Danny Ainge has informed Brandan Wright that he's on the trading block

[hwangjini_1]

I'm thinking folks around here are underestimating Wrights value.  I would be surprised if we did not get a first round pick in the #20 range.

he's a free agent after this year isn't he? so you are talking about a jan-end of season rental of a player who can leave
correct me if i'm wrong?

a condition that lessened rondo's value as well. good point, this matters to teams. being a 1/2 year rental makes any player less attractive.

But there are differences to.

More teams need backup big men at reasonable prices than a starting point guard.

Teams need to be concerned about having to give Rondo the max to retain him. No such worry with Wright.

Wright is a valuable backup, but how many teams do you see going after him offering a starting job? If he's going to be a backup, I would think going to or staying with a contender would be his first choice, and most or all of those will probaby only be in a position to offer him the mid-level exception. A team should expect to be able to retain him at reasonable dollars.

agreed. our points are not mutually exclusive.

on another note, i had hoped the celtics would keep wright, i just like his game for this team. but i understand that doing so would not be the best use of resources for the celtics. wright is replaceable, indeed zeller already seems great as the back up center of the future.

[slamtheking]

Danny Ainge has informed Brandan Wright that he's on the trading block, and he should expect to be with another team.

Csn washington

NEXT UP ON BREAKING NEWS

Water is still wet!!  yes, you heard it here.  Water is still wet.  another breaking story as shocking as Wright being used as a trade chip.

This really is unusual news though; not that Danny is trying to trade anyone and everyone, but that he actually told the guy upfront that it was happening.

anyone being traded here shouldn't have to be told, particularly if they're a vet and they were acquired with sufficient lead time to ship them out prior to the deadline in a package.

[gpap]

Such an idiot



Trades Rondo for nothing. Could've had Mozgov for a couple picks. Now is looking to trade one of the players he got back in the Rondo trade.

Makes sense

[LooseCannon]

Wright makes the most sense to me as a smallball center next to a stretch four.  The teams that should be looking for him are ones that aren't looking for someone to plug into a traditional big man role.

[hwangjini_1]

Such an idiot



Trades Rondo for nothing. Could've had Mozgov for a couple picks. Now is looking to trade one of the players he got back in the Rondo trade.

Makes sense

the celtics will never win a championship under this guy. 

[droopdog7]

I'm thinking folks around here are underestimating Wrights value.  I would be surprised if we did not get a first round pick in the #20 range.

he's a free agent after this year isn't he? so you are talking about a jan-end of season rental of a player who can leave
correct me if i'm wrong?

a condition that lessened rondo's value as well. good point, this matters to teams. being a 1/2 year rental makes any player less attractive.

I grant that Rondo's value may have been lessened a tad because the Mav's will have to pay him.  But not because they fear losing him.  They will sign Rondo is they want.

[gpap]

Such an idiot



Trades Rondo for nothing. Could've had Mozgov for a couple picks. Now is looking to trade one of the players he got back in the Rondo trade.

Makes sense

the celtics will never win a championship under this guy. 

2008 was 7 years ago.

Sorry CelticsBlog, but I have ZERO faith in this guy. NONE.

[LarBrd33]

Wait... are there people who are upset that we're trading a 28 year old backup?  That was clear the second we traded for him.

I feel like we need a mandatory article or stickied post that briefly explains what Ainge is doing.  I feel like as much as it's repeated, some people still aren't aware.

He's collecting assets.  None of them are permanent.  Main objective is to acquire picks and youth, because they always have trade value.  He's also willing to buy low on veterans that can be flipped, but since this team is still a few years away from even sniffing the playoffs, veterans are counterproductive to our short-term goals of bottoming out, freeing up cap space and landing top picks.   We only bring in guys like Wright and Nelson, because we believe we can squeeze some kind of pick value out of them or combine them in a deal to land a significant upgrade.  They aren't here to address the team's weaknesses on the court.  That would be like sticking a bandaid on a car that doesn't have an engine.

When I see threads like "Don't trade Bass!" or "Green is our best player!" or "Why are we trading Wright?!", I can't help but feel like those people don't understand what's going on here.   You don't win titles in this league without superstars.  We haven't had a superstar since KG got old.  Everything we do is with the objective of putting us in position to acquire superstars either by free agency, draft or trade.  You simply can't get too attached to this team.  It's possible that none of the players on this roster will be part of this team the next time they are a contender.

[TheFlex]

Such an idiot



Trades Rondo for nothing. Could've had Mozgov for a couple picks. Now is looking to trade one of the players he got back in the Rondo trade.

Makes sense

So keeping Wright would make you feel better about a Rondo trade that you conspicuously loathe?

[Depalma2002]

I'm thinking folks around here are underestimating Wrights value.  I would be surprised if we did not get a first round pick in the #20 range.

With his contract situation no way. But trade him with thornton then yes

Thornton's 8+M contract is going to make finding salary matches almost impossible. I'd be shocked if we can find deals for either Bass or Thornton (especially Thornton) where the bodies coming back for matching purposes in the offer don't negate any return.

[PickNRoll]

Wright makes the most sense to me as a smallball center next to a stretch four.  The teams that should be looking for him are ones that aren't looking for someone to plug into a traditional big man role.

His rebounding rate is pretty low.  D-rebounding rate is about half that of Sully.  Could be a problem. 

[LarBrd33]

I'm thinking folks around here are underestimating Wrights value.  I would be surprised if we did not get a first round pick in the #20 range.

With his contract situation no way. But trade him with thornton then yes

Thornton's 8+M contract is going to make finding salary matches almost impossible. I'd be shocked if we can find deals for either Bass or Thornton (especially Thornton) where the bodies coming back for matching purposes in the offer don't negate any return.

If you were in Danny's position, would you just cut Thornton, Bass, Green, Wright and Nelson?   Or would you put those guys on the open market, wait a month, try to squeeze some desperate team into giving up picks... and then cut them if you fail?    When the team is years away from competing, you can afford to sabotage a handful of weeks.  There is no harm in hanging onto them until the deadline.  These guys will inevitably be gone.  Once they are gone, it will be a much more peaceful and serene place for our youth. 

We are making the right move giving these guys minutes and keeping our options open.  You never know when some team might step forward desperately needing scoring.  Maybe a guy on a 8 mil expiring contract gets injured and they desperately need someone to fill in.  At that point, you'd be happy you could offer Thornton for the 8 mil expiring and a late 2nd.  Unlikely to happen?  Yes.   Still gotta keep our options open, though.

[PickNRoll]

Wait... are there people who are upset that we're trading a 28 year old backup?  That was clear the second we traded for him.

I feel like we need a mandatory article or stickied post that briefly explains what Ainge is doing.  I feel like as much as it's repeated, some people still aren't aware.

He's collecting assets.  None of them are permanent.  Main objective is to acquire picks and youth, because they always have trade value.  He's also willing to buy low on veterans that can be flipped, but since this team is still a few years away from even sniffing the playoffs, veterans are counterproductive to our short-term goals of bottoming out, freeing up cap space and landing top picks.   We only bring in guys like Wright and Nelson, because we believe we can squeeze some kind of pick value out of them or combine them in a deal to land a significant upgrade.  They aren't here to address the team's weaknesses on the court.  That would be like sticking a bandaid on a car that doesn't have an engine.

When I see threads like "Don't trade Bass!" or "Green is our best player!" or "Why are we trading Wright?!", I can't help but feel like those people don't understand what's going on here.   You don't win titles in this league without superstars.  We haven't had a superstar since KG got old.  Everything we do is with the objective of putting us in position to acquire superstars either by free agency, draft or trade.  You simply can't get too attached to this team.  It's possible that none of the players on this roster will be part of this team the next time they are a contender.

Nice summary. 

[timpiker]

I really thought Wright might be that RIM PROTECTOR we need.

[mmmmm]

Toronto looks like a great partner. Wright for Hayes and a pick (protected 1st) or two (second rounders) looks like a good deal for both.

http://www.basketballinsiders.com/nba-am-trades-are-in-the-air/

The Raptors are looking. They are clearly in the market for a defensive minded big man, preferably at the power forward spot, but sources close to the situation say the Raptors are not locked in on any one situation.

The Raptors also don’t have a lot to offer as their core guys are deemed pretty untouchable, which means the chips on the table likely include players like Landry Fields (6.25 million), Chuck Hayes ($5.95 million), Tyler Hansbrough ($3.32 million) and long-time Raptor Amir Johnson ($7.00 million).

There is a ton of salary in those contracts, but not exactly the kind of players that other teams get excited about. The fact that all of them are ending contracts could help in a deal, but they don’t seem overly desirable as roster players.

Since when is Brandan Wright a defensive minded big? Yes, he's athletic but he's never been much of a rim protector.

Wright is much better suited as a PF than he is a C. As a PF he has the length and athleticism to be impactful as a defender. Let's not forget he was averaging 1.6 blocks in less than 20 mpg for Dallas.

Except, he was averaging those blocks while playing almost exclusively at C.   Wright played the vast majority (over 90%) of his minutes for Dallas this year at center and only a tiny handful at PF.

So I'm not sure how that makes him 'much better suited as a PF'.

PFs today are expected to be able to play away from the basket on both ends a little more than centers are.   Wright doesn't really seem to have a game away from the basket.

Wright was playing out of position at C. His natural spot is at the 4. He might not have a perimeter game, but he's excellent in the pick and roll. Coincidentally, Lowry is one the best pnr PG's in the league.

Early in his career, at GSW, he did play more PF than Center - though he did not really play very many minutes at all overall for his first 3 years.  Less than 400 minutes in two of those seasons and less than 700 in the other.  Over the last few years, during which he has become more of a rotation player, getting nearly 800 minutes followed by two seasons over 1000 minutes and headed that way this season, he has played almost exclusively at Center.

This is the percentage of Wright's minutes that he has played at each position over the last three seasons:

2012-13
  C:  97%
  PF:  3%

2013-14
  C:  88%
  PF:  12%

2014-15
  C:  86%
  PF:  14%

The last set of numbers is only for Dallas, but if anything it's even more Center-heavy because he has played exclusively at Center in his limited minutes with the Celtics.

His coaches apparently do not see him as a PF as you do.