Ainge on Toucher and Rich This Morning

[littleteapot]

"We did try to move up. We try to move up hard for other players to be honest," said Grousbeck. "There was unbelievable offers made and rejected. So it was what it was. It was set in stone where people were drafting, there was one trade ahead of us. We threw in a lot of offers and a lot of assets.

"People were recharging their phones on the fly there were so many phone calls down there," said Grousbeck. "I think the draft has gotten so big and people realize that's the way you get better because guys really aren't moving around teams anymore… People fall in love with their picks and don't want to move them."

http://www.csnne.com/boston-celtics/grousbeck-celtics-unbelievable-offers-were-rejected

Well they're not going to say "we tried to sucker a bunch of teams into trading their great picks for our crappy assets but no one was stupid enough."

[Rakulp]

This quote from the interview says it all IMO  (bold emphasis by me):

“Some of the most successful drafts I’ve been involved in are the ones that were received by our fans the worst. I remember in Phoenix, when we drafted Steve Nash, and we were booed. We’re drafting Shawn Marion, and we were booed, because they had more popular players and players that were in all the media leading up to the draft” Ainge said. “But the bottom line is this: Obviously they quit booing Steve Nash once they saw him play, and they quit booing Shawn Marion when they saw how good he was.

“It comes down, no matter who we draft, if it’s well-received, the only thing that matters is how good they perform and how they live up to expectations.”

So, to all those who are angry, perplexed, confused, irritated, agitated or potato-tated this morning...give it some time.  Let these kids show what they got, let the Celtics staff continue to work the phones in the offseason, and then we will have a truer idea of whether or not these picks were wasted or if they were great moves to improve the team.

Rak

[PaulAllen]

I liked this portion in particular:

“They [the future picks] are worth a lot, [but] I think the draft is probably the time where they’re least valuable, simply because people get so caught up in players. Without mentioning names, there are some players that were drafted at certain spots [by teams] that turned down lots of draft picks that I just don’t think was smart on their part,” Ainge explained. “On draft day, typically those are hard deals to move. People get so caught up and get so in love with a specific player that that player in their minds becomes bigger than life.”

Ainge said that the team tried to get into the top three, but realized that was unrealistic. He said they were in regular communication with teams in spots from four through 15, and some discussions came very close to leading to a deal, but they never happened.

“I think they were just determined to take a guy that they liked. I think that they may regret end up not doing it in some of the cases,” Ainge said. “I think people make irrational choices in those situations, not knowing that a 2019 unprotected pick has great value.”

Of course these GM's are not going to bite on an unprotected 2019 pick.. They are lottery GM's with jobs by the skin of their teeth... They need results now.. The GM's who arent afraid to make moves are the ones who dont fear losing their jobs ,cough cough DA..

Im calling total BS on his part.. He could of made a deal for Turner or Winslow .. ante up

[BudweiserCeltic]

We were dangling a 2019 unprotected 1st, and we're surprised the teams weren't biting?  Not only does Danny plan (and hope) to be a contending team by 2019, but a lot of teams aren't really interested in getting an asset 4 years out from now.

Yeah.

Once again, I get the sense that Danny tries too hard to screw over his trade partners, rather than attempting to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.  Other GMs can see that.  There are fewer stupid GMs in the league now than there were a decade ago.

Well, I think context is something valuable to bring into the discussion.

That it got to the point where Ainge was offering 2019 picks, it should tell you something about the price that was being asked to move up.

But if we're going to ignore everything and make it as if Ainge was simply dangling 2019 around, then I don't know what to say...

[GryphMinuteMan]

Who cares about the 9th pick. I thought INDY would be a great team to trade with, maybe what Ainge is saying is give it some time for realistic evaluation of players drafted and then I will make a trade.

I care. I think Winslow is going to be a very good player.

[PhoSita]

We were dangling a 2019 unprotected 1st, and we're surprised the teams weren't biting?  Not only does Danny plan (and hope) to be a contending team by 2019, but a lot of teams aren't really interested in getting an asset 4 years out from now.

Yeah.

Once again, I get the sense that Danny tries too hard to screw over his trade partners, rather than attempting to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.  Other GMs can see that.  There are fewer stupid GMs in the league now than there were a decade ago.

Well, I think context is something valuable to bring into the discussion.

That it got to the point where Ainge was offering 2019 picks, it should tell you something about the price that was being asked to move up.

But if we're going to ignore everything and make it as if Ainge was simply dangling 2019 around, then I don't know what to say...

The 2019 pick is not this amazing asset to offer, though.  As FWF noted, Ainge probably plans to be decent by then, and every other GM knows that, too.

[littleteapot]

The 2019 pick is not this amazing asset to offer, though.  As FWF noted, Ainge probably plans to be decent by then, and every other GM knows that, too.

I think the point was that Ainge offered a bunch of other stuff AND the 2019 pick and then was a bit frustrated by teams that didn't even care what he was offering and he's saying "I'm not just throwing in all this stuff for fun - I genuinely think you could use it."

[BlackCeltic]

Im glad we didn't trade up for Turner. Im not fond of bigs that have trouble running the floor. I get nightmares of Acie Earl. 

Im also glad we passed on Dekker. I think Celtics really value James Young's potential.

[Evantime34]

I took that quote as the 2019 first round pick of an example of something gms would under value, not the actual offer he made to move up

[oldtype]

This makes me feel slightly better about last night. I think it's pretty clear that Ainge was planning on grabbing #9 for Winslow, and even offered Charlotte a future first round pick for it, but they fell in love with Kaminsky and pulled out of the deal.

Don't know if the pick was actually a 2019 (I figure that could just be something he threw out there as a hypothetical.) It sucks that it happened, but at the end of the day Charlotte may regret this more than we do.

[Kuberski33]

From last year....Hornets get an A+ for picking Noah Vonleh at #9

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24598705/nba-draft-hornets-get-an-a-for-picking-noah-vonleh-at-no-9

Never saw the floor and now is in Portland.  This stuff happens all the time.

[mahonedog88]

Im glad we didn't trade up for Turner. Im not fond of bigs that have trouble running the floor. I get nightmares of Acie Earl. 

Im also glad we passed on Dekker. I think Celtics really value James Young's potential.

I think James Young could be a key in all of this.  We constantly hear that if he had stayed in school another year and came out this year, he would've been a sure-fire top 10 pick.  The question is, does he have the drive to become as good as his potential, because Gerald Wallace was definitely questioning it.

[GryphMinuteMan]

This makes me feel slightly better about last night. I think it's pretty clear that Ainge was planning on grabbing #9 for Winslow, and even offered Charlotte a future first round pick for it, but they fell in love with Kaminsky and pulled out of the deal.

Don't know if the pick was actually a 2019 (I figure that could just be something he threw out there as a hypothetical.) It sucks that it happened, but at the end of the day Charlotte may regret this more than we do.

I agree. Kaminsky is going to be a bust. Not a smart move on their part.

[hwangjini_1]

I hope I'm alive in 2019 to see what this unprotected pick will turn into but what about this year?

We will see next week Love go to LA, Monroe & West to NY, Aldridge to SA, Marc Gasol stays in MEM - what's left? Robin Lopez?

Will we trade for Hibbert and his 15+ million contract? Indiana fans can't wait to get rid of him. He's soft and can't hit free throws.

See you in the 1st rnd Cleveland with our plethora of mediocre drafted guards where we will tune you up for 4 games before the 2nd rnd.

this year...as in this is our third year of a five year rebuilt? patience grasshopper. this rebuild is a long process, but the celtics are improving little by little.

[GryphMinuteMan]

From last year....Hornets get an A+ for picking Noah Vonleh at #9

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24598705/nba-draft-hornets-get-an-a-for-picking-noah-vonleh-at-no-9

Never saw the floor and now is in Portland.  This stuff happens all the time.

Well whoever wrote that grade is a moron. Never understood what people saw in Vonleh. Jury is still out on him though.