While the title contenders of the NBA breathlessly await Matt Barnes' announcement as to where he will sign his next contract, the Celtics might be in the hunt for Tracy McGrady. A recent report posted to the website "The Bleacher Report," makes a relatively vague proclamation that the C's might be signing TMac.
Reports have been swirling that Tracy McGrady has considered teams in L.A., Miami, and even Orlando where he was a scoring machine. Well, the team with the most titles all time is reportedly interested as well now that Tony Allen has vacated the Boston grounds.
Take what you will from that site which doesn't site any "sources" or any other viable resource other than what seems like opinion, but the fact of the matter remains that the Celtics still need a wing player to replace the void left by Tony Allen. The C's only have the veteran minimum exception to offer McGrady and don't be surprised if he receives more than that. Besides, why would TMac sign with Boston for the minimum when he could sign with LA or Miami for the same?
He would essentially have the same role with all three teams: Be a sixth man/scorer off the bench to pick up the offensive load. He's clearly not what he used to be in his Orlando heyday, but for the veteran minimum the Celtics could do a lot worse.
Besides, he would fit perfectly here as he would be the third player on their roster that came straight out of high school to enter the NBA, with an accompanying major knee injury. TMac would join Kevin Garnett and Jermaine O'Neal as the Celtics high school knee-trio. Sarcasm aside, the reality is that the Celtics need to fill the TA void. Pierce himself has expressed his concerns, so maybe he's been texting TMac to come to the green. It could also be Doc Rivers trying to coax TMac into playing for the Celtics. He coached him during his best years for the Magic so I wouldn't doubt it if Doc was in contact with McGrady.
While McGrady's defense has never been that spectacular (being very generous here), he would provide a huge offensive boost right off the bench. Combined with Nate Robinson (and Jermaine O'Neal off the bench when Perk returns), the Celtics would have their best offensive second unit since the New Big Three Era. McGrady showed flashes of his old self during his brief stint with the Knicks last season, but he also had some games where he was non-existent.
Stay tuned because you'll most likely be hearing all sorts of names crop up. Even Penny Hardaway has recently stated that he wants to play for Miami now. Listen, Penny was one of the best players in the NBA before his knee injury but that was a long time ago. McGrady could easily help this Celtics team by playing just 15-18 minutes per game behind Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. The question is: Why would he choose Boston over LA, Miami, or a team like the LA Clippers for more money? We shall see.
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