Enjoy the quick fix. Danny set this franchise back.

[D.o.s.]

http://deadspin.com/j-r-smith-im-better-now-because-i-cant-really-party-i-1682308165

Relatedly: I would be estatic if Noah wound up on the Celtics someday.

[Roy H.]

Let's move on from the Cleveland vs. Boston talk before somebody starts citing J.R. Smith as an authority.  The focus of this thread should be on the devastation that overachieving and reaching the playoffs will potentially bring to our franchise.

EDIT:  Too late, by less than a second.

[D.o.s.]

Impeccable timing.

Anyway, making the playoffs will be fun because it's the playoffs, it'll suck to watch the Celtics lose, and it'll be painful to look at the Quicken Loans arena because not only is it hideous to look at (not unlike it's home city in that regard) but because Dan Gilbert helped cause the country's most-recent economic downfall and losing to LeBron always sucks.

[boscel33]

[Edited.]  In Danny I trust.  Playoffs will give experience and potentially help lure a free agent or two.  Stevens is gold right now with what he is doing with this team.  Players are going to want to play for him.  Plus, we still have all of those picks to use in trade so who says we can't get Noel or Embid.

[Moranis]

http://deadspin.com/j-r-smith-im-better-now-because-i-cant-really-party-i-1682308165

Relatedly: I would be estatic if Noah wound up on the Celtics someday.

that is JR Smith.  Manziel, Gordon, and company seem to have plenty of partying to do.

[fairweatherfan]

If anything, I think we should be concerned that making the playoffs could lead to some of our younger guys getting swept up in the Ohio party culture.  Spending multiple nights there could be a shock to players used to less decadent environments like New York and Miami.

[celticsclay]

Let's move on from the Cleveland vs. Boston talk before somebody starts citing J.R. Smith as an authority.  The focus of this thread should be on the devastation that overachieving and reaching the playoffs will potentially bring to our franchise.

EDIT:  Too late, by less than a second.

Can we please have just one more page 

[chambers]

I think the OP is severely over reacting but....

Questions for all those that love referring to the 76ers like they are just losing and praying to jeebus...answer these questions wholeheartedly and honestly.

would you trade anyone on this roster for Joel Embid? What about anyone except Marcus Smart?


Would you trade anyone on this roster for Nerlens Noel?

Regardless of whether or not you hate Philly for 'tanking', if the answer is yes, have a think about what that means.


Now as far as our current situation, I think we can trade into the top 8. Maybe not the top 5, but 8 is definitely possible.

Danny has hopefully already put out a 'feeler' notice around the league to GM's in the top 10 that says 'call me with offers', and he'll probably get a bite or two before trying to give up as little as possible.

This team has substantially overachieved and he's set up our asset pool to be ready for anything. I think us making the playoffs constitutes 'anything' in this case. Good news is we have the assets to get an impact player if he sees one in the draft.

[celticsclay]

I think the OP is severely over reacting but....

Questions for all those that love referring to the 76ers like they are just losing and praying to jeebus...answer these questions wholeheartedly and honestly.

would you trade anyone on this roster for Joel Embid? What about anyone except Marcus Smart?


Would you trade anyone on this roster for Nerlens Noel?

Regardless of whether or not you hate Philly for 'tanking', if the answer is yes, have a think about what that means.


Now as far as our current situation, I think we can trade into the top 8. Maybe not the top 5, but 8 is definitely possible.

Danny has hopefully already put out a 'feeler' notice around the league to GM's in the top 10 that says 'call me with offers', and he'll probably get a bite or two before trying to give up as little as possible.

This team has substantially overachieved and he's set up our asset pool to be ready for anything. I think us making the playoffs constitutes 'anything' in this case. Good news is we have the assets to get an impact player if he sees one in the draft.

I really wish you would have brought in any team as an example besides the 76ers. Embiid is going to become the first player in the history of the NBA to be nominated for the hall of fame before playing a game.

Edit: Chambers that is not a dig on you, the 76ers, Noel and Embiid have just been debated on her ad nauseum. A wiggins version would have been refreshing.

[AidaCelt]

This franchise could have had an easy path to success. You people bash me for comparing the situation to Philly but let's take the homer glasses off and be honest with ourselves. Is there anyone on our current roster you would rather have than Noel or Embiid? Absolutely the answer is no. How did the Sixers get there? A strong number of tank trades and tank moves. Bass had no business staying. They had no business getting IT. They had no business making most of the moves they did. Crowder is going to be an overpaid bum next year and we will probably pay him since the Green Teamers will cry after making the playoffs.

The "best" part of making the playoffs? We now get to see what value combining the 15th and 25th picks in a trade would have!!! Awesome! They'll never fire the guy just like the Bruins would never fire Sinden but this is awful for the franchise that desperately needs top picks because they'll never be a top free agent destination.

This is one of the saddest things I have ever seen posted on this forum.

That someone who calls themselves a Celtics fan could possible be so 'dissapointed' to see the Celtics winning games and making the playoffs is just saddening.

That anybody could feel anything but pride for watching this group of underdogs work their butts off and come together as a team to achieve what they have is just plain disappointing.

Danny set the team back?  We are just about to make the playoffs, after which we will be entering the first off season in YEARS in which we actually have significant cap space.  For the next (what, 6 or 7?) years we have so many draft picks and trade exceptions that every team who wants to make a trade for the next 5 or so years will be picking up the phone and calling Danny. Oh and I think we only have ONE player on the roster who is over 30 years old (Wallace) and next season he'll be on an expiring contract. 

Would I choose anybody on this team over Embiid and Noel?  Your [dang] right I would.  Lets start with Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart.  Those shown me more heart this year then Embiid and Noel have shown in their entire lives.

What has Embiid achieved in the NBA?  Oh, right - nothing because he hasn't played a game yet.  How about Noel?  The guy can't even manage 10 points a game when playing on one of the worst teams in NBA history - I mean, the guy is practically the only person on the team who isn't from the D league and he still can't score. 

If you love watching people with no heart throwing games because they have such little pride, then maybe you should sign up here:

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/sixers

TP for this well constructed response. I like Embiid and his potential but he has done nothing yet. Do the Sixers have the "potential"? Sure they do. But it's far from a guarantee. C's as they stand are enjoyable to watch, play with heart every game, have an intelligent coach and GM, have picks stashed ready for either a trade up or future pick... I'm not sure what is not to love about the current C's apart from the fact they don't have that superstar or 2 to take them to the next level.

You would pass on Embiids potential? Smart over Noel? Good god. I doubt highly that even Danny Ainge is dumb enough to do that.

Not sure where I wrote I would prefer Smart over Noel or that I would pass on Embiid's potential. I simply said they are far from a guarantee and therefore there is a high risk that all that tanking will backfire. If that were to occur in a place like Philly where ticket prices have been raised during the losing seasons, you could imagine the uproar.

On the other hand I said I was enjoying the C's playing with heart and going out playing hard every night. They are an enjoyable team to watch at the moment and I'm enjoying what they're providing as a source of entertainment.

There are parts of the Sixers rebuild (tank) I would love to have (Noel, Embiid, the plethora of draft picks still to come). The downside is they've actually played better than their roster suggests this season and will slide in the draft a couple of picks as a result. That may end up being a good thing, who knows.

I fully expected the C's to be in the bottom 5 this season and I was ok with that as long as there was development from the younger players (Smart, Oly) and we didn't give up the valuable assets (Brooklyn picks, other draft picks) for a quick rebuild. We've managed to keep those assets and move on those that weren't part of the long-term future and bring in pieces that although are not superstars, look to be a part of the long-term rebuild. Happy times!

[spikelovetheCelts]

I think the OP is severely over reacting but....

Questions for all those that love referring to the 76ers like they are just losing and praying to jeebus...answer these questions wholeheartedly and honestly.

would you trade anyone on this roster for Joel Embid? What about anyone except Marcus Smart?


Would you trade anyone on this roster for Nerlens Noel?

Regardless of whether or not you hate Philly for 'tanking', if the answer is yes, have a think about what that means.


Now as far as our current situation, I think we can trade into the top 8. Maybe not the top 5, but 8 is definitely possible.

Danny has hopefully already put out a 'feeler' notice around the league to GM's in the top 10 that says 'call me with offers', and he'll probably get a bite or two before trying to give up as little as possible.

This team has substantially overachieved and he's set up our asset pool to be ready for anything. I think us making the playoffs constitutes 'anything' in this case. Good news is we have the assets to get an impact player if he sees one in the draft.

I really wish you would have brought in any team as an example besides the 76ers. Embiid is going to become the first player in the history of the NBA to be nominated for the hall of fame before playing a game.

Edit: Chambers that is not a dig on you, the 76ers, Noel and Embiid have just been debated on her ad nauseum. A wiggins version would have been refreshing.

Minnesota does have a bright future too. Utah has impressed me the second half of the year too.
Embrid also may be the next Sam Bowie too. A rim proector and another wing we will make the playoffs for the next 10 years and worst cas e pull a Dallas with Stevens we may be SA with the right player.

[TheFlex]

I don't care who we get if guys don't buy into the system and play their role their not gonna fit in.  See all star caliber guard  rondo and untapped athletic potential Jeff green.  They were good players but didn't fit this system.  Rondo controlled too much and Jeff took naps.  This team is built around... You guessed it team.  Whomever we get they'll be evaluated first as to whether or not that player fits for this team.  If he doesn't we won't go after him.

Wait, wait, so let me get this straight: You think that, if we focus on players who believe that the team is more important than the individual and that, if they do their jobs correctly, the team will win, even if few of the individuals are actual superstars?  And you believe that a stable front office and one that knows what to look for and understands the concept of "value" is more important than over-paying for a superstar free agent?  And all this can happen for a cold weather team?

No way this could happen. It's not like there are any other New England teams that embrace that philosophy who have been massively successful over the past decade.

Mike

The New England team with that philosophy, and the NBA team from Texas with a similar philosophy, have both had the benefit of the best coach in their respective sports paired with a top player at the most important position in their respective sports.

The philosophy probably made a big difference in each case, especially in helping the teams sustain their success.  But what made it all possible in both cases was the pairing of the historically great coach with the historically great player.

We have the great coach, that appears to be widely agreed upon (in the same way that the Sixers have a great player in Noel). The question is how to get the great player. It's still uncertain how good Smart, Young, Sullinger and Olynyk will be. It's pretty clear how good IT, Bradley, ET, Crowder, Jerebko and Zeller will be. Point being, none of them are stars. I think if the question is, would you rather make the playoffs and get the 15th or 16th pick or miss and the get the 1st pick, I'd agree with you that calculated losing (tanking) is the way to go. But no matter how fast Ainge worked this offseason, we were never going to be as bad as New York, Philly, LA, Minnesota, etc. That's because we already have the great coach, and I would take the great coach over our worst (or best) case draft scenario being the 3rd best odds (LAL putridity) vs. the 7-10th best odds (think Orlando-Utah type teams). And so, if the question is would I rather make the playoffs (15th or 16th pick) or miss (pick somewhere in 7-10), I'd take the playoffs. It will be great exposure for our best asset (Coach Stevens), more money for Wyc and Co. incentivizing them to spend when a great player comes on the market, and theoretically a development accelerator for Smart, Sully, Oly, etc. To me, all those things make for the fastest way towards obtaining that great player.

[cman88]

how many times do we have to get burned in the lottery before fans say its not the only way to go?

we had one of the worst records in the league in the Duncan draft and missed out on the Ping-Pong balls.

we had one of the worst records in the Durant draft...and missed out on the ping pong balls.

we had one of the worst records in the wiggins draft...and missed out on the ping pong balls.

so, how many times do we want to purposely suck and hope the balls go our way, and hope its a good draft? I think ainge has seen what "tanking" gets you most of the time...burned unless you are the cavs and somehow win 3 #1 picks in 4 years because the NBA feels bad for you.

we have a BOATLOAD of picks, youth, cap-space. Lets see what ainge does...if anything, we should be happy that Stevens is a good enough coach that he has this team playing at this level. an above .500 record since they traded rondo/green and its not as if only the veterans are playing well..our young guys are playing well enough to compete.

[SHAQATTACK]

Danny has always been a hard nose gamer.  It's not in his DNA to lose game on purpose , much less throw away YEARs of basketball on a Guess, chance , luck of the draw , that you MIGHT get the next Anthony Davis . 

He hired a real coach , not a joke like Brett whatever his name .  Danny expects to win games , not lose them.   

He is leading the team like a man , not a brainless teen.

Celtics play real basketball like professionals ...not on line teenage dream ball . 

These are grown men running a multi million dollar business, to provide the best basketball possible every year. 

The owners of the 76 ers should be ran out of town , for following such a childish scheme

[D.o.s.]

how many times do we have to get burned in the lottery before fans say its not the only way to go?

we had one of the worst records in the league in the Duncan draft and missed out on the Ping-Pong balls.

we had one of the worst records in the Durant draft...and missed out on the ping pong balls.

we had one of the worst records in the wiggins draft...and missed out on the ping pong balls.

so, how many times do we want to purposely suck and hope the balls go our way, and hope its a good draft? I think ainge has seen what "tanking" gets you most of the time...burned unless you are the cavs and somehow win 3 #1 picks in 4 years because the NBA feels bad for you.

http://bit.ly/1yqAoRr