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Rumor: Cs trading for #2 pick?
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AP Photo/Winslow Townson: Doc will have his hands full if the Celtics trade for Rubio.
In case you haven’t heard, the Cs are kicking the tires on making a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies for the #2 pick in this year’s draft. Celtics fans are abuzz over this potential deal, as nobody can really figure out what the Celtics motivation is. Are they looking to dump salary, thus leading to them trading Ray Allen? Or have they officially given up on Rajon Rondo, thus making him trade worthy?
It’s widely been stated that this is not a deep draft. Ricky Rubio is a nice player, and so is Blake Griffin, but the talent drops off pretty precipitously after those two, and they aren’t exactly setting the bar that high to begin with. This isn’t the 2003 draft that we’re talking about.
So if the Cs have their eyes on Ricky Rubio, trading into the #2 spot makes sense. They can give up Rondo for Rubio, plus a future first round pick, and probably an additional player (Big Baby?) to keep Memphis happy. If I’m Memphis, I do this trade in a heart beat. If I’m Boston, I run away from this deal screaming for mercy. It’s insane, nonsensical, and hopefully just a baseless rumor.
But what if it isn’t? That’s the whole point with rumors. We never know if they are going to emerge as reality until we see the end result. And as the old saying goes, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. We can laugh this trade rumor off as a sourceless end of the rainbow-type story, but we need to not only report on it, but wonder how it found the light of day in the first place. There’s no way that Memphis called Boston on this one. From an outsider’s perspective, Boston needs immediate veteran help, not a rookie, and does not need a point guard. So the only way you would expect this trade to develop would be for Boston to internally decide that they do not want Rondo anymore, and would be willing to start over with Rubio.
But, you say, what if the Celtics have another player in mind? OK, so maybe you think that they are taking Hasheem Thabeet with this pick. If so, they would have to be willing to trade Kendrick Perkins and a prize bigger than the aforementioned pairing of a future first and Big Baby. Trading Allen might get the deal done, but that just leaves Boston with an immense hole at shooting guard, and now a rookie center. Not exactly the best way to return the favor to KG on his guarantee.
So let’s see how these two players fit into the Celtics rotation. If they take Rubio, he has to become the immediate starter at the point. There is no way that he should serve as an understudy to a guy like Eddie House or Stephon Marbury. He’s going to learn on the fly, under the white hot light of the Boston media and fan base, coupled with the national attention that this story would deserve. This is where Doc will have to finally prove himself, as I feel that he still has not done as the head of the Celtics. He played point in his career, and needs to develop Rubio into a star. Rubio is young, but experienced at the professional level through his development in pro ball overseas. First and foremost, he is true point guard, which is probably my favorite type of player since that is the role I played when I grew up. But fortunately for him, he is an all-around offensive player and not just a good passer, or a “floor general” as people like to say. He has a decent outside shot, which one would hope will improve as he gets older. He is pretty thin, but his height and a top-notch nutrition program will help him fill out into an imposing presence. I think that he needs to use his legs more on his jump shot, but if it works for Shawn Marion, then whatever.
And if they select Thabeet? He would obviously move into the 5-spot, learning to refine his game under the guidance of coaches Tom Thibodeau and Clifford Ray, with some side sessions with Kevin Garnett. Thabeet is a good defender with excellent shot blocking and rebounding ability. However, his offensive game is mediocre other than his dunking, free throw shooting, and occasional mid-range jumper. How he managed to develop a short jumper before any reliable post moves is beyond me. Plus, big men of his size tend to break down (see Yao, and to a lesser extent, Shawn Bradley and Gheorghe Muresan). I’ve seen the man play a good number of games since I’m from the CT area. At times he impresses me with his unique athletic ability, and his defensive game can dominate games. But he has no inside offensive repertoire whatsoever. He’s a taller, less athletic version of Dwight Howard with a less dominating presence. Don’t believe me? Check this out and wonder whether or not Howard would allow this to happen to him. Long story short, he’s a project, despite the positive reviews some aspects of his game have received.
The only way that the Celtics make this trade is if they are officially rebuilding, and they are a couple of years away from that period, and that’s only if Ainge isn’t able to maintain a fairly talented roster as the Big 3 begin to decay. I’m not ready to give up on Rondo, and I’m certainly not ready to trading Allen for Thabeet. I’m open to trading Ray, despite the fact that he’s my favorite UConn player of all time, but I’ll need a lot more in return.
Bottom line: The Celtics aren’t making this trade. They aren’t that stupid. My advice, because Danny Ainge is clearly reading this: focus on improving the bench, and get younger after next season.
One more YouTube video in honor of the Finals. Don’t ever retire, Lamar.
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