How will Danny Ainge correct the ‘unacceptable’ performance of the Boston Celtics? | Bleacher Report

BOSTON – When Gordon Hayward turned down his $ 34.1 million player option last fall, the Boston Celtics knew there was a good chance they would lose him and get nothing in return.

So the Celtics have reached an agreement with Hayward and his new team, the Charlotte Hornets, to get the next best thing: an exception of $ 28.5 million traded, which is the largest in NBA history.

The struggling 14-13 Celtics have lost ten of their last 16 games, and they have limited financial flexibility because they are already over the salary cap. But the TPE gives them the potential to add a difference-maker via trading without sending out players or adjusting salaries.

“We’re having talks as usual this time of year,” Celtics basketball president Danny Ainge told Bleacher Report. ‘So we’ll have to wait and see. But I evaluate my own team, my own players and at the same time look at the rest of the league and how they are doing. We’ll see if there is something that fits. “

According to several league officials, it is not a matter of as the Celtics will use their TPE, but on whom.

“Of course, with Danny Ainge you never know for sure what he’s going to do or not,” said an Eastern Conference chief who had a low-key conversation with the Celtics this season. ‘But look where their record is, look at their roster. … I can not see how Danny can keep them as they are and not make a change. ‘

The executive added: ‘And with the [trade] Danny can, in addition to the Hayward deal, add a pretty good player and keep his team together, which I know if he did, he would do it. ‘

But even with the big trade exception, it’s not easy for the Celtics to add talent with greater competition until the March 25 deadline.

Defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers might add another piece to play an Anthony Davis, who was now at stake. An MRI performed on February 15 showed that he has a calf strain that will keep him for at least two weeks.

Cleveland is allegedly looking to move from Andre Drummond, but his solid salary of $ 28.8 million will be difficult for any team to acquire via trade. But if Drummond were to reach a buyout with the Cavs, he would have become a very popular player for several teams that wanted to include the size, including Boston.

Other managers of the players’ league are considered potential Celtics targets: Sacramento’s Harrison Barnes, LaMarcus Aldridge of San Antonio, PJ Tucker of Houston, Aaron Gordon of Orlando, JJ Redick of New Orleans and John Collins of Atlanta. Other mentioned cheaper options include George Hill of OKC and Orlando of OKC.

Injuries and health and safety protocols have limited the prediction of Celtics’ first five times to a lot of time with the court, which could affect Ainge to keep the team intact and drive out this season.

Boston’s projected first five were supposed to be a trio of Kemba Walker, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown, along with Jayson Tatum and Tristan Thompson in the forecourt. According to NBA.com, that group played a total of seven minutes together this season, and it was not pretty.

“I hate using those excuses,” Ainge said. “Every team has COVID problems, every team has problems with injuries. And really, at the same time, we did not see this starting team, which was at the beginning of the season, much. But again this [current play by the team] … is unacceptable. I just hope every player feels the same way and I think they feel. I am confident that each of them knows that they can do more and play better and play harder. ‘

Getting healthier and playing harder can do just as much. The Celtics could use a different turnaround, but a rival driver in the East has pointed out who could throw a monkey wrench into their plans to use the unprecedented TPE to bolster their roster.

“They have the trade exception, but if a team can add talent, maybe make a good choice or make a deal, will it beat a Boston trade exception?” said the league official. “For some teams, maybe.”

With the Celtics record hovering around the .500 market late in the season for the first time since their 2014-15 campaign, Ainge knows more research will be done into how he addresses the team’s struggles.

Finding out what kind of player Boston is looking for is currently one of the big unknowns in the NBA.

“Is it a big man? Is it a wing? Depending on the day of the week, it may be your answer,” the Eastern Conference chief executive said. “They are in a very unusual place where they are a very good team, but have more than one clear area that needs to be suspended.”

Although the Celtics’ need for improved play is not disputed, a Western Conference scout rejected the argument that Boston should earn more points.

“If you look at their numbers really well, you will see that the problem is not that they have bad shooters,” he said. “It’s that the shooters they have are not shooting enough.”

The Celtics shoot 37.8 percent from outside the three-point line, which is the ninth league. However, their 12.5 scored tries and 33.0 three-point attempts per game 18th and 22nd respectively.

Indeed, the move to taking more two-pointers than tries has been in the offing for Boston for years.

The Celtics are in ninth place this season in two points per game. Boston’s two-point rating has risen annually since the 2016-17 season, when it was 29th. Meanwhile, Boston has dropped three points in three of the past four seasons in the standings.

And while much attention will be paid to the record-breaking $ 28.5 million TPE and how they use it, the Celtics made other deals during the off-season that yielded a few extra TPEs – a TPE of $ 4.8 million when Enes Kanter went to Portland and a $ 2.6 million TPE when they sent Vincent Poirier to Oklahoma City (the Thunder would later trade him to his current team, the Philadelphia 76ers).

These are definitely good assets.

But for the Celtics to add a player with a significant impact and do so without disrupting their core group, it will be necessary to find the right team as a trading partner, the right player to suit their needs. , not to mention some if not all. $ 28.5 million trade exception to get it done.

Statistics on games played on Tuesday 16 February.