2023 NBA Playoffs Thread

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Sweep the leg Cato...you got a problem with that?

No sir sensei.

[Waynne]

It boils down to this - Do you throw a max $295m contract at a guy who had 8 turnovers in an elimination game?

Brad Stevens says he might do just that https://www.pressherald.com/2023/06/...eltics-future/

[Steven43]

Brad Stevens says he might do just that https://www.pressherald.com/2023/06/...eltics-future/

You sign Brown to protect him as an asset, and then you trade him. Signing Brown to a max contract ($295 million, in this case) does not preclude trading him.

Personally, I want him gone. I am not comfortable with one of my teams’ two most important players being a primary ball handler who cannot dribble well or protect the ball, whose shooting percentage drops in big games, and whose defensive performance has fallen off considerably over the past year.

Bye bye, Jaylen; I won’t miss you much.

[bluedevilwildcats]

Brad Stevens says he might do just that https://www.pressherald.com/2023/06/...eltics-future/

You sign Brown to protect him as an asset, and then you trade him. Signing Brown to a max contract ($295 million, in this case) does not preclude trading him.

Personally, I want him gone. I am not comfortable with one of my teams’ two most important players being a primary ball handler who cannot dribble well or protect the ball, whose shooting percentage drops in big games, and whose defensive performance has fallen off considerably over the past year. Bye bye, Jaylen; I won’t miss you much.[/QUOTE]

If that's the plan, I'd make sure there's a Step 2 before taking Step 1.

My respect for Brad's acumen peaked in 2011. I won't be surprised if he's a Step 1 guy.

[Waynne]

You sign Brown to protect him as an asset, and then you trade him. Signing Brown to a max contract ($295 million, in this case) does not preclude trading him.

Personally, I want him gone. I am not comfortable with one of my teams’ two most important players being a primary ball handler who cannot dribble well or protect the ball, whose shooting percentage drops in big games, and whose defensive performance has fallen off considerably over the past year.

Bye bye, Jaylen; I won’t miss you much.

OK, I'll play devil's advocate and attempt to argue the minority position on this point. Despite the well-documented deficiencies on DBR of Brown and Tatum the Celtics have won a lot of games with them in the lineup. The C's have played in the conference finals 4 of the last 6 years. How many teams have two young (26 and 25, respectively) All-NBA players who appear to be entering their prime? Brown and Tatum form a solid core that seems to be only a tweak away- specifically a PG who distributes the ball- from reaching the mountaintop. Brad Stevens' apparent strategy of keeping the core intact and attempting to improve the team with tweaks instead of blowing it up and trying to build around Tatum with new players seems to be logical and sound. This strategy appears to be the Celtics' best hope of winning championships now.

[dukelifer]

You sign Brown to protect him as an asset, and then you trade him. Signing Brown to a max contract ($295 million, in this case) does not preclude trading him.

Personally, I want him gone. I am not comfortable with one of my teams’ two most important players being a primary ball handler who cannot dribble well or protect the ball, whose shooting percentage drops in big games, and whose defensive performance has fallen off considerably over the past year.

Bye bye, Jaylen; I won’t miss you much.

Good luck trying to trade that guy at that salary who is as bad as you make him out to be. Why would anyone take him given his supposed inability to play basketball in big moments?

[bluedevilwildcats]

Good luck trying to trade that guy at that salary who is as bad as you make him out to be. Why would anyone take him given his supposed inability to play basketball in big moments?

Yeah, treating Tatum and Brown as a package doesn't make much sense to me. And when you look at them individually, advanced stats say Tatum was around #12 last year (averaging VORP, win-shares, and BPM) while Brown was around #70, including 104th in Win Shares.

What team would be willing to spend $300M on that level of production, especially if it worsens at crunch time? And how did that guy make all NBA 2nd team this year?

[Steven43]

Good luck trying to trade that guy at that salary who is as bad as you make him out to be. Why would anyone take him given his supposed inability to play basketball in big moments?

Because even with his negatives, Jaylen Brown is still a good player in an overall sense. As a comparison he’s better than Bradley Beal, who makes more money than him.

There are plenty of teams who would be happy to have Brown and quite willing to pay him. It’s just time for the Celtics to move on and reconfigure this team to a degree.

[dukelifer]

Because even with his negatives, Jaylen Brown is still a good player in an overall sense. As a comparison he’s better than Bradley Beal, who makes more money than him.

There are plenty of teams who would be happy to have Brown and quite willing to pay him. It’s just time for the Celtics to move on and reconfigure this team to a degree.

Will need to get someone back who can replace his productivity and has shown the ability to play better in the playoffs. That may not be easy to find. Maybe Tatum does not need a high end sidekick- just a deeper bench. We will see but I would be surprised if the Celtics make the conference finals next year.

[Steven43]

Will need to get someone back who can replace his productivity and has shown the ability to play better in the playoffs. That may not be easy to find. Maybe Tatum does not need a high end sidekick- just a deeper bench. We will see but I would be surprised if the Celtics make the conference finals next year.

Gee, don’t bury the C’s just yet. Brad Stevens has plenty of time to make significant moves before then. Yes, I was disappointed that he decided to keep Joe Mazzulla as head coach, but I’m expecting him to bring in one or two experienced and respected assistant coaches to nurture and guide him and provide what the team was missing this year.

I have faith that Stevens is also going to make some shrewd player acquisitions and remake this team into a serious contender for the title next year. I haven’t lost any faith in him.

[rsvman]

OK, I'll play devil's advocate and attempt to argue the minority position on this point. Despite the well-documented deficiencies on DBR of Brown and Tatum the Celtics have won a lot of games with them in the lineup. The C's have played in the conference finals 4 of the last 6 years. How many teams have two young (26 and 25, respectively) All-NBA players who appear to be entering their prime? Brown and Tatum form a solid core that seems to be only a tweak away- specifically a PG who distributes the ball- from reaching the mountaintop. Brad Stevens' apparent strategy of keeping the core intact and attempting to improve the team with tweaks instead of blowing it up and trying to build around Tatum with new players seems to be logical and sound. This strategy appears to be the Celtics' best hope of winning championships now.

Seconded, and I think this is exactly what the higher-ups in the Celtics organization are going to try to do.

[subzero02]

Do you think Boston would want the leading 3-point shooter in the league as well as the leading ATO guy? Kennard + Tyus for Jaylen Brown works almost dollar for dollar in terms of cap space. Memphis could throw in a 2024 first (either theirs or the Warriors, which they own from trading Igoudala back to Golden State).

Tyus + Kennard + a draft pick( 1st round most likely but 2nd rounder might do) in exchange for Brown seems like a very solid trade. My initial post(Tyus++) could have been clearer but a scenario like this is what I was suggesting.

[Matches]

There is no chance the Grizz are trading Tyus with Morant’s situation up in the air.

[dukelifer]

Gee, don’t bury the C’s just yet. Brad Stevens has plenty of time to make significant moves before then. Yes, I was disappointed that he decided to keep Joe Mazzulla as head coach, but I’m expecting him to bring in one or two experienced and respected assistant coaches to nurture and guide him and provide what the team was missing this year.

I have faith that Stevens is also going to make some shrewd player acquisitions and remake this team into a serious contender for the title next year. I haven’t lost any faith in him.

They will not fall off a cliff as the East is pretty bad, but Brown has been a strong regular season piece. We will see who they get and how much of the core remains.

[Rickshaw]

They will not fall off a cliff as the East is pretty bad, but Brown has been a strong regular season piece. We will see who they get and how much of the core remains.

Maybe , get over the Celtics, while we finish the finals.

[DoubleBlue]

Maybe , get over the Celtics, while we finish the finals.

Thank you.

[Steven43]

Maybe , get over the Celtics, while we finish the finals.

I hear you, man. More than ready for some interesting Nuggets/Heat discussion.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any to offer. 🤷

Go Nuggets!

[DukieInBrasil]

OK, I'll play devil's advocate and attempt to argue the minority position on this point. Despite the well-documented deficiencies on DBR of Brown and Tatum the Celtics have won a lot of games with them in the lineup. The C's have played in the conference finals 4 of the last 6 years. How many teams have two young (26 and 25, respectively) All-NBA players who appear to be entering their prime? Brown and Tatum form a solid core that seems to be only a tweak away- specifically a PG who distributes the ball- from reaching the mountaintop. Brad Stevens' apparent strategy of keeping the core intact and attempting to improve the team with tweaks instead of blowing it up and trying to build around Tatum with new players seems to be logical and sound. This strategy appears to be the Celtics' best hope of winning championships now.

I second this. I think the player to move is Smart, trade him for a real PG. That way JB's ballhandling deficiencies are greatly minimized. Alternatively, the Tyus+Kennard+draft picks for JB would be a net positive for the Celtics, i believe.
He hasn't developed the reputation yet, but his a:to, defensive acumen, and decent offensive production seems to make Tre Jones a good PG to trade Smart for.

[DoubleBlue]

I second this. I think the player to move is Smart, trade him for a real PG. That way JB's ballhandling deficiencies are greatly minimized. Alternatively, the Tyus+Kennard+draft picks for JB would be a net positive for the Celtics, i believe.
He hasn't developed the reputation yet, but his a:to, defensive acumen, and decent offensive production seems to make Tre Jones a good PG to trade Smart for.

How about you guys start a separate thread for Celtics discussion?

[FosterCoachK82]

Just saw that Love is starting for the Heat. Really no good options for Miami against this Nuggets team