Wait...so can we afford to lose Baby?

[EJPLAYA]

What we can’t afford it to waste more time with a player who is only interested in getting in shape when it is contract time. If BBD was the shape he ought to be and stayed there, then yes he is a guy we would want. When he is the guy who doesn’t give max effort, his flaws are too big. BBD has peaked, and last season is the best you’ll likely ever see out of him anymore due to his girth. The one exception might be this coming season if he was signed to a one year deal. BBD really ought to be a one year deal player for the rest of his career. It’s the only way he has a chance of staying in the league.

I don’t think replacing a guy who can’t shoot, rebound, pass, defend on the perimeter, or finish around the rim is going to be as difficult as you think. 

[SHAQATTACK]

I think we should revamp the team before its too late.

[MBunge]

If Glen Davis is a Celtic next season, Doc Rivers will play him more minutes than is warranted.  That's just the way Doc is.  The only way to avoid Big Baby being overplayed is to not have him on the roster.

This, unfortunately, is a real issue to be considered.  Baby is the sort of player whose severe limitations really come out when he isn't playing at his best, and he's never been able to be at his best for an entire season.  His lack of rebounding, difficulty finishing and offensive black hole tendencies are pretty much exactly the sort of things this team can no longer tolerate with the decline in the Big 3 and Rondo's offensive limitations.

Yet, you can be sure that Doc will continue to rely on him no matter who else is on the roster when it comes to being the first big off the bench.

Mike

[KungPoweChicken]

We can't afford to not lose baby.

[jc3celticsphan]

kg needs to make him cry again

[Chris]

The C's are in a difficult spot with Baby.

On the one hand, it will put them in a difficult position if they lose him, because, like it or not, he played a major role on this team, and it is yet another spot they are going to need to fill this summer with minimal assets.  Being able to use Bird Rights to resign him would make it a lot easier to field a contender next year, because they can use their assets to solidify other spots (such as starting center).

On the other hand, signing him to a longterm contract is a huge risk, given questions about his weight, how his real strength is his quickness given his size, and how that will not improve with age, and with the C's position to possibly have cap space in 2012, and whether they want to eat up a chunk of that with Davis.

And of course the other issue is whether Davis really has any interest in returning.  He has made it clear on multiple occasions that he thinks he can handle a bigger role, and he may go elsewhere in the hopes of getting that role.  He was basically forced to return a couple of years ago due to his restricted status, but this summer he is unrestricted, which could mean he just leaves no matter what the C's offer.

I just do not envy Danny this summer.  He is going to have to make some very difficult decisions.

[LooseCannon]

Maybe Davis will make it easy for Ainge and insist that he either gets a contract that marks him as the heir apparent to the starting PF job after KG or he will be willing to play elsewhere for less money.


I'm not sure where he can go, though.  I've seen blog posts saying he would be a reasonable choice for Denver, New Orleans, Indiana, New Jersey, and Dallas.

[snively]

The C's are in a difficult spot with Baby.

On the one hand, it will put them in a difficult position if they lose him, because, like it or not, he played a major role on this team, and it is yet another spot they are going to need to fill this summer with minimal assets.  Being able to use Bird Rights to resign him would make it a lot easier to field a contender next year, because they can use their assets to solidify other spots (such as starting center).

On the other hand, signing him to a longterm contract is a huge risk, given questions about his weight, how his real strength is his quickness given his size, and how that will not improve with age, and with the C's position to possibly have cap space in 2012, and whether they want to eat up a chunk of that with Davis.

And of course the other issue is whether Davis really has any interest in returning.  He has made it clear on multiple occasions that he thinks he can handle a bigger role, and he may go elsewhere in the hopes of getting that role.  He was basically forced to return a couple of years ago due to his restricted status, but this summer he is unrestricted, which could mean he just leaves no matter what the C's offer.

I just do not envy Danny this summer.  He is going to have to make some very difficult decisions.

Eh, I think the decision on Baby should be easy.  That he played such a large role on the teams was a huge part of  our struggles.  His jack-of-all-trades, passable-at-none routine hurt the C's across the board.

If the C's can get a less versatile player who does a few things better (namely rebounding), they'll be better off, IMHO.  Someone that has strengths they can stick to.

Cap flexibility is of course a concern when replacing him.  But I'm hoping we get Jeff Green back on his QO and thus retain the flexibility to add one big on a multi-year MLE type deal.

[xmuscularghandix]

Celtics played without him from the All-Star break on, i blame his ineffectiveness for the losses AND the overuse of all the other bigs.

[jambr380]

People get so down on players around here. You'd think Pierce and KG were the only players fans even liked. It seems everybody else has these fatal flaws and the grass is always greener...

The fact is, Davis has been a very good second unit guy for our team for several years and there's no reason he won't continue to be as productive. This year's playoffs were pretty dismal for him, but he has shown in past years that he is actually quite effective. I agree that if he is re-signed, it should be at a very reasonable deal, but to pretend that there all of these available free agents on the cheap or a top notch guy at the 25th pick (who is ready to contribute now) seems like kind of a stretch to me.

[SHAQATTACK]

Can we afford to have him on the team and expect to win?

[OsirusCeltics]

Can he afford to lose 50 pounds?? *Drum kick*

[Who]

I have no interest in bringing Glen Davis back if he is going to be playing a major role again next season (25-30mpg).

If Davis is down in the 16-20 range, I would happily welcome him back. There are a few upgrades out there but not very many. Retaining him is a good option so long as he isn't overused (Doc !!).

I wouldn't offer him more than a one year contract though. No way would I damage 2012's cap flexibility over such a limited player.

[arctic 3.0]

the only way i resign baby is if he is shipped out in a sign and trade.
ideally we sign t prince win the mid level then trade s&t baby to sac for dalembert. if necessary i'd do green for dalembert.

if we get prince i'd also consider offering green (and bradley) to sota for randolph and filler (pekovic or ridinour?).

but baby? his self image is bigger than his stomach. that's particularly concerning considering the size of his stomach.

[Chris]

I have no interest in bringing Glen Davis back if he is going to be playing a major role again next season (25-30mpg).

If Davis is down in the 16-20 range, I would happily welcome him back. There are a few upgrades out there but not very many. Retaining him is a good option so long as he isn't overused (Doc !!).

I agree.  And the key to this is going to be getting a quality (and healthy) starting center (easier said than done). 

I think Davis' struggles at the end of the year were directly related to his overuse (and Doc had little option for most of the season), which really wore him down, and took away the energy which made him so valuable early in the season. 

I just think people are underestimating how hard it is to replace his minutes with anyone even half as solid.  There just are not a lot of options out there, and the ones that are there are not going to be that cheap, and will likely cut into their ability to upgrade spots where they are in more need of upgrades (such as Center, and backup guard...because they can't count on West being healthy).

So, if they can make upgrades at one or both of those other spots, I think it will allow Davis to slide into the 8th or 9th man role he is more suited to, over the 6th man role he was in most of last season, and it will make him a very valuable piece to have, if they can resign him.