. Jack Nicholson pays way too much money to watch 75 cents on the dollar. If, however, we want to entertain his demand, where would he go?

Well, the Western Conference is out. A vengeful Kobe Bryant is not someone I'd want to play 4 times in a regular season than in a possible playoff series.

Further eliminations:
Miami (Shaq)
Cleveland (Needs to be the unequivocal man)
Detroit (Not disrupting that squad)
Charlotte (Not nearly enough to give to LA. Okafor and capspace is not nearly enough to fill that void.)
Indiana (NOTHING to offer after Jermaine O'Neal, not even a pick.)
Orlando (NOTHING to offer besides Dwight Howard, not even a pick, and there's no way they move Howard anyway.)
Toronto (Great fit for Kobe if Toronto can keep Bosh, but Ford and Bargnani not enough to get Bryant to Canada.)

I think everyone else has a chance to sign him. Possible deals, alphabetical order:
Atlanta - Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, #3 pick (LA backs out, needs future 1st rounder)
Boston - Paul Pierce, Gerald Green, #5 pick (Boston backs out, offers Delonte West or Kendrick Perkins instead of Green. La Backs out.)
Chicago - Ben Gordon, Loul Deng, #9 pick (LA backs out, asks for Hinrich in addition)
Milwaukee - Redd, Bogut, Villanueva, #6 pick (this could happen)
New Jersey - Vince Carter, Josh Boone, #17 pick (Vince sells the tickets, at least. Could happen)
New York - Marbury, David Lee, Spike Lee (LA backs out, Marbury is a cancer)
Philly - Iguodala, Dalembert, #12 pick (LA backs out, because they'd be trading Kobe Bryant for guys name Iguodala and Dalembert.)
Washington - Arenas, the #16, next year's first rounder (Might do it.)

That leaves us with Milwaukee, New Jersey, and Washington. Milwaukee and New Jersey are wastelands that Kobe wants not part of. Washington is tempting for him. He has help in Jamison and Butler, there's a lot of marketing possibilities in the capital, not to mention his extramarital affairs fit right in with Congress.

However, Kobe's not going anywhere. And yes, I just realize I wasted 15 minutes of my life going over the possibilities of the impossible. Whatever.