Do the Celtics need a #1 Point Guard: NBA Finals Reaction

[Who]

I would like a PG with more dribble penetration. More quickness. Someone who can get inside of a defense and force it to collapse on him. Create opportunities for others that way. Make it so that it is not always the Jays being the ones to collapse the opposition defense.

Or a two guard with BOS going small with a one big lineup. A modern day Danny Ainge or John Starks would be great. That secondary ball-handling, outside shooting and dribble penetration and some passing.

[vjcsmoke]

I believe we do. Off the top of my head, four names come to mind: Brunson (S&T), Rubio, Conley, Tyus Jones.

I'd love us to somehow acquire CP3 or Haliburton, but it's a pipe dream.

TP.  I like the idea of Brunson in this lineup.  He averaged over 20 ppg in the playoffs and he's approaching the last year of his deal, so the Mavericks may be willing to deal him for a not too steep price.

Article about possible Brunson trade:
https://thesmokingcuban.com/posts/dallas-mavericks-jalen-brunson-sign-trade-difficult

Brunson is also just 25 and about to enter his prime so he fits in with the relative age of this Celtics squad.

A starting 5 of Brunson-1, Jaylen-2, Tatum-3, Grant Williams-4, Rob Williams-5 sounds really good to me.  Moving Smart back to the bench also gives the 2nd unit a boost.  Our bench was pretty bad against Golden State.

[vjcsmoke]

This is not an easy question to answer. If we're focusing on the turnovers in the Finals, then you simply can't blame Marcus or whoever the point guard was. It was Jayson and Jaylon who killed the team with turnovers. Do the Jays have a high usage rate because Marcus is not an elite PG? I think the answer is no. They handle the ball because they're the team's best players.

I'm of the belief the team needs a dramatic change, simply because a team can't bring back the same players after losing the way they just did in the Finals. I would love to bring in Bradley Beal, as I think he would take a lot of pressure off of the Jays on the offensive end. However, that would have a negative effect on the defense. I thought the ideal free agent last season was Lonzo Ball, but he was never an option because of the cap. I'm not sure where he stands with Chicago after injuring his knee, and if there is any bad blood between the two. However, if I could trade Smart (and pieces) for Ball, I think it would be fantastic. Ball would fit that true PG role, that could also defend at an elite level.

Don't get me wrong, I am a Smart fan. However, I think his alpha personality holds this team back. Even if the Celtics traded for Beal, Smart would still have the biggest voice in the room.

Lonzo Ball might fit the bill.  He offers really good vision, size, and defense.  He has also improved his 3 point shooting to acceptable levels recently, shooting 37%, 37%, and 42% from deep over the past 3 seasons.  What do you think it would take to get him?

[nickagneta]

This is not an easy question to answer. If we're focusing on the turnovers in the Finals, then you simply can't blame Marcus or whoever the point guard was. It was Jayson and Jaylon who killed the team with turnovers. Do the Jays have a high usage rate because Marcus is not an elite PG? I think the answer is no. They handle the ball because they're the team's best players.

I'm of the belief the team needs a dramatic change, simply because a team can't bring back the same players after losing the way they just did in the Finals. I would love to bring in Bradley Beal, as I think he would take a lot of pressure off of the Jays on the offensive end. However, that would have a negative effect on the defense. I thought the ideal free agent last season was Lonzo Ball, but he was never an option because of the cap. I'm not sure where he stands with Chicago after injuring his knee, and if there is any bad blood between the two. However, if I could trade Smart (and pieces) for Ball, I think it would be fantastic. Ball would fit that true PG role, that could also defend at an elite level.

Don't get me wrong, I am a Smart fan. However, I think his alpha personality holds this team back. Even if the Celtics traded for Beal, Smart would still have the biggest voice in the room.

Lonzo Ball might fit the bill.  He offers really good vision, size, and defense.  He has also improved his 3 point shooting to acceptable levels recently, shooting 37%, 37%, and 42% from deep over the past 3 seasons.  What do you think it would take to get him?

I was under the impression that the Bulls really liked Ball and thought his absence severely hurt their seeding(Alex Caruso's absence on this front as well) and playoff run.

I don't see Ball as being attainable.

[Who]

Was there something about Lonzo's injury being more serious than they thought? A recurring problem for the future?

I'm not sure.

[ozgod]

I believe we do. Off the top of my head, four names come to mind: Brunson (S&T), Rubio, Conley, Tyus Jones.

I'd love us to somehow acquire CP3 or Haliburton, but it's a pipe dream.

TP.  I like the idea of Brunson in this lineup.  He averaged over 20 ppg in the playoffs and he's approaching the last year of his deal, so the Mavericks may be willing to deal him for a not too steep price.

Article about possible Brunson trade:
https://thesmokingcuban.com/posts/dallas-mavericks-jalen-brunson-sign-trade-difficult

Brunson is also just 25 and about to enter his prime so he fits in with the relative age of this Celtics squad.

A starting 5 of Brunson-1, Jaylen-2, Tatum-3, Grant Williams-4, Rob Williams-5 sounds really good to me.  Moving Smart back to the bench also gives the 2nd unit a boost.  Our bench was pretty bad against Golden State.

Who are you proposing we trade for Brunson?

[nickagneta]

I believe we do. Off the top of my head, four names come to mind: Brunson (S&T), Rubio, Conley, Tyus Jones.

I'd love us to somehow acquire CP3 or Haliburton, but it's a pipe dream.

TP.  I like the idea of Brunson in this lineup.  He averaged over 20 ppg in the playoffs and he's approaching the last year of his deal, so the Mavericks may be willing to deal him for a not too steep price.

Article about possible Brunson trade:
https://thesmokingcuban.com/posts/dallas-mavericks-jalen-brunson-sign-trade-difficult

Brunson is also just 25 and about to enter his prime so he fits in with the relative age of this Celtics squad.

A starting 5 of Brunson-1, Jaylen-2, Tatum-3, Grant Williams-4, Rob Williams-5 sounds really good to me.  Moving Smart back to the bench also gives the 2nd unit a boost.  Our bench was pretty bad against Golden State.

Who are you proposing we trade for Brunson?

Does it matter? The deal would have to be a sign and trade, which then causes the team to be hard capped, which severely limits roster construction and might mean dumping players to stay under the cap. Brad won't be doing a S&T this year

Also, Brunson's dad, Ric is about to become a Knicks assistant coach. I think we can all read between the lines on that one.

[Who]

Per Darnell Mayberry

“It’s been four-and-a-half months since Ball was sidelined with a left knee injury that eventually turned into meniscus surgery. He’s still not right. Whether he will be in time for the season opener becomes more of a concern by the week. If Ball must undergo a second surgery, the time crunch intensifies. There’s been no indication from Ball’s camp that a second procedure is in the plan, but it can’t be ruled out if Ball’s knee remains unresponsive.”

Okay so the issue was Lonzo's knee injury hasn't healed yet and that he is a doubt for the start of next season. Not that it is expected to be a recurring issue.

[td450]

Brogdon would be a big risk, but he's actually gettable and he's a legit sturdy 6'5 plus defender and a savvy offensive player. There are very few point guards that would really help without compromising our defense. He could do that

Is there any chance that Derrick White and Grant Williams would get it done?

One of the luxuries of Tatum and Brown is you can move them around to cover minutes across 3 spots. If Nesmith can help by filling a rotation spot, it would probably make us better, although it would always be worrisome whether Brogdon would break down when it mattered.

[Phantom255x]

Per Darnell Mayberry

“It’s been four-and-a-half months since Ball was sidelined with a left knee injury that eventually turned into meniscus surgery. He’s still not right. Whether he will be in time for the season opener becomes more of a concern by the week. If Ball must undergo a second surgery, the time crunch intensifies. There’s been no indication from Ball’s camp that a second procedure is in the plan, but it can’t be ruled out if Ball’s knee remains unresponsive.”

Okay so the issue was Lonzo's knee injury hasn't healed yet and that he is a doubt for the start of next season. Not that it is expected to be a recurring issue.

Yes what a fantastic idea. Lets get another PG with injury concerns/lingering issues like Cryrie and Kemba in the past 

I also love Lonzo and think he'd be a great fit, but that knee injury has me really worried. Even Chicago writers/media have been really ominous about it for the past 3-4 months which doesn't sound encouraging at all.

[Sophomore]

It really is hard to name a guy who’s (1) a possible upgrade on offense without losing too much D; (2) gettable for what the Cs can offer (no Js, no Rob); and (3) doesn’t have major injury issues.

My first choice would be Dejounte Murray, but he’s a cornerstone for the Spurs; they aren’t selling, at least at any price we’d pay. I would be interested in Rubio if he wasn’t coming off his 2d ACL injury on the wrong side of 30. And after that we start to talk about players who have major flaws. For this team, I think there are very likely to be moves with more upside and lower risk than moving Smart for anybody I’ve heard.

[Moranis]

Per Darnell Mayberry

“It’s been four-and-a-half months since Ball was sidelined with a left knee injury that eventually turned into meniscus surgery. He’s still not right. Whether he will be in time for the season opener becomes more of a concern by the week. If Ball must undergo a second surgery, the time crunch intensifies. There’s been no indication from Ball’s camp that a second procedure is in the plan, but it can’t be ruled out if Ball’s knee remains unresponsive.”

Okay so the issue was Lonzo's knee injury hasn't healed yet and that he is a doubt for the start of next season. Not that it is expected to be a recurring issue.

Yes what a fantastic idea. Lets get another PG with injury concerns/lingering issues like Cryrie and Kemba in the past 

I also love Lonzo and think he'd be a great fit, but that knee injury has me really worried. Even Chicago writers/media have been really ominous about it for the past 3-4 months which doesn't sound encouraging at all.

I wouldn't mind Ball, but at his salary he is really hard for Boston to trade for. 

[Redz]

Brogdon would be a big risk, but he's actually gettable and he's a legit sturdy 6'5 plus defender and a savvy offensive player. There are very few point guards that would really help without compromising our defense. He could do that

Is there any chance that Derrick White and Grant Williams would get it done?

One of the luxuries of Tatum and Brown is you can move them around to cover minutes across 3 spots. If Nesmith can help by filling a rotation spot, it would probably make us better, although it would always be worrisome whether Brogdon would break down when it mattered.

I've always been a fan of Brogdon, but yeh, he can't seem to stay on the court.

[Roy H.]

I don't think we need a starting PG.  Marcus led the team just fine this year, including a 3-month stretch where we were the best offense in the NBA. 

It only makes sense to bring in a guy like Brogdon if Ime is 100% comfortable with Tatum as our starting PF.

Timelord / Horford
Tatum
Brown
Smart / White
Brogdon

I'd be okay with that lineup, but it would create some other holes on the roster.  We'd need to send out $18 million in salary to bring back Brogdon, so I guess we'd be looking at Theis + Pritchard + Nesmith + Stauskas + one of Fitts / Morgan / Hauser?

[nyceltsfan]

I posted this in another thread, but it probably belongs here:

Call me crazy, but while I think Smart is mostly who he is, we did see tremendous strides in his shot selection this year.  I think he is going to use this Finals experience to work on his ball handling and decision making.  We will see better passing and not as much of the "thread the needle" home run passes that we saw during this run.  I truly believe that Smart wants to win with this organization and is willing to put in the work to make those improvements to his game.

If he does this, we are getting our "true point guard" and we can still maintain our defensive identity.  I think Brad and Ime will have to have some serious meetings and discussions about whether they believe this can happen.