I am unsure if Bjelica is an "Ainge kind of player."
Semi and Williams are the poster children of a low scoring bench, but, in the last 4 or 5 weeks Grant has stabilized and Semi is 37% from the field and 38% from three.
No one on the Celtic's bench needs to score. I understand we want Lou Williams, but he isn't out there. As an exercise, use this as a rotation.
Walker
Smart (doesn't need to score)
Brown
Tatum
Theis (doesn't need to score)
Hayward
Kanter
Semi (doesn't need to score)
Stevens is already doing a version of this with Tatum rotating out early and then joining the bench.
My point with this silliness? The Celtics don't need bench scoring. With everyone healthy, they have four very solid scoring options.
Smart, Theis, Kanter do not need to score, Lord knows, if Hayward is on the court, he is the best shooter the Celtics have and should be taking the shots not distributing the ball around. The team has people who can facilitate, Hayward is paid (a lot) to score....a lot.
Thus, the team, if healthy does not need another guy that needs to take shots...we got them.
I agree, the team is small and a guy who is big would be nice, it's just that the freaks are all taken and we have the "problem" of having four starters who could, with planned shot distribution, average 20 points a game each and that means "trading for offense" while fun, is cuckoo.
There is no need to change the starters as, once everyone is healthy and playing within their roles, Stevens will have, as always, two scorers on the court at all times. He has shown this all year.
As for Bjelica, I would only trade scrubs and picks. Bjelica for Poirier, Semi, Edwards the Milwaukee pick and some cash to make up for the player Sactown would need to cut to complete the trade.
That would make the bench rotation be
Smart
Kanter
Bjelica
Grant Williams
Wanamaker
I guess that makes the team a smidgeon better, but not a whole lot.
so why give up a 1st round pick for that? That is the point I've been trying to make. There is no reason to give up a 1st round pick for so little gain. The 1st round picks should be used for bigger benefits than just making the bench a smidgeon better.
Because Bjelica is still an asset with another year left on his contract.
Because Bjelica is also much more likely to be a better NBA player than the guy chosen #30.
Because Danny has to turn some of these picks and youth into serviceable NBA players. The bench with so much youth hurts this team. There won't be room on the roster for 3 first round picks next year.
This year probably isn't a contending year because of so much youth and because Tatum and Brown haven't developed into "lead you to the Finals" players yet. But with another year of development, next year and beyond they will be and this team is going to need proven NBA vets, not rookies, to help off the bench. Next year Bjelica will help more than pick #30.
Bjelica might help more than whatever happens with 30. You can't know that unless you know how the pick is used. Perhaps it is packaged with other picks and the C's move up. Maybe a better younger player is acquired using that pick. Maybe a trade for a major player happens and that is part of it. Maybe the C's trade it for a future pick that ends up significantly better. Or maybe the C's strike gold and get the next Jimmy Butler or Nate McMillan or Spencer Haywood or David Lee or Anderson Varejao or even a Kevon Looney.
Using assets for nominal upgrades on players that won't be around when Tatum hits his prime, is a waste of an asset. Now if Boston were to somehow acquire a real star, acquiring someone like Bjelica makes perfect sense. He is the type of guy that can help a contender win a close game, but nominal bench upgrades using real assets just doesn't make a whole lot of sense.
And I certainly don't buy this idea that the team can't have 3 rookies next year, it has 7 this year (with the TW) along with 2 others in their 2nd year. Many of those players are readily expendable. And the fact that the team has that many players that young says all you need to really know about what Ainge thinks of the championships aspirations of the team. You don't put that many young guys on a team if you think it is a legit contender. It just doesn't make sense.
