So what could we get for Ray, KG, and (gulp) PP?

[PAOBoston]

The way I see it, when we acquired Green, one thing that was pretty certain is that he was a fairly good third banana. Given that we have Rondo, this means that we really need to add one major piece rather than look for complementary, smaller pieces.

We're not shipping out Paul Pierce, and frankly, I don't think we have to. However, I do think that after Allen and Garnett are off the books next year, we're in a position to make a significant splash, and resign whoever of those two is interested to come back as a complementary player for the MLE. This will likely be Allen, since he looks like he can play until he's 40, has settled in the area, and generally is a good fit in almost any situation.

With all this in mind, whether they admit it or not, the Celtics are putting all their chips on Dwight Howard. He's the highest-profile FA next summer, addresses a position of need, and will make a make for a great core with Rondo, Green, and an aging Paul Pierce.

Sadly, there are a myriad of ways in which this can backfire, but I just can't look at the team and see how they're planning for anything else, short of a total blowup, which will likely just waste Rondo's prime.

i find it hard to believe that the c's are waiting for howard to go to FA b/c quite honestly, i dont think he'll ever get there. ditto with chris paul, etc. and it's not like boston has been a hot landing spot for nba free agents in the past. so to think they are putting all their eggs in one basket, especially after what we witnessed the past summer with lebron/amare/bosh/johnson/etc, they would have to be nuts.

i think if the c's rebuild, it's through trading the likes of rondo, allen, pierce, kg, green (maybe not all but some sort of combo of those options) for small assets which can be packaged for good players. it might not sound appealing but it's a hell of a lot better than sucking and trying to rebuild through the draft or continuing with the current group and get completely nothing. boston isnt miami or LA. FA's dont consider it a top flight destination and therefore i have a tough time believing any of these players would consider coming here.

[KungPoweChicken]

To answer the original posters question: You could get a lot of furious Boston fans for trading Paul Pierce.

[Lucky17]

I have a hard time believing that Wyc would ever OK a trade that sent Pierce out of Boston.

[the_Bird]

I have a hard time believing that Wyc would ever OK a trade that sent Pierce out of Boston.

He won't, just like they never would have traded Bird.  Pierce retires a Celtic.

And, Pierce is still playing at a very high level, and earning his contract.  I'd really rather they focus on getting a good young PF to back up KG and take his place when he's traded/retires. 

[kozlodoev]

The way I see it, when we acquired Green, one thing that was pretty certain is that he was a fairly good third banana. Given that we have Rondo, this means that we really need to add one major piece rather than look for complementary, smaller pieces.

We're not shipping out Paul Pierce, and frankly, I don't think we have to. However, I do think that after Allen and Garnett are off the books next year, we're in a position to make a significant splash, and resign whoever of those two is interested to come back as a complementary player for the MLE. This will likely be Allen, since he looks like he can play until he's 40, has settled in the area, and generally is a good fit in almost any situation.

With all this in mind, whether they admit it or not, the Celtics are putting all their chips on Dwight Howard. He's the highest-profile FA next summer, addresses a position of need, and will make a make for a great core with Rondo, Green, and an aging Paul Pierce.

Sadly, there are a myriad of ways in which this can backfire, but I just can't look at the team and see how they're planning for anything else, short of a total blowup, which will likely just waste Rondo's prime.

i find it hard to believe that the c's are waiting for howard to go to FA b/c quite honestly, i dont think he'll ever get there. ditto with chris paul, etc. and it's not like boston has been a hot landing spot for nba free agents in the past. so to think they are putting all their eggs in one basket, especially after what we witnessed the past summer with lebron/amare/bosh/johnson/etc, they would have to be nuts.

i think if the c's rebuild, it's through trading the likes of rondo, allen, pierce, kg, green (maybe not all but some sort of combo of those options) for small assets which can be packaged for good players. it might not sound appealing but it's a hell of a lot better than sucking and trying to rebuild through the draft or continuing with the current group and get completely nothing. boston isnt miami or LA. FA's dont consider it a top flight destination and therefore i have a tough time believing any of these players would consider coming here.

Boston hasn't been a landing spot because, quite frankly, no marquee free agents want to come to a team which, well, sucks. Even more so as they had to do it at a discount (we haven't had major cap space, recently).

In 2012, you have Rajon Rondo, a pass-first PG in his prime, solid citizens to flesh out the rotation, and the ability to pay fair value. I'd say our chances of landing Howard are pretty decent -- and he'll most certainly go into free agency if Orlando continues to blow air, and knows that there are teams preparing to make him an appropriate offer.

[PAOBoston]

I have a hard time believing that Wyc would ever OK a trade that sent Pierce out of Boston.

honestly, i think a lot depends on the new cba/lockout situation. i'd hate to see pierce in another uniform (and i honestly dont think we will) but it is a business and if the situation dictates it i dont think they'll say no. let's face it. the c's wont be contenders for the next few years and if there was a team that thought pierce might be a asset to get that team a better chance in advancing in the playoffs, then i think he deal happens. but like i said, i doubt it...

[PAOBoston]

The way I see it, when we acquired Green, one thing that was pretty certain is that he was a fairly good third banana. Given that we have Rondo, this means that we really need to add one major piece rather than look for complementary, smaller pieces.

We're not shipping out Paul Pierce, and frankly, I don't think we have to. However, I do think that after Allen and Garnett are off the books next year, we're in a position to make a significant splash, and resign whoever of those two is interested to come back as a complementary player for the MLE. This will likely be Allen, since he looks like he can play until he's 40, has settled in the area, and generally is a good fit in almost any situation.

With all this in mind, whether they admit it or not, the Celtics are putting all their chips on Dwight Howard. He's the highest-profile FA next summer, addresses a position of need, and will make a make for a great core with Rondo, Green, and an aging Paul Pierce.

Sadly, there are a myriad of ways in which this can backfire, but I just can't look at the team and see how they're planning for anything else, short of a total blowup, which will likely just waste Rondo's prime.

i find it hard to believe that the c's are waiting for howard to go to FA b/c quite honestly, i dont think he'll ever get there. ditto with chris paul, etc. and it's not like boston has been a hot landing spot for nba free agents in the past. so to think they are putting all their eggs in one basket, especially after what we witnessed the past summer with lebron/amare/bosh/johnson/etc, they would have to be nuts.

i think if the c's rebuild, it's through trading the likes of rondo, allen, pierce, kg, green (maybe not all but some sort of combo of those options) for small assets which can be packaged for good players. it might not sound appealing but it's a hell of a lot better than sucking and trying to rebuild through the draft or continuing with the current group and get completely nothing. boston isnt miami or LA. FA's dont consider it a top flight destination and therefore i have a tough time believing any of these players would consider coming here.

Boston hasn't been a landing spot because, quite frankly, no marquee free agents want to come to a team which, well, sucks. Even more so as they had to do it at a discount (we haven't had major cap space, recently).

In 2012, you have Rajon Rondo, a pass-first PG in his prime, solid citizens to flesh out the rotation, and the ability to pay fair value. I'd say our chances of landing Howard are pretty decent -- and he'll most certainly go into free agency if Orlando continues to blow air, and knows that there are teams preparing to make him an appropriate offer.

i get what you are coming from (and hope that it does happen) but i dont think rondo is a strong enough draw to attract free agents to boston. cap space alone isnt a guarantee of landing a FA. we saw last year that there were some teams with cap space that struck out in free agency.

now, say the c's somehow pull off a trade for a chris paul for example (maybe a rondo/green/filler for cp3/filler)and still have enough cap space, that obviously changes things. but rondo/pierce to me at least isnt that great of a draw. unless rondo comes back next year and can shoot the j/ft's consistently and become less of a offensive liability on the floor. but i doubt that.

[kozlodoev]

i get what you are coming from (and hope that it does happen) but i dont think rondo is a strong enough draw to attract free agents to boston. cap space alone isnt a guarantee of landing a FA. we saw last year that there were some teams with cap space that struck out in free agency.

now, say the c's somehow pull off a trade for a chris paul for example (maybe a rondo/green/filler for cp3/filler)and still have enough cap space, that obviously changes things. but rondo/pierce to me at least isnt that great of a draw. unless rondo comes back next year and can shoot the j/ft's consistently and become less of a offensive liability on the floor. but i doubt that.

I understand it's not a guarantee, and I am not saying this is necessarily the plan. But I can't see any other scenario in which we're up for anything but sustained mediocrity through the prime of our best player.

I am not sure why you'd think we need to land Paul. Rondo has received decent exposure over the last several years, and has done enough, I think, to be considered a top PG. His jumper, I think, is decent enough at this point not to be a an absolute liability.

The appeal of playing with someone like Rondo if you're a big man is that he's a guy who can get you a ball in your spots. To me at least, Paul lost a lot of his luster with a decidedly mediocre campaign this year. I know he's been injured and all, but he went from averaging 22 points in 2009 to 16 points this season.

[droopdog7]

To answer the original posters question: You could get a lot of furious Boston fans for trading Paul Pierce.

But what if he wants to leave?  This wouldn't be too shocking indeed, we started to retool this team.

[Celticsfan336]

With a offseason together, a possibly shortened seasonm, I would wait one more year to rebuild...but if you have a shot at CP3 or Howard you have to take it.

And there is 0% chance pierce leaves

[PAOBoston]

I understand it's not a guarantee, and I am not saying this is necessarily the plan. But I can't see any other scenario in which we're up for anything but sustained mediocrity through the prime of our best player.

I am not sure why you'd think we need to land Paul. Rondo has received decent exposure over the last several years, and has done enough, I think, to be considered a top PG. His jumper, I think, is decent enough at this point not to be a an absolute liability.

The appeal of playing with someone like Rondo if you're a big man is that he's a guy who can get you a ball in your spots. To me at least, Paul lost a lot of his luster with a decidedly mediocre campaign this year. I know he's been injured and all, but he went from averaging 22 points in 2009 to 16 points this season.

i guess we view rondo in a different light. while rondo is probably a top 10/maybe top 5 pg in the league, he by no means is a complete player. and i think that hamstrings the team. while his jumper has improved, it hasnt improved enough to deter team form sagging of him. and his ft shooting is still putrid to the point where he it seems he doesnt attack the hoop at times in order to avoid ft's. paul, to me at least, offers pretty much a lot of the stuff rondo does well plus the offense. he's also got that "superstar" label that might seem appealing to other players as well, something i think rondo lacks.

[the_Bird]

To answer the original posters question: You could get a lot of furious Boston fans for trading Paul Pierce.

But what if he wants to leave?  This wouldn't be too shocking indeed, we started to retool this team.

He signed the contract extension knowing the C's would be retooling in a year or two.  He and Wyc may have a wink-wink, nudge-nudge agreement about a trade, or I can very well see Pierce growing into that "Veteran Statesman" role now that he has a ring. 

At the very least, it's something that all parties have considered. 

[mc34]

I understand it's not a guarantee, and I am not saying this is necessarily the plan. But I can't see any other scenario in which we're up for anything but sustained mediocrity through the prime of our best player.

I am not sure why you'd think we need to land Paul. Rondo has received decent exposure over the last several years, and has done enough, I think, to be considered a top PG. His jumper, I think, is decent enough at this point not to be a an absolute liability.

The appeal of playing with someone like Rondo if you're a big man is that he's a guy who can get you a ball in your spots. To me at least, Paul lost a lot of his luster with a decidedly mediocre campaign this year. I know he's been injured and all, but he went from averaging 22 points in 2009 to 16 points this season.

i guess we view rondo in a different light. while rondo is probably a top 10/maybe top 5 pg in the league, he by no means is a complete player. and i think that hamstrings the team. while his jumper has improved, it hasnt improved enough to deter team form sagging of him. and his ft shooting is still putrid to the point where he it seems he doesnt attack the hoop at times in order to avoid ft's. paul, to me at least, offers pretty much a lot of the stuff rondo does well plus the offense. he's also got that "superstar" label that might seem appealing to other players as well, something i think rondo lacks.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Rondo work extra hard this summer on his jumper after he saw what D-Rose has been doing in Chicago. I expect Rondo to become a more complete player over the next year or two.

[Jon]

The problem is this:

KG and Ray are only useful to team for two reasons:

1) Teams are on the edge of contending and want to rent one or both of them to move to a championship contending status.

OR

2) Teams simply want expiring contracts. 

The problem with #1 is that teams that are contending don't have a heck of a lot to give up to us. 

The problem with #2 is if a team is trying to dump salary, do we really want to take on a long term contract that matches Ray or KG's current salary? 

Ultimately, we may be better served riding out their contracts and trying to pursue free agents in 2012. 

[steve]

Tony Allen