It's Been A Lame Offseason.

[Future Celtics Owner]

Getting Smart and Young was huge. Getting Turner for nothing was also a big score. Adding the Cavs pick for nothing was good...and getting Zeller was ok.

I'm still questioning the Bradley overpay...but it could be a good deal down the road or means he may be traded.

With the huge signings of Hayward and Parsons, Jeff Greens value rose, imo.

We also got some more trade exceptions.


I think we did very well with what we got and what was AVAILABLE.

[obnoxiousmime]

I agree with everyone who mentioned the lottery being the main culprit. The reason it's been "lame" is that people wanted our first pick to either result in a star through the draft or through a trade. By ending up with the sixth pick, the Celtics could not entice Saunders on a Love trade and they also missed out on all the higher-potential prospects.

The biggest addition this offseason in Smart also seems underwhelming because he plays the same position as our biggest star. That just creates a lot of confusion and uncertainty as to the direction the franchise is going in.

Besides the fact that we didn't really obtain a star, the search for a rim protector is still ongoing. They really don't have anybody at this point so either they draft someone next year who will be ready sometime in 2018-2020 or they use their assets to acquire somebody.

Everybody grab a seat because rebuilding is going to take awhile... =(

[gpap]

It may have not been the "fireworks" off-season people were hoping for, but then again I don't think Danny could have done anything else after getting hosed yet again in the lottery. The deals just weren't out there. The one deal he made was outstanding in getting Zeller and a 1st for the TPE. He drafted Rondo's heir-apparent in Smart, which means he'll be in a great position to deal Rondo when his value may be very high (at the trade deadline). He resigned Bradley for reasonable money and given the growth in Bradley's game that deal may be seen as a steal in a year or two.

Danny has collected yet more assets and is really set this year to showcase them - Olynyk, Bradley, Sully, Rondo and Green while bringing the new guys up to speed (Smart and Young) without putting too much on their shoulders too soon. The club is constructed better this year and he's done it while adding more assets.

Think about it this way....how much does the dynamic change if Sully becomes a 17/10 guy? Or if Olynyk shows he can be a 20ppg scorer? Or Bradley continues to grow his game and becomes a 15 PER player while still being a lockdown defender? Or Rondo shows he's healthy and goes back to being a 20 PER player? The demand for these guys would be incredible. None of those are that much of a reach and if any of them happen then Danny all of a sudden is holding awesome cards to deal or enough cards to add to a growing core of a potentially good team. And it's not like all of those need to happen...just one or two of those things coming true changes the entire dynamic. Of course, none of those may happen in which case it's back to the drawing board.

Essentially, this is the year everyone gets to see how good of a hand the Celtics really have. And it could be mediocre, or it could have a couple of aces in it. The future for most bad teams revolves around one player - usually their new high draft choice - and that's about all. In this case, this draft could be an entire bust and the Celtics could find themselves with a much stronger hand than they had last year. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

Gonna have to respectfully disagree there. In fact, I would even say extending Bradley to a 4 year contract made this more of an unproductive offseason.

Even though I don't necessarily agree with it, I get where everyone is coming from with the whole flexibility thing and not trading "assets" for mid-tier upgrades.

But how can you advocate for that and then go out and give Bradley a 4 year deal?

Danny Ainge outbid himself on that one.

[gpap]

Getting Smart and Young was huge. Getting Turner for nothing was also a big score. Adding the Cavs pick for nothing was good...and getting Zeller was ok.

I'm still questioning the Bradley overpay...but it could be a good deal down the road or means he may be traded.

With the huge signings of Hayward and Parsons, Jeff Greens value rose, imo.

We also got some more trade exceptions.


I think we did very well with what we got and what was AVAILABLE.

See my comment above on this one.

[gpap]

I agree with everyone who mentioned the lottery being the main culprit. The reason it's been "lame" is that people wanted our first pick to either result in a star through the draft or through a trade. By ending up with the sixth pick, the Celtics could not entice Saunders on a Love trade and they also missed out on all the higher-potential prospects.

The biggest addition this offseason in Smart also seems underwhelming because he plays the same position as our biggest star. That just creates a lot of confusion and uncertainty as to the direction the franchise is going in.

Besides the fact that we didn't really obtain a star, the search for a rim protector is still ongoing. They really don't have anybody at this point so either they draft someone next year who will be ready sometime in 2018-2020 or they use their assets to acquire somebody.

Everybody grab a seat because rebuilding is going to take awhile... =(

And that's another frusturating part about this offseason.

I don't really know what direction this team is going in and I am not sure even Danny Ainge knows

Are we gearing up to be major players as soon as 2015 or are we in for a long, miserable rebuild?

Don't get me wrong, I HATE what Philly is doing, but at least you know where they stand.

[Boris Badenov]

I get where everyone is coming from the whole flexibility thing and not trading "assets" for mid-tier upgrades.

But how can you advocate for that and then go out and give Bradley a 4 year deal?

Danny Ainge outbid himself on that one.

How do we know that though? We do know - or at least have heard enough rumors to support the idea -  that Danny relentlessly shops his players to gauge their trade value - even to the point of annoying them.

We also often hear that trades fail because Danny's asking price is too high.

So, isn't it also extremely likely that Danny went out and conducted the exact same due diligence with Bradley? This would include assessing other offers he'd get, options for sign and trades, and so on.

To me, it's likely that Danny made AB an offer that was pretty competitive relative to the rest of the market. Of course, we can never know that because we never saw the rest of the market and AB re-signed early in the free agency period. But that actually tells me Danny was confident he was doing the right thing based on his assessment of the market.

In which case, AB is far from a burden. If Danny signed him to a market-level deal, he is moveable to someone else at a later date, assuming he doesn't get hurt or something.

And one other thing that I think has been overlooked in the CB Bradley contract discussion (at least that I've seen). The NBA is set to renew its TV deal in 2016, which will by many accounts substantially increase the salary cap due to revenue-sharing. This is why Lebron signed a short deal - so he can re-sign as soon as the new cap takes effect. Same with Stephenson, who turned down a longer deal for a shorter one at similar money (which rarely makes sense for a player unless he anticipates a big raise on the next deal).

So, Bradley's deal may actually look rich by the standards of the current cap, but might actually become a bargain in the later and higher-cap years of the deal.

[acieEarl]

Yes weak off season, but I rather stink for another year than be a .500 team with no flexibility. The future still is bright and I'm happy Danny didn't make any panic moves. Let the kids play, see who's worth keeping.

It does make you think, had we tanked even more and got that 1#, Minn makes that deal with us rather than Cleveland. The draft and luck has never been our side.

[cman88]

not really IMO. if you were looking for us to build a contending team than sure....but as far as adding assets to the team Ainge did a good job.

we still likely are going to stink...but I like our outlook this year to have the assets to pull off a major deal for a star next offseason than we did prior.

[BudweiserCeltic]

I think it's been a very good off-season.

[timpiker]

I agree - this summer has sucked big time.  No top 3 pick and no Love....and another TANKAPALOOZA TO LOOK FORWARD TO

[Chief Macho]

Yep.   A bucket of barf.    I have no idea what they're trying to do.  Overpaying Bradley and adding another bum like Turner.   

Brad Stevens should run for his life and save his career.

[Granath]

Gonna have to respectfully disagree there. In fact, I would even say extending Bradley to a 4 year contract made this more of an unproductive offseason.

Even though I don't necessarily agree with it, I get where everyone is coming from with the whole flexibility thing and not trading "assets" for mid-tier upgrades.

But how can you advocate for that and then go out and give Bradley a 4 year deal?

Danny Ainge outbid himself on that one.

I'll agree Bradley's signing is probably the most "iffy" move of the offseason but I don't agree Ainge outbid himself on that or we overpaid for Bradley.

I'm certainly not sold on Bradley by any means. His injury history is not something I'm comfortable with. But there really wasn't anyone better on the FA market, we needed a SG at the time (this was pre-trade and pre-draft) and let's face it, Bradley has improved every year since he's been in the league.

This is a guy who averaged 15ppg last year, 39.5% from 3pt land, averaged about 4 rpg and still had the energy to play good defense. He improved his eFG% from a miserable .444 to a respectable .485. Sure, he needs improvement (more 3s rather than long 2s), but the growth in his game has been noticeable and he's only 23 years old. His best years should be ahead of him.

If he gets hurt too much, the deal is a bust.

If he regresses, then it's an overpay.

If he stagnates but plays 70+ games, then it's probably a fair deal.

But what happens if his game continues to develop as it has over the last 4 years? He's not far off from being a very good two-way player. What happens if Bradley continues shooting 39% from 3 pt land and fixes his shot selection so that 42% of his attempts don't come between 16 ft and the 3 point line? It could be something just that simple that turns Bradley into a very good piece for any team.

Given his track record of improvement, isn't the moderate risk worth the better reward? I can't wait to see him and Smart in the back court giving every other guard combo fits. The 3 point shooting ability he showed last year offsets the shooting weakness of Rondo/Smart so he fits with the other personnel. So when I look at his deal, it looks like a reasonable risk to take to me and I doubt given the other deals that it's much (if any) of an overpay.

[OhioGreen]

Definitely a bad offseason, as now the next 4-6 seasons wrapped up by the Cavs, at least in the East!  So no rush to do anything soon.  All our guys in their late twenties need to be moved.  Hopefully 2018ish there will be an opportunity to become a title contender again, with our youngsters hitting their prime.

[boscel33]

As long as we see the team moving forward, I have no issue with the patience.

I agree.  Danny has pieces over the next few years between cap space and picks to make major changes.  I really do hope, though, this team finishes fourth or worse to try an capitalize on a potentially strong big man draft.

Minnesota received Bennett/Wiggins/#1 for Love.  What can Danny do for Rondo or Green to team wanting to win?  I still believe Sacremento is lurking out there for Rondo.

[droopdog7]

For the fans that are unrealistic and impatient, this has been a lame off-season.  For those that are reasonable, it is about what was expected.