I tend to think that we're going to have part with Perk or BBD to get Battier. I just don't see Houston's motivation otherwise. He's already expiring, so if they want to clear space, they might as well just hold onto him.
And while some of you have suggested 3 team deals, I'm not convinced anyone is going to really want anything of ours that's not Perk or BBD.
That said, I'd THINK about dealing BBD. Now, if I was Ainge, I think I'd still ultimately hang onto him. But to play Devil's Advocate, think about it this way. Does Doc play BBD at crunch time because BBD is so "clutch" or is because he's merely a fairly good scorer that can make teams pay when they pay attention to the other 4 All Stars on the court? Before you answer the former, consider James Posey. Didn't he also have extraordinary success playing with our Big Four? Hasn't his "clutch" shooting since disappeared?
Ultimately, while I think I'd rather hang on to Baby given the versatility he offers at the 4/5, I wouldn't rule out the possibility that Battier could simply take Baby's role as our closer at the 4 spot and do much of James Posey did here in 2008. And if he can do that, we won't miss Baby that much.
Still, I think the C's are better off doing a smaller trade for someone else or waiting for a buyout, but if none of that materialized, I'd think about parting with Baby (but certainly not Perk).