Isn't Jermaine O'Neal the same guy this board was trashing just 2 months ago?

[the_Bird]

JO had a decent season when he wasn't matched up against opponents named "Perk."

Not a big JO fan, but really, what are the alternatives?  I've been pushing for Ben Wallace, but sounds like he's almost certain to go back to Detroit (I'd still give him a call).  Brad Miller may command a bigger chunk of the MLE, and he's been going downhill pretty severely himself.  Might be a wee bit better at stretching the floor, but not as confident in his D.

Kwame Brown, I think it was Who that said his main appeal was that he KNOWS he sucks on offense so he doesn't shoot.

Haywood's not going to be available.  Trade targets don't look attainable; Jeff Foster's less likely to be on the market with the luxury tax number coming in a few million higher than expected (Indiana won't be a taxpayer next year).  Biedrans, we don't have the horses to get a trade done.

Really, just need someone to get us through until the All Star break, who can then slide into a backup role.

Question for the group; I though someone said that if we buy out 'Sheed and he retires, WE can't resign him for one full year without league-wide approval.  What if we traded 'Sheed (say, to Washington in a S&T for Mike Miller) and THEY bought him out, could he conceivably come back in February (assuming his body has healed up) for one last run?

EDIT: Forgot Kurt Thomas.  Like Ben Wallace, I'd give him a call.  Undersized, of course.  If all goes to plan, at least having JO around as Perk's backup (along with hopefully a third vet, maybe Kwame, at the min) would give us some length to better match up against LA.

[Evantime34]

Yes we were trashing him 2 months ago. Perk was guarding him and shutting him down. Also there was a rumor he was injured.

I'm pretty sure we were also trashing Dwight Howard when Perk was shutting him down (for parts of the series) does this mean you wouldn't want Dwight on your team?

[Greenbean]

We were making fun of his play. Q-Rich was the one we were trashing.

He had a tough series against our defense but would be a nice addition for frontcourt depth. Better than Rasheed with some upside as he continues to come back from injuries that derailed his career 4 years ago.

[moiso]

Jermaine will be better than Sheed.

In the playoffs?  I doubt it.  I bashed JO a month ago and I still don't want him.

[Eddie20]

Jermaine will be better than Sheed.

In the playoffs?  I doubt it.  I bashed JO a month ago and I still don't want him.

Perk is such a great defender that he made JO look bad by constantly pushing him out of his "sweet spot" and contesting him jumpers. That said, how many Perk's are out there that will be doing that to JO? Especially when teams aren't going to be concentrating on him being the second option on offense.

[moiso]

Jermaine will be better than Sheed.

In the playoffs?  I doubt it.  I bashed JO a month ago and I still don't want him.

Perk is such a great defender that he made JO look bad by constantly pushing him out of his "sweet spot" and contesting him jumpers. That said, how many Perk's are out there that will be doing that to JO? Especially when teams aren't going to be concentrating on him being the second option on offense.

Perk played great defense but JO also missed a ton of wide open foul line jumpers and even shot airballs on a couple wide open two foot shots.

[clover]

Its the other guys we don't bother to hate that I don't want on my team.   (Well, maybe except for Kevin Durant.)

[Kuberski33]

O'Neal was a total non-factor vs the Celtics in the playoffs.  If this were 5 years ago, I might be excited.  The guy we'd be getting is nothing close to that Jermaine O'Neal.

He's basically a body who you can't really depend on to do a whole lot.  Hopefully he can at least play some decent D and grab some boards.

[Roy Hobbs]

I think Celtics fans' opinions are colored by an atrocious playoff series.  J.O. had a very good season, is a very good defender, and is a competent offensive player (he was very good last season).  He also was -- at least in the past -- very good friends with Paul Pierce.

I don't see chemistry as an issue.  J.O. was very willing to accept the role as the third option on offense in Miami, and I'm sure he'll be fine with being #4 or #5 here.

[Fan from VT]

I think this JO hate is a bit of apples to oranges AND circular logic. See where i'm going with this:

Apples to Oranges:
-JO was asked to be the 2nd best player on the heat.
-JO will be the 5th or 6th best player at first, then 6th/7th depending on Perk's health/where he falls in relation to baby.
-JO was ridiculed as one of the worst deals in basketball when making 23 million. Rightly So
-JO just one year later making a portion of the MLE is a different beast entirely.
-JO was a bad deal when Miami had to give up a solid talent like Marion to get him
-JO acquired with the limited useful MLE is much different.
-JO was needed for Defense and Offense on Miami; they needed to run plays for him on offense
-JO will need to do about as much on offense in Boston as does Perk.

Circular Logic:
-JO is a vet defensive center who threw up 13.6, 6.9, 1.4 blocks, .529 shooting, .720 foul shooting during the regular season in 28 mpg. 17.9 PER. That's really not good for your 2nd best player; that's great for a 5th/6th best player.
-JO "choked" in the playoffs when it "Mattered most." Of course, he choked against...the Celtics. Now most hear are saying that the C's were razor's edge close to being the best team in the NBA last year, and will be there again this year. Look at how Lebron, Dwight, and even Kobe looked vs. the Celtics (Kobe was really bad, I thought; they won exclusively because of Pau but the media will never tell you that because the story was written before the games were played).
-So how can we really say we don't want JO because he flopped in the playoffs when our great team is the reason he flopped? We should be happy our team made him look bad and pick him up and make him look like what he is again: a really solid defensive center who can hit his free throws and is a good 5th offensive option.

[35Lewis]

It seems as if a lot of people are basing the JO hate on 1 playoff series and a previously atrocious contract.

This won't be the JO of 7 years ago but he is still a very effective big man for the Celtics because the burden will be similar to the burden he had in Indiana.  He was productive there because defense had to worry about Miller, Tinsley and Artest.  JO is most effective when he is shooting 15 feet from the basket without dribbling.  He will have plenty of opportunities to do that here.

16 points and 7 rebounds per game for less than 6 mil is a bargain in the NBA (still trying to decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing).

[Kuberski33]

I think Celtics fans' opinions are colored by an atrocious playoff series.  J.O. had a very good season, is a very good defender, and is a competent offensive player (he was very good last season).  He also was -- at least in the past -- very good friends with Paul Pierce.

I don't see chemistry as an issue.  J.O. was very willing to accept the role as the third option on offense in Miami, and I'm sure he'll be fine with being #4 or #5 here.

One thing that gives me a little bit of comfort is that Doc coached and game planned against this guy several times last season -- and obviously wants him. 

Plus I agree with those who say there aren't a whole lot of better options available.

[StartOrien]

Jermaine will be better than Sheed.

In the playoffs?  I doubt it.  I bashed JO a month ago and I still don't want him.

Ya, that's crazy talk. No way does Jermaine O'Neal outperform Sheed in the playoffs.

[Finkelskyhook]

It seems as if a lot of people are basing the JO hate on 1 playoff series and a previously atrocious contract.

This won't be the JO of 7 years ago but he is still a very effective big man for the Celtics because the burden will be similar to the burden he had in Indiana.  He was productive there because defense had to worry about Miller, Tinsley and Artest.  JO is most effective when he is shooting 15 feet from the basket without dribbling.  He will have plenty of opportunities to do that here.

16 points and 7 rebounds per game for less than 6 mil is a bargain in the NBA (still trying to decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing).

......All of that is true....Making the real reach of an assumption that he plays at all next season.  Especially if he gets a multi-year deal.

I don't base anything on the playoffs performance.  I base it on his character and his unwillingness to take the floor until his contract year.

There's a reason he's been traded so many times.

One thing that gives me a little bit of comfort is that Doc coached and game planned against this guy several times last season -- and obviously wants him. 

Plus I agree with those who say there aren't a whole lot of better options available.

I don't find that comforting at all.  Rivers has an attrocious history of dealing with talented malcontents.

[Jeff]

JO @ $3-4M > JO @ $20M+