Ainge On Trading 2018 Nets Pick: "Owed It To Horford And Hayward"

[droopdog7]

Man you guys are missing the point.  Both Hayward and Horford signed here as free agents.  You don’t think ainge and Stevens pitched their plan to become a contender during the process?  Both guys bought in and now Danny is trying to deliver.  How hard is that to believe?

And of course IT was different.  There were no recruiting meetings for him, and no promises.  Second, I’m like a lot of people that believe Danny would have done anything not to sign him long term.  IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

[Roy H.]

IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

And yet, he had a historically great season last year.

[OldSchoolDude]

Maybe DA is alluding to the difference between a player you signed in free agency to a longer term deal and a player that was sent to you in a trade?  I am not sure there is a lot of difference, but a little bit.  We signed Horford and Hayward as free agents to come here and compete and they were given longer contracts with the assumption that they were here to compete for rings.

For IT, Crowder they were part of trades, and traded here before there was this expectation of seriously competing.  Again, I am not sure how big the difference is, but it seems like the undercurrent of the comment.

B I N G O .... IT was never in Ainge's long term plans. He was brought here as filler in a trade to play the sixth man role. He exceeded expectations, but Danny did not get caught in the emotions. Danny is a cold-blooded, hard-nosed, executive. He did not buy into the fans emotional attachment to IT. He probably lost more sleep over how he was going to tell IT he wasn't getting a max contract than he lost over trading IT for Kyrie. That opening was a dream come true for Danny, and probably viewed it and seized it as an opportunity to rid himself of an impending headache.

100% agree

During ITs all star season I had said that IT was really a sixth man but was starting because Smart couldn't hold on you the job.  During his all nba season I said that he would not get a max and would be traded or walk as a free agent.  I also said I thought he would walk for nothing because while I believed there were teams that would max IT, I didn't think they would give up fair value for his current level of production.

I am happy with the trade and flame me all you want, but I don't think IT will have another all star season.  Time will tell but remember time has already proven right everyone that thought that IT, Bradley, and Crowder we're not really part of the future of this team.

[Roy H.]

During ITs all star season I had said that IT was really a sixth man but was starting because Smart couldn't hold on you the job.  During his all nba season I said that he would not get a max and would be traded or walk as a free agent.  I also said I thought he would walk for nothing because while I believed there were teams that would max IT, I didn't think they would give up fair value for his current level of production.

You were wrong on the first and last point. Doesn't that make you a bit skeptical about your prognostication regarding IT's future?

[droopdog7]

IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

And yet, he had a historically great season last year.

And yet there was an argument to be made that the team was better with him off the floor.

[Roy H.]

IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

And yet, he had a historically great season last year.

And yet there was an argument to be made that the team was better with him off the floor.

Not a serious argument.

[Celtics4ever]

Sadly, IT is not walking through that door anymore.    It is not going to change, folks.   

I think Ainge did not like the hassle of having a high pick.  He knew the lottery rules were changing and he made the tough unpopular call to trade the pick.   More often than not Ainge is right about these things in retrospect.   

[Roy H.]

I think Ainge did not like the hassle of having a high pick.  He knew the lottery rules were changing and he made the tough unpopular call to trade the pick.   More often than not Ainge is right about these things in retrospect.

For whatever it's worth, the Nets pick is unaffected by the new rules. They go into place in 2019.

[Phantom255x]

IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

And yet, he had a historically great season last year.

And yet there was an argument to be made that the team was better with him off the floor.

There's always an argument to be made, but there's absolutely no way Boston is even a Top-4 seed in the East without Thomas, nor are they making the ECF.

Even despite that bad start vs CHI in the playoff series and Rondo's injury, they still aren't coming back from that series without IT's contributions.

[Moranis]

IT is a great story.  I just don’t think he’s a great player.

And yet, he had a historically great season last year.

And yet there was an argument to be made that the team was better with him off the floor.

Not a serious argument.

The best I could come up with, was Boston was +4.7 with Thomas on the floor (14.4 better offensively, but 9.7 points worse defensively).  Among the better players in the NBA that just isn't very good as many #1's are well over 10 points different (Harden being the other main exception).  Though considering Boston only outscored its opponents by 2.6 on the year, Boston was definitely better with Thomas in the game then without him in the game.

[CelticsJG]

Reeks of bs.