Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big storyline. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
Grousbeck freely admits he is not patient.
“How happy do I look?” he said. “We were all patient, everybody, the fans were patient in the early 2000s and we have to believe they know how to build in the NBA isn’t a quick flip of the switch. In almost all cases, it is years of preparation in this league.
“You gotta get the superstars, so you’ve got to build up the assets to get them and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
Ainge has orchestrated the salary cap so the Celtics could potentially have more than $30 million coming off the books next summer, including the contract of Rajon Rondo.
“Well, I think that when we have Danny and [coach] Brad [Stevens] on the basketball side, thinking every day, literally 24/7 about how to improve this team,” Grousbeck said. “Whether it’s during the season, next summer or the season after, I’m very confident we’ll get better and I believe that. Those guys are fantastic basketball people. We’ve got a lot of assets. We’ve got a committed, a very committed ownership group, great team partners and it really starts with the fans coming back every year and renewing tickets.
“Everybody’s involved in building this thing and we’ll get there.”
As we prepare to choke down another year of rebuilding and trade rumors, let’s not forget that the NBA landscape changes quickly.
Look at some of the names traded over the past 3-4 years; Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, James Harden, and Joe Johnson.
Injuries also play a huge role, see Derrick Rose, Brooke Lopez, Rajon Rondo, Al Horford, and now Paul George.
Just last summer, there were grumblings that LaMarcus Aldridge was unhappy in Portland. One monster season later, Aldridge is telling the team he will re-sign.
Did anyone really believe LeBron would ditch the Heat and return to Cleveland?
So before you scoff at the Celtics chances of landing a big fish this year or next, remember that sh*t happens.
The C’s will have the financial flexibility and assets to make a move and it could be one that no one sees coming.
On Page 2, how I hate these trade Rondo stories.
With Love now off the table, expect teams left without a seat in the league’s annual game of musical chairs to come calling on Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge. The hottest name churning through the NBA rumor mill will almost certainly be Rondo’s.
And, if the right deal comes, it would be best for both the franchise and the player for the Celtics to trade their four-time All-Star.
I agree 100% with Scott Souza. Entertain all offers.
But the bottom line with this thinking is, trade Rondo for what?
Where I disagree with Souza is the idea that Rondo’s presence on this team hurts its development:
With an NBA superstar’s reputation, teammates defer to Rondo and look to him to make the big play or take the last shot. Only that flies in the face of his premier talent as a facilitator whose primary job is to set up those around him to make those very plays.
The result at the end of last season was a series of brutal final minutes where the other four Celtics on the floor stood idly by as Rondo mostly missed long jumpers, passed to unwitting teammates, or awkwardly dribbled down the clock.
The Celtics were 6-24 with Rondo in the lineup last season and 19-33 without him. Going back prior to his torn anterior cruciate ligament, they have lost 30 of the last 36 games in which he’s played.
I also don’t buy this notion that Rondo wants out now. Yes, he’s very competitive. But as I mentioned above, the landscape can change quickly.
Rondo has tasted success in Boston. Isn’t it possible his desire to bring another title to Boston is greater than his desire to chase a championship in another city?
I don’t have the energy to address Sherrod Blakely’s Rondo for Bledsoe story. Adding another guard who isn’t a natural shooter doesn’t make sense.
And finally…
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1ERFcq2HHI]Your turn, John.
Go ahead and make fun of me. Nothing can top my 5-year old son saying, “You reacted like a girl.”
Ouch.
The rest of the links:
ESPN Boston: Summer forecast – Offseason grades | Sun Journal – Scalabrine, Smart lead fun at Maine camp |
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
