Does having Brad Stevens help the Cs attract high profile free agents?

[fairweatherfan]

It helps if a player sees a very well-coached, fairly successful (for their talent level) team that needs a #1 guy.  I think Doc Rivers' performance in Orlando with a crappy roster is part of why T-Mac and Grant Hill signed there, and Duncan reportedly came close. 

However I think quality of organization is more important to agents than most players, and players get the most say.  If we match contract offers with a worse organization it certainly won't hurt.

[LarBrd33]

It helps if a player sees a very well-coached, fairly successful (for their talent level) team that needs a #1 guy.  I think Doc Rivers' performance in Orlando with a crappy roster is part of why T-Mac and Grant Hill signed there, and Duncan reportedly came close. 

However I think quality of organization is more important to agents than most players, and players get the most say.  If we match contract offers with a worse organization it certainly won't hurt.

TP.  Great parallel between Doc in Orlando and Stevens in Boston. 

I know it didn't totally work out in Orlando, but I wish we had enough cap space this summer to lure two max contract players.   Wallace, Bradley and Thomas eat up a lot of our space.  Luckily if we land a big fish this summer, we could lure someone else next year when the cap jumps 20 mil and pretty much everyone has cap space.

[JHTruth]

It helps if a player sees a very well-coached, fairly successful (for their talent level) team that needs a #1 guy.  I think Doc Rivers' performance in Orlando with a crappy roster is part of why T-Mac and Grant Hill signed there, and Duncan reportedly came close. 

However I think quality of organization is more important to agents than most players, and players get the most say.  If we match contract offers with a worse organization it certainly won't hurt.

Orlando is also a very nice place to live with a very friendly tax environment. MA can be a tough place to make a lot of money..
TP.  Great parallel between Doc in Orlando and Stevens in Boston. 

I know it didn't totally work out in Orlando, but I wish we had enough cap space this summer to lure two max contract players.   Wallace, Bradley and Thomas eat up a lot of our space.  Luckily if we land a big fish this summer, we could lure someone else next year when the cap jumps 20 mil and pretty much everyone has cap space.

Orlando is also a very nice place to live with a very friendly tax environment. MA can be a tough place to make a lot of money..

[JHTruth]

Depends does the said big time free agent want major minutes and on the offensive side of the ball, want the offence run through him??
Is this Brad Stevens system set in stone or flexible with the infusion of big time talent?
These are questions that free agents may ask when and if the time comes.

If Brad Stevens system isn't "flexible" with big-time talent, he won't be in the NBA coaching ranks very long. This isn't the NCAA..

From everything I've seen, Brad's idea of "flexibility" will probably involve playing Kevin Love for 29 minutes if we signed him.

I could see him deciding that Jae Crowder is just a better fit for the system as he benches Love for the season

[CelticD]

That is exactly what perplexes me the most... maybe my mindset is totally different than almost every player out there, but I would rather play for a great coach at a legendary franchise for less money, than take a max deal in a warmer climate/bigger city.

i guess u have to reach a certain stage in ur career for this to be the case. if ur young and coming into the nba, i would assume the mindset is to make as much money as possible. max contract + big city = maximum earning potential.

[fairweatherfan]

It helps if a player sees a very well-coached, fairly successful (for their talent level) team that needs a #1 guy.  I think Doc Rivers' performance in Orlando with a crappy roster is part of why T-Mac and Grant Hill signed there, and Duncan reportedly came close. 

However I think quality of organization is more important to agents than most players, and players get the most say.  If we match contract offers with a worse organization it certainly won't hurt.

Orlando is also a very nice place to live with a very friendly tax environment. MA can be a tough place to make a lot of money..
TP.  Great parallel between Doc in Orlando and Stevens in Boston. 

I know it didn't totally work out in Orlando, but I wish we had enough cap space this summer to lure two max contract players.   Wallace, Bradley and Thomas eat up a lot of our space.  Luckily if we land a big fish this summer, we could lure someone else next year when the cap jumps 20 mil and pretty much everyone has cap space.

Orlando is also a very nice place to live with a very friendly tax environment. MA can be a tough place to make a lot of money..

I agree, that's why I said part of the reason.  On the other hand, the weather and taxes haven't changed, but free agents aren't very interested in Orlando today, because those other factors have changed dramatically. 

Boston, on the other hand, has worse weather and higher state taxes than Orlando, but has a better history, better fan base, and better overall organization than Orlando had in 99.  So there are advantages on this end too.  The only real point I'm trying to make is that good coaches and organizations aren't immediate game-changers, but they definitely help.

[Quetzalcoatl]

I can't imagine having Brad Stevens as your coach would be seen as a negative by anyone in the NBA.  The real question is "how much does it incentivize coming here?"  I don't think the answer is enough to draw a max FA here by itself, unfortunately.  However, it would help with trades, since the (hopefully) star player we'd get in return wouldn't pout about coming here.

[CelticGuardian]

I can't imagine having Brad Stevens as your coach would be seen as a negative by anyone in the NBA.  The real question is "how much does it incentivize coming here?"  I don't think the answer is enough to draw a max FA here by itself, unfortunately.  However, it would help with trades, since the (hopefully) star player we'd get in return wouldn't pout about coming here.

Yeah, we all thought guys would line up the block to come play with Rondo. Things just don't always work this way, I'm afraid.

[hpantazo]

That is exactly what perplexes me the most... maybe my mindset is totally different than almost every player out there, but I would rather play for a great coach at a legendary franchise for less money, than take a max deal in a warmer climate/bigger city.

i guess u have to reach a certain stage in ur career for this to be the case. if ur young and coming into the nba, i would assume the mindset is to make as much money as possible. max contract + big city = maximum earning potential.

Yeah, it's easy to say you would play for less money when it's not your money. If you are a young guy looking to get financially secure, with the risk of anything from injury to being beaten out for playing time etc as an ever present risk to your next contract, of course you take the most money possible when you can. Once you have made 10, 20, 30 million like players like KG etc accumulate by the time they are vets, then you can take a few million less for a chance at winning, but before then it's crazy to do so.

[Emmette Bryant]

I don't expect brad to help us bring in established stars. They gravitate towards the guys like doc. Where brad could help is with the rising guys yet to realize their potential. For example I think a guy like Khrid Middleton might be drawn to the C's whereas established stars probably not so much

This is what I've been thinking.  I think you'll be seeing guys that are rising or who have been underachieving signing with the Celtics.

[Neurotic Guy]

If being coached by Brad Stevens comes with a max contract, it might.  If not, Stevens won't matter.

Brad Stevens is a fantastic coach.  I'm sure he's a swell guy.  But from what I've seen, location, chance of winning a championship and the green (and I'm not talking about the 17 banners) are the most influential factors for free agents.  And we fail at the first two, as far as free agents are concerned.

kiwi, I really hope that you are right and I am wrong!

Mike

That is exactly what perplexes me the most... maybe my mindset is totally different than almost every player out there, but I would rather play for a great coach at a legendary franchise for less money, than take a max deal in a warmer climate/bigger city.

Pretty impossible to know what you'd do in that situation. Lot's of factors, but passing up $10 - $20 million over the course of a contract is probably harder to do when it's not hypothetical. 

Also, players are advised by agents who I believe will always push for money over better coaching situations.  Agents benefit from their percentage, but also from demonstrating that they get the most $$ for their clients.   I think agents are likely to advise clients to approach things from a business perspective, and from a long-term perspective.  Coaches quit and get fired -- no guarantee.  Also, think of the what you can do with the extra 10 Million after you are through with your career -- think of your family, your kids, your foundation, the remaining 40 years of your life.... 

[Yoki_IsTheName]

I believe it could. I could see Free Agents looking at our situation and could think that he would be put in position to succeed if he's playing for Brad Stevens.

I mean, how many of the guys we have have been overall decent this year, when not a lot of teams didn't want them, or not even playing them the previous one? Brad has done a tremendous job putting these players in position to be productive, I can easily imagine a big time Free Agent being attracted to the idea that he can be in a position where he could have a lot of success because of how he will be coached.

[alldaboston]

As other might have said, this group gels nice with CBS's system, but I'm somewhat scared of acquiring a big name FA who won't fit in with the system (like rondo) and therefore becomes somewhat useless, possibly causing CBS to get a bad rep.

[GetLucky]

Has Gregg Poppvich ever been the causation for a high-profile FA signing with the Spurs?

[gpap]

No.

What will attract a free agent is acquiring another big name player in a trade, sorta like how trading Ray Allen helped bring KG here