I recall Danny telling Red that he would have traded Bird when Bird was no longer "Bird-like", which is basically when his back could no longer stand the pounding and Bird was at the end of his career. I see the same for our beloved Captain. While the will is there, he's really becoming a liability especially on the defensive side. Sure he still has a good game or two but overall I'm sorry but he is not a benefit to this team right now. His skills are declining.
I think Danny can and will pull the trigger if the right offer came up by the deadline. Only problem is this....Rondo is attached at the hip to Paul. Many may not see it, but Rondo feels a sense of commitment to Paul and you can see it if you watch closely in games. No matter how much Paul is struggling, Rondo still tries to get him buckets, unlike he did with #20. He would ice #20 in a heartbeat if his shots weren't falling. He doesn't and won't do that with Paul. I think if Danny got rid of Pierce before the season ended, Rondo would sulk like he did with Perk which wouldn't be a good thing.
Lastly, I would AT MINIMUM tinker with the idea of starting Green and bringing Paul off the bench. Don't know how happy he'd be about that but oh well.
Of course this is just my opinion, but it bothers me to see Paul struggle on the offensive end and on defense....well, I'll save that for another night!