Simmons: Rebirth of the Celtics

[ACF]

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7801091/the-rebirth-celtics

[Lucky17]

Welcome to the Celtics bandwagon, Mr. Simmons.

Please take your seat towards the rear section, designated for the other Celtic fans who have only recently begun to openly cheer for the team they once held so dear.

Your complimentary pink hat will be sent to the address you provided on your membership form.

[jgod213]

Welcome to the Celtics bandwagon, Mr. Simmons.

Please take your seat towards the rear section, designated for the other Celtic fans who have only recently begun to openly cheer for the team they once held so dear.

Your complimentary pink hat will be sent to the address you provided on your membership form.

C'mon lucky, you know better than that.  Just like in the Stanley Cup finals, Bill will be sitting courtside with his father soon enough.

[wdleehi]

I do find the trade deadline information interesting.

With trade rumors swirling around All-Star Rajon Rondo — planted by other teams hoping to cause chemistry problems and drive down his price, by the way

Making the decision easier: Nobody was offering anything decent for Pierce (owed $32 million total in 2013 and 2014) or Garnett (whose $21 million cap figure made it near impossible just to match salaries in a trade).

At one point, Smith brought up a young player who could, conceivably, have been the centerpiece of an Allen trade. Danny just started laughing.

"We're not trading Ray Allen for [the player's last name]," Danny said. "Come on! It's Ray Allen!"

they panicked and swapped a top-three protected 2012 pick to Portland for Gerald Wallace, and everyone said, "Wait a second, why would someone give up a top-three protected pick for the third-best player on a sub-.500 team?" Not reported at the time: New Jersey could have landed Pierce for that same pick, only they chose Wallace because he was a full five years younger.3

[Lucky17]

Welcome to the Celtics bandwagon, Mr. Simmons.

Please take your seat towards the rear section, designated for the other Celtic fans who have only recently begun to openly cheer for the team they once held so dear.

Your complimentary pink hat will be sent to the address you provided on your membership form.

C'mon lucky, you know better than that.  Just like in the Stanley Cup finals, Bill will be sitting courtside with his father soon enough.

I don't know. I just don't see the Clippers making it that far.

[jgod213]

Welcome to the Celtics bandwagon, Mr. Simmons.

Please take your seat towards the rear section, designated for the other Celtic fans who have only recently begun to openly cheer for the team they once held so dear.

Your complimentary pink hat will be sent to the address you provided on your membership form.

C'mon lucky, you know better than that.  Just like in the Stanley Cup finals, Bill will be sitting courtside with his father soon enough.

I don't know. I just don't see the Clippers making it that far.

Isn't it about time for a reverse jinx article?

[Kane3387]

I really enjoyed reading this article. Very positive. Good stuff. I really liked what he said about the Heat and how they have no rotation set with 3 weeks to go. Spoelstra is taking a big gamble by trying to use games as practices.

[CelticsFanNC]

I really enjoyed reading this article. Very positive. Good stuff. I really liked what he said about the Heat and how they have no rotation set with 3 weeks to go. Spoelstra is taking a big gamble by trying to use games as practices.

  I enjoyed it too.  I'm not a big fan of Simmons but I felt pretty much the same way he did sbout the Celtic's.

  I was very pessimistic about this teams chances only a few weeks ago.   I thought they could be anybody on any given night, provided they had well rested legs but those nights were seeming to be happening less often.  I also believed we were playing too many older players too many minutes together.  I never once questioned their heart or drive but I had big questions about their legs.   I hoped we play the younger guys just to provide some youthful energy to go with or wealth of experience.  Then JO went down, then Wilcox, Allen and Pietrus.  Bradley stepped up.  Stiemsma stepped up.  Rondo got on a historic role as a play maker and found the consistency that has escaped his grasp for much of his career.  KG found the fountain of youth.  Pierce started to look like Paul Pierce again.  Doc started pushing all the right buttons and this teams identity crisis seemed to get solved almost over night.  

  It's amazing.  I didn't see it coming but I am enjoying every moment of it.

  

[jsingh1699]

pierce for a first round pick (top 3 protected)?

i'm not sure i would have bit on that trade. seems like this draft will produce some quality role players. not sure about game changers. pierce has that written all over him heading into the playoffs and even next year.

im sure nj is regretting the gerald wallace move knowing they could have had pierce. gw is a good role player for sure, but even if he is 5 years younger, hes still not even close to the current pp.

and thus marks the end of dwill in nj/bklyn.