Our Frontcourt Isn't Perfect, But THANK GOD It's No Longer Sully/Olynyk/Zeller

[Phantom255x]

Remember those days when those three primarily made up our front court? UGH.

They had some moments (especially Olynyk with that Game 7 against Washington), and certainly some meme-worthy moments, but it was infuriating how soft they all were and how other teams' 4th or 5th bigs would freakin' dominate us in games. Jordan Mickey had some potential but never reached it with us (also barely earned playing time). Amir Johnson was okay for one season I guess.

Nice guys in real life I'm sure, but I'm so glad Danny has learned a bit and added a bit more size and toughness to this team over the years (in the form of taller wings like Tatum + Brown, adding Horford, Baynes, Morris, Theis, Timelord, etc.)

I still think it was a mistake for Danny not to target a PF/C in the buyout market (someone like Kanter or Faried) and feel that over the summer, Danny needs to add another free agent depth big to this front court (maybe using the MLE). I also acknowledge that even now our front court isn't 100% perfect, sometimes giving up offensive rebounds late in games and/or not grabbing every single board in crunch time.

But be thankful that this is our front court and not what we had back in the 2013-2016 years. Imagine them going up against the likes of Embiid, Giannis, etc today. OOF.

And Baynes is EXACTLY the kind of bruiser we've been longing years for. Love his toughness and great defense, and think he's going to be really important again in our upcoming playoff run. We've seen what a difference it makes for our team when he's not playing. And of course, Horford is the engine that drives this team and his versatility is so valuable.

[CelticsQuestFor18]

I was a little bummed when Cousins signed for the MLE but either he picked Golden State outright or the C's never made a formal offer themselves. But watching him last night, especially on defense, maybe it wasn't that bad a miss. I felt at the time adding a Cousins to this front court would really enhance it.

[fairweatherfan]

Hey now, we also had the rotting corpse of David Lee hobbling around out there.

[Monkhouse]

Hey now, we also had the rotting corpse of David Lee hobbling around out there.

bUt He WaS aN aLLsTaR!!!!!!!!!!!

[Phantom255x]

Hey now, we also had the rotting corpse of David Lee hobbling around out there.

I thought Greg Monroe would be a great buyout signing for us last season and an underrated one.

Narrator: He wasn't

[Phantom255x]

I was a little bummed when Cousins signed for the MLE but either he picked Golden State outright or the C's never made a formal offer themselves. But watching him last night, especially on defense, maybe it wasn't that bad a miss. I felt at the time adding a Cousins to this front court would really enhance it.

I think in general, it's telling that almost no one seemed to go after Cousins last summer (even at his smaller price) and even when he was getting traded a few years ago, only the Pelicans and a few other teams seemed to show legitimate interest. Most felt that Ainge would go after him in a trade at the right moment but seemingly he didn't. It might be his locker room reputation and on-the-court demeanor that hurts him, and after seeing how this season has gone for our team regarding the media/off-court issues, it's definitely not something to ignore.

[fairweatherfan]

Hey now, we also had the rotting corpse of David Lee hobbling around out there.

I thought Greg Monroe would be a great buyout signing for us last season and an underrated one.

Narrator: He wasn't

Honestly I think buyout season is the most overrated time of year, there are precious few examples of those guys making a difference. Remember how hyped people were to get Troy Murphy? Even PJ Brown was a unretiring, not a buyout.

[RJ87]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And when Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

[Monkhouse]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And twhen Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

Same here...

I remember when I saw Love at Fenway with Rondo...

And now we have Irving, Hayward, and Horford...

Pfft what was I thinking, Rondo, Bradley, Jeff Green, Love, and KO was going to do anything. 

[bopna]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And twhen Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

Same here...

I remember when I saw Love at Fenway with Rondo...

And now we have Irving, Hayward, and Horford...

Pfft what was I thinking, Rondo, Bradley, Jeff Green, Love, and KO was going to do anything. 

Goes to show Danny's vision is totally different from the perspective and shortsightedness of fans are.

[Phantom255x]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And twhen Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

Same here...

I remember when I saw Love at Fenway with Rondo...

And now we have Irving, Hayward, and Horford...

Pfft what was I thinking, Rondo, Bradley, Jeff Green, Love, and KO was going to do anything. 

Goes to show Danny's vision is totally different from the perspective and shortsightedness of fans are.

Yeah, a lot has changed from say, 5-6 years ago. The Kevin Love rumors. Rondo and Jeff Green days. Thinking Isaiah Thomas was here long term (I even brought his shirt jersey but he got traded 6 months later...). The PP/KG trade that got us those Nets Picks. Thinking we'd get Butler or George back in 2016-2017. In a way you could argue a lot of the moves Danny DIDN'T make were some of his smartest moves too. He's obviously had his faults and we still have some work to do, but we're in a great position overall. Definitely could be worse like we're seeing with about 5-10 other teams in the league right now.

[gouki88]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And when Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

I always loved Sully, but those were ridiculous.

When he loses weight he could be Charles Barkley!

[The Oracle]

Olynyk was 1 of 7 players nominated for Eastern Conference player of the week last week.  During the week the Heat knocked off G.S. and then lost a close game in Houston the following night followed by wins over Brooklyn and Atlanta.

[Monkhouse]

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And twhen Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

Same here...

I remember when I saw Love at Fenway with Rondo...

And now we have Irving, Hayward, and Horford...

Pfft what was I thinking, Rondo, Bradley, Jeff Green, Love, and KO was going to do anything. 

Goes to show Danny's vision is totally different from the perspective and shortsightedness of fans are.

Well yeah of course....

I mean a lot can change over 5-6 years.....

At the time, Ainge was pushing hard for Kevin Love. It wasn't like there was just smoke screen, he was inherently determined on pairing Love with Rondo. It just wasn't in the cards, nor was Minnesota interested in our trade package.

Olynyk was 1 of 7 players nominated for Eastern Conference player of the week last week.  During the week the Heat knocked off G.S. and then lost a close game in Houston the following night followed by wins over Brooklyn and Atlanta.

Username checks out.

Oh man. Remember the days of thinking Sully was good enough to be the centerpiece of a Kevin Love trade? And when Minny didn't jump all over it, it morphed into "Sully is going to be the next Kevin Love"?

Ah. What a time to be alive.

I always loved Sully, but those were ridiculous.

When he loses weight he could be Charles Barkley!

Honestly, I loved Sully. I felt like he was very skilled, but his inability to stay healthy and focused hindered his potential.

[SCeltic34]

Ever since the Perk trade, and especially after the decline and trade of KG to Brooklyn, we were starved of quality bigs that could defend and grab defensive rebounds.  The people on this board, myself included, were so sick of watching us get killed on offensive boards that we wanted practically any 7 footer that  could stand on two feet.

We wanted Omer Asik.  Trade for Dwight Howard.  Heck even I was OK with adding the corpse of Joel Przybilla at one point.  And many, many others.

I do not miss the Sully/Olynyk/Zeller days.  Not one bit.  I'm still a big fan of Baynes and hope we can somehow retain him next year - provided he's healthy.