Just for fun...

[PosImpos]

Just for fun, I was thinking about what our team might look like if we had never done the Garnett / Allen trades.  I'm sure this has been talked about before, but I thought it might be amusing to bring it up again. 

Here's what I worked out:

Starters:
-Rajon Rondo
-Paul Pierce
-Jeff Green
-Al Jefferson
-Kendrick Perkins
------------
Bench:
Delonte West / Sebastian Telfair
Tony Allen / J.R. Giddens
Ryan Gomes / Bill Walker
Leon Powe / Brian Scalabrine
Glen Davis / Shelden Williams

I assumed that we would have drafted Jeff Green with the 5th pick and that we would have still drafted Walker and Giddens.  Obviously we wouldn't have because our team would have had higher draft picks in 08 and 09, but it's not really possible to speculate about who we might have picked in those drafts.  I assumed that Gerald Green and Wally wouldn't be here anymore.  I also added in Shelden Williams because apparently Danny liked him and we would have needed another backup C anyway.


Not a great team, but interesting, and with plenty of young talent.  I'm really tempted to put this team together in NBA 2k10 just to try it out.

The team would probably be a middle of the road 7th or 8th seed team at best for years to come.  It basically goes without saying, but I'll make clear that I'm very glad Danny traded for the Big 3!

[Redz]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

[PosImpos]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

Yeah, I was thinking that too - we'd probably have traded him or something because he wouldn't have wanted to stay on a struggling young team.  Might have gotten a high draft pick for him, though.

[Redz]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

Yeah, I was thinking that too - we'd probably have traded him or something because he wouldn't have wanted to stay on a struggling young team.  Might have gotten a high draft pick for him, though.

Probably would have ended up in LA 

[PosImpos]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

Yeah, I was thinking that too - we'd probably have traded him or something because he wouldn't have wanted to stay on a struggling young team.  Might have gotten a high draft pick for him, though.

Probably would have ended up in LA 

Ouch.  The question is: what might we have gotten in return for him?

[indeedproceed]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

Yeah, I was thinking that too - we'd probably have traded him or something because he wouldn't have wanted to stay on a struggling young team.  Might have gotten a high draft pick for him, though.

Probably would have ended up in LA 

Ouch.  The question is: what might we have gotten in return for him?

Lamar Odom?

Ouch indeed.

[Redz]

I always get stuck on Pierce not sticking around in these hypotheticals.

Yeah, I was thinking that too - we'd probably have traded him or something because he wouldn't have wanted to stay on a struggling young team.  Might have gotten a high draft pick for him, though.

Probably would have ended up in LA 

Ouch.  The question is: what might we have gotten in return for him?

Lamar Odom?

Ouch indeed.

Sasha 

[Who]

A 50 win team. A good team, close to becoming a very good team, but not a contender.

[PosImpos]

A 50 win team. A good team, close to becoming a very good team, but not a contender.

Yeah, that's basically what I was thinking.  A step below the Blazers and a couple steps above the Bulls.  Maybe about on par with the Hawks (this year).  Good enough to reach the ECF but not to get farther.

Maybe if Ainge had made some sort of trade involving Pierce in return for a high draft pick or young talent we might have gotten another young piece to put us on track to being a contending team in a few years - somebody along the lines of Rudy Gay or O.J. Mayo, for example.

Nevertheless, I think it's safe to say the Big 3 trade gave us a much, much better chance at a championship - and it worked.  Plus, this way Pierce will (almost certainly) retire a Celtic.

[Redz]

I don't know if Perk's development would have continued at the pace it has.

Does Big Al stay healthy?

We would have never known the joys of Mikki Moore.

[PosImpos]

I don't know if Perk's development would have continued at the pace it has.

Does Big Al stay healthy?

We would have never known the joys of Mikki Moore.

That's another good point.  It's hard to say whether any of the young players would have gotten the same kind of development, since they wouldn't have gotten the same kind of minutes they've gotten or would have come in contact with the players that they have.  Perkins, for example, would never have benefited from KG's influence.  Gomes wouldn't have gotten starter minutes.  Green probably wouldn't have gotten as many minutes or touches on offense.

[More Banners]

I was just thinking of those trades the other day.  I was watching Jeff Green in a OKC game, and was impressed.  The trades were only just over 2 years ago, and I think Green is already really good and getting better, and Ray is in the twilight of his career.  It was as close to a youth-for-experience trade as they get.  So...without considering that the trade for Ray is what brought KG and the title...

Is a youth-for-experience trade worth it if a championship is not assured?(and getting Ray did not assure a championship, perhaps only a 7th or 8th seed).

Thoughts:  Green will be playing at a high level for a decade, and Ray might move to the veteran 6th man role as soon as next year...

Further evidence:  Remember Joe Johnson?  The playoff run back then was a thrill, but I'd rather have had J along side PP on the wing for the last 7 years.

[LB3533]

Jeff Green took a year to develop, on a bad team, into a good player.

I don't see Jeff Green developing nearly as quickly with Pierce and Big Al on the squad.

Also, on a younger, rebuilding team, Rondo's game will definitely change, he would become more of a scorer. (We won't have the current share the ball mentality, we'd most certainly go back to Pierce taking 20+ shots per game and not trusting his teammates since they are not future hall of famers).

[MattG12]

I don't know if Perk's development would have continued at the pace it has.

Does Big Al stay healthy?

We would have never known the joys of Mikki Moore.

Or Will Solomon! 

[PosImpos]

Jeff Green took a year to develop, on a bad team, into a good player.

I don't see Jeff Green developing nearly as quickly with Pierce and Big Al on the squad.

Also, on a younger, rebuilding team, Rondo's game will definitely change, he would become more of a scorer. (We won't have the current share the ball mentality, we'd most certainly go back to Pierce taking 20+ shots per game and not trusting his teammates since they are not future hall of famers).

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.

I built this team in NBA 2k10 and the overall rating was a 90.  Higher than any other team (including our current Celtics).

The problem is, the majority of the players on the roster would not be as good as they are right now if we hadn't made that trade.  So I think you're right that it looks good on paper but that team wouldn't be nearly as good as the sum of the parts (as they are now) would suggest.