http://www.yardbarker.com/content/team/63 Recent articles about the Boston Celtics en-us Look folks, with Posey gone, the Celtics will be missing their all-important backup small forward. I mean who do they have that is going to play the utility 3 spot that Posey adeptly handled? Sat, 19 Jul 2008 22:09:00 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292685 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292685 I KNOW I WAS I ALMOST CRIED I WAS SO SAD Sat, 19 Jul 2008 21:25:31 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292676 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292676 RAJON RONDO RAY ALLEN AND CHRIS PAUL BECAUSE ALL OF THEM ARE CUTE AND RAJON RONDO AND CHRIS PAUL ARE THE BEST POINT GUARDS I KNOW AND RAY ALLEN IS SO FINE BUT NOT FINE AS RAJON RONDO AND CHRIS PAUL SO I WANT EVERY BODY OUT THER 2 COMMENT ON THIS AND EVERY BODY I HOPE SHOULD SAY RAJON RONDO FIRST THANKZ AND I LUV U RONDO!!!!!!!!!!!! Sat, 19 Jul 2008 21:23:01 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292674 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292674 Herald Mavs nix deal for Artest (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/other_nba/view.bg?articleid=1107937 format=text) Globe Party for Pierce (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2008/07/party_for_pierc.html) Loss by Lakers was homeless shelter's gain (http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2008/07/loss_by_lakers.html) CelticsBlog Runnin' Fives: Charlotte Bobcats (index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3635 Itemid=189) CelticsStuff Live Sunday with Jessica Camerato (index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3640 Itemid=189) Got it need it (index.php?option=com_content task=view id=3636 Itemid=189) LOY's Place Is there more scandal ahead for the NBA? (http://celticsgreen.blogspot.com/2008/07/is-there-more-scandal-ahead-for-nba.html) Rumors and free agent updates - Greg Norman edition (http://celticsgreen.blogspot.com/2008/07/rumors-and-free-agent-updates-greg.html) Celtics 17 The back up SF situation: Think Barnes (http://mvn.com/nba-celtics/2008/07/18/the-back-up-sf-situation-think-barnes/) Perkisabeast Consider the Beast lair firmly entrenched on the Bill Walker bandwagon (http://perkisabeast.com/blog/2008/07/18/consider-the-beast-lair-firmly-entrenched-on-the-bill-walker-bandwagon/) Hattiesburg American (http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080719/SPORTS/807190308) Posey deal a good step for Hornets (http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080719/SPORTS/807190308) Examiner Ranking the NBA coaches (http://www.examiner.com/x-441-Golden-State-Warriors-Examiner~y2008m7d18-Ranking-the-NBA-coaches-Phil-Jackson-at-top-Randy-Wittman-at-bottom)... Sat, 19 Jul 2008 09:50:33 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292518 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292518 Utah Jazz free agent, CJ Miles signed a four-year, $15 million offer sheet with Oklahoma City on Friday. Utah will have seven days to decide whether they want to match the offer sheet and keep him. In Oklahoma, Miles would be able to compete for a starting position, something he would not be able to do in Utah. Philadelphia 76ers General Manager Ed Stefanski phannounced on Friday that the Sixers have signed rookie Marreese Speights who was the 16th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. Speights played in five games for the Sixers Summer League team in Las Vegas, averaging 18.2 points along with team-highs of 10.2 rebounds and 2.20 blocks. He is one of only three player averaging a double double in Vegas. Sounds like the Sixers have a player. Yahoo Sports (via Hoopshype) reports that Carlos Delfino is leaving the NBA to sign with Khimki Moscow. Delfino may not be the only NBA player to bolt for Europe as Basket Central (again via Hoopshype) reports that Greek team Olympiakos is courting former Celtic Ricky Davis. The Suns second round pick, Goran Dragic, will stay in Spain next season. The Suns sure are having problems with point guards ditching them. Think they would like to take back the deal that sent Rajon Rondo to Boston? The Sacbee reports that Brad Miller is determined to rebound after his third suspension for testing positive for marijuana. He will be suspended for the first 5 games of next season and will lose approximately $700,000 in salary. He is determined to get past this and get his life back in order. He told the SacBee that the lost wages don't matter nearly as much as the importance of changing his ways. We all wish Brad the best and hope that he can get past this and get his career back on track without the drugs. League sources report that the Nets and Magic are close to a sign-and-trade for combo guard Keyon Dooling. Reports are that Dooling would sign a three-year deal approximately $10 million and then be sent to the Nets for their $3.3 million trade exception that they acquired in the Jason Kidd trade. This gives the Nets 16 players under contract and the odd man out appears to be Marcus Williams. They will probably try to deal him for a draft pick or package him with another player to try to free up a roster spot. The Rocky Mountain News is reporting that restricted free agent JR Smith has not heard from any teams having interest in signing him this off season. His only offer has been the option to return to the Nuggets next season for the $3.04 million qualifying offer. This may be his best bet as he will have a chance to increase his value over the season and become an unrestricted free agent next season. Matt Barnes is a player who definitely would be a good fit for the Celtics to help replace what they lost with James Posey. The Washington Post reports that the word is that teams are going to wait him out and get him at a good price. The Wizards, who have only around $1.5 million left under the luxury tax threshold, are interested but since Barnes made $3 million last season, he isn't going to jump at an offer that his half as much. The Celtics could split their MLE between Barnes and another player and would be an attractive destination because they can offer him a chance at a ring. Teams may be trying to wait him out and get him cheaper, but like Posey, some team out there will give him what he wants. Darius Miles continues his hopes to return to the NBA. He might be a possibility for the Celtics. The Mavs are seriously considering signing him as well. He has several benefits. One, he appears to have matured considerably since his troubled early days in the league. Second, he has worked very hard to come back from what was considered to be a career ending injury so he is motivated and has a good work ethic. Third, and best of all for a team like the Celtics who are over the Lux Tax, he will come cheap. He is only looking for a 1 year minimum contract and will play very hard to make good on that contract to prove he deserves more next season. He looks like another of those low risk, high reward signings. This is a great story. Greg Norman is doing very well in the British Open. He is on his honeymoon after his marriage to tennis great Chris Evert 3 weeks ago. He is 53 years old and he is right at the top of the pack in the British Open. His last victory was 10 years ago in Australia at the Greg Norman Holden International. He hasn't been this close to the lead at the halfway point of a major since he was leading the '96 Masters. I know by now you are thinking why is this on a Celtic blog's updates? Well, Greg Norman used to live not far from me when I lived in the Palm Beach area and is a big Celtics fan. You would often see him out and about wearing a Celtics hat. I always wear a Celtics tee shirt and one day, he stopped me in a store and we talked about the Celtics for awhile. He is a very nice person and I am pulling for him. Us Celtics fans have to stick together. Maybe it was the Celtics 17th championship after all these years that has energized him in the Open. Who knows? Sat, 19 Jul 2008 09:15:49 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292509 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292509 For the most part, if you watch a lot of NBA games, you can't help but notice that at times the officiating is one sided and at other times it is simply bad. Some players get star treatment, others seem to get fouls called for walking onto the court. Some games are called very one sided where one team can't get a foul call even though players are getting mugged by two players at a time while the other team just has to look crooked and it is a foul. Refs are human and we know that they won't get it right every time, but some calls are so ridiculously bad that you just scratch your head and wonder. One of those calls was when Paul Pierce drew a foul while shooting a 3 during the Detroit series. Bennett Salvatore called it an offensive foul. He could have made a case for a possible travel, although that was a stretch, but an offensive foul was ridiculous. David Stern has defended his officials ad nauseam, fining anyone who dares to question them. Last summer, the inevitable happened and a referee was accused of betting on games and influencing the outcomes of certain games. David Stern said that he completely investigated the officials and that Donaghy was a lone rogue official. There were no other refs involved. Supposedly it was all over and when Donaghy was convicted and punished, there would be no further repercussions from the rogue referee who acted in a vacuum to influence games for betting purposes. Then, during the NBA Finals this year, there were more allegations. In the wake of game 2 of the Finals, when Phil Jackson pretty much blamed the loss on the referees, and in the wake of the league acknowledgment that the Lakers/Spurs game 4 was decided by a bad call by the refs, Time Donaghy made some shocking statements. The Boston Globe recounts the details. In a letter to the court, Donaghy's attorney relayed key information Donaghy provided, including various examples of improper interactions and relationships between referees and other league employees, such as players, coaches or management that led to attempts to influence game results. Donaghy alleged that certain referees were "company men" who acted in the best business interests of the NBA - specifically, extending popular and profitable series. He claimed manipulation of games could be very subtle. According to the letter, "Tim explained that league officials would tell referees they should withhold calling technical fouls on certain star players because doing so hurt ticket sales and television ratings . . . If the NBA wanted a team to succeed, league officials would inform referees that opposing players were getting away with violations. Referees then would call fouls on certain players, frequently resulting in victory for the opposing team." Donaghy's letter described events in a 2005 playoff series - apparently between the Mavericks and Rockets - when referees were told to enforce screening rules more strictly against a Houston player. The Mavericks came back to win the series, and the court filing asserted that the NBA profited from a longer series. Donaghy also told investigators that referees were instructed to extend a 2002 playoff series between the Lakers and Kings to seven games and did so by making calls in favor of Los Angeles, which came back to win. The series is remembered for controversial calls in Game 6, in which Sacramento's Scot Pollard and Vlade Divac fouled out. The Kings/Lakers game was particularly interesting because at the time, Jeff Van Gundy was fined a ridiculous $100,000 for saying that an official not working the game told him that Yao was being targeted with fouls in particular. The game was called very one sided and there were several other complaints about it. Stern dismissed the allegations and as always backed his referees. But what else can he do? The allegations fall right at his feet. If league officials did tell the officials to extend a series or favor or target particular players, Stern would have to have know about them or even been the one to send down the orders. If the FBI does investigate Donaghy's allegations further, David Stern could be in some trouble himself. Now, once again, more information is coming out that further implicates another referee. Donaghy placed 134 calls to referee Scott Foster between October 2006 and April 2007, the period during which he has confessed to betting on games or passing on game information to gamblers. Most of the calls lasted no more than 2 minutes. Now, keep in mind that David Stern supposedly completely investigated every other referee and found nothing out of order. But Stern was intent on saving his own skin and proving that Donaghy was a rogue ref and couldn't be bothered with details like 134 phone calls from the rogue ref to a colleague before games he officiated. Pregame.com has some interesting commentary on the the games that Foster offiated during this period. During the 2006-07 period under investigation, seven games refereed by Scott Foster had lopsided enough betting on one team to move the point spread by at least 2 points; those seven teams were undefeated against Vegas meaning that the big-money gamblers won a 7 of 7 times on Fosters games; the odds of that happening randomly are less than 1%.Statistics alone cannot convict, but its certainly noteworthy that seven times in Fosters games one team was bet extremely heavily, and all seven times that team won, said RJ Bell of Pregame.com. Two of those seven games stand out: On January 19, 2007 the Kings opened as a 1.5 favorites at Boston; betting on Sacramento moved the line to -4.5. Kings won by 5, shooting 25 free throws, versus only 14 free throws for the home team Celtics. On March 20, 2007 the Nuggets opened as 2.5 point underdogs at New Jersey. Denver was bet so heavily, they closed as 1 point favorites. Denver won by 4, shooting 32 free throws versus only 22 for the home team Nets. In prior reporting widely carried by the national media, RJ Bell of Pregame.com uncovered that big-money bettors won 15 straight lopsidedly bet games refereed by Tim Donaghy during the 2006-2007 season. First, Tim Donaghy was arrested for betting on games and influencing their outcome. Then, there were the allegations of the league handing down directives to officials to stretch out series or makes calls with an agenda. Now, there is evidence that another referee was involved in influencing games along with Donaghy. Facts seem to back the allegations that other refs were involved and that refs have influenced games. All of this with assurances from David Stern that all is well and his referees are above approach. When all of this is taken all together, it certainly doesn't look good for the commissioner. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 21:12:40 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292427 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292427 The Mavericks reportedly were willing to offer forward Brandon Bass and guard Jerry Stackhouse for Artest. The Kings wanted Josh Howard included in the deal and this seemed to halt all discussion between the 2 teams. Unless the Mavs are willing to give up Howard or the Kings get desperate (not likely) to settle for less, a deal is not likely to get done. Today is the deadline for the Lakers to let Turiaf and the Warriors know of their decision about the restricted free agent. Signs point to the Lakers letting Turiaf go. The Warriors have front loaded his contract and the Lakers currently have 10 players signed to guaranteed contracts for a total of $75.135 million and aren't likely to pay another 4.5 million to bring back a role player off the bench. The Clippers and Warriors are still playing a game of swapping players. The Clippers made the latest move by signing the Warriors' restricted free agent Kelenna Azubuike to an offer sheet Thursday. Azubuike, 24, agreed to a three-year deal, with his option for the third season. The deal is for $9.3 million, with his salary being $2.9 million, $3.1 million and $3.3 million. The Warriors have 7 days to match the offer if they want to keep Azubuike. This adds to the already swapped players of Barron Davis and Corey Maggette. According to the Globe, Tyronn Lue was hoping to join the Celtics before he signed a two-year, $5 million contract with the Bucks. Lue said he was asking the Celtics for $1.8 million a year, but the Celtics were holding firm on their offer of a one-year, $1.2 million (the veteran minimum) offer. Lue said he was disappointed in the Celtics because they wouldn't go the extra $600,000. But from the Celtics point of view, it was a lot more than $600,000. The league picks up a portion of league minimum contracts and since the Celtics are over the luxury tax, that $600,000 would have cost them 1,200,000. Along with Tyronn Lue, the Bucks also signed 30 year old veteran, Malik Allen to a contract on Thursday. Allen endeared himself to coach Scott Skiles during two seasons with the Chicago Bulls and now will be reunited with Skiles in Milwaukee. Allen will fit in a power forward rotation with fourth-year pro Charlie Villanueva and 6-8 rookie Joe Alexander, the eighth overall pick in the June draft. The Jazz have come to terms with their point guard, Deron Williams. Williams signed a 3 year deal with a year option that should be worth around $70 million dollars. Williams had wanted to reach an agreement on a contract extension before he left for USA Basketball training camp in Las Vegas. He is scheduled to leave Sunday for the Vegas and was happy to have the contract negotiations out of the way. Samuel Dalembert became a Canadian citizen and planned to play for the Canadian team in the Olympics, but there has been some controversy along the way. Supposedly, he had alienated his teammates by moving his group into a penthouse in the team's hotel headquarters, and that he had demanded more shots. Dalembert was dismissed from the team by coach Leo Rautins after a disagreement outside the team bus before they left for a game with Korea. Dalembert had this to say: "Now I see why it has been so difficult to get [NBA] guys to play for Canada," he said. "I'm very disappointed. I know how to differentiate business and pleasure. This is children's stuff. I don't throw people under the bus. I don't trash the coach. "But I read stuff that came from 'a source.' I like people to come forward. I heard that I'm a prima donna. Anyone who knows me knows I don't do that. I said I'd do anything to help raise money for Canada. I had one bad game, and I'm not committed? Please." SI speculates that Vince Carter could be the next Net to be changing teams. The Nets already have sent out two of their three stars packing, sending Jason Kidd to the Mavs and Richard Jefferson to the Bucks. Carter could be next to go as New Jersey continues to try to clear up cap space for a possible run at LeBron James in 2010. Carter, 31, has a huge contract (three more years, $49 million), but he is also a seven-time All-Star who averaged 21.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists last season. The Mavericks are the latest team to work out Darius Miles. The Celtics were impressed with his workout for them and now he has also impressed the Mavericks. A member of the Mavericks' camp said that Miles was much better than they had thought and that on a scale of 1-10 he was a solid 8. In recent weeks, Miles has had workouts with the Nets, Celtics, Suns and Mavericks, some of which went as long as 2 hours. Miles is trying to become the first player to return from an injury that was considered to be career-ending by the NBA. If he were to sign a new contract and play in 10 or more games this season, his $9 million salary would go back on Portland's books so, Portland is more than likely hoping his comeback bid fails. For his part, Miles insists that he is 100% and is hoping to catch on with a contender. He is looking for a 1 year minimum contract and with the Celtics missing out on the Posey sweepstakes, the Celtics may consider him a bit more as well. One factor that has to be considered in signing Miles is that he will be suspended for the first 10 games of the season for testing positive for what has been speculated to be a performance enhancing drug. The Pistons haven't been big players in the free agent market as GM Joe Dumars has said that he is looking for a trade rather than to sign a free agent. Speculation is that he will trade one of his veteran starters who have been together almost forever, it seems. They have been very impressed with their young point guard, Rodney Stuckey and either Chauncey Billups or Richard Hamilton will have to be moved if Stuckey is to move into the starting lineup. The word going around is that while the Pistons would probably prefer to part with Billups, the most teams would prefer the younger and cheaper Hamilton. Don't be surprised to see the Pistons shake it up this summer. I am very optimistic about Bill Walker's future as a Celtic. The kid already has the Celtics type attitude and work ethic. Scott Souza is reporting that Walker has been a familiar sight at the Celtics' workout facility. Just over two weeks after he had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee for a torn meniscus, the third knee surgery of his basketball career, Walker was back on the court yesterday firing up a succession of 3-pointers and free throws. Souza reports: Walker looked much bigger in a T-shirt and long shorts (which covered any brace on his knee, though it was apparent he was not wearing any Tony Allen-type contraption) than he did wearing a sport shirt and jeans at his introductory press conference two weeks ago. At first glance, you wouldn't even think it was the same player (the LeBron James comparison suddenly make slightly more sense). A Celtics spokesman confirmed he has been a frequent sight at HealthPoint since his surgery. Walker seems determined to come back from this surgery just as he did from the previous two, although the first 2 were much more serious. He also seems very determined to make a difference for the Celtics this season. Unlike JR Giddens, the Celtics first round pick who left Boston when he couldn't come to terms on a contract, Walker has stayed in town and has been working out with the Celtics trainers and coaches. I like this kid and hope Danny keeps him around this season. He may just be the steal of the draft. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:36:34 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292230 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292230 That is what I've been trying to figure out ever since John from Redsarmy sent me the mock-up picture that was on Wyc's phone at the DVD Premiere.First, here is KG's reaction when he first saw it.Now, here is what the New Celtics Championship ring will look like. SWEEEET! sr_adspace_id = 1330307; sr_adspace_width = 300; sr_adspace_height = 250; sr_adspace_type = "graphic"; sr_ad_new_window = true; Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:10:02 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292193 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292193 Herald Celtics willing to take big risk (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107795 format=text) Slow, steady progress suits Warriors’ Wright just right (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/other_nba/view.bg?articleid=1107822 format=text) 76ers see the upside to rookie Speights (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/other_nba/view.bg?articleid=1107826 format=text) O’Bryant introduced, works out with Celtics (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107674 format=text) Globe O'Bryant excited to get his shot (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2008/07/18/obryant_excited_to_get_his_shot?mode=PF) MetroWest Daily O'Bryant eager for fresh start (http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/sports/x2109421036/OBryant-eager-for-fresh-start) More Links After the Jump Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:11:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292173 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292173 Quarterback Erik Ainge signed a contract with the NFL's  Jets Thursday, after being picked by them in the fifth round of April's draft.  Ainge is expected to compete to be the Jets third quarterback behind Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens.  The 6-5 Ainge started 35 games for the Tennessee Vols during his college career in Knoxville, passing for more than 6300 yards and 51 touchdowns.  Ainge is the nephew of Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:47:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292137 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292137 Forgive the poor English in the title for a moment and consider the question. As anyone who has followed Boston sports over the past five years, there is a tremendous desire on behalf of fans of the Patriots and Red Sox to keep the rosters of championship teams fully intact. The result of these desires has been often nauseating pleas to re-sign unrestricted free agents for each of those team to often absurd terms. Adam Vinatieri, Dave Roberts, and on and on... their former employers didn't see fit to sign these key cogs in championship teams to long term deals and these former employers then received the scorn of many of their fans for not agreeing to those demands. There is no doubt that James Posey was a tremendous Celtic and one that every Celtics fan would like to see back as a member of the 2009 Boston Celtics. However, the contract that James Posey ultimately signed was far beyond what the Celtics were able to offer. A four year $25 million contract is very rich for a 31 year old career bench player, but James Posey is not your everyday bench player either. He gives real good hugs. I'm not sure how John Hollinger or David Berri are going measure... Thu, 17 Jul 2008 22:24:29 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291996 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291996 We have seen many instances of this over the years. Robert Parish was considered a troublemaker in Golden State they felt that he would never be a good center and couldn't wait to trade him so that they could draft Joe Barry Carroll, and yet became a Hall of Fame player in Boston. Dennis Johnson was considered a malcontent who couldn't run a team and became the glue that held the team together in Boston. Jermaine O'Neal was seen as a bust in Portland and became a dominant player in Indiana. Darko Milicic was a non-entity in Detroit only to become a player in Orlando. Steve Nash languished in Phoenix before breaking out in Dallas. And on and on. There are instances throughout the NBA. A player seems washed up, a troublemaker, a mistake, etc. only to become an All Star on the team they are traded to. Chauncey Billips was a player seen by Rick Pitino as not developing quickly enough. But yet he went to Detroit and developed very quickly. The same can be said of Jermaine O'Neal after he went to Indiana. In most cases, the difference is in the system or the coaching. Some come from a system that doesn't fit their playing style. Or the coach and the player don't get along and so the player is not given playing time or is given a reputation as a malcontent or lazy. Or, sometimes it is just the player maturing and breaking out that coincides with the trade. Sometimes it is the teammates that make a difference in that the chemistry is just right among a group of player or the chemistry doesn't work with others. Sometimes, it is the player and not the system that is the problem. I had hoped that Telfair was one of those players who would blossom when given a fresh chance with a new team, but it didn't work out that way. Telfair may still break out and find a system where he can shine, but it didn't happen in Boston. Rondo came out of a system that didn't play to his strengths at Kentucky. Because of that, he had some adjustments to make when he came to the NBA. In spite of seeming to struggle in the Kentucky system., he came into the NBA and has become a very impressive point guard already with just 2 seasons in the NBA and led the Celtics to their first championship in 22 years. There are also many cases where a coach is fired and the team does a turn around because the coach was not getting through to the players or the coach's system didn't fit his players. This is why we see so many coaching changes in the league. As there are trades and personnel changes on teams many times the coach's system no longer fits the the new players and a change has to be made. After spending a fortune to bring in highly paid players, it is usually the coach who goes and not the players. The Celtics made wholesale changes last season and the system and players fit together surprisingly quickly. The Celtics will have the same starting 5 next season to bring some continuity but the bench will be dramatically different. Their key reserve, James Posey is gone along with PJ Brown, Sam Cassell, Scot Pollard, and possibly Tony Allen and Eddie House. Patrick O'Bryant will be a new face and as the off season wears on, Danny will be adding other new faces to fill the gaps on the bench. Danny needs to carefully select the players who he feels will fit into the system and chemistry of the team. Any player not willing to buy into ubuntu should not be considered. Patrick O'Bryant is another player who may have been the victim of being in the wrong system and with the wrong coach. Don Nelson is notorious for playing his veterans and not liking to play rookies or young players. His system is a run and gun type system and not one very well suited to a back to the basket type defensive player. In his 2 seasons with the Warriors, he played in 40 games and averages 1.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and .4 blocks per game. But, he also spent some time in the D-League and there he started to show some flashes of the promise that the Warriors saw when they made him the 9th pick in the draft. In '06-07 he played in 25 games for the Bakersfield Jam and averaged 12.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks in 29.5 minutes per game. In the '07-08 season, he played in 8 games for the Jam and averaged 16.0 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.5 blocks in 36 minutes per game. Those are encouraging statistics. It is possible, with the proper coaching (Clifford Ray) and the right system (the Celtics) and the right teammates to help him develop his work ethic (KG, Perk, Leon Powe), he might just surprise a lot of people this season. There have also been reports of Stephon Marbury possibly coming to the Celtics. He has been called a cancer and a malcontent and has been blamed for a lot of the troubles the Knicks have been through in recent times. But, then again, he was playing in Isiah Thomas' system. It is possible that a change of system, a change of coaches, and a change of teammates may make all the difference in the world to make him a team player. A lot of teams are making big changes this season with both players and coaches, but just because they make coaching changes or bring in a star or several new players, it doesn't mean that they will be greatly improved. It all depends on how the new players fit into the system and how they mesh as a team. The Celtics had perfect chemistry last season and it will remain to be seen how well the new players will mesh with the old and how much they will miss the players who are gone. Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:50:35 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291958 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291958 In recent seasons the Suns have tried to sign John Salmons, Joe Johnson, Chris Duhon, Anthony Johnson and Tyronn Lue. A grand total of zero of them have wound up on their roster. Instead they choose to head to basketball meccas such as Sacramento, Atlanta, New York, Orlando, and Milwaukee. I never thought I'd see a day when [...] Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:50:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291916 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291916 So James Posey, who has helped the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics to championships, is moving on to New Orleans. The New Orleans Hornets offered Posey a 4-year $25 million contract, and the Celtics decided not to match. Naturally, the debate comes down to : Should a team pay a key role player who helped them win a championship big money or should they get someone else to do the job for less money and invest that money elsewhere? 1. Rick Bucher of ESPN.com thinks that the Boston Celtics are losing a big piece of their championship machine, and feels that the Hornets are gaining what Boston is losing : ( video in original article ) 2. However, John Hollinger isn't a big fan of the Hornets' move : He thinks that New Orleans is overpaying for a guy who can't score, and is too old. According to Hollinger's statistical research, James Posey is on track to decline sharply as each year of his contract goes by : ( For better insight into Posey's future, let's take a look at what happened to some similar players -- those who rated as statistically similar based on their performance at the same age, played primarily on the wing and were in his league as a defender. The top names on that list are Bryon Russell, Dan Majerle, Jaren Jackson, Rick Fox and Raja Bell. - Bell is only a year older and declined noticeably last season. - Majerle declined sharply starting at 30 and had his last useful season at 32. - Jackson had a quality season at 32 but played 25 games the rest of his career. - Russell lost it at 31 and never got it back, though he managed to hang around for four more years. - Fox played reasonably well until 33 and then lost it, hard, and was out of the league by 35. ) Hollinger even forecasts that James Posey is likely to be "unplayable" by age 35, the time when Posey's new contract is up. 3. I tend to agree with John Hollinger on this issue : Although he was a championship role player, $6 million per for James Posey is just ridiculous. Posey is often compared to Robert Horry, with some of the comparisons being legit, but Posey seems to rely more on athleticism to perform than Horry ever did. Unless he manages an age-inspired transformation that Michael Jordan went through in the summer of 1995, Posey will be dead meat once that athleticism wears off. Also, Rajon Rondo's rise will be the key to making up for Posey's defection. Rondo displayed a remarkable ability to wreak havoc with his combination of speed, hustle and defense in the NBA Finals. Rondo is 22, so unless major catastrophe strikes, he is only going to get better athletically and mentally. Moreover, he is the starting point guard and a more lockdown-oriented defender than Posey, so he will impact the game more than a reserve wing like Posey. Rondo is on the rise, so his impact is going to get bigger every year. Think of Manu Ginobili and Robert Horry when they won championships together with the Spurs in 2005 and 2007. Bottomline : The Celtics will be fine, as long as they find another three-point shooter to fill Posey's void. Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:35:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291709 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291709 Herald Danny Ainge must pick up the pieces (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107588 format=text) James Posey opts for deal from Hornets (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107590 format=text) ESPY Awards honor Celtics, Tom Brady (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107617 format=text) Cavaliers sign Daniel Gibson to five-year deal (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/other_nba/view.bg?articleid=1107607 format=text) ESPY Awards list (http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1107616 format=text) Globe Posey bolts Celtics for Hornets (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2008/07/17/posey_bolts_celtics_for_hornets?mode=PF) Things to keep in mind (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2008/07/17/things_to_keep_in_mind?mode=PF) C's dubbed best team (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2008/07/cs_dubbed_best.html) Lue to Bucks (http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2008/07/lue_to_bucks.html) More Links After the Jump Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:33:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291670 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291670