Will Bos VS LA renewed rivaly attract top role playing Free Agents???

[Bahku]

"Rondo is 21 years old and has already lead his team to the NBA Finals[/b]( and hopefully a championship soon) he has 3 great players to play with, but you can make the case that having those hall of famers around Rondo puts even more pressure on him to lead the team then any of these other players had in their 1st playoff apperance as a starter. Rondo is already a top 5 defensive PG in the league right now.  To take it to an all-star level he has to be able to kncok down a 15-18 foot jumper 50% of the time  and stretch out to the 3 point line and shoot at least 30 % "

Ok, rondohondo, I have to disagree with your first sentence here.  Rondo did not lead the Celtics to the NBA Finals.  The Big Three did that.  Rondo is part of the effort, but he is far from the one who is leading the team to this success.  Now, I am getting picky here, but I just wanted to clarify this.  Only the most biased pro-Rondo fanatic can say that he is the one who led the team to this stage.  Rondo handles the ball and brings it up the court, but no, he does not lead the team.  He does not lead this team.  However, there have been young PGs in their first and second years that were able to lead their teams, like Magic.  But ofcourse Magic is in a different class from Rondo.

I think he meant this in terms of his position. However you feel about who the emotional leaders are on this team, or the point leaders, the point guard is the one running the offense, and it's understandable to refer to it as "leading" the team.

It's a huge role, and an extra responsibility over the other positions on the floor. This kid has taken on far more than most at his age, has exceeded the expectations placed on him at the beginning of the year, has taken more physical abuse than most little guys, has been a huge rebounder in point-guard terms, and has done very little excuse-making or complaining.

He's does have to get his jump-shot going, however, and the sooner the better. He won't have all the ingredients to make a star PG until he does, but overall, this young guy is gold in our pocket ... and to think what he could be in a few years if he stays healthy, is truly something to look forward to!

[sk7326]

It looks like for the next 3-4 years the Celtics and Lakers are going to be contenders for the title each year. I know good role playing free agents usually go to good teams, but does the fact that there is a renewed rivalry between Boston and LA mean those free agents are more likely to join either the Celtics or Lakers  rather then say the Spurs or Cavs?  I like both teams benches, but I think these teams can get even better with better role players on each team's bench .

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes ... one guy I have circled on my mid-level exception shipping list

Keyon Dooling

Can back up the point and the 2, tall for a point and if his defense is good enough to merit Stan Van Gundy's approval, then you know it can work in Boston. 

Also if he is healthy (he has indicated he wants to play another year), have Pierce and Garnett beg Alonzo Mourning to use his 15 minutes a game knees on the Celtics cause.  (good luck there)