People still believe that Ainge has/had a plan?
Ainge clearly has a plan. If you can't understand it, I'm sorry. We are lucky to have a GM that understands your plan A and B doesn't always work. As long as he continues to not panic and doesn't kill our cap space or undersell our draft picks, the Celtics are in good shape to be involved in any player movement over the next two years. That's the plan. Pretty simple. We can't force teams to trade with us, but we can be in a position to make sure we will always be there when the right team finally decides to make a trade.
Right, so it's less of an actual plan and more of a holding pattern, where, instead of building a team year by year, piece by piece, he's just waiting for someone else to screw up and make a great player available, at which point he says, "I'm all in," and proceeds to throw any and all of our crap into the middle of the poker table in a desperate attempt to fool the potential trading partner that they might actually get something of value in return for their franchise player, when in reality, they're ending up with an expiring contract or two, some average to above average players, and a bunch of draft picks. Woo 
. That is no way to build a team, and the reality is that with each passing day it becomes more and more clear that Ainge really lucked into KG and Ray via a number of once-in-a-lifetime scenarios and a stupid owner in a summer that will never be duplicated, more than anything else.
I also don't understand why people are waiting for the next Ray and KG trades, because, again, that was a one of a kind situation. Plus, how can we trade for similar types of players if we have no Pierce with which to join them? That's the reality, right now - we don't have any semblance of a core or even a player who might look as though they could be the next great Celtic, and that's what people should be focusing on when discussing the state of this rebuild, imo. There have now been three drafts since the end of the 12-13 season, which could have yielded us at least part of a group for the future, but instead we really don't have much of anything or anyone to build around, and, frankly, I think it's time for the owners to take the keys from Danny, which, in all honesty, should have happened years ago, imo.
One thing that is pretty certain in a league of uncertainty is that star players become available for trade every 1-3 years. Kevin Love, Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, James Harden. All those guys have been traded since the KG trade. The idea is that a trade for a major talent will inevitably come available, as it always has, and you want to be in the best position possible for when that happens. And as it sits right now, most people think Boston, Philly, Phoenix and Orlando have the best trade assets to use in such a trade but Orlando and Philly wouldn't have much of a team if they cashed them in. I think having yourself in a position to strike when that trade arises is a very sound idea.
What's more than that though, is Ainge's plan obviously isn't JUST about waiting for a trade. It's about maintaining cap flexibility with minimal long term commitments so you have the chance to get a FA if one becomes interested in you. That's part of the reason Ainge wanted Stevens because he's the kind of guy people like playing for. On top of that, he cashed in his more veteran assets (KG, Pierce, Rondo, Green) for a plethora of good-great picks. Those picks aren't just assets used to trade, they're for infusing what were already building with additional young talent.
Your right that we don't have a Paul Pierce right now. But Paul Pierce wasn't The Truth after 2 seasons. Smart has that type of 2nd/3rd tier superstar potential. He's our first top ten pick since we traded #5 for Ray Allen. You have to give guys more time than one season. Also, I love how you say Ainge is waiting to dump expiring contracts, average-above average players and picks onto a team like it's crap.
Look back on all those "one of a kind" trades you forgot about. Teams trading star players are generally entering a rebuild. They want young players, cap space and trade assets. Why would you not want that if your Sacramento and your trading the best player by far on your team that can't mange to get over .500, your gonna want those things to aid in your post-Cousins era. The C's are always at/near the top when the best public basketball minds talk about "Teams with the best trade assets" and that's not because we have a pile of crap. Your always one of the most vocal "build through the draft" guys here. Do you not think trading guys with no long term future with you for a handful of extra 1st's is a bad move? Should you only suck hard and use only your two picks every year? Ainge tried hard to tank last year. Sure, they got Thomas but that was an absolute steal you can't pass up. No one thought they were anything but a lottery team even then.
I really think your confusing a "lack of a plan" with having multiple plans and the flexibility to change between them. Ainge has done very well with being prepared for all possible opportunities. Rebuilds don't get done in two years. If we end up with two top 10 picks this year (a very real possibility) what will you say then? I get questioning the endgame of the rebuild, but Ainge is and has been one of the leagues best GM's for years. Nevermind how poorly we were run before him, but there's absolutely nothing Ainge did this summer that warrants "taking the keys from him". Your totally blind hatred for him really takes away from your often thoughtful and appreciated viewpoints.
I never knew that viewpoints were thoughtful, let alone appreciated, but thanks for that, lol
. My whole thing is that he seems to be assembling the same kind of players with no overall vision for the team. Yes, I know that rebuilds take longer, much longer, than 2 years, but we'd be in a better spot today if he'd taken better players in the first place. You can't just keep taking shooting guards in point guards' bodies and undersized 4s and expect to get the kind of talent needed to trade for a superstar, let alone build around, and I'm not saying to trade Smart, although I do think that he'd put up much better numbers on a team that lets him play to his strengths. It takes real skill (sarcasm) to take a slasher and midrange shooter and decide that it'd be better for everyone if he just chucked 3s all year. Wait, what?
Also, who are these players who have no future with the team that you'd trade for first rounders, because that's probably subjective, anyway, unless you were talking about a guy like Gerald Wallace when he was here and no one, not even Billy King
, would give up a first for him. Do you mean KO, Sully, and Bradley, or other guys?
Now, if we do get two top ten picks next year, I'd be thrilled. That is, until draft day, because I can see him passing up two great players, for example, to trade the picks for a disgruntled guy who happens to be on a team that can actually find talent in the draft. The reason why I labeled our stuff as crap is because of how the KG trade looked a year or two afterwards, when Gerald Green was playing in Russia and Ryan Gomes was barely in the league, while Big Al got hurt.
As for last year, there was no point in getting Isaiah Thomas, and I don't care how 'great' his contract is
, I care about how long it lasts, and we didn't have to make that deal at all. Why not just keep Rondo and Thornton, let the latter walk at the end of the year so we still have flexibility, financially, trade Green for a first, miss the playoffs, and wind up with Justise Winslow or Myles Turner, etc., in addition to getting other guys in the draft and afterwards in terms of free agents, and there were quite a few good ones this year, I might add. You have to get the players before you can start to compete, and, again, if Danny had drafted well, our team would at least have a promising frontcourt trio in Dieng, Vonleh, and Winslow, not to mention the other guys, but that's what I mean by year by year, piece by piece. At least you can see a plan at that point, because we don't even have a foundation right now.
Furthermore, if you really want to move your players for an established one down the road, like you said, as opposed to actually drafting one, yourself (what a concept (sarcasm)
), at least you'd have some enticing and versatile talent to move instead of a bunch of guys who play the same two positions. Woo
. I just think that waiting is dumb. Build the team, first, and if something pops up, sure, at least look into it, but I just prefer to build a team through the draft, for the most part, especially if you want to have a long title run.
Btw, I only used the 'throwing all of our crap at another team' analogy because I think that the 'cashing in all of his chips' one has been overused.
