Does Anybody Wish We’d Taken A Different Path

[pokeKingCurtis]

My heart says no, but my mind and eyes see the path to even getting back to the Finals is looking harder as teams get healthier and better.

Not specific to Dchuck here and not trying to single him out... But it's just man, every year (maybe I use Reddit too much sometimes...trying to quit) people fawn on other teams' additions. I think last year people were all doom and gloom about the Heat getting Kyle Lowry, and then the Nets being a juggernaut.

Kinda wanna keep this thread alive just to look at the C's from that perspective. Did they choose the right path with their draft and all that. Quite interesting to me.

[Dchuck]

My heart says no, but my mind and eyes see the path to even getting back to the Finals is looking harder as teams get healthier and better.

Not specific to Dchuck here and not trying to single him out... But it's just man, every year (maybe I use Reddit too much sometimes...trying to quit) people fawn on other teams' additions. I think last year people were all doom and gloom about the Heat getting Kyle Lowry, and then the Nets being a juggernaut.

Kinda wanna keep this thread alive just to look at the C's from that perspective. Did they choose the right path with their draft and all that. Quite interesting to me.

I know “health” is a variable you cant count on, but ”IF” teams are at full health, the road will be more challenging. 

While we were 2 games away from a championship, I really do think we caught “lightning in a bottle”  and missed a massive opprtunity.  Given time to reflect, I dont believe we beat Milwaukee if Middleton is healthy.  We probably dont beat MIA if Lowry and Herro weren’t banged up either.  And even with their disfunction, BKLYN will have a team to contend with. And thats just the East.  The Warriors will have Klay with more time under his belt.  They still have Wiseman, Kuminga and Moody who’ll probably get some valuable rotational minutes.

My point is, I dont think we can be complacent and “just run it back” without a significant improvement from the J’s, in offensive scheme, execution or consistent support from a 3rd option.

[Yuckabuck33]

And all of those teams couldn't beat us with a healthy Timelord and healthy Tatum. That's with Middleton, and with anyone else in their injured list. (Nets and Simmons, lol) The Celtics were playing some of the best basketball I'd ever seen, been watching since 1985. Tyler Herro ain't changing that.

[TheTruth34]

The path I wish we had taken was never trading for Kyrie at all.  Kyrie had serious red flags in Cleveland (freezing out teammates, wanting to be "the #1 guy" while playing with the league's best player, wanting to leave a title contender etc.).

Keep that last Brooklyn pick, draft Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and this team would have been set.  That also would have allowed for retaining Rozier as a bench scoring presence.  Or the pick could have been an asset for trade.

The entire premise for trading for Kyrie was to attract Anthony Davis to play here,  AD, as a Klutch client was never going to be routed to Boston.  Ainge misread the room and the Kyrie mistake then led into worse roster moves - the Kemba signing/losing Horford, trading Baynes attached with a #1 (that turned into Desmond Bane) and then having to attach yet another #1 to get rid of Kemba (that turned into Alperen Şengün).   

I know that's easy to argue in hindsight and no guarantee that Gilgeous-Alexander, Bane or Şengün would have been selected.  But certainly there would have been more assets and likely a deeper roster. 

I suppose the takeaway here was the build up assets/stay flexible (for star trades) approach while grooming the young high-potential guys came with trade-offs.  And the downside/opportunity cost of that approach has been realized.

[Dchuck]

And all of those teams couldn't beat us with a healthy Timelord and healthy Tatum. That's with Middleton, and with anyone else in their injured list. (Nets and Simmons, lol) The Celtics were playing some of the best basketball I'd ever seen, been watching since 1985. Tyler Herro ain't changing that.

We went 7 with Milwaukee.  Our defense was good enough. 
We went 7 with MIA and was a few inches from losing on a 3 pointer by Butler.  If all 3 were healthy (Lowry, Butler and Herro), we lose that series.

Yes a healthy Timelord would obviously have helped but it wouldnt have helped our turnovers and our inability to get points when we needed them.
(Been watching since ‘81)

[Surferdad]

Never should have traded Perk for Green.