Nene says Free Agency isn't about money,wants a chance at championship

[nickagneta]

If he's going to somewhere for MLE money I'd think Miami would be more attractive. Though I'm sure the Celtics would also court him. Of the top tier teams in the NBA they could offer him the most playing time and also allow him to contend.

I'd be shocked if he's available for league average money though, no matter what the new CBA is. He's too good of a player for that size of contract.

He'd be the starter in either Miami or Boston.  I'm not sure his minutes would be significantly higher for the Heat, and I think that the personnel on the Celtics would allow him to get more touches and be a more integral part of the offense.

If I were Nene, and I were making a choice between the two teams, I'd choose the Celtics.

No you wouldn't, you would choose the Heat, as would anyone that didn't grow up in Boston and root for the Celtics (and then some that did still might choose Miami).  Miami is a much better situation with a much longer window for someone like Nene who essentially does role player type things (i.e. rebounds and defends).  A guy like Dwight who may want to be the man, might rather come to Boston because he can win the title with the old guard and then be the man when they retire and still be in a pretty good spot with Rondo to win more going forward.  An oversized role player like Nene will go to Miami if the money and role is equal (which I imagine both would be).

The roles aren't even close to equal though.  Nene is ideal for a ball-movement club like Boston because he's a high percentage finisher with decent passing.  He's not meant for a two-man isolation team.  All the extra possessions go to Chris Bosh, Nene would never even see the ball.

If Perkins could average double digits on our team imagine what Nene could do with the same looks.  Boston's got a far better PG, and we've also got KG to run the defense for him.  He'd have a much bigger role on the Celts, that much is clear.  Whether or not he'd have a better chance of winning is a much harder question, but I think with Nene replacing Shaq, our starting 5 would still make us the favorites over Miami.

Nene already played with Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson, JR Smith and Andre Miller on the same team and still put up 12.2PPG/7RPG numbers.

He is used to playing with 2 ball dominant players on the same team and still finding a way to get his and be a part of both the offense and defense. With Wade and LeBron and Bosh he would be the favorite to win a title every year that he is signed on that team and would be playing in a role he is used to playing within.

I can not for the life of me see why he would ever choose Boston over Miami IF his reasoning is he is taking $5 million a year less for 4-5 years JUST to win championships. If championships are why he is taking $20-25 million less, he isn't going to care about having a larger offensive role or getting more points per game. he's going to care about winning and that will occur most frequently if he signs in Miami.

[revcummings]

I think he mentioned something about being a team player...Boston plays as a team, Miami not so much!

He probably will not come to Boston but that would be awesome if he did. Then resign D-West, Baby, and pick up Hill or Prince and we would be great! 

Rondo\D-west or Bardley
Allen\Hill or D-West
Da Truth\Hill or Prince
KG\Baby or Rookie
Nene\JO or Rookie

[Moranis]

If he's going to somewhere for MLE money I'd think Miami would be more attractive. Though I'm sure the Celtics would also court him. Of the top tier teams in the NBA they could offer him the most playing time and also allow him to contend.

I'd be shocked if he's available for league average money though, no matter what the new CBA is. He's too good of a player for that size of contract.

He'd be the starter in either Miami or Boston.  I'm not sure his minutes would be significantly higher for the Heat, and I think that the personnel on the Celtics would allow him to get more touches and be a more integral part of the offense.

If I were Nene, and I were making a choice between the two teams, I'd choose the Celtics.

No you wouldn't, you would choose the Heat, as would anyone that didn't grow up in Boston and root for the Celtics (and then some that did still might choose Miami).  Miami is a much better situation with a much longer window for someone like Nene who essentially does role player type things (i.e. rebounds and defends).  A guy like Dwight who may want to be the man, might rather come to Boston because he can win the title with the old guard and then be the man when they retire and still be in a pretty good spot with Rondo to win more going forward.  An oversized role player like Nene will go to Miami if the money and role is equal (which I imagine both would be).

I think Nene sees himself as a step above a role player, I know I do.  He'd be in a great position to win a title next year, he'd be playing for a storied franchise with a great coach, three hall of fame veterans, and one of the best passers in the league.

Going forward, he and Rondo could form a great foundation that could keep them in contention post big three.  Rondo will make him a better player.  That opportunity seems like it would be extremely exciting and attractive to me.

While there would certainly be opportunities to win a title with the Heat, I think that playing with James and Wade could become frustrating for Nene.  He'll always be the 3rd (or 4th) banana.

Nene is a starter and a very good one, but he isn't leading a team anywhere which makes him a role player.  He can't carry a team.  Rondo and Nene are no where near a championship level foundation especially with teams that will be sporting Lebron, Wade, and Bosh or Amare and Anthony floating around the East.  If the goal is to win a championship then Nene will choose Miami over Boston ever single day of the week.  Miami may look to go with Dalembert or someone else (though I wouldn't if I were the Heat), but if the choice is Miami or Boston at similar money and similar contract length (in this case he might want less years so he can capitalize on one more contract) he will choose Miami over Boston.

[mgent]

If he's going to somewhere for MLE money I'd think Miami would be more attractive. Though I'm sure the Celtics would also court him. Of the top tier teams in the NBA they could offer him the most playing time and also allow him to contend.

I'd be shocked if he's available for league average money though, no matter what the new CBA is. He's too good of a player for that size of contract.

He'd be the starter in either Miami or Boston.  I'm not sure his minutes would be significantly higher for the Heat, and I think that the personnel on the Celtics would allow him to get more touches and be a more integral part of the offense.

If I were Nene, and I were making a choice between the two teams, I'd choose the Celtics.

No you wouldn't, you would choose the Heat, as would anyone that didn't grow up in Boston and root for the Celtics (and then some that did still might choose Miami).  Miami is a much better situation with a much longer window for someone like Nene who essentially does role player type things (i.e. rebounds and defends).  A guy like Dwight who may want to be the man, might rather come to Boston because he can win the title with the old guard and then be the man when they retire and still be in a pretty good spot with Rondo to win more going forward.  An oversized role player like Nene will go to Miami if the money and role is equal (which I imagine both would be).

The roles aren't even close to equal though.  Nene is ideal for a ball-movement club like Boston because he's a high percentage finisher with decent passing.  He's not meant for a two-man isolation team.  All the extra possessions go to Chris Bosh, Nene would never even see the ball.

If Perkins could average double digits on our team imagine what Nene could do with the same looks.  Boston's got a far better PG, and we've also got KG to run the defense for him.  He'd have a much bigger role on the Celts, that much is clear.  Whether or not he'd have a better chance of winning is a much harder question, but I think with Nene replacing Shaq, our starting 5 would still make us the favorites over Miami.

Nene already played with Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson, JR Smith and Andre Miller on the same team and still put up 12.2PPG/7RPG numbers.

He is used to playing with 2 ball dominant players on the same team and still finding a way to get his and be a part of both the offense and defense. With Wade and LeBron and Bosh he would be the favorite to win a title every year that he is signed on that team and would be playing in a role he is used to playing within.

I can not for the life of me see why he would ever choose Boston over Miami IF his reasoning is he is taking $5 million a year less for 4-5 years JUST to win championships. If championships are why he is taking $20-25 million less, he isn't going to care about having a larger offensive role or getting more points per game. he's going to care about winning and that will occur most frequently if he signs in Miami.

What?  You mean 5-6 years ago when he was a 24 yr old coming off of an absolutely huge knee injury?

There's also a pretty big difference between Melo/Billups and LeBron/Wade.

I think the difference in roles between Boston and Miami is huge, and could very well be the difference between him being an All-Star center or not.  If all he's looking for is guaranteed long-term regular season wins then yes, that's Miami.  If he's looking for the best chance to add a championship to his resume this coming year, I think Boston has the edge.

[nickagneta]

If Nene is professing to wanting to WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS and would be taking in the range of $20-25 MILLION LESS to win those championships, does anyone really believe that his wanting to be an All-Star because of his fit in Boston would really make a difference to him in deciding Boston over Miami?

The man would be taking TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS LESS to win championships. Why would he put the actual winning championship parts in danger by wanting to fit a little better in Boston and become an All-Star? It makes zero sense.

Ad Nene to last year's Miami team and regardless of how much Lebron choked, they would have beaten Dallas. His best chance at titles is in Miami and if he is going to take that much money less to win those titles, he's going to the Heat to do it.

All that said, I doubt he leaves the money on the table and I think he signs with Denver.

[stylo617617]

if nene goes to mia next year our only hope is trading for dwight if were going to win next year

[bdm860]

Let's not act like Boston and Miami are the only 2 teams you can possibly win with.

Saying you will take less money to play on a winning team doesn't mean you go out and just the team favored to win it all next year.

While Miami and Boston would work, so does the Knicks.  Amare and Turiaf, neither of which are true centers, are like their only big men (or am I missing someone?).  Especially if Nene has a good relationship with Carmelo and Billups then the Knicks make even more sense.  Knicks are a team ready to win now (of course I hope they don’t) and Nene could really help them make the move to legit contender.

San Antonio would make sense too.  Who else do they really have down low besides Duncan and McDyess?  They both can use fewer minutes with another big in the rotation, and Blair, although tough, doesn’t have the size for center.  San Antonio probably makes as much sense as Boston does to non-biased observers.

But even if he would sign with Boston, would you really want him?  If he signs the mid-level (or new CBA equivalent if there is one), it’s not going to be for one year.  So I would think signing him would eliminate any chance of us getting Howard (as opposed to Miami who I figure has no chance of getting Howard).  You don’t sign major free agents to max year deals (this assumes Nene would sign for the max years possible) then ship them out after one year, unless it just isn’t a good fit.  What’s the dream scenario here?  Sign Nene, win a championship next year, then trade him away and sign Howard, and win several more championships?  You really think that would happen?

[Jon]

If it's just about a shot at a title, he's probably better served going elsewhere.  Even if we are to put on our green-tinted glasses and assume that Boston is the best fit for him and that a healthy Celtic team is still the best team in the NBA, their fragility (due to age) and small window makes coming here less appealing than a younger team like Miami.  Even if LeBron got a season ending injury on the first game of next season (one can hope), there's always next year.  Not so here.  

I think for Nene to come here the financial landscape will have to change enough in the NBA that he's really only facing MLE offers.  If that's the case, I think the C's could sell him on a one year MLE deal, arguing that they provide a similar market and chance to win that Miami does, but that they offer a Nene a bigger role that he could parlay into a bigger contract the following year.   

Yes, Miami may offer him the same minutes as Boston.  Heck, if JO is healthy next year, Miami might even have more minutes for Nene than the C's do.  However, I think that Nene will have a lot more scoring opportunities here than in Miami, where he might be lucky to get passed the ball more than a couple times per quarter.  

[Who]

I think Houston will make a strong run at Nene.

I reckon they are the frontrunner outside of Denver to sign him.

[Fafnir]

I think Houston will make a strong run at Nene.

I reckon they are the frontrunner outside of Denver to sign him.

I hadn't thought of them.

[revcummings]

Miami is going after Eddy Curry! Pat Riley has some real man love for him and he has lost like 50lbs already.

[KCattheStripe]

I think Houston will make a strong run at Nene.

I reckon they are the frontrunner outside of Denver to sign him.

I hadn't thought of them.

And Darryl Morey would again be throwing his money away.

[Celtics4ever]

Nene would be huge for us.

[jdz101]

Uhh let's not be silly. Every reasonably good free agent says stuff like this to make himself sound committed to a winning culture. Its a ploy to drum up a bigger deal if anything.

[Roy H.]

Nene already played with Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson, JR Smith and Andre Miller on the same team and still put up 12.2PPG/7RPG numbers.

As an aside, nick, Iverson and Miller weren't on the team together; they were traded for one another.

I do think that Nene would see his production go down if he played beside Lebron, Wade, and Bosh.  The Heat averaged around 77 shots per game last year, with the "big three" averaging about 51 of those.  That leaves 26 shots to be divided among the other 13 guys on the roster.  Nene would probably see his 10 or 11 shot attempts per game drop to around 6 or 7. 

Not that he'd necessarily care, but I do think his numbers would go down.  I do agree, though, that Miami would be a better fit, as 1) they were a better team than the Celts last year; 2) they'll most likely be a better team in the future with a longer window than the Celtics; and 3) Florida has no state income tax.