Love in town to "see what it's like"

[soxfan2003]

Just being skeptical, but I'm curious as to how you guys think a Kevin Love trade eventually results in a championship. What's the next step?

Folks know I'm willing to 100% agree with Ainge like the KG/RA trades and KG/PP trades and disagree with him(LaFrentz trade etc.) but getting Kevin Love _at the right price_ is a good move.

I do think Ainge has to be ruthless and I mean ruthless after a Love trade and trade away players like Rondo if he has any good value for cheap assets that can be a major difference maker.

Imagine the Celtics with this lineup.
PG -- not filled with a permanent player
Bradley -- resigned cheap since no one wants him that badly. But Bradley could be a good third guard off the bench.
SF -- a Kahwi Leonard type player on his rookie deal from a Rondo trade.
PF -- Love
C -- not filled with a permanent player.

Bench
Olynyk or Sullinger.

Above average amount of picks left but tons of cap room. As long as Love is willing to give Ainge 2 years for a rebuild and he has basically said he is willing to do that, it could work.

I actually think a team with a foundation like this has a real chance -- certainly far from guarantee -- to be enough to knock off the Heat.

What I'm afraid of is Asik a good player is brought in and then extended for like 3 years. And then Rondo is extended at even 13 million. Those sort of moves, especially Rondo, would turn a Love trade that was good into a bad trade.

I wouldn't be surprised if Ainge splits the difference, brings in Love, lets Rondo play next year and then lets him walk for nothing and takes Asik on a one year rental and then lets him walk as well. I see that Rondo possibility as less then optimal but when Ainge as spoken about that as a possibility and referenced Atlanta and Joash Smith, it can't be dismissed.

I said a few days ago that of all of the teams interested in Kevin Love, Boston has the best chance so I'm not surprised by his visit. I'd be surprised if he wasn't visiting before draft day.

If I was Cleveland I would not trade Embiid/Wiggins for Love unless Lebron was coming and if I was Philly, I wouldn't do a deal either.

So its really some of the other teams Boston has to beat out. Lakers won't offer that much.

[BfB]

Love in Boston screams Flip basically telling him that he has the groundwork for a trade with the Celtics in place but Ainge will only sign off if there is an extension. Rich young athletes during the offseason arent "vacationing" in Boston for no reason. There is a strong possibility Ainge acquires Love. And if this actually happens then you can bet your a$$ Ainge has sunsequent moves in mind. Ainge isnt a half way crook.. he is going for it and must have the full support of his owners....

Sent from my EVO using RealGM Forums mobile app

...there's no extension - trade pending "opt in" to his final contract year...

[Fidel Sarcasmo]

LOL I pretended i was one of them. Espionage at it's finest.

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1324775

[BfB]

Sorry for the double post, but I'm wondering about something if that Patriot rumor is true. Do you guys think the Boston organizations have such a close relationship that they'd have the players try to boost up the city from a different sport to avoid tampering?

100%, yes - the fact that he's hanging out with Patriots and then going to the Red Sox game tomorrow is all the circumstantial evidence you need to understand what's about to happen....

[SuperDeluxe]

Sorry for the double post, but I'm wondering about something if that Patriot rumor is true. Do you guys think the Boston organizations have such a close relationship that they'd have the players try to boost up the city from a different sport to avoid tampering?

100%, yes - the fact that he's hanging out with Patriots and then going to the Red Sox game tomorrow is all the circumstantial evidence you need to understand what's about to happen....

Do you have any inside info, Bill?

[pfm]

100%, yes - the fact that he's hanging out with Patriots and then going to the Red Sox game tomorrow is all the circumstantial evidence you need to understand what's about to happen....

[KamikazeK]

Imagine the Celtics with this lineup.
PG -- not filled with a permanent player
Bradley -- resigned cheap since no one wants him that badly. But Bradley could be a good third guard off the bench.
SF -- a Kahwi Leonard type player on his rookie deal from a Rondo trade.
PF -- Love
C -- not filled with a permanent player.

Bench
Olynyk or Sullinger.

ugh, no thanks...

[Frank Lucas]

I hope Danny plans on bring in Melo. Looks like Kevin Love is going to be a Celtic. I even got word that he is having dinner tonight with members of the Celtics at a very nice Steakhouse in Boston. I know the name of the place but won't share that with you. But this dude isn't out in the public eye for no reason.

[soxfan2003]

Imagine the Celtics with this lineup.
PG -- not filled with a permanent player
Bradley -- resigned cheap since no one wants him that badly. But Bradley could be a good third guard off the bench.
SF -- a Kahwi Leonard type player on his rookie deal from a Rondo trade.
PF -- Love
C -- not filled with a permanent player.

Bench
Olynyk or Sullinger.

ugh, no thanks...

You may not like it but I like it with 45 million of cap room and picks. I see no reason why the Celtics with Steven/Ainge/great reputation and a legit high price star(Love) and legit emerging role player star(Leonard) can't attract the top tier FAs. Gamble for sure.

[Afam]

I hope Danny plans on bring in Melo. Looks like Kevin Love is going to be a Celtic. I even got word that he is having dinner tonight with members of the Celtics at a very nice Steakhouse in Boston. I know the name of the place but won't share that with you. But this dude isn't out in the public eye for no reason.

Stop playing games. Are you serious. ? Are you an insider btw ?

[Bluewhale]

...there's no extension - trade pending "opt in" to his final contract year...

This makes 100% sense. It's like the scenario when CP3 traded to Clippers.

This is wonderful news.

[soxfan2003]

It sort of makes sense for MN to strike at least a strong tentative deal quickly so given Love in Boston, its easy to imagine a deal is pretty much done as long as Kevin Love is on board and it sure looks like he might be.

Why would MN want to strike quickly? Well the players selected in the 6th range may not be willing to workout for the Wolves right now but that changes quickly if its pretty much a done deal that they get that pick.

The exact players/picks involved is what will be very interesting to find out. I know the Celtics need shooting but I'm hoping Martin isn't included. I just think the Celtics need more of a "3 and D" guy or a better/younger player at that position.

[pfm]

In theory Love could opt out and then sign a max deal, but the opt in seems a bit more likely. Test the waters for 2 years then see if you want to stay ala CP3

[Frank Lucas]

I hope Danny plans on bring in Melo. Looks like Kevin Love is going to be a Celtic. I even got word that he is having dinner tonight with members of the Celtics at a very nice Steakhouse in Boston. I know the name of the place but won't share that with you. But this dude isn't out in the public eye for no reason.

Stop playing games. Are you serious. ? Are you an insider btw ?

I'm not in insider but I have good contacts in Boston. I have been told that Love is having dinner tonight with members of the Cs. I was even told the place. Boston is a small city so if you have any pull around the city you can get the info if you know the right people.

[truth18]

I hope Danny plans on bring in Melo. Looks like Kevin Love is going to be a Celtic. I even got word that he is having dinner tonight with members of the Celtics at a very nice Steakhouse in Boston. I know the name of the place but won't share that with you. But this dude isn't out in the public eye for no reason.

Stop playing games. Are you serious. ? Are you an insider btw ?

Frank Lucas is just pulling at our heartstrings now. I want to believe!

[DarkAzcura]

I hope Danny plans on bring in Melo. Looks like Kevin Love is going to be a Celtic. I even got word that he is having dinner tonight with members of the Celtics at a very nice Steakhouse in Boston. I know the name of the place but won't share that with you. But this dude isn't out in the public eye for no reason.

Don't do this to me.

It's too much.

My heart.

Haha, this is fun. Reminds me of '07 so much. Only that time I was still in high school.

[FlatearthZorro]

Just being skeptical, but I'm curious as to how you guys think a Kevin Love trade eventually results in a championship. What's the next step?

I'd like to see us keep Green and Bradley somehow. I'd also like to see if we could pull Martin off of Minny too. Then we could look into trading our TPE for Asik. If not Asik, I'm looking for us to get a center who could give us 10/10 on a consistent basis with rim protecting skills.

I know some people are thinking we should try Melo after Love, but I think that is too redundant and completely hinders our ability to pull in a quality center who can defend. At that point, a center is more important, imo.

Rondo
Bradley
Green
Love
Asik

with Martin as a 6th man will contend in the East, imo.

Fill in the gaps as necessary in year 2 if there are any glaring issues.

I do want to say that I feel like the '08 Celtics kinda ruined the league for a bit. This idea of pursuing a third star has become a really overrated way of building a team. I see way too many posts from failed playoff teams (Houston and GS for example) speaking about how they need a third star to take that next step. It's way too simplistic, and I miss the days when fans focused more about finding a way to fill in the gaps around one or two stars. It's still a completely realistic way of building a team. We just lucked out in '08 (that all 3 meshed so well). I'd rather focus on Rondo and Love..then build around them as necessary (athletic wing scoring and rim protection). It doesn't need to be a third star.

Lets not get too crazy yet. This could very well end up being nothing.

I've already addressed this with Super a couple posts up. And man, some of you guys can be buzz kills. No.Fun.Allowed. It's just hope. At the least it is confirmation that we are in the running for Love. Nothing is a guarantee, but there have been no official reports about us pursuing Love. This is as close to a confirmation as it gets...that or it's a huge coincidence, which I doubt.

I really hope we don't take Martin in a Love deal unless we trade Bass + Wallace... I doubt Minny would ever take Wallace, but Wallace's contract is shorter than Martin. Having Martin + Wallace on the team at the same time will greatly reduce our flexibility for 2015 offseason... and even further, since Wallace has 1 more year after this and Martin has like 2....

[MaxwellSmart]

Has anyone seen Sullinger walking around, checking out Downtown Minneapolis...?

[The_Ghost_of_JB]

Is the steakhouse Flemings ? The Celtic players love going there.

[DarkAzcura]

I really hope we don't take Martin in a Love deal unless we trade Bass + Wallace... I doubt Minny would ever take Wallace, but Wallace's contract is shorter than Martin. Having Martin + Wallace on the team at the same time will greatly reduce our flexibility for 2015 offseason... and even further, since Wallace has 1 more year after this and Martin has like 2....

Most likely true. I'm thinking we need a guy like Martin, though. Maybe not him exactly depending on the price, but I think he's a great fit with Love offensively.