[Bulpett] C's unwilling to give up "top draft assets" for George.

[celticsclay]

The next couple days are critical for Ainge. It's a chicken-egg thing for Hayward and George. He has to play both hands at once, and he has to get Zeller off the books by 7/2 or he's screwed capwise. I never thought that was a wise sign.

The critical day is 7/2. He is interviewing Hayward and must cut Zeller by then, or have a deal in place for him--maybe for George. Somehow he has to juggle Hayward and George, to convince each that the other is coming to Boston. This is like the Bosh-James thing in Miami a few years back.

Riley is interviewing Hayward on Sat. He is $34M under the cap. Do you think maybe he tries to get George and Hayward using the same ploy?  This could blow up in Ainge's face. Which is why maybe he should have traded for George by now and given Indiana the draft picks. Then gone for Hayward with George signed. He could wind up outsmarting himself cutting it too close.

But then, maybe all this has been worked out behind the scenes. You don't know.

how can he get George?  what assets does he have to trade for him?

Well Winslow would be a pretty good starting point.  Much better for a rebuilding team than any of the non-prime assets that Boston or LA has put on the table thus far.

You could argue Smart is just as good as Winslow. Let's not act like Winslow is a prized prospect any longer. He can't score. Period.

Hope you're excited about Fultz. Championship in 2050!

Smart is due for a raise next summer.  Winslow is locked up longer and cheaper.  Winslow obviously struggled with his shooting last year, but he is a pretty good rebounder and passer for the position, and has every bit the defensive potential as Smart.  For a rebuilding team, I think Winslow is the better asset.  For a win now team, Smart would be the way to go.

Meh Winslow had a pretty serious injury last year with a torn labrum and was seemingly unable to practice shooting for quite a long period. Prior to that he had a wrist injury that bothered him for months. So a guy that hasn't had chance to improve on his skills and has two more years on rookie salary. I am not sure that makes him more attractive than a guy that has demonstrated he has NBA skills on a playoff team just over one year of being cheaper.

[green_bballers13]

I don't want them to trade multiple valuable assets for a player that has had problems winning playoff games. He looked bad at various points during the CLE series. I think George is good, but he's not a top 5 player that is worth trading the farm for.

[Bobshot]

Two starters and two no.1s is too high for George. A guy the Pacers can't re-sign. I wonder if Pritchard knows what he's doing. He'll probably settle for one pick plus Bradley, Crowder. he won't get any more than that. And not the Nets pick.

[jpotter33]

https://twitter.com/MarkG_Medina/status/880586845154758656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Findiana-pacers

http://www.ocregister.com/2017/06/29/why-the-lakers-plan-to-be-deliberative-in-free-agency/

To be smart in free agency, the Lakers also have set their eyes on two realities. The Lakers are not expecting to acquire George from the Indiana Pacers amid their insistence on keeping Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram. With their hopes set on George becoming available next summer, the Lakers want to pursue players who fit specific criteria that would accelerate the young roster’s development.

This is good news for us. If they're set on not including Ball or Ingram, then there's no other team that can come close to our offer.

I also think this is a really dumb risk for LA, because I truly do not see him leaving more money on the table on a superteam in Boston to go to LA. Realistically, I only see two ways of him going to LA: 1) LA trades for him now, or 2) Indy holds off on trading him and he goes there in free agency next summer. I just simply don't see him leaving super teams in Boston, Cleveland, or Houston to go to LA.

[Tr1boy]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

[Tr1boy]

At the end of the day if the Pacers dont net the best assets in return... Pritchard should be fired

[Roy H.]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

Why would Indy accept a lesser deal from Houston?

[jpotter33]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return is more acceptable

Naw, why would they do that? Out of the trio of Boston, Cleveland, and Houston, we obviously have the most to offer them, even if we don't include our premium assets. They want to deal with us to give them the most they can get out of a bad situation.

The only team that they might treat unfairly is the Lakers due to George's affinity for them, which there's already been rumors about. It also would be a sweet type of revenge for them if they got the Lakers pick back in a George deal to further stick it to the Lakers.

[csfansince60s]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return is more acceptable

Naw, why would they do that? Out of the trio of Boston, Cleveland, and Houston, we obviously have the most to offer them, even if we don't include our premium assets. They want to deal with us to give them the most they can get out of a bad situation.

The only team that they might treat unfairly is the Lakers due to George's affinity for them, which there's already been rumors about. It also would be a sweet type of revenge for them if they got the Lakers pick back in a George deal to further stick it to the Lakers.

We've got the best shot at him from both an asset perspective and being one of the three teams that George said he would likely sign an extension with, the other two being the Cavs and the spurs. No mention of the rox or the Fakers.

[SparzWizard]

Man some of these Celtics fans on a Facebook Pro-Celtics group page would trade both BKN 2018 and LAL pick for Paul George without carefully reading the script..."one-year rental". And I'd get called dumb for not willing to deal that for PG13 under those conditions lol.

Glad they aren't GMs. 

[KGs Knee]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

Why would Indy accept a lesser deal from Houston?

Apparently to spite us if we don't give them what they want. Because that's how NBA GM's operate, haven't you heard? They don't make the best deal for themselves, they look to screw over peers for perceived slights.

[SparzWizard]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

Why would Indy accept a lesser deal from Houston?

Apparently to spite us if we don't give them what they want. Because that's how NBA GM's operate, haven't you heard? They don't make the best deal for themselves, they look to screw over peers for perceived slights.

And that is how they typically get fired.

And if they don't, well, I tip my hat to them for their spite. But have fun in the long haul with your franchise lolol.

[Phantom255x]

Man some of these Celtics fans on a Facebook Pro-Celtics group page would trade both BKN 2018 and LAL pick for Paul George without carefully reading the script..."one-year rental". And I'd get called dumb for not willing to deal that for PG13 under those conditions lol.

Glad they aren't GMs. 

Most of them on the FB group pages post news from FAKE NEWS sites like, "Celtics have deal in place for Anthony Davis.." etc etc, and they seem to believe it 110%   

[Irish Stew]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

I understand the frustration of a Celtics fan who wants the George deal to happen yesterday. What I don't understand is the sports media's continued reporting as though Houston were a serious suitor for George. They have nothing to offer. Even the most superficial analysis would show that this is true. The best deal that I can come up with is Gordon and Capela. Why would Indiana want Gordon? He will be 29 and make $40 million over 3 years. Because of protection on the 2018 pick traded to LA, they can't cleanly trade future 1st rounders. Maybe another poster can come up with a reasonable Houston offer for George.

[Moranis]

I wonder if the Pacers are going to demand the moon from the Celts and if they dont comply....Pacers will just trade PG13 to like the rockets or something

Pacers point of view - with PG13 plus Hayward you can win a championship. That is worth alot. Vs trading PG13 to a lesser contender. Less in return could be acceptable

I understand the frustration of a Celtics fan who wants the George deal to happen yesterday. What I don't understand is the sports media's continued reporting as though Houston were a serious suitor for George. They have nothing to offer. Even the most superficial analysis would show that this is true. The best deal that I can come up with is Gordon and Capela. Why would Indiana want Gordon? He will be 29 and make $40 million over 3 years. Because of protection on the 2018 pick traded to LA, they can't cleanly trade future 1st rounders. Maybe another poster can come up with a reasonable Houston offer for George.

I think there is a thought that they can trade Gordon or Anderson somewhere else and pick up some young assets, which they can then use in the trade with Indiana.  Like say Toronto loses Ibaka and Patterson, but retain Lowry.  Anderson would make a lot of sense in Toronto.  Maybe the Rockets acquire Carroll (which they keep) and acquired 2 or 3 of the following which they send to Indiana: Caboclo, Poetzl, Siakam, Noguiera, Powell.  So here is a 3 team trade that work.

Houston - Carroll, George
Toronto - Gordon, Anderson
Indiana - Capela, Joseph, Caboclo, Poetzl, Siakam, Houston 2020 protected 1st

I could see where to Indiana that might be more appealing than Crowder, Bradley, 2018 Boston 1st.  Obviously Boston has the assets to top that trade rather easily, but if Boston isn't offering the primo assets lots of teams could put together an attractive enough package.