I am shocked/disappointed that people root for the Nets now.

[feckless]

I found this a little disingenuous by Ms. Auerbach:

"If it was for Chris Paul, maybe. We got nothing [for Pierce and Garnett]. You don't trade laterally, and we didn't even get laterally. But I hope it works. Nothing would give me more pleasure than to be wrong."

I don't agree with her sentiment that the Celtics got nothing in return. Also, I find it interesting that, despite her criticism, she basically agrees that Red would have made the trade given the quality of the return. If Ainge eventually spins those assets into a "Chris Paul" type player, does that mean she's OK with the deal?

I agree that it was painful to see Pierce and KG go. I look forward to a day when both return to Boston as free agents, even if in a purely symbolic sense just before retiring.

A fair criticism of inconsistency in her position.

As for a symbolic return  Paul does seem very sentimental about the C's and still hurting that he was traded.

[Lucky17]

I was heartened to read these recent comments by Pierce:

Paul Pierce said it’s been difficult to say goodbye to Boston after 15 years, and as he approaches his first Nets’ training camp — along with Kevin Garnett — the past few months have allowed him to reflect.

Pierce said he wants to be a fixture in Boston following his playing days, not just showing up for his retirement ceremony and heading to Malibu, Calif., the next morning. Pierce said he wants to establish something substantial in Boston, having grown attached to the city despite growing up in Inglewood, Calif., as a Lakers fan.

“Ultimately, what I would like to do is have a business in Boston,” he said. “Maybe like a sports bar. I would love to do something like that here. None of the former Celtic great players have come and done that. I thought about it, and why hasn’t anyone come and opened up a nice restaurant? You see the Don Shula restaurant, the Michael Jordan restaurant, and Magic [Johnson] got the theaters in LA. Why nobody here? All this history, all these championships and love, why has nobody done that?

“I am going to still have relationships here. I’m always going to come to this city. Every year, when I’m done, I’m going to have a reason to come here.”

Pierce said he holds no grudges toward the Celtics, and again pointed to a future relationship with the organization.

“Who knows? I may be working for Wyc Grousbeck or Danny Ainge,” he said. “A lot of players don’t understand it. I’ve always understood it. And [other players] let their pride and ego get in the way. I’ve made a lot of money here, I’ve built relationships, won a championship here, I thank y’all for everything y’all gave me. How can I be mad for everything they’ve given me. I’m thankful.”

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2013/09/21/nba-story-lines-training-camps-prepare-open/i8L87tUDP1AjpjeWw1J0II/story.html

[Celtics18]

If ownership and management are rooting for ping pong balls, why shouldn't fans?

And what's wrong with appreciating a couple of Celtics greats, and hoping for their success?

I think that some fans have acted a little self-righteous with the "I root for the name on the front of the jerseys" stuff.  First, I'm skeptical that anybody can actually root solely for laundry, without any regard for the players who wear it.  Second, I remember the games leading up to the Duncan and Oden/Durant lotteries, and I'm predicting that a lot of the "I bleed green, and only green" folks will be changing their tunes.

Danny Ainge has gone on record as saying that he is not "rooting for ping pong balls."  It's fine to speculate that he's lying, but I'm taking him at his word. 

As to the Nets, I'm going to be rooting for them to lose.  I love Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, but I want as high a pick as possible for the Celtics.  That means more to me than seeing those guys get one last chance at glory.

As someone mentioned earlier in this post, wouldn't it be cool to see them squeak into the playoffs as a bottom seed, and upset the Heat, while giving us a nice draft pick? 

Hey, Paul and Kevin,

Take it easy during the regular season, sit out plenty of games, you guys can turn it on in the playoffs.  You don't need home court. 

[LarBrd33]

If ownership and management are rooting for ping pong balls, why shouldn't fans?

And what's wrong with appreciating a couple of Celtics greats, and hoping for their success?

I think that some fans have acted a little self-righteous with the "I root for the name on the front of the jerseys" stuff.  First, I'm skeptical that anybody can actually root solely for laundry, without any regard for the players who wear it.  Second, I remember the games leading up to the Duncan and Oden/Durant lotteries, and I'm predicting that a lot of the "I bleed green, and only green" folks will be changing their tunes.

Danny Ainge has gone on record as saying that he is not "rooting for ping pong balls."  It's fine to speculate that he's lying, but I'm taking him at his word. 

Celtics18... just curious.  You bring up this kind of stuff constantly.  "Danny AInge says...  Danny Ainge says...".  I should preface this by saying I'm a MASSIVE Danny Ainge supporter.. but why in the heck would you take what that guy says at face value?  He's a professional GM.  Lying is part of his job.  There's multiple examples of Danny saying something publicly and then doing something different.  Playing the media is part of the game.  There's never going to be a GM who says, "We're desperately shopping our star player" or "we're rooting for losses this season".  It just comes across supremely naive to me when you say things like, "Danny says he's not trading Rondo... so we're not trading Rondo".  You should know better than that, man.

[Celtics18]

If ownership and management are rooting for ping pong balls, why shouldn't fans?

And what's wrong with appreciating a couple of Celtics greats, and hoping for their success?

I think that some fans have acted a little self-righteous with the "I root for the name on the front of the jerseys" stuff.  First, I'm skeptical that anybody can actually root solely for laundry, without any regard for the players who wear it.  Second, I remember the games leading up to the Duncan and Oden/Durant lotteries, and I'm predicting that a lot of the "I bleed green, and only green" folks will be changing their tunes.

Danny Ainge has gone on record as saying that he is not "rooting for ping pong balls."  It's fine to speculate that he's lying, but I'm taking him at his word. 

Celtics18... just curious.  You bring up this kind of stuff constantly.  "Danny AInge says...  Danny Ainge says...".  I should preface this by saying I'm a MASSIVE Danny Ainge supporter.. but why in the heck would you take what that guy says at face value?  He's a professional GM.  Lying is part of his job.  There's multiple examples of Danny saying something publicly and then doing something different.  Playing the media is part of the game.  There's never going to be a GM who says, "We're desperately shopping our star player" or "we're rooting for losses this season".  It just comes across supremely naive to me when you say things like, "Danny says he's not trading Rondo... so we're not trading Rondo".  You should know better than that, man.

Which examples are you referring to where Danny Ainge has blatantly publicly lied about something?  Direct quotes would be nice. 

As far as trading Rondo goes, the reason I don't think Rondo will be traded is not so much based on what Danny is saying about it, but rather because I don't think it makes sense to trade him. 

If Danny Ainge where to firmly say, "I will never trade Rondo.  Period.  End of story," I would believe him.  Unfortunately, I doubt I'll ever get that level of assurance from "Trader Danny."

[kg is king]

If ownership and management are rooting for ping pong balls, why shouldn't fans?

And what's wrong with appreciating a couple of Celtics greats, and hoping for their success?

I think that some fans have acted a little self-righteous with the "I root for the name on the front of the jerseys" stuff.  First, I'm skeptical that anybody can actually root solely for laundry, without any regard for the players who wear it.  Second, I remember the games leading up to the Duncan and Oden/Durant lotteries, and I'm predicting that a lot of the "I bleed green, and only green" folks will be changing their tunes.

Danny Ainge has gone on record as saying that he is not "rooting for ping pong balls."  It's fine to speculate that he's lying, but I'm taking him at his word. 

Celtics18... just curious.  You bring up this kind of stuff constantly.  "Danny AInge says...  Danny Ainge says...".  I should preface this by saying I'm a MASSIVE Danny Ainge supporter.. but why in the heck would you take what that guy says at face value?  He's a professional GM.  Lying is part of his job.  There's multiple examples of Danny saying something publicly and then doing something different.  Playing the media is part of the game.  There's never going to be a GM who says, "We're desperately shopping our star player" or "we're rooting for losses this season".  It just comes across supremely naive to me when you say things like, "Danny says he's not trading Rondo... so we're not trading Rondo".  You should know better than that, man.

^Agreed.

Why in the world would the GM of the most prestigious NBA frnachise publicly condone tanking? Why would any GM? Talking the talk is something these GMs, and most players have wired to their brains.

[Tr1boy]

Its celts or die for me. I will keep good memories of pp and kg when they were playing as celtic players but thats about it. The last game we played the nets i was hoping pierce went 0-10 and i was happy bc he didnt fo that great.

[Boris Badenov]

Danny Ainge has gone on record as saying that he is not "rooting for ping pong balls."  It's fine to speculate that he's lying, but I'm taking him at his word. 

Celtics18... just curious.  You bring up this kind of stuff constantly.  "Danny AInge says...  Danny Ainge says...".  I should preface this by saying I'm a MASSIVE Danny Ainge supporter.. but why in the heck would you take what that guy says at face value?  He's a professional GM.  Lying is part of his job.  There's multiple examples of Danny saying something publicly and then doing something different.  Playing the media is part of the game.  There's never going to be a GM who says, "We're desperately shopping our star player" or "we're rooting for losses this season".  It just comes across supremely naive to me when you say things like, "Danny says he's not trading Rondo... so we're not trading Rondo".  You should know better than that, man.

Which examples are you referring to where Danny Ainge has blatantly publicly lied about something?  Direct quotes would be nice. 

Just to pick one recent example, he said this less than 24 hours before the KG/PP to BKN deal:

Ainge might be playing his cards close to the vest, but even after confirming the Celtics have been involved in some interesting discussions with other clubs, he isn't expecting to make any big splashes tonight with a deal that could include some players already under contract. The Celts have until Sunday to decide whether to buy out the last year of Paul Pierce's contract for $5 million or guarantee him some $15.3 million for next season, and it is known the captain has drawn interest around the league.

But again, Ainge doesn't anticipate fireworks from Celtics draft headquarters tonight.

"I don't see it," he said. "We've been working hard and been looking at all sorts of things over the last few weeks. We're not close to anything like that yet, so I don't know. I don't sense that we will or that there's a possibility."

http://www.celticsblog.com/2013/6/27/4469678/nba-trade-rumors-ainge-no-big-moves-expected-boston-celtics

Now, if you want to get picky and say "he didn't actually lie," you are entitled to do that. But he did say he didn't "sense..a possibility"...

Are we to believe that 24 hours before such a mammoth and complicated trade, Ainge didn't "sense a possibility" that it would happen?

Personally I'm more inclined to believe that it was 90% done at that point. Nor do I blame him if that were the case. It goes with the territory.

[Sketch5]

I think people are rooting for the Nets, because the Nets became a team that has a very good shot at taking out the Heat. Which you can't blame people for really.

I'll root for the C's even whent they play the Nets. Im just a realistic person knowing this team as of right now has a very slight chance of making the playoffs. And if so, they don't have the star power to take on the heat.

But they will get my support game in and game out like usual.

I also would like to see PP and KG get a ring this year. Even if they do it out of a green jersey.

[TitleMaster]

This is what needs to happen, PP & KG need to win two back-to-back titles in Brooklyn.

Then afterwards, now that they've banked as much as they could, come back to Boston at Vet's minimum, playing off the bench for 5 to 12 mins per game.

At that juncture, the Celts will be reloaded for another championship run. These guys can continue to do this till they turn 43 and retire like Parish, with an extra ring in his pocket. I suspect that the C's will win one more during the twilight of PP's career. That's a total of 4 rings for a career.

[86MaxwellSmart]

I will root for any teams that can beat the cHeat or Lakers....makes it nicer that KG and PP are on the Nets...I rooted for the Spurs in the Finals----still can't believe they CHOKED away Game 6.

I NEVER root for the C's to lose though.

[cltc5]

I will root for anyone but the cHeat

[Celtics18]

Boris,

A thousand pardons, but of course I'm going to nitpick.  In the quote about trading Pierce and Garnett, he was fairly waffly, I would definitely even call him evasive.  On the other hand, when asked about the prospect of this year's team tanking, he clearly and unequivocally has said--on the record--"we are not tanking."  There is nothing wishy-washy or hazy about that quote. 

There's a distinction there for me.  If he had said, "we are absolutely not trading Pierce and Garnett" and then gone ahead and done it within the next twenty-four hours, then, yeah, he would have made a liar of himself. 

But, he didn't do that.  He said they'd been working on deals and he didn't see anything imminent, until it was actually a done deal.  In my opinion, that was the smart thing to say.  I don't see it as outright deceit. 

[mgent]

I don't agree with her sentiment that the Celtics got nothing in return. Also, I find it interesting that, despite her criticism, she basically agrees that Red would have made the trade given the quality of the return. If Ainge eventually spins those assets into a "Chris Paul" type player, does that mean she's OK with the deal?

If Ainge eventually spins those assets into a Chris Paul type player, that just means we beat the odds and got incredibly lucky.  It would literally take a miracle.

What she means by we got nothing in return is that we didn't receive an actual return, only an investment.  Even number 1 picks turn out to be busts, until  we actually get those players and they reach their potential (if ever), the team hasn't received any value.  It's like you just responded to what you bolded and ignored the rest of your quote because she answers your question:  "I hope it works. Nothing would give me more pleasure than to be wrong."

Danny said multiple of times he wouldn't make a trade that makes us better in the future unless it made our team better right now.  This is what she's referring to by "You don't trade laterally, and we didn't even get laterally." (we got much worse for the present).

[Boris Badenov]

Boris,

A thousand pardons, but of course I'm going to nitpick.  In the quote about trading Pierce and Garnett, he was fairly waffly, I would definitely even call him evasive.  On the other hand, when asked about the prospect of this year's team tanking, he clearly and unequivocally has said--on the record--"we are not tanking."  There is nothing wishy-washy or hazy about that quote. 

There's a distinction there for me.  If he had said, "we are absolutely not trading Pierce and Garnett" and then gone ahead and done it within the next twenty-four hours, then, yeah, he would have made a liar of himself. 

But, he didn't do that.  He said they'd been working on deals and he didn't see anything imminent, until it was actually a done deal.  In my opinion, that was the smart thing to say.  I don't see it as outright deceit.

But here's the thing. "Tanking" is such a vague concept that he can make definitive statements about "not tanking" without really saying *anything*. Maybe he takes tanking to mean "intentionally throwing games"...in which case, he can do a lot of things I would consider tanking and still make that definitive statement without it being a lie from his perspective.

In contrast "trading KG" is a specific statement, so he has to be more evasive in the rest of the statement.

And, the other more practical concern is that the league will punish teams for tanking. So, even if you're doing it, you have a clear incentive to say you're not, or to define it in such a way that you can say you're not doing it, even if everyone else thinks you are.