The question is when???

[BDeCosta26]

It's not about waiting for someone to want our assets, it's about waiting for a team with a star to realize they need to rebuild. Then we have the best offer short of a team with a top  pick being willing to trade it. There are a whole bunch of stars that could get traded in the next year, hopefully someone will and hopefully it will be someone Ainge wants. As soon as there is a legit rumor about a star being on the block I expect a legit rumor about the Cs being interested. I hope it is soon too.

I don't even think it's just about that. Sure, were better set up for a major trade than just about anyone. But the key to what this rebuild has been about is flexibility. The Brooklyn picks play a major role in our trade assets but considering how good they're looking, the play a major role in our draft strategy going forward. Ainge won't give up that pick for just anyone, because he knows it's a pretty much guaranteed top-5 pick.

Just think about that for a second. If we were in total rebuild mode like we were in 2013, tanking for a high pick like some around here suggest, we would have to be AT LEAST as bad or worse than Brooklyn to try and net ourselves a top 5 pick. 11-33. So we'd have to have an absolutely terrible team to try to get ourselves that good of odds at a top pick. Except we don't have to be terrible, because Brooklyn is going to hand over to us one of the best chances at landing a top 3 pick in the lottery while we go ahead riding the 5th youngest team in the league to a playoff spot. There's a very legitimate chance, as good a one as we could hope for even if WE tanked without the Nets pick, that we land the #1 or #2 pick in the draft! While making the playoffs!! How greedy can we get.

That's where next generation stars are born. Not only has Danny given himself a huge pile of trade assets to try to trade for a star with, but he's given us a hat in the ring of the top part of the lottery. Simmons looks like the kind of guy that could change a franchise, and we have a fairly good chance of landing him, or Ingram. While remaining competitive and and young and appealing.

Even more so, he's lined us up with the ability to sign multiple high-level FA's if the chance arises, and has a team/coach/FO and a future that is very appealing from the outside looking in. We have a hand to play at every table that teams use to build contenders (Trade, Draft, FA), and good hands at that. We can wait for that big trade, and maybe it will come. Or maybe we'll make a couple small trades, win 48 games and the 5th or 6th seed, advance a round and them draft Ingram or Simmons come draft night, launching our rebuild into warp speed. Or maybe we sign a high-end FA this year to put onto a roster that would look really good with one marquee star on it. All of them are possible because were set up so well. Better than 2007. Rome wasn't built in a day. Were in year three of a rebuild.

The Brooklyn Nets fan base has dreams about being lucky enough to be a Celtic fan.

[iadera]

1.Blatt has been fired!
2.Love is obviously a bomb in their locker room. Last year arguing with LeBron, now Blatt was on menu.
3.DA calls the Cavs about the trade that some of us have so desperately called upon.
4.We give them Sully, Bradley and 100 and some picks that we own.
5.Love is in the air! Now for real!

[greece66]

1.Blatt has been fired!
2.Love is obviously a bomb in their locker room. Last year arguing with LeBron, now Blatt was on menu.
3.DA calls the Cavs about the trade that some of us have so desperately called upon.
4.We give them Sully, Bradley and 100 and some picks that we own.
5.Love is in the air! Now for real!

I think you are going a bit too Celtics brother 

Altho I appreciate Blatt as a coach a lot (living in Europe, I watched his teams play a lot), having him removed from the Cavs was a no brainer. They should have done it in the summer. What's the point of having a coach -no matter how good- if your best will dismiss his plans and make fun of him in public?

I think the Cavs might start recovering now,  given the talent they have they can do better than this, and Love might be key to such a recovery.

Having said this, as a Celtic, I always hope they blow it and we reap the spoils in the way you describe above.

[iadera]

1.Blatt has been fired!
2.Love is obviously a bomb in their locker room. Last year arguing with LeBron, now Blatt was on menu.
3.DA calls the Cavs about the trade that some of us have so desperately called upon.
4.We give them Sully, Bradley and 100 and some picks that we own.
5.Love is in the air! Now for real!

I think you are going a bit too Celtics brother 

Altho I appreciate Blatt as a coach a lot (living in Europe, I watched his teams play a lot), having him removed from the Cavs was a no brainer. They should have done it in the summer. What's the point of having a coach -no matter how good- if your best will dismiss his plans and make fun of him in public?

I think the Cavs might start recovering now,  given the talent they have they can do better than this, and Love might be key to such a recovery.

Having said this, as a Celtic, I always hope they blow it and we reap the spoils in the way you describe above.

Maybe not so.

http://www.foxsports.com/nba/story/kevin-love-lebron-james-cleveland-cavaliers-golden-state-warriors-011916

[afrascione]

dj I agree with all of it 100%. fan since 1965

[Granath]

I think your post is crazy. Sorry just being honest.  I think you know nothing about basketball.

TP for this. I think it's obvious that the OP knows nothing about basketball.

"...30 years and only 2 titles"
How many teams in the NBA would give their left nut for "only" two titles over the past 30 years?

"I see a bunch of average to below average players making the most of extra playing time on a crappy team."
The team is above .500. That's not crappy. It's a bunch of average to slightly above average players. The Cs are just missing the straw to stir the drink.

"sorry but anyone can play defense"
Er, no. Go ask Bill Russell.

Seriously, I can't even waste the time to refute the rest of this nonsense. "Everyone sucks and we should just trade everyone for a superstar" is seriously one of the most contradictory things ever written at CB. If everyone sucks, how is the team above .500? If everyone sucks, who would trade a superstar for this collection of inept fools? While you may be dissatisfied with the pace of improvement with the current team - and that's fine - your post doesn't have a single rational thought or constructive idea. It's a rant and not a very good one at that.

0/10

[Bostoncelticsforlife7]

I don't buy this mindset that we have no talent or good players and Turner is the only good player we have.  Turner would serve a contender well, but I think it's the other way around. I agree we could use a star player though but keeping the core we have in tact.

If any player can play defense then why do so few players do it? I disagree there. Defense is a mindset and about intelligence which very few people have.  It's also a instinctual and a gift.  I'd say its the opposite and any player can score.  Great defenders are just as gifted as great offensive players.

Just look at Bill Russell. Very few players had his mindset and physical tools to do what he did on the defensive end.   No one did.

Kelly Olynyk is also going to be a star.  Thomas already is and he is 5'9". Smart will be a star too.  Sully has that kind of potential as well but injuries may hinder him.  Bradley and Crowder fit less in that mix along with Sully but are players who work hard and are maximizing their potential.

Turner is the guy who is truly limited for what he is because he doesn't have the ability or intelligence to shoot the 3 or play defense or under control.  He can score though and dribble and pass the ball and has physical tools. He is a roleplayer on a contending team which we aren't right now.  We need another star player to go with our developing ones.

We have an established star in IT.   We have developing talent in KO, Sully and Smart.  We have established roleplayers in Crowder and Bradley and Turner.  We have young talent and developing roleplayers in Rozier, Mickey, Young and Rj.  We have a low to midlevel veteran in Amir.  I personally think he is overpaid and was paid what he was because we needed a center, which was his going rate, because he is a low level veteran and plays a position of value which makes him midlevel.  We have crap in David Lee.

Defense. Very underrated.

TP

[Bostoncelticsforlife7]

I don't buy this mindset that we have no talent or good players and Turner is the only good player we have.  Turner would serve a contender well, but I think it's the other way around. I agree we could use a star player though but keeping the core we have in tact.

If any player can play defense then why do so few players do it? I disagree there. Defense is a mindset and about intelligence which very few people have.  It's also a instinctual and a gift.  I'd say its the opposite and any player can score.  Great defenders are just as gifted as great offensive players.

Just look at Bill Russell. Very few players had his mindset and physical tools to do what he did on the defensive end.   No one did.

Kelly Olynyk is also going to be a star.  Thomas already is and he is 5'9". Smart will be a star too.  Sully has that kind of potential as well but injuries may hinder him.  Bradley and Crowder fit less in that mix along with Sully but are players who work hard and are maximizing their potential.

Turner is the guy who is truly limited for what he is because he doesn't have the ability or intelligence to shoot the 3 or play defense or under control.  He can score though and dribble and pass the ball and has physical tools. He is a roleplayer on a contending team which we aren't right now.  We need another star player to go with our developing ones.

We have an established star in IT.   We have developing talent in KO, Sully and Smart.  We have established roleplayers in Crowder and Bradley and Turner.  We have young talent and developing roleplayers in Rozier, Mickey, Young and Rj.  We have a low to midlevel veteran in Amir.  I personally think he is overpaid and was paid what he was because we needed a center, which was his going rate, because he is a low level veteran and plays a position of value which makes him midlevel.  We have crap in David Lee.

Defense. Very underrated.

TP

[wiley]

Basically, since the Celtics are two games above 500, the OP is presenting his own
version of the fools gold pro-tanking mindset.

He'd be happier with a crappy team as long as it had one or two top five picks on it, like
Philly (Okafor, Noel, Embiid), or Pierce-led 2007 Celtics, because then there'd be some hope.

Or he'd be happier being like the Bulls, who have the all-star vet #1 pick Rose plus the late blooming mega star Jimmy Butler.

Or He'd be happier in the position of the Wizards, with # 1 pick John Wall and two #3 picks-- Bradley Beal and Otto Porter--in tow. 

He feels the Celtics beat the Wizards and Bulls in the last week due to Crowder and IT alone, because everyone else on the Celtics is crap, or, even worse to the tanker mindset, a bunch of scrappy fools-gold types with a scrappy fools-gold overachiever type coach-Brad Stevens.

And then, Crowder and IT have elevated themselves in his eyes, and should be kept, while the rest should be traded. 

Does that sum up the OP's slant well enough?  Less foolish scrap metal, more solid gold?  Let me know so I can put the order in to Danny, because the sooner I put in the order the better the chances of signing Durant this offseason. 

It'll be Durant, IT, Crowder and a bunch of other guys we signed or traded the scrappers for.

You thought Durant Ibaka Westbrook was a great big 3?  Wait until you see this team...

[straightouttabahstun]

Easy, fella. This team is extremely young and they show a lot of potential. I reckon we become a threat in 3-4 years. Enjoy watching this team for now. They're not champs but they're fun to watch and can certainly match the big boys up when they can.

[Future Celtics Owner]

I don't buy this mindset that we have no talent or good players and Turner is the only good player we have.  Turner would serve a contender well, but I think it's the other way around. I agree we could use a star player though but keeping the core we have in tact.

If any player can play defense then why do so few players do it? I disagree there. Defense is a mindset and about intelligence which very few people have.  It's also a instinctual and a gift.  I'd say its the opposite and any player can score.  Great defenders are just as gifted as great offensive players.

Just look at Bill Russell. Very few players had his mindset and physical tools to do what he did on the defensive end.   No one did.

Kelly Olynyk is also going to be a star.  Thomas already is and he is 5'9". Smart will be a star too.  Sully has that kind of potential as well but injuries may hinder him.  Bradley and Crowder fit less in that mix along with Sully but are players who work hard and are maximizing their potential.

Turner is the guy who is truly limited for what he is because he doesn't have the ability or intelligence to shoot the 3 or play defense or under control.  He can score though and dribble and pass the ball and has physical tools. He is a roleplayer on a contending team which we aren't right now.  We need another star player to go with our developing ones.

We have an established star in IT.   We have developing talent in KO, Sully and Smart.  We have established roleplayers in Crowder and Bradley and Turner.  We have young talent and developing roleplayers in Rozier, Mickey, Young and Rj.  We have a low to midlevel veteran in Amir.  I personally think he is overpaid and was paid what he was because we needed a center, which was his going rate, because he is a low level veteran and plays a position of value which makes him midlevel.  We have crap in David Lee.

Defense. Very underrated.

TP

Don't think that there is enough evidence at all to say KO is going to be a star. If you believe that then this is an awesome rebuild and we really have nothing to worry about.

IT is also not a star, he has more to prove first. But he may have the value of something close to a star because of his contract....now that's something to think about.

 

[greece66]

Don't think that there is enough evidence at all to say KO is going to be a star. If you believe that then this is an awesome rebuild and we really have nothing to worry about.

IT is also not a star, he has more to prove first. But he may have the value of something close to a star because of his contract....now that's something to think about.

I agree with that.
Boston as of now does not have a star. I still think that our best bet from the current roster is Smart, if ofc he improves his offensive game.

Let me be clear here that by star I do not mean a very good player. Smart is certain to evolve into a very good player; I mean someone who is top 20  in the NBA. By this definition, KO is unlikely (to put it mildly) to become a star.  If he continues improving at the current pace his ceiling is a 20-25 mpg player in a contender which in nothing to scoff at, but I think we all had a good laugh with Tommy's Dirk Nowitzki comparison.

As for IT, there is a fine line between a player performing at All Star level (which he does) and a player being an NBA star (which IT is not). IT is a great fit in the C's and is playing great for the team: judging on performance, on what he offers to his team, he deserves to be in the All Star Game; just like Korver deserved it last year. But we all knew deep down this was a special year for Korver and that he had several limitations to his game that do not let him be in the same league as LBJ, Durant or Leonard.

Similarly, IT is not the kind of guard you can use as a franchise player: we are not talking of a Lowry, John Wall, Damian Lillard, Russ Westbrook or Chris Paul here.

He is a great fit for Brad's system who came to us thru a steal of a trade and (as a bonus) with a steal of contract.

These are the kind of small moves that can (accumulatively) turn Boston into a contender in a few years. But it's good to remember there are 29 other teams out there, trying to do just the same thing.