Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
“Another sticking point in that and in other deals Boston is talking about is that pick from the Nets next year,” said one of these sources. “Danny will make it available in the right situation, but he’s not going to give it up with core players, too. That’s going to be a good draft, and that’s going to be a high pick.
“Everyone’s been talking about how Danny’s trying to make a killing out here, but when it comes to certain pieces you have, I get that you have to be careful. You can give up equal assets, but you don’t want to take away your best opportunities to keep things going down the line.”
Are there deals to be made in the NBA right now? Probably. Would any of them make the Celtics significantly better? Probably not. Danny’s not letting next year’s pick swap go for a rotation player–and, frankly, the Celtics probably have all the rotation players they need right now.
And there aren’t many all stars on the market–probably aren’t any at this point. Chicago seems content to roll the dice with a bunch of guys who can’t shoot threes, Doc is still clinging to the notion that the Clippers are not locked into “Miss Congeniality” status with their combination of players and salaries. Sam Presti is not an idiot and is not going to trade Westbrook for a bag of balls and a BOGO coupon from Denny’s.
Given the “Super Teams” in the East and West, there’s not a lot of other talent out there–and teams that do have talent appear to be clinging to it with the sole objective of keeping coaches and general managers of that talent employed.
In short, it’s a market in which patience seems to be the sane course. There’s no point in the Celtics trading a sizable chunk of their future to get good enough to lose to the Cavs in the conference finals instead of the second round over the next couple years.
Page 2: …And there are concerns about Blake Griffin’s leg.
“I still think there’s a concern with his leg,” he said, referring to a partially torn left quad tendon that cost Griffin serious time last season and never fully healed before causing him to miss the end of the playoffs. He reportedly received a bone marrow injection following the season, which is keeping him off the U.S. Olympic team.
“We looked into him, and we’re hearing that’s a pretty serious thing,” the source continued. “I’m not saying you don’t go after him, but you’d better be really sure about that leg before you go making any big commitments.”
That’s also from the Herald article above. Now, granted, the exec in question may have been talking down Blake in order to lower his value in a trade, but there aren’t many teams out there in a position to trade for a guy who’s perfectly capable of walking at the end of this season, and who would command a pretty significant return.
Page 3: Where Jamie Young wasn’t happy with James Young
James Young (knee) didn’t play, after only 7 minutes Wednesday. Coach Jamie Young on why: “I really wasn’t happy with the way he played.”
— Mark Murphy (@Murf56) July 16, 2016
“He’s had a knee issue but I wasn’t really happy with the way he played in those seven minutes when he was out there,” Jamie Young said. “So I just limited his minutes. I thought some of those other guys were playing harder at that time. James is a good player. He has a lot of talent. I just think he needs to assert himself.
When asked whether playing hard was a concern in James Young’s third summer league, Jamie Young said: “Yeah, I really don’t have an answer for that, to be honest with you. I don’t.”
Yeah, that’s not good. It looks like Young’s done in Boston. I doubt that Jamie Young would have been this forthright if he didn’t reflect the thinking of the rest of the coaching staff and front office, and really, is he saying anything that surprises any of the rest of us?
P.S. There’s some nice stuff about Jonas in that Globe article as well.
Page 4: Jaylen did alright.
Silver lining for Celtics in Vegas? Jaylen Brown’s numbers over last 3 games: 22 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 3.7 spg, 39.5 FG%.
— Brian Robb (@CelticsHub) July 16, 2016
Jaylen Brown averaged more points per game than Ben Simmons & Brandon Ingram in the Summer League.
— BostonCelticsForever (@BostonCelts4eva) July 16, 2016
Despite that highlight (and a number of others), Brown spent parts of the second half thrashing around. I don’t know how much he’ll help the regular-season Celtics right away. I have no idea what he’ll look like as a finished product. I just know I’m really intrigued because of all the ways he stood out in Las Vegas. Defense, offense, rebounding, he did a little bit of everything.
Jay King, above, with a take on Jaylen Brown. I’m a fan of Brown–I think too many guys with his athleticism are unwilling to put in the work required to take full advantage of their ability.
Bill Walton, about a year and a half ago, raised eyebrows and drew a ton of internet ire because he said that Michael Jordan was an “average” athlete. While, I think Walton was underselling Jordan’s athleticism a bit, I don’t disagree with his main point, which is that what made Jordan great wasn’t his body, it was the stuff between his ears.
Jaylen Brown seems like he’s not afraid of hard work–and he’s not without a bit of an on-the-court mean streak. Couple that with some pretty decent athletic ability and you’ve got a chance at a pretty special player.
Finally: The NBA. It’s fan-tastic. And David Stern was a terrible person to work for.
Inside Stuff ‘s debut came only a decade after the NBA told its teams to become familiar with the workings of a VCR. It had been a dramatic transformation: just six years after those tape-delayed 1981 Finals between the Celtics and the Rockets drew a Nielsen rating of 6.7, the Lakers and the Celtics pulled a 15.9 for their Finals showdown; in 1992, the Dream Team won Olympic gold and usurped the Beatles as the most famous people in the world. The league’s superstars and superteams grew the game’s popularity, and NBA Entertainment was there to help bring the magic to the masses.
A friend of mine took a deep dive into the history of NBA Entertainment. WARNING: He is a Lakers fan, and he does mention the ’85 title.
He also provides this insight into the horrors of working for David Stern:
Stern stepped down as league commissioner in 2014, after 30 years in the role, but he still maintains an NBA office in Midtown New York. When I visited him there recently, he told me several times that he will never write a memoir. But if he did, he said, the title would be Episodic Micromanagement Is Underrated.
“I found that to be an effective way to manage,” he said, “and also to demonstrate to people that what they were doing mattered, and that I cared about what they were doing.”
Yes, Dave. Because nothing says “I care” quite like periodically screaming profanities at your underlings because you didn’t get your pigs in a blanket.
Bonus: Shaq’s kid dunks on Shaq
(Warning: It is not as awesome as you’d think it would be–Shaq’s not the Big Shamrock anymore, he’s more like the Big Pylon here)
The rest of the links
Boston Herald: Celtics notebook: James Young’s status still in question
MassLive: Amir Johnson helped sell Jared Sullinger on the Toronto Raptors
Boston.com: Is Terry Rozier ready to be the Celtics’ next Evan Turner?
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