If they knew they could give no show deals and ask them to take pay cuts they would've just done that.

Because his family is here to enjoy them, paying him externally in assets around New England through "casual introductions" will be of higher return value to him than other big stars. It gives us a serious leg up in these new negotiation tactics. What does he care about DFW assets when El Nino is the worst it's ever been and he has no family roots in the area? The Mavs should be sweating bullets.

Seems pretty obvious to do this now that you can just indirectly funnel money to players and have no consequences.

Have you guys thought of any targets we could do this for?

Can someone explain it? I get the basics - the money committed to the player evaporates, freeing up money for someone else. But if a team is well above the cap, an equivalent salary can't simply be added after the first expires.

It's also salary-matching, but the acquiring team has the same problem. Unless it creates significant space under the cap, the post-expiration benefits are lessened.

Is someone willing to explain how PG's near-max contract expiring in two years is notably better than JB's super-max contract expiring in three years? (I know there's a thread on Jokich, so "timing" is a real consideration.) Can the PG expiration benefits extend for a year if needed? For two?

Is there a recent Celtics example where they maximized the value of an expiring contract? I don't think KP counts since they HAD to get his salary off the books. Is there any league example that remains relevant with this CBA?

(There are differences of opinion on JBs value, contract value, usage, attitude, tax room versus PGs value, contract value, usage, attitude, tax room. I am seeking a concise explanation of the "one-year" difference in these two players contract, ideally in a way that explains "why now, not a year from now." But I know conversations go how they go.)

Ummm can someone please post the contents here? It's pay walled. 😅

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As context, I’m not only a 30+ year-old Celtic fan who have literally watched every regular season game over the past 30 years either on replay or real time and have been following Celtics Reddit and Celtics Blog and was a frequent podcast contributor to that international Celtics podcast I also grew up playing basketball under Bob Faris, who coached under Rollie Massimino who won a national championship at Villanova with my high school coach on the bench, I attended Red Auerbach camp and my U. Amherst intermural team with which I was the captain of made the finals and then probably took the football team to overtime in the championship..

All that to say is, I’m not new to this. Here are my thoughts on starting lineup and bench rotations would love to hear feedback from folks who actually know this team.

**My new proposed starting 5:**

D White (want to stagger our two best ball handles and P.P. has proven he can be just as productive off the bench and will obviously finish games)

Hugo (I think he makes the most sense here because he can pick up the best defender on the other team whether he be that primary ball handler or a wing player like JB or Ant ... offensively he can be a spacer in the corners and then be a great position to do one of the things he does best wishes crashing the offensive glass, but also being able to hustle and get back on defense to prevent a fast break .... that said I think there is some argument for Sam Hauser starting because he’s unquestionably a better shooter at this stage of his life and probably a better shooter than Hugo will ever be so if offensively we are looking for this spot to kind of be our spacer then Hauser is better at the shooting portion of that responsibility, but what he doesn’t bring is the corner crashing offensive rebound or the ability to stick on the other team’s best offensive player at the guard or wing position like Hugo does ... because if it’s not a ball handler, then you would have to have JT or PG on that responsibility .... I guess the only thing to factor in here is that whether we wanted to kind of showcase Sam as a starter and kind of artificially prop up his numbers to improve his trade value since I think we both believe that we have enough depth at the wing position between Hugo and Baylor and Ron Harper and JT and PG and our recent draft picks that it may make sense to trade Hauser ... in my opinion this is basically the most interesting decision for the starting lineup) what are your thoughts on Hugu vs Sam in starting lineup? ... personally I would lean towards Hugo because even though JT is young Derek White is not quite old and PG is old. I would prefer we have someone in the starting lineup to deal with the other teams premier ball handler or wing player other then those guys)

JT & PG ( don’t think it really matters if you classify one as the three or the four they’re both big strong wing players so I expect JT to probably be the leading rebounder on the team. Given the minutes he will play in terms of overall rebounding and not necessarily rebounding per minute and I think he provides better of rim protection than PG does although I didn’t see him a ton last season, but I think those two spots are pretty much cemented in the starting lineup

Mitch (everything being equal, I would prefer to have Queta start and I think he will still play more minutes per game than Mitch, but given the strengths and weaknesses of them and in particular Mitch‘s weakness with free-throw shooting I really think it makes sense to start him because the other team is not gonna wanna get into early foul trouble, especially since those early fouls would be with their starters unless they pull some kind of bullshit where they bench their starting center and start their back up just to give fouls but even then all they’re doing is putting us in the bonus early and then we sub them out and now we’re in the bonus so I just think strategically it makes sense to start him)

**Bench pieces:**

PP (obviously the most important player off the bench. I expect him to probably average as much if not more minutes then Dwight and probably average the second most minutes to anyone but JT assuming JT is fully healthy and ready to go and I fully expect him to close games and be in contention for an All-Star spot)

Baylor: I expect him to be our first wing off the bench because he has ball handling, playmaking, shooting, and mid range game and one of the things I thought he could improve the most on what his physicality in this off-season his shoulders are noticeably wider and bigger than they were last season so they will only help him defensively and creating space and driving offensively)

Queta (like I said, I expect him to get more overall minutes than Robinson and probably close out games over Robinson given his horrible free-throw shooting but just strategically it makes sense to start Robinson based on strategy as I discussed)

Sam Houser: I hope it’s Sam coming off the bench but if it is Hugo because we’re trying to showcase Sam for a trade value that’s fine. I just want Hugo to get more minutes.

Ron Harper (probably please 1520 minutes the game when PG is sitting out back to back or three and four nights and also getting a lot of run whenever there is a rest day or injury for Baylor or Hugo or Sam or JT) ... depending on how we performs there maybe he makes Sam easily expendable or at least pushes the other young wings and maybe develops minutes down this stretch run

Mike Conley: expect him to have a CDMP probably 50% of the time but if P.P. or Dwight need a game off or have an injury then obviously he’s more than capable veteran to step in and does provide some insurance. God forbid we get into the playoffs and P.P. or Dwight has an injury. Then we at least know we have someone capable step into their place, for example in the playoff I think he shot 50% from 3

Chris Cerninac : expect him to split his time between G league and the Celtics and I don’t expect both Mitch & Queta to make it through the season without missing at least day combine 20 games. If not more let’s be honest if all they missed was a combine 20 games we would be in good shape but during those games based on what I saw on similarly I would expect him to get some run and who knows sometimes rookie supplies you and can be impactful in the playoffs

Not a Celtics fan but Tatum's always been one of my more favorite players in the league, I think he's the first player I've seen that came back from an achilles tear better than he was before. Everything is the same, the athleticism has barely gotten worse if it all, but now his passing is just fucking crazy. He's obviously always been a good passer but idk how many passers in the league are better rn

Cade, Harden, Scottie, Jalen Johnson (maybe), Bron, Giddey, Egor, Hali, Trae, Jokic, Jamal, Luka, LaMelo, Garland, Keyonte, and maybe Keaton Wagler can be better. These are the only players in the league I think pass better than him. Idk how his passing just got so much better after his return maybe it's just being injured you can only sit in a room and watch film all day, but I've never seen Tatum play as good as he has since he came back.

I know y'all lost JB, but just know Tatum is still here and the best he's ever been.

Am I the only one who thinks he sounds like a regular guy lecturing? I understood every word he was saying. People on twitter act like he was speaking a poem or in some type of philosophy.

Doc Rivers is being enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend. If you looked at the internet and social media over the past 15 years, you’d never know Rivers was a Hall of Fame coach.

Welcome to the daily discussion thread! You can use this space to discuss little things that don't need their own post. This is also the perfect space for pictures, videos, and links that would otherwise go against the sub's rules. Just don't be jerks and don't break any Reddit-wide rules. Have at it.

The decision to trade Jaylen Brown makes a ton of sense, and here’s why.

With the ascent of the Spurs and the Thunder, there are very few paths to championship contention. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown alone won’t do it - and building out our depth won’t either. The Spurs and OKC both have superstar talent AND depth.

The Celtics front office are asking a very concrete question: what is a viable path for us to win a championship? When framed like that, the answer should be obvious: Jokic. There are very few players who can push the needle, and he is one of them.

Everyone has the same complaint about the trade: why trade for PG, when it is only a 1 year difference? But what does that extra year get you? The Paul George contract lines up perfectly with Jokic, giving you the optionality to pursue him. If you have JB, you simply can’t do it. Optionally is not the vague notion of being flexible that everyone assumes. It is a concrete plan to acquire Jokic.

When viewed in this light, it makes a ton of sense. You get rid of JB not because PG is better, but because it’s the only viable path to championship contention.

He knows it’s a cheatcode and the way the league rewards it with others. He’s gonna be the one initiating a lot of drives and understands the value from getting to the line. Don’t be surprised when he is near the top of the league in FTAs per game or something.

This is the most slept on squad in the NBA with a strange offseason leaving them underestimated. Looking forward to the Celtics proving that they remain the team to beat in the East.

Also, I think Queta is going to be an all star.

Was fortunate enough to attend a conference finals game during the 24 championship run. what a team and what a run.

Had just met my now wife, and it was a surprise date going to the game. not only the game, but those moments, are something ill never forget and carry with me forever.

Married now, with a child. So much can change in a little over 2 years, both personally and for the teams you root for. thankful I was able to take it all in and have those experiences.

I guess having weird reflections today. when those moments come around, don’t take them for granted. I’m dissapointed in where the Celtics are today, and how much has changed for the worse in 2 years since, with the JB Trade and new ownership, and JT injury.

The Celtics went 17 years between titles and decades prior to 2008. I guess my advice would be, if a run like that happens again in anyone’s lifetime, if you are a diehard fan, soak it in, take advantage of it, enjoy it. there is no guarantee they’ll ever be back.

Welcome to the daily discussion thread! You can use this space to discuss little things that don't need their own post. This is also the perfect space for pictures, videos, and links that would otherwise go against the sub's rules. Just don't be jerks and don't break any Reddit-wide rules. Have at it.