You can rationalize it all night long but the reality is that we are in a slightly worse position compared to when we drafted Tatum. It seems like all this asset accumulation went to waste
It's not rationalizing.
You're right that the transition from having "assets" to actually using those assets to build a team has, unsurprisingly, resulted in something less than what we fantasized about.
Plans and theories tend not to survive contact with reality unscathed. Fresh oxygen of reality is corrosive to the pristine metal of long term planning.
The Hayward injury was huge. Just enormous. The plan was clearly to go all in on with Hayward and Kyrie and then use the success that those two had playing with Horford to entice Anthony Davis to join up with them in a Celtics uniform. All of those 1st round picks would have been used as grist for whatever deals needed to be made to facilitate that.
That all went out the window within a few minutes of the 2017-2018 season officially getting underway.
We can talk all we want about the things Ainge could have done, but it really all comes back to that.
The fact that we've seen this team make it to two ECFs and they're sitting here with two <25 year old stars to build around despite the disastrous Hayward injury and everything that happened as a result is a testament to the strength of the position that the Celts were in 4-5 years ago. Even a historic disaster did not totally derail the team to the point that a tough rebuilding period was necessary.
To some degree you're absolutely right. But isn't the organization at some fault that they couldn't stop that dynamic of that team falling apart? In retrospect the Hayward signing wasn't instrumental to that Celtics team pushing to become a contender. In turned out that Tatum was an immediate contributor as a rookie and Brown was a bit surprisingly ready to be a starter. That Celtics team got to game 7 of the Conference Finals against LeBron's Cavs and lost by going cold on threes, while they missed their best player in Irving for those whole playoffs.
It went wrong after that season when there became a division between the youngsters who had reached the Conference Finals and the veterans who wanted the hierarchy back as how it was. Then you had Hayward returning and being put into the starting line-up immediately while being far from close to his previous level. A couple of role players that were looking for a big payday and an opportunity to showcase their talents. It went south from there.
I don't believe a lack of talent was ever the real issue. Sure the Golden State Warriors juggernaut would have been hard to beat anyhow, but that Celtics roster was very deep and talented as well. Even with Hayward at 80% that team should have been good enough. To what extent is debatable, but there is certainly blame on the coaching staff and management for their inability to manage that locker room.
You can't lose Irving, Rozier, Hayward, Morris and Horford for nothing in less than a 2-year-span and say that you didn't make some big mistakes in the process. Like the 76ers, the NBA was looking at the Celtics as the next big threat with that warchest of picks. The opposition probably is breathing a sigh of relief. The 76ers have Simmons and Embiid, but their assets to put them over the top have evaporated. The Celtics have Tatum and Brown, but they don't have the depth to compete now, and I doubt the bunch of lately drafted guys as Pritchard, Langford, Nesmith, G.Williams and R.Williams are really scaring anyone.
The market for Harden could be remarkably favorable to the Celtics because of a few factors:
1. The Rockets seem to insist on getting Harden out of the West
2. The Rockets want a young star, which only a couple of teams in the East have
3. Lots of teams in the East are very far from competing and would have no interest in a win-now move
4. There is tension at our rivals like Philadelphia (Morey), Brooklyn (Irving) and Miami (Butler) which makes it less likely those teams will come up with a big enough package to pursuade the Rockets
Biggest concern for the Celtics is Kemba Walker. His contract is looking really bad. Some of you are much more positive about Kemba and foresee a borderline All Star for the rest of his career with some load management. I hope some GM out there believes the same and is willing to take him on for a few assets (which can be used in a Harden offer). I think Brown + Smart would be a fair asking price for the Rockets, but that would decimate our defense, so I'd be unwilling to do that. So hopefully a deal could be done in another reasonable way.
A starting line-up of Harden/Smart/Tatum/Tucker/Thompson would look really good. Adding a couple of useful bench players to complete the roster is much easier than obtaining a multi-year MVP candidate and a top 30 player of all time who still looks to be in his prime (god forbid another injury disaster).
Whether Stevens and the organization can keep Harden's personality in check remains to be seen, but he would be a great fit in the Celtics system. Harden is a pick-and-roll maestro and the best iso-player in the world, he brings the necessary playmaking and shotmaking ability the Celtics crave for and while he isn't a good defender, his best ability in that regard to switch on bigger players is very useful in Stevens' defensive tactics.
And what will make Tatum happier? To play alongside a superstar who can raise his game and help him to contend? Or to be the main offensive creator where he regularly has to decide between going 1 on 2 or to pass to guys like Smart, Theis, Ojeleye, G.Williams to make the open shot and be a first or second round exit?
Topic: The Solution to Our Problem (AKA How to Get Harden & Move Walker): Ball Bros. (Read 5664 times)