Nate Close to Signing with the C's

[jr_3421]

Don't know if this or any similar articles have been posted but it looks like we will getting a full season's worth of shrek and donkey next year.

http://bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1267558&position=1

[joe forte loves scoobydoo]

I don't know what to make of this.  I like it, but we are still going with the trend of undersized guards (Bradley, Robinson).  We need some size at the guard position in my humble opinion. 

But that is not even the part that gets me.  Robinson, the article states, doesn't have Bird rights.  With all his flaws, he can really fill it up, and his on ball defense really was better than I anticipated.  He seemed like a solid presence in the club house, and he was a good soldier about the lack of playing time he received and stepped up when called upon.

But without the Bird rights, all we can offer is the veteran's minimum?  Robinson should be able to get close to the full MLE in my opinion, and maybe more with a team who lost out on the big free agents. This means we are offering the veteran's minimum to a player who could score more cash and playing time elsewhere.  Last year, he made $5 million.  I just don't see a young guy like Robinson passing up on a better deal, financially, unless those other clubs aren't biting and Nate really does just want a ring (which I don't doubt).  It just seems counter culture to leave money on the table.

[jr_3421]

We can still pay him up to 120% of his salary last season which I believe was 4 mil

[makaveli]

I don't know what to make of this.  I like it, but we are still going with the trend of undersized guards (Bradley, Robinson).  We need some size at the guard position in my humble opinion.

But that is not even the part that gets me.  Robinson, the article states, doesn't have Bird rights.  With all his flaws, he can really fill it up, and his on ball defense really was better than I anticipated.  He seemed like a solid presence in the club house, and he was a good soldier about the lack of playing time he received and stepped up when called upon.

But without the Bird rights, all we can offer is the veteran's minimum?  Robinson should be able to get close to the full MLE in my opinion, and maybe more with a team who lost out on the big free agents. This means we are offering the veteran's minimum to a player who could score more cash and playing time elsewhere.  Last year, he made $5 million.  I just don't see a young guy like Robinson passing up on a better deal, financially, unless those other clubs aren't biting and Nate really does just want a ring (which I don't doubt).  It just seems counter culture to leave money on the table.

Yeah we do but I think Nate can guard any PG and be a instant offense on any PG

[radiohead]

This is great news. Nate is a known scorer and we need that in our second unit. Hopefully what our guards lack in height will be compensated with their speed. Now Danny can concentrate on getting his swing man. If Josh Howard comes on board, we should be pretty much set. Maybe another big and Marquis Daniels could round out our bench.

[Eddie20]

We can still pay him up to 120% of his salary last season which I believe was 4 mil

Yeah, the article needs to be corrected. We're already over the cap, but the article makes it sound like we are under.

[Eddie20]

Yeah, the article needs to be corrected. We're already over the cap, but the article makes it sound like we are under.

Murphy also wrote this...

The Celtics’ only recourse to offering veteran’s minimum contracts is to trade the $6 million salary slot of the retiring Rasheed Wallace for a player of equal value via a sign-and-trade

.

He forget to mention that we can take back 125% more than is going out, which makes a big difference. More even, when you include Gaffney and Laf.'s deals.

[slamtheking]

Yeah, the article needs to be corrected. We're already over the cap, but the article makes it sound like we are under.

Murphy also wrote this...

The Celtics’ only recourse to offering veteran’s minimum contracts is to trade the $6 million salary slot of the retiring Rasheed Wallace for a player of equal value via a sign-and-trade

.

He forget to mention that we can take back 125% more than is going out, which makes a big difference. More even, when you include Gaffney and Laf.'s deals.

those 2 signings late last year are making more sense now if Danny can use them to bring in a good talent for the team.

[Gemini]

I keep coming back to Rasheed Wallace for Marvin Williams. This trade makes all the sense in the world to me.

[Jon]

I'm not so sure Nate has better deals out there.  It sucks for him, because if he was 6-6 instead of 5-8, he'd probably be a perennial All Star; however, he's not.  

And while I thought he played well in the playoffs, in reality he only had 2 great games, and maybe 2-3 other good ones.  I'm not sure that's enough to persuade a team to offer such a limited player anywhere close to MLE money.  

I mean if you're not a playoff team, the only reason you might think about signing Nate is to fill seats.  But he's obviously not a building block.  If you're a contender, you probably already have a backup PG or you feel your MLE is probably better spent on big men or combo guards.  

This isn't an attack on Nate, I'm generally happy he's back (though I wouldn't have hated Avery Bradley backing up Rondo).  But I'm not sure the rest of the league puts as much value into his relatively limited playoff performance as we as Celtic fans do.  

[StartOrien]

We can still pay him up to 120% of his salary last season which I believe was 4 mil

Yeah, the article needs to be corrected. We're already over the cap, but the article makes it sound like we are under.

The Herald really needs atleast one intern that knows the cap at all. I remember Tony Mazz had a column about Pierce opting out claiming that we could have 25 million dollars in cap space.

[Bankshot]

I keep coming back to Rasheed Wallace for Marvin Williams. This trade makes all the sense in the world to me.

Would Atlanta be able to turn around and use Rasheed in another trade?

[GreenFaith1819]

Well, this is good news. Nate has been maybe the most productive backup PG we've had over the years, with Sam Cassell being close by.

Glad to see something getting worked out.

[StartOrien]

I keep coming back to Rasheed Wallace for Marvin Williams. This trade makes all the sense in the world to me.

Would Atlanta be able to turn around and use Rasheed in another trade?

They could, but I think they'd probably see if there was a way to turn it into more money for Joe Johnson  

[wiley]

I like this news.  I hope it means we'll see Avery get a good look at backup 2.  I don't see the point of throwing him into a PG role on a contending team like the Celtics....too much pressure, bound to set him up for some failure/self doubting.....He's what, 19?  They'll find out about Avery's PG abilities soon enough regardless......

Also, Rondo deserves some good old fashioned rest after 3 consecutive grueling playoff appearances at huge minutes....