Off-season in hindsight: what could have been done better?

[Roy H.]

Danny's off-season thus far looks as follows:

Added:

Jermaine O'Neal, full MLE
Shaquille O'Neal, guaranteed minimum (two years)
Von Wafer, partially-guaranteed minimum (one year)
Delonte West, non-guaranteed minimum (one year)


Re-signed:

Paul Pierce - 3 years guaranteed, 1 year partially guaranteed
Ray Allen - 1 year guaranteed, 1 year player option
Nate Robinson - 2 years guaranteed
Marquis Daniels - 1 year guaranteed

Drafted / rookies:

Avery Bradley
Luke Harangody
Semih Erden

Departed:

Tony Allen
Shelden Williams
Rasheed Wallace (retired)

If you'd told me at the beginning of the off-season that Danny would put together the above haul, I would have thought you were crazy.  I would have been very skeptical of getting Shaq and Delonte each for the minimum, and I'm very happy with our draft picks.

That said, a lot of times there's room for improvement.  The only thing I would have liked to have seen differently would have been trading Rasheed for a trade exception or for a player who could help.  However, if that deal was out there, I think Danny would have jumped on it.  I also would have loved to have seen the Ronnie Brewer deal come together, but we offered similar money and Brewer passed.

I can't think of too many other FAs that we could afford that I would have preferred.  The big loss was Tony Allen, of course, but I'm honestly not heart-broken to see him go.  If he has his head on straight, I think Delonte is the better overall player. 

[fairweatherfan]

Very little.  It would've been nice to keep Tony, but we replaced him with a talented rookie, a vet min guy who's had a little success in the NBA, and a non-guaranteed vet min guy who's been a solid rotation player for basically his entire career. 

We bulked up the front court, added depth to the backcourt, got some more scoring punch on the bench, and resigned our key free agents, all at relative bargain prices. 

The glaring hole is still at backup wing, but Daniels can be solid when healthy and Wafer may see some minutes there too.  Wouldn't be surprised if Doc went small with Ray at the 3 on occasion, too.

Overall, Danny has extended our championship window by at least one year and maybe two, without increasing our payroll significantly and still keeping salary flexibility for 2012.  And we have the best 1-12 depth in the entire league.  I don't think you can really ask for more. 

[Chris]

Yeah, I don't think there is much else Danny could have done better.  The only things I could argue against, we don't have enough details about to know what really went down (mainly the Sheed contract situation).

And against the backdrop of what else went on this summer, I think Danny had the second best offseason by a pretty large margin (obviously he couldn't compete with the Heat).

He has given this team a heck of a chance to contend again this year, and that is really all I can ask.

[Roy H.]

Yeah, I don't think there is much else Danny could have done better.  The only things I could argue against, we don't have enough details about to know what really went down (mainly the Sheed contract situation).

And against the backdrop of what else went on this summer, I think Danny had the second best offseason by a pretty large margin (obviously he couldn't compete with the Heat).

He has given this team a heck of a chance to contend again this year, and that is really all I can ask.

You like what Danny did better than the Bulls?

[moiso]

This has been a pretty awesome offseason.  The only thing that could have possibly made it better would have been if Wafer was a real 3.  I wasn't initially thrilled when our only signing was JO, but I was very excited after adding Shaq for peanuts.  Now we add West for peanuts also.  I am now officially thrilled with Ainge's performance.

And I havn't even mentioned that he resigned every important player for nice salaries.  I'm very happy he kept Nate too.  Our second unit is going to be better than the first unit on the worst teams.  I'm very impressed.

[fairweatherfan]

BTW, can someone who knows salaries compare this year's payroll to last year's?  Rondo went up, Pierce + Ray went down, we swapped Sheed's salary for JO's...seems like we might even be paying less for this squad.

[Chris]

Yeah, I don't think there is much else Danny could have done better.  The only things I could argue against, we don't have enough details about to know what really went down (mainly the Sheed contract situation).

And against the backdrop of what else went on this summer, I think Danny had the second best offseason by a pretty large margin (obviously he couldn't compete with the Heat).

He has given this team a heck of a chance to contend again this year, and that is really all I can ask.

You like what Danny did better than the Bulls?

Yes.  The Bulls had a nice summer, but not great.  IMO, they still didn't properly fill the hole they have at SG.  They filled it with a bunch of flawed players, and they still do not have someone who can create, and knock down the big shot down the stretch.  Given the assets and cap space they had, I think they were about average.

Also, I think you have to look at the fact that they gave up Hinrich and a first round pick for Brewer (who I am admittedly not a huge fan of) and Korver.  I think they would have been better off keeping that pick and Hinrich, and just adding Boozer with their cap space.  

[moiso]

Yeah, I don't think there is much else Danny could have done better.  The only things I could argue against, we don't have enough details about to know what really went down (mainly the Sheed contract situation).

And against the backdrop of what else went on this summer, I think Danny had the second best offseason by a pretty large margin (obviously he couldn't compete with the Heat).

He has given this team a heck of a chance to contend again this year, and that is really all I can ask.

You like what Danny did better than the Bulls?

Chicago looks great going forward, but Ainge added a lot more quality than the Bulls.  Boozer is perfect for them, but that's just one move.  The Korvers, etc, are fine but not all that impressive.

[Roy H.]

BTW, can someone who knows salaries compare this year's payroll to last year's?  Rondo went up, Pierce + Ray went down, we swapped Sheed's salary for JO's...seems like we might even be paying less for this squad.

The payroll has gone down significantly.

Right now, for luxury tax purposes, we're at $78,429,799 (or thereabouts, after bonuses, etc.)  Last year's was around  $84,830,422.

[fairweatherfan]

BTW, can someone who knows salaries compare this year's payroll to last year's?  Rondo went up, Pierce + Ray went down, we swapped Sheed's salary for JO's...seems like we might even be paying less for this squad.

The payroll has gone down significantly.

Right now, for luxury tax purposes, we're at $78,429,799 (or thereabouts, after bonuses, etc.)  Last year's was around  $84,830,422.

Thanks Roy, TP.  Do those figures include the luxury tax, or are we actually saving ~$12 million after the tax is added?  Either way, that's just the cherry on top of the offseason.

I don't know if we'll win a ring this year, but I think Danny has given us the best chance possible.  He continues to show himself to be one of the best GMs in the game.

[the_Bird]

This is what I said back in the middle of July:
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=40356.msg811246#msg811246

What I wanted Danny to accomplish this offseason:

1. Get Doc back (CHECK!)
1a. Get a good replacement for Tom Thibs as Doc's lead assistant  (CHECK!)

2. Resign Pierce to a reasonable extension (CHECK!)

3. Resign Ray Allen, ideally to a two-year contract (CHECK!)

4. Acquire a starting-caliber wing (Mike Miller, Reddick, Outlaw) to alleviate regular-season wear-and-team on Paul and Ray.  (FAIL!, at least so far)

5. Acquire a decent backup 5, to start for Perk while he recovers and to fill 'Sheed's role when he returns. (CHECK!)

6. Re-sign Tony Allen (FAIL)

7. Re-sign Nate Robinson (CHECK)

8. Improve the team's bench depth; another veteran big, another veteran wing (FAIL, so far)

9. Sign Perk to an extension (no rumblings of anything yet; may be more valuable as an expiring contract anyway)


Overall, I've got to give Danny at least a "B," and if he can convert 'Sheed's contract into a good wing then it'll be a solid "A-."  

Bonus points for getting Pierce and Ray Allen to agree to contracts that clearly look to be below-market.  Ray Allen (and Jermaine O'Neil, for that matter) could have gotten three-year offers elsewhere.  Pierce could probably have gotten either a fifth year or something more than $60M had he gone elsewhere.  

EXTRA bonus points for locking up Rondo last year, and saving the team what, probably $5M annually?  Rondo would have gotten a mighty, MIGHTY sweet offer from the Knicks or the Nets this offseason.  Gotta give Danny props for not letting Rondo even get to free agency.

Since then, we'd added Shaq, we've added Delonte (somewhat offsetting the loss of Tony Allen), and added Von Wafer.  We've also seen 'Gody in the Summer League, and he looks like he has a chance to be a Gomes-esque contributor from deep in the second round.  

So really, my "fail" on point 6 is mitigated, and my "fail" on point 8 is now a "check!"

Has we re-signed Tony Allen, or been able to use 'Sheed's contract to acquire a Pierce backup, this summer would have been [dang] close to perfect.  As it was, given the limited assets Danny had to work with...  I mean, it doesn't get much better, especially with NONE of these signings (other than Pierce) going past 2012 and not giving up any draft picks or young players or anything to get in the position we are in.  VERY happy with the summer.

[KungPoweChicken]

Since the Celtics signed Wafer and West, perhaps it would have been wise to draft Damion James. It appears he will be able to contribute off the bench this year, and he would have filled a need, unlike Bradley. James is good on the boards, has size for the small forward position, and could help with LeBron and Kobe. I love Bradley, but I doubt he will see any action this year. Bradley is a great piece to have in your pocket for the future. But, if it is all about winning championships, which it is, Damion James may have been a better piece to get that done.

[Roy H.]

BTW, can someone who knows salaries compare this year's payroll to last year's?  Rondo went up, Pierce + Ray went down, we swapped Sheed's salary for JO's...seems like we might even be paying less for this squad.

The payroll has gone down significantly.

Right now, for luxury tax purposes, we're at $78,429,799 (or thereabouts, after bonuses, etc.)  Last year's was around  $84,830,422.

Thanks Roy, TP.  Do those figures include the luxury tax, or are we actually saving ~$12 million after the tax is added?  Either way, that's just the cherry on top of the offseason.

I don't know if we'll win a ring this year, but I think Danny has given us the best chance possible.  He continues to show himself to be one of the best GMs in the game.

Those numbers don't include luxury tax.  Last season, we paid around $14,910,422 in tax.  This year, we're scheduled to pay $8,122,799.  That, coupled with the payroll savings, brings us to roughly $13.2 million in total savings.

[fairweatherfan]

Since the Celtics signed Wafer and West, perhaps it would have been wise to draft Damion James. It appears he will be able to contribute off the bench this year, and he would have filled a need, unlike Bradley. James is good on the boards, has size for the small forward position, and could help with LeBron and Kobe. I love Bradley, but I doubt he will see any action this year. Bradley is a great piece to have in your pocket for the future. But, if it is all about winning championships, which it is, Damion James may have been a better piece to get that done.

I don't think Danny ever wanted our championship hopes to hinge on a guy who would be a sophomore in college stepping up and playing an important role.  And we know how Doc feels about giving rookies important roles.

Now Bradley has a chance to apprentice under some all-time greats and some quality role players, and make his way into the rotation based on his own progress, not our team's needs.

[Fafnir]

The only things that really could have been done better are Danny selling Tony or Brewer on staying/coming here.