Re-signing Keyon Dooling, and that's only because he decided to retire and in the end steal money from us that we could have used on someone else.
Otherwise, I've loved this off-season.
-Sully and Melo are guys who are going to help us now and in the future. I've been very impressed with Sully's play so far, so much so that I'm starting to think he should start over Bass, and I've bought into Fab's potential as the next great defensive presence in the post. He's not there now but he's had some great highlight reel plays so far.
-We addressed our issues of scoring off the bench by adding Terry, who is basically going to do what we wanted from Ray last season. The man has embraced being a Celtic and looks comfortable playing on the team.
-Courtney Lee was the first guy that came to my mind when I heard Ray had left. At first I thought it was hopeless because I figured he would be out of our price range, but DA found a way, and Lee wanted to be here and even took less money. The guy is a lethal 3-point shooter not to mention a defensive pest. I couldn't be happier he's here. Lee will also help our scoring issues when Bradley returns from his injuries.
-I agree with the notion that Jeff Green was overpaid (for now), but it was either him or nothing, and I would rather take a young athletic 3 with upside instead of some veterans minimum player. The guy's looked comfortable out there, not to mention he's looked like a leader. Can't wait to see what he does now that he has a training camp and pre-season under his belt.
-I thought Brandon Bass wasn't coming back after we drafted Sully, and because of the other additions and re-signings he's been the under-the-radar move that no one is talking about. He fit in well last year and he proved he can produce whether he's in the first or second unit. I'm not against the idea of him coming off the bench because i think he'd do great. I'm so glad he's back.
-I was also glad to know Wilcox was returning. He was finding his niche last season shortly before his heart ailment sidelined him. He's a fantastic athlete and he can rebound too. The only downside is that he is injury-prone, but an injury may not be as likely now that we have depth. He could be a great veterans minimum pick up for what he brings.
-Same goes for Darko. I expected him to bring great defense on the interior with his shot blocking and rotations as well as rebounding, but the one aspect that has surprised me the most is his passing. He is actually a fantastic passer for a big man and that could really help the 2nd unit. I hope he buys into the Celtic way.
-For what it's worth, Jason Collins is a proven Dwight Howard stopper by himself. It's not like he's going to get a ton of minutes but he'll come in and bring interior D when we ask him too. That, and the guy looks like he's in the best shape of his life.
I'm sad that Ray has bolted but Lee and Terry bring more to the table at this point so I don't really care as much. Signing Terry implied to me that the Celtics didn't really see Ray re-signing as a huge priority, but that's just me.
As for Birdman, there's a reason why he's still on the market after being amnestied almost three months ago. For those who are clamoring that we should have signed him, there's not something you know that other teams don't. If other teams figured he's worth the trouble, he'd be off the market. Simple as that.
Those are just some of my thoughts. I'm sure some will disagree but I really am satisfied for what the C's have been able to do.