Which center should we sign?

[liam]

One of Trevion Wiliams or Mfiondu Kabengele might be able to be the 3rd string center.

[Birdman]

One of Trevion Wiliams or Mfiondu Kabengele might be able to be the 3rd string center.

Probably what may happen but love to get a vet or Moses Brown

[Roy H.]

Note, Myles Turner back on the block (again).

With Brogdon here, along with White, and PP, would you send Smart to Indy for Turner?  BTW, if I were Brad and wanted to, I'd clear it with JT first!

Nope.

Maybe White.

Myles Turner is one of those names that just keeps coming up.  My understanding is that he missed a chunk of last season due to a stress fracture in his foot.  Turner is only 26 but has 7 seasons in the NBA.  I guess that is the norm these days when players are drafted at age 19.  He has been remarkably consistent over those 7 seasons, 13'ish points, 7'ish rebounds but the flip side of that is how little improvement or progression there has been.  He really has been pretty much the same player, very little development or improvement.

I don't know about a White for Turner trade but I agree that I would not give up Smart for Turner (unless we got back picks or other value).  It seems that if White for Turner was in the cards, they could have done it as part of the Brogdon trade.  It is a reasonable trade in terms of value.  Turner is in the last year of his contract so an "expiring".  Not sure he would want to be the long term back up behind RWill.

Also, FWIW, Turner makes just over our Fournier TPE so no chance to use that.

I think you could absorb a player into a TPE and immediately trade him for Turner as long as the salaries match 1 to 1. Like M. Beasley from Utah for TPE and then Beasley for Turner. Though both Jazz and Pacers would have to be additionally compensated and those complicated deals tend to be unrealistic.

Nothing in the CBA rules prevents it, but it could be seen as circumvention of the cap, and therefore disallowed.

I'm not sure if we've had a test case of this before.

[liam]

One of Trevion Wiliams or Mfiondu Kabengele might be able to be the 3rd string center.

Probably what may happen but love to get a vet or Moses Brown

I'd be happy with Dwight as a designated goon off the bench. Take care of our guys getting cheap shotted.

[Celtics2021]

Note, Myles Turner back on the block (again).

With Brogdon here, along with White, and PP, would you send Smart to Indy for Turner?  BTW, if I were Brad and wanted to, I'd clear it with JT first!

Nope.

Maybe White.

Myles Turner is one of those names that just keeps coming up.  My understanding is that he missed a chunk of last season due to a stress fracture in his foot.  Turner is only 26 but has 7 seasons in the NBA.  I guess that is the norm these days when players are drafted at age 19.  He has been remarkably consistent over those 7 seasons, 13'ish points, 7'ish rebounds but the flip side of that is how little improvement or progression there has been.  He really has been pretty much the same player, very little development or improvement.

I don't know about a White for Turner trade but I agree that I would not give up Smart for Turner (unless we got back picks or other value).  It seems that if White for Turner was in the cards, they could have done it as part of the Brogdon trade.  It is a reasonable trade in terms of value.  Turner is in the last year of his contract so an "expiring".  Not sure he would want to be the long term back up behind RWill.

Also, FWIW, Turner makes just over our Fournier TPE so no chance to use that.

I think you could absorb a player into a TPE and immediately trade him for Turner as long as the salaries match 1 to 1. Like M. Beasley from Utah for TPE and then Beasley for Turner. Though both Jazz and Pacers would have to be additionally compensated and those complicated deals tend to be unrealistic.

Nothing in the CBA rules prevents it, but it could be seen as circumvention of the cap, and therefore disallowed.

I'm not sure if we've had a test case of this before.

My understanding is that there have been league memos saying not to do this, or something like this.  I remember a rumor of one being sent when it came to some team having a disabled player exception, and contemplating acquiring someone who fit underneath it followed by a subsequent trade for someone who’s salary was too large, but matched with the player acquired by the DPE.

There’s probably an amount of time that could pass for this to be allowed, however.  If the Celtics acquired a Malik Beasley now, and traded him in two months to Indiana for Turner, one should expect  that would get through because by that point Beasley could be aggregated with other players.

[Birdman]

Derrick White & Grant Williams for Myles Turner..love see this

[Moranis]

Derrick White & Grant Williams for Myles Turner..love see this

If you told me Turner would be healthy for 65 games and the post season, then sure you do that trade, but the odds of him being healthy for that many games and the playoffs, I don't think he is worth that sort of cost, especially since if you trade White you absolutely need Brogdon to be healthy for a lot of games (which is also unlikely).  The real shame is Turner makes a bit too much for the trade exception.

[Bobshot]

I think they need a defensive shot blocker--a guy like Robert Williams who can back him up.

When Robert Williams plays 25-30 min , the team is a notch better on defense.

He is not a full time player with those fragile knees, so we need another solid guy to fill his shoes.

I'm not concerned about Bryant--he isn't much of an inside or defensive player and is coming off a serious ACL .
I wonder if the Lakers just paid him more. He's more of an offensive player, a 3P kid, which they have plenty of.

Whiteside or Howard or Cousins would probably suffice in part time role. These guys can give you 20-25 mins.
Howard was pretty good for the Lakers last year when he had to play. Whiteside has knees but can be dominating on the boards.
I don't know how much Cousins has left.

It will probably boil down to who they can get cheapest.

[Walker Wiggle]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

[Roy H.]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

Why an end of roster spot, instead of a two-way?  At least for Williams?

[Who]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

Too small and not athletic enough to overcome his lack of size. He is a solid athlete but he doesn't have that major athleticism you want from an undersized C.

From a skill stand-point, he has some skills but they are not good enough to overcome his lack of physical talent. For instance, when he played PF his skill-level was so much lower than most forwards that he became a large net negative & he had below average speed on defense. When he played C, his jump-shooting and perimeter skills were a small plus (but not lethal enough to be a large factor) but his lack of size on defense made him a large negative as both a defender & rebounder which made him a bad net negative overall.

Basically, he had no position. He was stuck in between a PF and C with neither the skill level nor the physical talent necessary to succeed at either one of them. Since then, he has failed to develop. Frankly, he is not an NBA player.


I was very interested in him when he got drafted. He felt like one of the steals of the draft. Even in LAC after a slow start, it felt he had some poor man's Serge Ibaka type qualities in terms of being an undersized mobile defensive big who can stretch the floor with his jump-shot.

But ultimately, he wasn't athletic enough on defense and particularly poor as a rebounder. And not skilled enough on offense to make up for it. He has some low level perimeter skills but he needed a lot more than that to overcome how weak he was as a defender & rebounder.

[Vermont Green]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

Too small and not athletic enough to overcome his lack of size. He is a solid athlete but he doesn't have that major athleticism you want from an undersized C.

From a skill stand-point, he has some skills but they are not good enough to overcome his lack of physical talent. For instance, when he played PF his skill-level was so much lower than most forwards that he became a large net negative & he had below average speed on defense. When he played C, his jump-shooting and perimeter skills were a small plus (but not lethal enough to be a large factor) but his lack of size on defense made him a large negative as both a defender & rebounder which made him a bad net negative overall.

Basically, he had no position. He was stuck in between a PF and C with neither the skill level nor the physical talent necessary to succeed at either one of them. Since then, he has failed to develop. Frankly, he is not an NBA player.


I was very interested in him when he got drafted. He felt like one of the steals of the draft. Even in LAC after a slow start, it felt he had some poor man's Serge Ibaka type qualities in terms of being an undersized mobile defensive big who can stretch the floor with his jump-shot.

But ultimately, he wasn't athletic enough on defense and particularly poor as a rebounder. And not skilled enough on offense to make up for it. He has some low level perimeter skills but he needed a lot more than that to overcome how weak he was as a defender & rebounder.

He is 6'-10", 250 lbs.  I don't doubt your analysis but it seems hard to believe this is about size.  Guys like this sometimes just aren't quite good enough.  Some start out that way but get a little better and make it, a lot don't get better.  Great we have him on the SL team so the coaches can get a really good look at him.

[gouki88]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

Too small and not athletic enough to overcome his lack of size. He is a solid athlete but he doesn't have that major athleticism you want from an undersized C.

From a skill stand-point, he has some skills but they are not good enough to overcome his lack of physical talent. For instance, when he played PF his skill-level was so much lower than most forwards that he became a large net negative & he had below average speed on defense. When he played C, his jump-shooting and perimeter skills were a small plus (but not lethal enough to be a large factor) but his lack of size on defense made him a large negative as both a defender & rebounder which made him a bad net negative overall.

Basically, he had no position. He was stuck in between a PF and C with neither the skill level nor the physical talent necessary to succeed at either one of them. Since then, he has failed to develop. Frankly, he is not an NBA player.


I was very interested in him when he got drafted. He felt like one of the steals of the draft. Even in LAC after a slow start, it felt he had some poor man's Serge Ibaka type qualities in terms of being an undersized mobile defensive big who can stretch the floor with his jump-shot.

But ultimately, he wasn't athletic enough on defense and particularly poor as a rebounder. And not skilled enough on offense to make up for it. He has some low level perimeter skills but he needed a lot more than that to overcome how weak he was as a defender & rebounder.

He is 6'-10", 250 lbs.  I don't doubt your analysis but it seems hard to believe this is about size.  Guys like this sometimes just aren't quite good enough.  Some start out that way but get a little better and make it, a lot don't get better.  Great we have him on the SL team so the coaches can get a really good look at him.

He's definitely not too small with his wingspan (7'3), and I think doubts over his athleticism are unfounded. He's got good vertical pop and is strong.

It's mainly about rebounding and offensive skill. He's been a poor to mediocre rebounder at the NBA level thus far, but made strides in the G League on that front. He needs to either shoot the ball better or generate more looks for others through passing and screening.

[nebist]

Just a thought, but how committed are the Pistons to Isaiah Stewart as a core member of their future? At the 5, they just drafted Jalen Duren and traded for Nerlens Noel, and they still have Olynyk. They also re-signed Bagley to a 3/37 deal at the 4. Saddiq Bey can also probably play some 4. That’s a lot of options at the 4/5 spot. Might they be interested in Pritchard and a 2nd for Stewart? Would it take a protected first? A great catch and shoot small G like Pritchard might fit pretty well playing off their big ball-handlers like Cade and Ivey.

They probably value him more, but he only makes 3.4 next year and would be a young, solid backup to Rob and Al at the 4/5 spots.

[Who]

I was just watching Mfiondo Kabengele's G-league highlights from last year. He's on the Celtics' summer league roster. What's the problem with this guy? He's been on five teams since being drafted in 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yU8EvSzpU8

In general, I like the Celtics going with a developmental big for the back end of the roster. Same approach as with Hauser. This is a team without first round picks but needs to find a way to take shots at cheap, young players. Maybe it's as simple as picking between this guy, Trevion Williams, or both.

Too small and not athletic enough to overcome his lack of size. He is a solid athlete but he doesn't have that major athleticism you want from an undersized C.

From a skill stand-point, he has some skills but they are not good enough to overcome his lack of physical talent. For instance, when he played PF his skill-level was so much lower than most forwards that he became a large net negative & he had below average speed on defense. When he played C, his jump-shooting and perimeter skills were a small plus (but not lethal enough to be a large factor) but his lack of size on defense made him a large negative as both a defender & rebounder which made him a bad net negative overall.

Basically, he had no position. He was stuck in between a PF and C with neither the skill level nor the physical talent necessary to succeed at either one of them. Since then, he has failed to develop. Frankly, he is not an NBA player.


I was very interested in him when he got drafted. He felt like one of the steals of the draft. Even in LAC after a slow start, it felt he had some poor man's Serge Ibaka type qualities in terms of being an undersized mobile defensive big who can stretch the floor with his jump-shot.

But ultimately, he wasn't athletic enough on defense and particularly poor as a rebounder. And not skilled enough on offense to make up for it. He has some low level perimeter skills but he needed a lot more than that to overcome how weak he was as a defender & rebounder.

He is 6'-10", 250 lbs.  I don't doubt your analysis but it seems hard to believe this is about size.  Guys like this sometimes just aren't quite good enough.  Some start out that way but get a little better and make it, a lot don't get better.  Great we have him on the SL team so the coaches can get a really good look at him.

He's definitely not too small with his wingspan (7'3), and I think doubts over his athleticism are unfounded. He's got good vertical pop and is strong.

It's mainly about rebounding and offensive skill. He's been a poor to mediocre rebounder at the NBA level thus far, but made strides in the G League on that front. He needs to either shoot the ball better or generate more looks for others through passing and screening.

I had Kabegnele at 6-9 rather than 6-10. I was wondering if that height was with shoes. So I looked it up to double check. He measured at 6-10 and a quarter with shoes at the combine but only 6 foot 8 and three quarters without shoes.

So a shade under 6-9 without shoes.

Still, even though that leaves him undersized. I still expected him to be more competitive with his length, bulk and seemingly solid athleticism.

However, I was surprised at how small and how little physical presence he had on the court when I saw him play for the Clippers. He is just not that active. Smaller bigs need to make up for it with superior mobility / covering more ground. He didn't do that. Nor did he provide much deterrent at the rim.

And without more of an offensive contribution, there wasn't much point in giving him playing time. He was just dead weight out there. He looked like a guy who should go to Europe rather than the NBA to me. And I was bummed by that because I was really rooting for him. I surprised he looked as bad out there as he did.