The Re-signings:
Going into the offseason, I expected the Celtics to undergo a serious transformation. However, I could not have been more mistaken. The offseason kicked off with Kevin Garnett being resigned to a 3 year deal. At the beginning, I was quite skeptical for two reasons:
1. I strongly believed that while Garnett may still retain that competitive fire that fueled his excellent postseason play, he was slowing down and it would only go downhill from here.
2. The money they were offering him (33 million) was simply too much for a guy that would likely average a 13 and 9 the first season and steadily get worse.
However, Ainge justified the resigning by drafting Ohio State's accomplished big man Jared Sullinger and a raw 7 footer out of Syracuse, Fab Melo. I immediately understood part of the reason that Garnett had been resigned. Over the past seasons, Kevin Garnett has been viewed as the backbone of the Celtics but more importantly his impact on his teammates has been tremendous, especially the big men. Brandon Bass had a career year with the Celtics, and he attributes much of his success to Garnett, who acted as a positive influence on him. Garnett's impact on rookies as been equally as visceral as Avery Bradley took over the starting role for the Boston Celtics in only his second year with them, despite being a late first round draft pick and Greg Stiemsma, became a great defensive player. One can only imagine how Garnett will help mold the raw talent of Fab Melo and how he will help Jared Sullinger adjust to the NBA game and lifestyle.
The next resigning was that of Jeff Green. This signing is the only move of the offseason that I am a little disappointed with. I understand that it had to be done or else we would have gotten absolutely nothing in return for trading Perkins and Green, when healthy, is certainly a very talented and versatile player who would help fill in Pierce's spot as Pierce begins to slow down. However, we have to remember that Green hasn't played for a whole season and that while the health reports give Green a clean bill of health, we must take in account that his heart condition was serious and this had a major impact on his body in the season he didn't play. I could have understood paying Green, a fair contract that hinged on his health and his play. However, Green and his agent the infamous David Falk (Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson's former agent) proceeded to absolutely rob the Boston Celtics for a four year 36 million dollar deal. This is way too much a player with a lot of question marks. However, we must have faith in the Celtic's front office and assume that they are certain that Green can assume a big role on the roster and have an immediate impact on the Celtics.
The third major resigning was Brandon Bass. I liked this resigning as Bass is an athletic forward who fit in well with the Celtics and connected with Rondo and Garnett. He is a reliable player who had a career year with the Celtics and will likely continue to improve. The money they paid Bass (20 million) was also reasonable so the Celtics came off on top in all aspects.
The two final re-signings of the offseason were Keyon Dooling and Chris Wilcox. I also like both of these re-signings because Chris Wilcox, before he got injured, was a good bench player who had good chemistry with Rondo. Keyon Dooling's play was average this past season but he had a few marquee games and there's no denying the positive influence he holds over Rondo.
Offseason Acquisitions:
The first offseason acquisition was Jason Terry. I was very happy with this signing because Jason Terry is an accomplished scorer and a proven winner who would fit right into the Boston mentality who we could count on for a solid 15 ppg/game. Unfortunately, I knew the signing meant it was all but certain that Ray Allen would leave. As I expected, a few days later Ray Allen left to the Miami Heat. As a brief side note I would like to give my opinion on the matter. Ray Allen was one of my favorite player and one of the few really good guys in the NBA and all of professional sports for that matter. I hope that Boston fans show him the respect he deserves and while they may not agree with his choice of a team, they have to understand that Boston treated him absolutely awfully. Ainge had him on the trading block before every deadline and was nearly traded All-Star weekend for OJ Mayo before it fell apart in the last minute. His relationship with Rondo was also sour and when they signed Terry, it was the last straw. He treated his departure with respect, which included taking a full-page ad out of the Boston Globe thanking the Celtics fans for the support they had shown him and his family over the years.
The second offseason acquisition was a sign and trade for the Houston Rocket's Courtney Lee. I also really like this acquisition. It allows Jason Terry to keep his role as a sixth man and provides the Celtics with a young athletic shooting guard who can play solid defense. He averaged 11 PPG last season but he never played with a gifted point guard like Rajon Rondo. This means that Lee's efficiency will only increase.
The Rookies:
This was my personal favorite part of the offseason. The Celtics filled their need of big men by drafting one of the best college basketball players, Jared Sullinger (18 ppg, 9 rpg) and the raw 7 foot, Fab Melo. Sullinger was a lottery pick before a medical red flag dropped him to the 21st pick in the Draft. He immediately dispelled any doubts about his effectiveness by making a big splash during summer league. His consistent good play was a reassuring sign for Celtic's fan and as I have stated above Garnett and Bass will help Sullinger continue to improve. Fab Melo had an underwhelming summer league, however his big 7 foot presence will be enough to justify drafting him. Once again, Kevin Garnett will help him and teach him how to harness his size and talent. The final draft pick was used on Syracuse's top scorer Kris Joseph. Kris Joseph will have an opportunity to make the final roster who can be a good role player for the Celtics.
Full Overview:
This is how the 2012-2013 Boston Celtic's roster will look:
PG- Rajon Rondo
SG- Courtney Lee
SF- Paul Pierce
PF- Brandon Bass
C- Kevin Garnett
Bench
G- Jason Terry
G- Keyon Dooling
F- Jared Sullinger
F- Jeff Green
F- Kris Joseph
C- Fab Melo
C- Chris Wilcox
The starting lineup is virtually the same as last year's conference final starting lineup (except Lee is an upgrade over Ray Allen). However, this year the Celtics bench is a lot deeper and poses a serious threat for any NBA team. I think that they will have a tough time beating the Miami Heat but it is certainly within the realm of possibility that they beat the Heat.
Final Prediction:
Regular Season- 3rd seed
Postseason- Lose in 7 games to the Miami Heat in the conference finals
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