Celtics’ Win Over Lakers Is A Reminder Of Danny Ainge’s Worth
By Tom Mulherin
After the Celtics coasted past the Lakers in a 115-95 win on Friday night, it served as a reminder that Boston avoided what Los Angeles couldn’t in their respective rebuilds
Ever since the most storied rivalry in the history of the NBA started in the early 1960’s, the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers have always been linked together.
When the Celtics competed for championships during the Bill Russell Era, so did the Lakers. Whenever the Lakers fell from contention for a couple years before making a run at more titles, Boston was right behind them. The makeup of one team mirrored that of its rival, with both franchises seemingly in the same state at the same time for years.
That script proved true until it changed in the late 1990’s/early 2000’s. Los Angeles started winning championships again while the Celtics struggled in the midst of a 10-year rebuild, as Boston didn’t even catch up for another seven years after that (2007-08 NBA Finals).
And now, after watching the Celtics breeze past the Lakers in a 115-95 win on Friday night while the two teams sit on opposite ends of the standings nearly two decades later, it seems that situation has reversed. Boston went through a speedy rebuild while Los Angeles continues to hope for a better future.
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You can thank Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge for that. And if you’re a Boston fan, don’t take this for granted.
Where would Boston be right now if it didn’t have Ainge and his team running the show for the Celtics? Where the Lakers are right now? Or worse?
In July of 2013, Ainge saw a great opportunity to take advantage of; go into an early rebuild and headline a trade with aging stars Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett for a slew of unprotected first round picks. Also add in the trade where he sent coach Doc Rivers to the Clippers for another first rounder.
He could’ve ignored the fact that the Celtics were ousted in the first round of the 2012-13 playoffs and instead add more role players. Yet he chose to get value for those players while he could, and that decision has since turned into Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and potentially the No. 1 pick in this upcoming draft.
Compare that to what Los Angeles just did, which was cling to title aspirations by signing its aging star – Kobe Bryant – to a two-year contract extension. He played just 62 percent of the those two seasons while the Lakers missed the playoffs each year, meaning all Los Angeles got from it was a farewell tour in Bryant’s final season and cap space when he retired.
I’ll take Smart, Brown and the No.1 pick over that every day of the week.
Beyond the difference in the start of the respective rebuilds, what Ainge has done during it deserves tremendous praise as well.
Since the events already mentioned from 2013, the Lakers played poorly enough to land top-10 picks in three-straight seasons. That led to promising stars D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, as well as a player who hasn’t shown much yet in Brandon Ingram. Outside of those players and 19 year-old Ivica Zubac, the rest of the roster seems to be made up of just rent-a-players until better ones come along.
Meanwhile, Ainge has been given less top-10 picks than Los Angeles, but has still found young talent that can contribute now while having a high-ceiling.
Smart is arguably one of the best defending guards in the NBA. Brown is a reminder of a quicker but less built version of Pierce when he broke into the league. Terry Rozier – the 16th pick in 2015 – is an athletic point guard that the Celtics value highly and it seems Ainge & co. still feel optimistic about the Kelly Olynyk project.
And look what has happened as a result. Boston is a legitimate contender for, if not this year, than next year and even beyond. The best part of it too is that it only took the Brad Stevens-led Celtics two losing seasons to get here, with Boston still making the playoffs in one of them.
Compare that to the Lakers, who keep adding top picks as the losing season pile up, but still don’t look ready to compete for maybe another three or four years from now.
Makes you really love having Ainge, doesn’t it?