Top 10: Ways to for the Celtics to work with the current cap situation - RealGM

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Top 10: Ways to for the Celtics to work with the current cap situation

By Jason Ouellette



Ouch. After reviewing the Celticsb current financial situation,
bavailableb
(and I use that term very loosely) players and Paul Gastonbs short arms and
deep pockets, I have painfully come up with my newest Top 10 list. The
Celtics are in a financial stranglehold until at least the summer of 2005. Or
are they really? Letbs find out.

10. Allow the draft picks some time to actually develop

This has been a no-no for the past few years for the Celtics. When you think
about it, Paul Pierce is the only recent draft pick that they have held on
to, and let develop for a while. Not that he needed a long time to get
acclimated to the NBA game, but the Celtics have an itchy trigger finger when
it comes to trading away young talent. But it seems to be their mandate on
rookies: Contribute now, and twice on Sundays, or youbre gone.

Ok, itbs probably not that harsh, but itbs been the rule rather than the
exception. Ron Mercer was here for a year and a half (the lockout season was
shortened). And it made sense to trade him, so they could eventually max out
Pierce.

Chauncey Billups was here for 51 games as a rookie and put up decent numbers
at point guard (11.1 PPG, 4.3 APG). He was traded for Kenny Anderson, who
took a good 4-5 years to give them what they wanted at point guard.

Jerome Moiso was simply a joke of an eleventh pick. I am still stunned at
that one. Joe Johnson was traded after 48 games and Joseph Forte was traded
after 39 minutes of action.

The bottom line here is this. If the Celtics plan on keeping both picks in
this yearbs draft (which I doubt they will) then this is the opportunity to
let them develop. Kedrick Brown is the only other pick they have held on to,
and he will still probably see less time than Eric Williams again. But they
only seem to look at young talent in two ways: 1) They must be a future
superstar and 2), if they are not, they are great trade fodder.

9. Sign Rod Strickland

Therebs not that much left out there in the free agent market. Especially
for
a team with about $5 to spend. He may come a little cheaper than others, and
could help. They donbt need a point guard who can score a lot of points, and
Strickland is just the opposite. Lately however, he hasnbt helped many teams
in the win column. His off-court issues are always a red flag, but with the
Celtics current situation, any free agent holds the trump card. He has good
penetrating skills and can distribute the ball effectively. He also plays in
control most of the time and doesnbt look for his shot first.

8. Trade Eric Williams and a combo of picks to Toronto for Alvin Williams

This may be one of the few trades that another team would go for with the
Celtics (unless a third, or fourth team gets involved). Why would the Raptors
do this? Well Alvin Williams is signed through the 2007 season averaging
about $5.5 mil/year. Eric Williamsb contract is done after the 2004 season.
It would free up some money on the Toronto side, and give them another draft
pick (or two) to work with.

Why do this if your Chris Wallace? It gives you a solid point guard. He can
hit the open jumper (42% FG), can dish the ball (5.7 APG), and can score
(11.8 PPG). He is also a bigger point guard, which the Celtics have wanted
for quite some time. But if they got him, they would have zero cap room to
work with for the next four years. But the Celtics front office doesnbt seem
to care about that.

7. Re-sign Erick Strickland

Why not bring him back for another year? He was a solid backup to Kenny,
played well (when given the chance) in the playoffs, and knows the system.
The Celtics apparently see a chance to win big sooner rather than later, so
why not bring him back to run the show? Well, his asking price is too much.
Yikes. Thatbs a nasty slap in the face by luxury tax reality, when the
Celtics canbt afford to re-sign Erick Strickland for just one year. No knock
on Strick, but it is disturbing to say the least. Whatbs even more amazing
is
that Strick would not even start.

6. Listen to all trade offers

As a GM, you have to listen to all offers. For example, if Donald Sterling
didnbt want to keep all three big guns next summer (Elton Brand, Andre
Miller, Michael Olowokandi), the Celtics would have to jump in there. Who
would go? Well seeing is how nobody wants Baker, and Pierce is probably off
limits, thatbs leaves Antoine. There are few players I would trade him for
personally, but you have to consider it.

But, if Baker suddenly plays beyond expectations, they would have to trade
him almost immediately. His contract is just too nasty to keep. It is highly
doubtful that any of these three guys will be traded in the near future. But
that is the heavy price that was paid when Baker was acquired.

5. Next Summerbs Free Agents

Duncan? Laughable. Jermaine ObNeal? Please. Elton Brand? Forget it. Andre
Miller? Had a chance, now therebs no chance. Mourning? Nope. Payton?
Riiiiiiiiigt.

Not even Brad Miller, Ron Artest, Jason Terry or P.J. Brown can be thought
of. Next summer, the free agent possibilities are weak, and will continue to
be barring a trade. Here are a few names that jump out, that are possible.

Gilbert Arenas: He played well against the Cbs and got better as the year
went on. However, he is Golden Statebs only signed point guard, and they
wonb
t let him go so easily. If they continue to dwell in the floor of the Pacific
Ocean, then the Celtics may be able to pry him away.

Getting on the more realistic side, the Celtics could go after Jacque Vaughn.
He can put up decent numbers, and hit the open shot. But will he be any
better than Shammond Williams? Williamsb contract is up after this season,
so
this is basically a trial run for him at the point. If he does well enough,
just bring him back. There is one better option next summer howeverb&

b&4. Bring Kenny back

I thought Ibd never say it, but this is a good option to look at. He will
definitely come cheaper than the first time around (mid-level exception), and
knows the system very well. He was pretty upset that he had to leave, so that
may be the only obstacle. I wouldnbt mind seeing him back, especially if he
can do what he did last season. He would be 33 years old by then, but as long
as he stayed healthy, he would be a very effective point guard for the
Celtics.

3. Acquire Jamal Crawford

This may not be as crazy as you think. The Bulls donbt really have a need
for
him now that they have their franchise point guard in Jay Williams. Also,
recent rumors have been that they are looking to dump Marcus Fizer. The
Celtics can go about this two ways.

First, they can wait until EWillbs contract is up, and pay Crawford that
money ($5 mil/Per year). It is unlikely though that Jerry Krause will watch
Crawford walk away with getting nothing in return. So, why not try to package
EWill with both draft picks for Fizer and Crawford? If that doesnbt satisfy
Krause, throw in another pick, or dare I say it, Kedrick Brown. That still
may not even come close, but the Celtics should at least try it. Crawford
would be affordable at $5 mil a year, and would be a good, young point guard
for this team. He does look for his shot, but on the Bulls, who wouldnbt?
Fizer would give them a solid backup at power forward.

2. Sign Travis Best

Why does this rank higher than obtaining Crawford and Fizer? Well first of
all, it is more likely to happen and second of all, it would help them this
year. The Bulls probably wouldnbt consider a trade until next season, when
EWill will be on the last year if his deal. With the money running out this
off-season, and training camp rapidly approaching, Best is still a
possibility. If there ever was such a thing as a player taking a
bhometownb
discount, this would be the ultimate example.

1. Sell the team

Sadly enough, this is the best option for Celtics fans to hope for. Whether
it
bs Larry Bird and his group, or someone like Mark Cuban, Gaston needs to
sell
the team to an owner who doesnbt care about the luxury tax.

The fact of the matter remains that the Celtics management has only made
moves based on the mandates from the owner. Otherwise, Wallace would have no
doubt signed Rodney Rogers and Erick Strickland by now. Who knows, with a
free-spending owner, he may have even been able to sign them, and go after a
big name next summer.

The problem isnbt the luxury tax. Itbs the owner. But make no mistake
about
Gaston. He is not the Jeremy Jacobs of the NBA. There are plenty of owners
who share his stance on the luxury tax. Approximately six teams spend
significantly more (about $3 million) than the Celtics. And the problem
isnbt
the distribution of salary, because their top three players make the top
three salaries.

The problem is the longevity of Bakerbs deal, and the inability to spend for
the key role players. This is a much larger problem than it seems, and it
will be exposed for the next few years. You know what Pierce and Walker will
give you, and they are both worthy of maximum deals. Baker, however, is not.
And if they were going to add a third maximum contract, why not wait for
Kenny and EWillbs contract to run out and sign someone like Andre Miller?

The problem here is that Bakerbs money could be spread out between two other
players that could give them the same numbers, on shorter-term deals. Perhaps
even a quality point guard. So, unless Gaston actually becomes a Celtics fan,
the best option is to sell the team to a free-willing spender. This will
continue to remain option #1 until the Celtics manage to pull off a trade of
Red Auerbach proportions. Until then, we Celtics fans will have to watch
other teams sign away.

Next Week: Top 10 Antoine Walker games



Jason Ouellette can be reached at <A
HREF="mailto:jayhbk10@yahoo.com";>jayhbk10@yahoo.com.</A> Feel free to email
your
questions, comments, etc.

CeltsSteve