Well Celtics fans, as one game ends the next begins
By John Eyler
For the next four months it’s what if… So here goes.
Friday’s massive Cleveland Cavaliers victory has ended all hope. While a part of me wants to be the mouse fingering the eagle, what’s the use. Time to shift to the other game. What to do to make the Boston Celtics real contenders next year. That’s a high hurdle.
These Cavs are ridiculous. At the very least we want to see the Celtics improve. That alone will be tough. Four starters are returning, we can expect that Amir Johnson will not be back. That said those four starters, Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Al Horford and Jae Crowder are simply not good enough to get past the Cavaliers. That is just an understatement after Friday.
As everyone knows the Celtics have options. Almost everyone wants the Celtics to get one of three players: Gordon Hayward, Jimmy Butler or Paul George. Would any of these players take the Celtics past the Cavs? Who knows, but the Celtics would be better. The only immediate loss would be Kelly Olynyk. His salary has to be dumped if you want one of those guys. You could also assume that Crowder would get lost in the mix.
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The next step you would have to take would be to make a trade for a big time big. That’s the last weakness. I have no idea who it might be, or if this mystical big evens exists, but to beat the Cavs it’s necessary. To do this the Celtics would have to rid themselves of more salary. Trade off Bradley and Crowder and that might do it. Let Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown or Terry Rozier share the shooting guard role.
With this scenario you are looking at Thomas, Smart, (Hayward-Butler-George), Horford and Mystery Big as your starters. That might beat Cleveland. You would have Rozier, Brown and Ante Zizic coming off the bench. Maybe a couple of the D-leaguers and some veterans willing to play at the minimum would fill out your team. Likely your draft picks are gone but maybe not all of them.
The above is what would be necessary to beat the Cavs though still not a guarantee. Get just one of the superstars and the Celtics will enter next season with no quality bigs except Horford. That won’t match up against Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love. Zizic is a good young talent but he’s not ready to take on Kevin Love. So, the Celtics have to get a quality big or going all in for one of the three superstars seems insufficient. Honestly I’m not sure the Celtics will be able to afford a quality big in this scenario, but that’s the take.
This is the win now at all cost approach. This could in some way happen. It’s a viable one year plan. After that Thomas and Smart are going to be looking for their next contract and there won’t be any money on the table. As futures go that seems a bit scary.
There are other options if you are willing to be patient and let the kids develop. Over the next couple of years is anyone going to realistically knock off Cleveland or the Golden State Warriors. Right now teams like the Philadelphia 76ers, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Minnesota Timberwolves are piling up some fine young talent.
Next: Cavaliers Remind the Celtics they are Rebuilding
Maybe the best option is for the Celtics to get ahead of those teams by developing their own young talent. It is a rebuilding process after all. Much more to come.