Sam Cassell wants to come back; how does that effect House? (merged)

[Jon]

I've already gone on record as saying I could probably do without Cassell or House next year.  That said, I'd probably prefer Cassell if forced to pick one for a few reasons.

1) Was Same selfish?  I'm not so sure.  If he was, why did Doc keep playing him?  It wasn't until Sam started to miss a ton that Doc really took him out.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if Doc told him to shoot, especially considering the guys he usually played with when he was on the court.  A lot of the times Cassell WAS the offense.  And I know some of you will point to earlier in the season when the "green" team did well without any of the Big Three on the court.  But guess what, it's the playoffs and defenses tighten up.  The likes of Brown, Powe, Posey, and House aren't going to create offense against a good defense. 

2) House really is just an undersized shooting guard.  If that's the case, why not just get a regular sized one?  I mean if all we really want Eddie to do is come out and hit treys, why not get 6-6 guy who can hit threes?  As it was, Ray or Paul ran the offense anyway most of the time he was in the game. 

So like I said, I don't love Cassell, but I think he might have been slightly (very slightly) overly criticized and I think his ball handling skills at least serve a purpose. 

But if there was a better option out there, I wouldn't be sad to see them both go. 

[Bahku]

[Chief]

I thought at on time there were talks about Sam being an assistant coach or even a player coach?

[hpantazo]

I don't know, I'm getting the vibe from this team that they believe all of them will be back, which would be awesome. They all want to win it again and believe that they can, so why ruin it for a few extra dollars or retirement, I mean, they will have plenty of years to be retired, these guys are hungry for more. I also remember a clip of Posey saying he wanted to have his number uo in the rafters one day like the old celtics players. If he comes back for another 2-3 titles, he will have his wish. Is it really worth it to give up that possibility to make some extra cash as basically a hired hitman for another contender? These guys all look like they believe in unbuntu and a few more banners.

[TradeProposalDude]

Eh. I mean, Cassell when performing well enough is a decent scorer and all, but he's an inefficient scorer and sieve on defense. I would much prefer Pruitt and House at PG.

Just remember though folks, just because Cassell wants to come back, doesn't mean Ainge will approve of it. I think Antoine wanted to be bought out by Minnesota so that he could sign with the Celtics for the playoff run this year - and Ainge said HELL NO. Hopefully he will give Cassell a similar type of response if / when he requests a return.

[Steve Weinman]

The easiest way to rectify this potential travesty?  Don't resign Sam.  Eddie is ten times the player he is right now.

Let's be clear that the only person who says the Celts are resigning Sam right now is Sam.  Until it becomes official, I'm hoping it doesn't happen.

Isn't this goofball only about three weeks removed from trying to talk his way into Denver or some such nonsense during the playoff run?

[EDIT: This is what happens when you see thread titles from weeks ago in your head that you never read.  My pal Soap reminds me that SamIAm was simply asked about the attractiveness of Denver in an interview rather than actively pushing to get there of his own accord.  My mistake.  Thanks, Soap; sorry, Sam.]

I'll believe Cassell v.2.0 in Boston when the contract is signed and not a moment sooner.

And my preference is House as well.

-sw

[Kuberski33]

The tutoring Rondo stuff is pure crap. Rondo will be a 3rd year pro who started on a championship team and played a huge role in their success.  He'll be fine with our without 'tutoring' because the guy can flat out play.  He'll also be more consistent next year.

And if he needs 'guidance', his coach is an ex NBA PG and was a pretty good one.

On the other hand, if Sam will play for the veteran minimum and they can't afford to sign House, then he starts to make some sense.  I think Posey dictates everything this offseason.  Once we find out what he's going to do, the rest takes care of itself.

[Barnabas]

I was one of the ones who didn't like some of the shots that Cassell took in the Finals.  However, I gotta admit, he did hit some good, timely shots.  Sam Cassell is a highly skilled player, with lots of playoff experience.  I believe he should be fine as long as he's on the same page as the rest of the team.  It's not that he can't do anything or lacks anything, he just sometimes looks like he's not on the same page as the team.  But then again, he's not the only one on that bench that appear that way.  If he does come back, I believe he will be buying into ubuntu.

Maybe he just needed more time to find his role on the team.  But since we really don't know what goes on in the team, it's just a guess.  

[BrickJames]

Bahku: I'm sure you're dead sexy 

[Bahku]

Bahku: I'm sure you're dead sexy 

Thank you! I guess you missed the picture I posted of myself on the contest thread, so here it is:



If that's not handsome, then I don't know what is!

(By the way, we've had whole threads dedicated to these funny pics of Sam, and these are all photos submitted by other bloggers ... it was done in fun, as this and the others before mine were). 

[The Walker Wiggle]

Or, maybe Sam and Tyronn Lue.

Lue just wrapped his ninth year in the league as a reserve guard with the Dallas Mavericks. Now he’s an unrestricted free agent, and the possibilities for his next destination appear bright.

“I’ve been talking to seven or eight teams,” Lue said. “I’ll probably end up going to Boston or back to Dallas.”

[Who]

Cassell should give it one more shot before he decides to retire. He should join a team that better suits him than Boston though .... and Boston should sign Eddie and let Pruitt take third chair. I've always liked Denver for Sammy and that's where he should go.

[Who]

Will Eddie look to go elsewhere because of Sammy's acquisition last season? I don't think so. I think he played enough in the playoffs to stomp out that high level of unhappiness that would have made him look for a new team.

Will Eddie look to go elsewhere if Sammy is resigned? Good chance he does

I don't expect the C's to resign Sammy so it's not an issue in my head ... yet.

If Posey requires the MLE or most of it, then Eddie becomes the next top priority because he'll very likely be the best player in that low contract range. If the C's can escape without giving Posey the MLE the C's can replace Eddie with a solid player if they so desire.

[Bankshot]

Cassell should give it one more shot before he decides to retire. He should join a team that better suits him than Boston though .... and Boston should sign Eddie and let Pruitt take third chair. I've always liked Denver for Sammy and that's where he should go.

I'd be surprised if this happens.  I'd like to keep House, but the Celtics still need a veteran point guard for the playoffs for insurance purposes.  Maybe they'll hold off until after the allstar break and pick someone up or let Sam sit at home until then.

[CT34]

Sam Cassell is KG's binkey.  So if Sam Cassell makes KG feel even more comfortable then the Cs will have him back.  Also the Cs want to see what they got in Gabe and I think I said this yesterday but if the Cs let Eddie House go (which it looks like they will do) it will have to a lot to do with how much they love Gabe Pruitt