Challenge, should you choose to take it

[celticfan42487]

Any chance Robin Lopez would sign for minimum here versus staying in Orlando for a bigger payday? He could be an improvement over Luke Kornet? I doubt that the Celtics would want to offer him part of the MLE because of the luxury tax implications.

If they duck the tax next year while there is an actual title shot, the front office should just mail it in.


That said, if they do bring in any older, cheap vets (I kind of like how they aren’t doing that lately), I’d be curious to give Joe Ingles the nod. Good team guy and team defender and can shoot from the front court. Let him rehab and come back as a third string guy.

If he's able to play Joe Ingels would be an amazing add. His playmaking would be most welcomed. Having a big playmaker is very difficult for a team to counter and that might be a sneaky way to kickstart the offense again if he gets clogged up. Go with a Tatum/Timelord front court and put in Ingles at SF with Smart and Brown.

Then have Ingles playmake and best of luck to the other team, are you going to play off of Brown and Tatum? Are you not going to keep a body on TimeLord for the lob? And Smart is more than comfortable making the best next play after a kickout as well as a sneaky capable catch and shoot 3 point guy despite his reputation in all other aspects from 3.

It should also give us someone who can help run the offense when Tatum sits. Smart, Brown, Ingels should be enough to hold the ship.

[SLCceltic]

we are pretty set 1-11 with Nesmith and Houser, love Houser ! yr 3 could be huge for nesmith, same as Grant

that said, A big playmaker/shooter like Ingles or a free safety rim protector /rebounder to fill in for Rob when he inevitably misses games are certainly worthy additions..

[captain green]

I'll say Hayes dude didn't back down from lebron probably unlock his whole potential here playing with timelord and smart. I'd say offer nesmith and a second round draft pick .

[hugepatsfan]

Jaxon Hayes would be an awesome guy to try and develop for the Al Horford role as a PF/C combo that can switch, run the floor, shoot a bit, etc. But key word there is DEVELOP - he's not that guy now.

Problem is he's playing for NO. They aren't going to give him away unless it's at a price worth doing so. It's unlikely we could make a realistic offer to trade for him unless it's a dumb trade for us. And at this stage of his career he'd probably be our 5th big.

If there's a Jaxon Hayes trade to be made it's probably them adding to him to get an already developed and ready to play for a winning team guy like Grant Williams or Derrick White. And I don't see us making that deal.

I have Hayes as a guy that we'll probably take a run at or be rumored to at some point because he's someone who could theoretically replace Horford long term with the right development plan, but a trade this offseason wouldn't make sense IMO.

[jmr07019]

Blake led nba in charges taken playing 17 mpg and 56 games. I don’t think he’s washed yet

[Cricket23]

Blake led nba in charges taken playing 17 mpg and 56 games. I don’t think he’s washed yet

It's not that he doesn't have some skills, it's that he looks like he's struggling physically.

[flintsky21]

I wanna focus on the the realistic targets. So mostly end of the bench guys or could be had for not much cost, so no Anunoby or Miles Bridges. I'll also be focusing on a wing backup, given that would be somewhat of the only need left if Boston was to bring back the entire core.


Atlanta - Kevin Knox - I always thought he had some potential because of his length and somewhat decent rookie year. Maybe watching and practicing with the Jays every day could do wonders for him.

Brooklyn - Come home, Bruce Brown! Probably a bit out of reach unless he himself wants to come to Boston.

Chicago - Coby White could be an odd man out for Chicago with Lonzo, Caruso, and Ayo. They're saying he's really bad on defense, but if 6'1" Pritchard could play decent enough defense to not hurt the team for 6-7 minute stretches, maybe something could also be done for 6'5" White. And obviously, 2 Whites are better than one.

Toronto - Isaac Bonga is 6'8" with a 7-foot wingspan that can handle the ball quite well for a big. And he's 22. There's got to be some intrigue in there, even if for a 13th guy, right?

New Orleans - Alvarado is so fun to watch. But NO is high on him so he's not gonna be available. But between CJ, Alvarado, and Graham (who would be hard to move), the odd PG out could be Kira Lewis, who was one of the guys I wanted to Boston to draft.

Denver - Oddly, I've wanted Austin Rivers to be a Celtic multiple times in the past. With Murray returning and a Hyland rising, Rivers could be out of the picture for Denver.

Cleveland - No realistic target stands out to me. OK. Maybe Rondo because why not?

Charlotte - Is Oubre into Fournier TPE doable?

San Antonio - I'd most defintely welcome back Josh Richardson if that's even possible. Heck, even Langford (who I always liked over Nesmith).

LA Clippers - Brandon Boston. Not just for the memes but because of that career game he had against Boston.

[165bows]

I want to see how the rest of the playoffs go because if there's a concern I have on this team, it's whether they have enough shot creation still. Particularly when Tatum is on the bench or having an off night. Brown has put together some big 4th quarters, but it still feels like we are LABORING through possessions that run through him. I don't think we need to go get a new #2 option (i.e. Beal) unless you can do it without sacrificing the defensive identity, but I do think we could use some more offensively potent players off the bench so our non-Tatum units flank Brown with better help.

Here's one I'm pretty confident that ATL would be on board for if we were... Derrick White for Kevin Huerter. I say Hawks would be on board because they desperately need perimeter defense. White brings that to a huge degree obviously. He'd be a great fit next to Trae.

On our end, White was a guy they specifically targeted so I'm pretty sure this is a moot point. But I do think it's a worthwhile consideration. Huerter isn't the defensive asset like White, but I wouldn't call him a liability either. He's switchable at 6'7". Has some PG type skills to help share those duties when Smart isn't out there. He's a knockdown shooter to space the floor which is where his big contributions would be.

Agree the offense is an underrated need. In other words, it's good, but they have two great scorers and a lot of low-volume, high-efficiency (or medium-efficiency lol) guys on offense. The biggest need is another guy that fits their mold but isn't a low volume scorer. Smart shouldn't have to be the third highest scoring guy.

1. At the deadline we were all over the map about Smart for John Collins. I predict that, since then, Smart has slid into 'untouchable' territory for a lot of the board. Since he'll soon be the starting PG of the defending champions, it's probably a moot point anyway -- especially since an alternate reality where Derrick White came in and started making Smart look expendable has NOT happened.

2. Welcome back, bows! Great to see you here again. Hope all's been good with you and yours.

Thanks bro! 31to6 is always a man of top-quality class and style. It is good to see the board is still generally not happy with the front court unless the 5th big is of all-star quality.

[hugepatsfan]

I still think Huerter is the best TPE target. He has a role in both the playoff and regular season rotation. Pritchard brings great energy, but at this size he just isn't going to be able to play extended playoff minutes without hurting the defense. He'll be hunted out on switches. That's just the nature of the game.

Huerter can give you the shooting in the back court but at 6'7" he's not the size mismatch. Not a great defender but as the worst guy on the court he's definitely adequate. He won't kill you there.

Your regular season rotation would be:

Smart / Pritchard
Brown / White
Tatum / Huerter
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams / Theis

Huerter isn't really a true SF but I just listed a first and second unit. In reality, you'd stagger Brown/Tatum so one is on the court at all times as the SF. But those would be the 10 guys that play.

Then you move on to the playoffs and you shorten to the following 8 guys:

Smart / White
Brown / Huerter
Tatum
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams

Maybe you play Theis some minutes to manage fouls but those would be your main 8 guys come playoff time. Our offense still goes dull at times. Pritchard helps when he's in but he can't play extended minutes. Huerter can give you up to 20 minutes in a playoff game helping on offense being hid on defense as the worst player you have out there. I don't trust Pritchard for that.

I don't think ATL would deal him directly into our TPE for our 2023 pick, but I think they'd deal him for a better individual defensive player. So find some team that would give up a plus-plus defensive player for our 2023 pick and make it a 3-way.

[Scoonie]

Isaiah Hartenstein - LA Clippers
Chris Boucher - Raptors
Nic Claxton - Nets
Bruce Brown - Nets

Claxton is a restricted free agent, while the other three are unrestricted free agents.

[31to6]

I still think Huerter is the best TPE target. He has a role in both the playoff and regular season rotation. Pritchard brings great energy, but at this size he just isn't going to be able to play extended playoff minutes without hurting the defense. He'll be hunted out on switches. That's just the nature of the game.

Huerter can give you the shooting in the back court but at 6'7" he's not the size mismatch. Not a great defender but as the worst guy on the court he's definitely adequate. He won't kill you there.

Your regular season rotation would be:

Smart / Pritchard
Brown / White
Tatum / Huerter
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams / Theis

Huerter isn't really a true SF but I just listed a first and second unit. In reality, you'd stagger Brown/Tatum so one is on the court at all times as the SF. But those would be the 10 guys that play.

Then you move on to the playoffs and you shorten to the following 8 guys:

Smart / White
Brown / Huerter
Tatum
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams

Maybe you play Theis some minutes to manage fouls but those would be your main 8 guys come playoff time. Our offense still goes dull at times. Pritchard helps when he's in but he can't play extended minutes. Huerter can give you up to 20 minutes in a playoff game helping on offense being hid on defense as the worst player you have out there. I don't trust Pritchard for that.

I don't think ATL would deal him directly into our TPE for our 2023 pick, but I think they'd deal him for a better individual defensive player. So find some team that would give up a plus-plus defensive player for our 2023 pick and make it a 3-way.

I like Huerter, but wonder about just trying to develop Nesmith instead? Keep our assets, keep our salary. Huerter is better now, no doubt, but for the role we have available I have hope (if somewhat shaky) that Nesmith can get there.

If we'd drafted Precious in that draft instead (like maybe we should have), different conversation.

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

[djFan71]

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

Dude! I can't believe you can think of Paul Reed without thinking of me.

I also claim Claxton as my previous draft 2nd round big binkie. Who I actually would have been fine taking with the Romeo pick in the first.

[Curmudgeon]

I'm not restricting myself to the listed teams, and I'm not interested in anyone over 30, even though there will be no shortage of ring whores. I want guys on the Tatum-Brown timeline. Also, no more smurfs.

1. UFAs who might sign for the MLE or less: Bruce Brown, Montrezl Harrell, Thomas Bryant, Jalen Smith. Jake Layman, Frank Ntilikina, Mitchell Robinson. Brunson and Nurkic will be way too expensive. Chris Boucher and T.J. Warren too.

2. RFA: Dom DiVincenzo. Miles Bridges will cost too much.

3, Hard to say on trades. I like Huerter and Deni Avdija. Also Luguentz Dort and Kenrich Williams.

[31to6]

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

Dude! I can't believe you can think of Paul Reed without thinking of me.

I also claim Claxton as my previous draft 2nd round big binkie. Who I actually would have been fine taking with the Romeo pick in the first.

lol who dis?
sorry fam, I owe you one. And Claxton was a good call -- I wasn't in on him but have been on almost every other late 1st/early 2nd big for the last 15 years or so. Before Udoka was our coach, he was Udoka Azebuike, draft binky from Kansas. And don't get me started on Zeke Nnaji, Daniel Oturu, Xavier Tillman, Reggie Perry, Tyler Bey, Vernon Carey Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earle, JT Thor, Charles Bassey, Jericho Sims, Neemias Queta, Kai Jones, Bruno Fernando and -- of course -- ONYEKA ONKONGWUUUUU!

(if I were in charge I would cut all of our random 3rd string small forwards and sign as many of these guys as possible lol I'd make a terrible realGM)

[hugepatsfan]

I still think Huerter is the best TPE target. He has a role in both the playoff and regular season rotation. Pritchard brings great energy, but at this size he just isn't going to be able to play extended playoff minutes without hurting the defense. He'll be hunted out on switches. That's just the nature of the game.

Huerter can give you the shooting in the back court but at 6'7" he's not the size mismatch. Not a great defender but as the worst guy on the court he's definitely adequate. He won't kill you there.

Your regular season rotation would be:

Smart / Pritchard
Brown / White
Tatum / Huerter
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams / Theis

Huerter isn't really a true SF but I just listed a first and second unit. In reality, you'd stagger Brown/Tatum so one is on the court at all times as the SF. But those would be the 10 guys that play.

Then you move on to the playoffs and you shorten to the following 8 guys:

Smart / White
Brown / Huerter
Tatum
Horford / GWilliams
RWilliams

Maybe you play Theis some minutes to manage fouls but those would be your main 8 guys come playoff time. Our offense still goes dull at times. Pritchard helps when he's in but he can't play extended minutes. Huerter can give you up to 20 minutes in a playoff game helping on offense being hid on defense as the worst player you have out there. I don't trust Pritchard for that.

I don't think ATL would deal him directly into our TPE for our 2023 pick, but I think they'd deal him for a better individual defensive player. So find some team that would give up a plus-plus defensive player for our 2023 pick and make it a 3-way.

I like Huerter, but wonder about just trying to develop Nesmith instead? Keep our assets, keep our salary. Huerter is better now, no doubt, but for the role we have available I have hope (if somewhat shaky) that Nesmith can get there.

If we'd drafted Precious in that draft instead (like maybe we should have), different conversation.

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

I just have a hard time believing in Nesmith. Opportunity has been there but he's just never seized it. And even if Nesmith did break out, I don't ever see the ball handling/playmaking role that I think Huerter could take. He's a guy who, a lot like White does for us, can handle some PG duties which would be huge. My biggest concern is our Tatum on the bench group around Brown because everything still feels clunky when the offense runs through him. I think Huerter could really, really help that group when Brown is out there leading that unit. Put White and Huerter in the backcourt with him and I think you have two guys who can take some ball handling duties off of him. I don't see Nesmith every being able to do that.

Smart / White
Brown / Huerter
Tatum
Horford / G Williams
R Williams / Theis (limited)

I'm telling you, I go to war with that playoff rotation. In the regular season Theis plays a bigger workload and you roll put Pritchard (or Nesmith if he earns it) in for some extra shooting and load management. But come playoff time, I go with that 8.5 man group (the half being the limited Theis minutes). I love everything about it. Other than Huerter you never have anyone who's not a plus on the defensive end out there and he's a 6'7" player who makes a respectable effort.

Nothing's certain but I feel great about getting a title out of that group next year. And everyone other than Horford and Grant would be locked up (and I expect Grant to sign a rookie extension).

[djFan71]

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

Dude! I can't believe you can think of Paul Reed without thinking of me.

I also claim Claxton as my previous draft 2nd round big binkie. Who I actually would have been fine taking with the Romeo pick in the first.

lol who dis?
sorry fam, I owe you one. And Claxton was a good call -- I wasn't in on him but have been on almost every other late 1st/early 2nd big for the last 15 years or so. Before Udoka was our coach, he was Udoka Azebuike, draft binky from Kansas. And don't get me started on Zeke Nnaji, Daniel Oturu, Xavier Tillman, Reggie Perry, Tyler Bey, Vernon Carey Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earle, JT Thor, Charles Bassey, Jericho Sims, Neemias Queta, Kai Jones, Bruno Fernando and -- of course -- ONYEKA ONKONGWUUUUU!

(if I were in charge I would cut all of our random 3rd string small forwards and sign as many of these guys as possible lol I'd make a terrible realGM)

Fun unfact: I liked Claxton so much I taught him to shoot FTs last summer even though we didn't pick him. You're all welcome.

I'm with you on most of those, except the true centers. I haven't stumped for a traditional C in a long time. In league (Vuc) or draft, you lose me there. But tall skinny semi-mobile dude who can defend his potato off? Sign me up! "What's that? Nah, why would I need to know if they can shoot?"

[31to6]

Dude! I can't believe you can think of Paul Reed without thinking of me.

I also claim Claxton as my previous draft 2nd round big binkie. Who I actually would have been fine taking with the Romeo pick in the first.

lol who dis?
sorry fam, I owe you one. And Claxton was a good call -- I wasn't in on him but have been on almost every other late 1st/early 2nd big for the last 15 years or so. Before Udoka was our coach, he was Udoka Azebuike, draft binky from Kansas. And don't get me started on Zeke Nnaji, Daniel Oturu, Xavier Tillman, Reggie Perry, Tyler Bey, Vernon Carey Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earle, JT Thor, Charles Bassey, Jericho Sims, Neemias Queta, Kai Jones, Bruno Fernando and -- of course -- ONYEKA ONKONGWUUUUU!

(if I were in charge I would cut all of our random 3rd string small forwards and sign as many of these guys as possible lol I'd make a terrible realGM)

Fun unfact: I liked Claxton so much I taught him to shoot FTs last summer even though we didn't pick him. You're all welcome.

I'm with you on most of those, except the true centers. I haven't stumped for a traditional C in a long time. In league (Vuc) or draft, you lose me there. But tall skinny semi-mobile dude who can defend his potato off? Sign me up! "What's that? Nah, why would I need to know if they can shoot?"

I like the huge guys — including Tacko — out of respect to Embiid and the assumption he’ll be in our division for quite awhile. But if Horford can channel TB12 and play six or seven more years that might work too:)

Nice job with Claxton’s FTs. More like “CLANGston” amirite?

[djFan71]

lol who dis?
sorry fam, I owe you one. And Claxton was a good call -- I wasn't in on him but have been on almost every other late 1st/early 2nd big for the last 15 years or so. Before Udoka was our coach, he was Udoka Azebuike, draft binky from Kansas. And don't get me started on Zeke Nnaji, Daniel Oturu, Xavier Tillman, Reggie Perry, Tyler Bey, Vernon Carey Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earle, JT Thor, Charles Bassey, Jericho Sims, Neemias Queta, Kai Jones, Bruno Fernando and -- of course -- ONYEKA ONKONGWUUUUU!

(if I were in charge I would cut all of our random 3rd string small forwards and sign as many of these guys as possible lol I'd make a terrible realGM)

Fun unfact: I liked Claxton so much I taught him to shoot FTs last summer even though we didn't pick him. You're all welcome.

I'm with you on most of those, except the true centers. I haven't stumped for a traditional C in a long time. In league (Vuc) or draft, you lose me there. But tall skinny semi-mobile dude who can defend his potato off? Sign me up! "What's that? Nah, why would I need to know if they can shoot?"

I like the huge guys — including Tacko — out of respect to Embiid and the assumption he’ll be in our division for quite awhile. But if Horford can channel TB12 and play six or seven more years that might work too:)

Nice job with Claxton’s FTs. More like “CLANGston” amirite?

It's nice to have some beef every now and then, just not worth spending draft/trade assets on it, imo. Vet mins or whatevs on them as need be. Totally agree on Al, though. Maybe Tom can give the youngster a call.

[bucknersrevenge]

Also totally random, but to continue sneaking bigs into this convo, was it Buckners who drove the draft Paul Reed bandwagon? I'm still about that. Athletic dude with some skill (not FT shooting).

Dude! I can't believe you can think of Paul Reed without thinking of me.

I also claim Claxton as my previous draft 2nd round big binkie. Who I actually would have been fine taking with the Romeo pick in the first.

I was DEFINITELY driving the Paul Reed bandwagon. Was pissed when we didn't take him. I look at him now and still think he'd fit well here. Claxton was a kid I had as a Horford clone at GA, at least in the way he handled the ball in the open floor and could make passes from the arc. He's not really used that way but I've wondered if he could still do it. But yeah, I'd still take a flyer on Reed.

[165bows]

lol who dis?
sorry fam, I owe you one. And Claxton was a good call -- I wasn't in on him but have been on almost every other late 1st/early 2nd big for the last 15 years or so. Before Udoka was our coach, he was Udoka Azebuike, draft binky from Kansas. And don't get me started on Zeke Nnaji, Daniel Oturu, Xavier Tillman, Reggie Perry, Tyler Bey, Vernon Carey Jr., Jeremiah Robinson-Earle, JT Thor, Charles Bassey, Jericho Sims, Neemias Queta, Kai Jones, Bruno Fernando and -- of course -- ONYEKA ONKONGWUUUUU!

(if I were in charge I would cut all of our random 3rd string small forwards and sign as many of these guys as possible lol I'd make a terrible realGM)

Fun unfact: I liked Claxton so much I taught him to shoot FTs last summer even though we didn't pick him. You're all welcome.

I'm with you on most of those, except the true centers. I haven't stumped for a traditional C in a long time. In league (Vuc) or draft, you lose me there. But tall skinny semi-mobile dude who can defend his potato off? Sign me up! "What's that? Nah, why would I need to know if they can shoot?"

I like the huge guys — including Tacko — out of respect to Embiid and the assumption he’ll be in our division for quite awhile. But if Horford can channel TB12 and play six or seven more years that might work too:)

Nice job with Claxton’s FTs. More like “CLANGston” amirite?

We are getting on the Zach Edey at #53-or-bust train for sure.