Wow!! Major NBA trade. KG to Celts

[JasonEvans]

KG to Celts for 4 players and at least one draft pick.

The players being traded by Boston are Telfair, Gerald Greene, Theo Ratliff, and Al Jefferson.

Trade is about to be finalized according to a Celtic official who spoke to the AP.

-Jason "I sorta feel for KG-- I wish he could go somewhere where he would have decent teammates... but at least he is in the East" Evans

[pfrduke]

Jason "I sorta feel for KG-- I wish he could go somewhere where he would have decent teammates... but at least he is in the East" Evans

Ray Allen and Paul Pierce aren't decent teammates?

[tombrady]

-Jason "I sorta feel for KG-- I wish he could go somewhere where he would have decent teammates... but at least he is in the East" Evans

Seriously dude WTF? This makes the Celtics instant Finals contenders coming out of the East.

[Mcluhan]

Seriously dude WTF? This makes the Celtics instant Finals contenders coming out of the East.

Yeah, I think the three of them will mesh well-they're all very competitive and focused. Suddenly doubling Pierce becomes a lot harder, and their offense will flow from there.

If they have any money left over, they should go after Boykins, Ruben Patterson, or Pargo to round out their rotation. Kendrick Perkins, Rondo, and Tony Allen should be involved as well.

[Scoring Point]

Seems pretty one-sided to me

- Jefferson is arguably a rising star, though it is always tough to interpret bug numbers on terrible teams;
- Green has talent but seems like a kid without a position
- Ratliff is way over the hill
- I thought the Celts had released Telfair; I would not touch that kid with a 10 foot pole - I don't know if he is even worthy of starting at a Top D-1 program talent-wise, and then there's the whole knucklehead factor

Off the top of my head, KG, Pierce and Allen is about as strong a trio as any in the league, ASSUMING they can co-exist. Pierce in particular will need to get comfy with a lesser role, although having 2 other big-time scorers should do wonders for KG's psyche

[pfrduke]

The C's have an interesting roster from cap standpoint - I think Pierce, Allen, and Garnett are extremely close to the cap all on their own. Do the C's have a MLE left for this season? Otherwise, this could be a roster with dangerously low depth.

Starters:
Rondo
Allen
Pierce
KG
Perkins

Bench:
Gabe Pruitt (currently unsigned)
Brandon Wallace
Leon Powe
Ryan Gomes
Brian Scalabrine
Glen Davis (currently unsigned)

That bench lacks experience, talent, and guards. Unless there's an MLE that would allow the C's to sign a FA guard (or they can move Scalabrine and Powe/Gomes for a guard), Allen, Rondo, and Pierce all need to play a lot of minutes, and they're in trouble if any of them gets hurt for any significant period of time (say, if Ray Allen's ankles go bad again).

[tombrady]

Do the C's have a MLE left for this season?

Yes they do.

[tombrady]

Off the top of my head, KG, Pierce and Allen is about as strong a trio as any in the league, ASSUMING they can co-exist. Pierce in particular will need to get comfy with a lesser role, although having 2 other big-time scorers should do wonders for KG's psyche

Pierce used to defer to Antoine Walker...this won't be a problem.

[pfrduke]

Yes they do.

Do you have any idea what guards might be available that they could sign with that MLE?

[JasonEvans]

Ray Allen and Paul Pierce aren't decent teammates?

I'm an idiot. I totally forgot about the Ray Allen deal. I was thinking that Pierce was the only decent teammate he had.

Yeah, the Celts are a ton better thanks to this deal. I agree that they are instant finals contenders.

There may be some balance begin restored in the NBA... some. A few teams in the East appear to have gotten significantly better in the offseason (Celtics, Magic) while some younger teams will benefit from more experience for their young players (Bulls, Cavs). Granted, the two major studs of the draft went to West teams but the East is getting at least a little bit better.

-Jason "sorry for the brain freeze on the Celtics roster" Evans

[JasonEvans]

Do you have any idea what guards might be available that they could sign with that MLE?

Earl Boykins is a free agent and is instant offense off the bench. He can really push the pace and create opportunities for his teammates, which could be key if he is running with some less-talented tammates on the Celtic's bench. The problem is that he is so short that he is a real defensive liability. He gets posted up constantly.

Matt Barnes really blossomed last year in Golden State and I think he could play wing guard (though he is better suited to wing forward). The question has to be if his success was a product of Golden State's system.

Mickael Pietrus is another Golden State wing who is available on the free agent market. He has a better history of success than Barnes does so he may be less of a risk.

Pargo would be avail for the MLE, for sure. He has put up decent numbers in very limited roles in recent years. I am not sold on him in a larger role for any team though.

Brevin Knight would be a great pickup if you could get him for the MLE, but he is supposedly very close to signing with the Clippers.

There are others who are out there... though not many players who you would think would play a significant role on a Finals contender.

-Jason "the team that has made no noise at all in the offseason is Cleveland" Evans

[SilkyJ]

Seriously dude WTF? This makes the Celtics instant Finals contenders coming out of the East.

I agree. I thought the Ray allen deal put them in the playoffs, and this deal should probably put them in the Eastern Finals, and they could definitely win the east. Chicago and Cleveland will be tough to get through (might only have to beat one of them) and you can't count out Detroit or Miami with a healthy D-Wade...and don't sleep on the Magic and the Wizards before they lost arenas, and the up and coming raptors...The east is young and improving and will be much more competitive next year.

Silky "I can't wait to see the Celts play the Magic with Dwight Howard on KG and JJ and Ray Allen http://www.dukebasketballreport.comh...lreport.coming it out from deep" J

[mgtr]

I think the Celts got the best of this deal by a bunch. And KG is on a team with a real chance to win a ring. Go Celtics!

[KrimsonKing]

why is sebastion telfair still in the NBA?

he is the worst player i have seen since dejuan wagner

[Dukerati]

Do you have any idea what guards might be available that they could sign with that MLE?

Jason touched on some possibilities but I think he missed the most logical and most talented possibility. Juan Carlos Navarro. Washington has his rights but can't sign him because they are horribly managed and overcapped themselves by choosing DeShawn Stevenson over him.

For those of you who don't know who he is, he's one of the best guards in Europe. Yes, he is more of a 2 than a 1 but he has a lightning-quick first step, loves the pull-up jumper, and is a very strong finisher-- a style that should play well with Pierce and Allen setting up on the wings. At the very least, Navarro is highly coveted by many around the league and he could be a lucrative trading block to dangle in front of some teams (Chicago with Duhon and Memphis (he's best friends with Gasol) with Lowry come to mind)

[pfrduke]

Jason touched on some possibilities but I think he missed the most logical and most talented possibility. Juan Carlos Navarro. Washington has his rights but can't sign him because they are horribly managed and overcapped themselves by choosing DeShawn Stevenson over him.

For those of you who don't know who he is, he's one of the best guards in Europe. Yes, he is more of a 2 than a 1 but he has a lightning-quick first step, loves the pull-up jumper, and is a very strong finisher-- a style that should play well with Pierce and Allen setting up on the wings. At the very least, Navarro is highly coveted by many around the league and he could be a lucrative trading block to dangle in front of some teams (Chicago with Duhon and Memphis (he's best friends with Gasol) with Lowry come to mind)

Yeah, but what could Boston give Washington to get Navarro? Do they have a 1st rounder left in the next two years (even if so, it's not likely to be a high pick)? Would the Wizards really want a Scalabrine/Powe package? Is it legal to just buy his rights?

[Dukerati]

Yeah, but what could Boston give Washington to get Navarro? Do they have a 1st rounder left in the next two years (even if so, it's not likely to be a high pick)? Would the Wizards really want a Scalabrine/Powe package? Is it legal to just buy his rights?

To my understanding, the MLE is a tradeable asset, so the Wizards would receive a MLE and possibly a Powe or Davis in exchange for Navarro. I do not know if this theoretical trade would work out financially but that was my thinking for the trade...

[greybeard]

I think that Ernie is in big trouble if he does not sign this guy.

Why, you ask? Arenas.

I do not think that the Wizzards can reach their potential unless he develops parts of his game that are laughably bad (in addition to his defense, which they can live with, his inability to penetrate the defense with the pass is astounding). He will not even try.

I think that Ernie will end up having to move Arenas, as unthinkable as that sounds. I'd do it now, to LA for Bynum and Farmar. I'd sign the guy from Spain.

Then, we'd see the Princeton instead of the "Big Three," and the Wizzards as a team would have a much, much bigger upside, imo. On the other side, Arenas is terribly entertaining and marketable, and this is show business after all, but only if the refs don't fool with the spread. Please.

[JasonEvans]

It is worth noting that even though the Celts may have a MLE to give this year (and I am not 100% certain they do), the team is probably badly "capped out" and dangerously close to nasty luxury tax levels.

Last year, Celtics were at $62 million in team salary. Since then, they have added the $20+million deal of Kevin Garnett (the most expensive player in the NBA) as well as Ray Allen at around $15 million a season. Pierce makes more than $15 million as well. Those three guys alone are more than $50 million of salary.

They got rid of Wally's $11 million and Theo Ratliff's $11 million, but the other guys they got rid of, (Jefferson, Green, Gomes and the such) were making less than $2-million each. Heck, Gomes was making like $600-grand, a huge bargain for a very productive player.

I figure the Celts have added at least $10 million and probably more like $15 million in salary with their recent moves. They will go from the team with the #19 highest payroll to one of the 5 highest payrolls in the league.

I find it highly unlikely that they would sink another $5 million+ into another player on their roster. If they do have any cap room at all, they need to spread it out over 2 - 4 role players who can provide a little something off the bench for them. This is a woefully undertalented and inexperienced team after their top 3 players. They have a top 3 as good as any in the league, but you have to have at least a little bit of a bench.

--Jason "they really need Rondo to blossom this season and they have to hope to pick up some halfway decent vets for the minimum to fill out the roster" Evans

[JasonEvans]

Here is a well-done article from ESPN on the $60-million extension Garnett has signed with Boston and how his salary affects the Celtics. It has better numbers than my estimates in the above post but does come to the same conclusion I did which is:

To fill out the rest of this season's roster, NBA front-office sources indicate that Boston is expected to focus on minimum-salaried acquisitions, since it will have more than $56 million invested in Garnett, Pierce and Allen alone.

Garnett gave the Celtics a real discount starting in year 3 of his deal so they may be able to use their MLE that year to get some help to the big-3 but until 2009-2010, it is the big-3 and a bunch of minimum salary players.

-Jason "can the Celts win a title sorta playing 3-on-5? It will be interesting to see" Evans