Tag: Nets

As Kevin Durant Trade Speculation Drags On Celtics Should Stay the Course With Core

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While the Kevin Durant soap opera drags on, it seemed like any interest the Celtics may have had in the Slim Reaper evaporated once they started bolstering the current roster with legit rotation guys like Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari. These are the exact kind of moves that seemingly fill the holes that the 2021-22 team had. But then a late night Woj bomb said the C’s were still in on KD. In retrospect it looks like Woj and/or Shams may have been doing the bidding of Nets GM Sean Marks looking to drum up a better return, who 4 weeks after the initial trade request has “failed” to find a new home for Durant. Whether that’s by design or not is debatable because it’s impossible to get equal value for a player like Durant. The Jazz getting FOUR first rounders for Rudy Gobert didn’t do teams hoping to lowball the Nets any favors either. Hence, the trade speculation continuing into its third month which is unheard of in today’s NBA.

Either way the question will not go away as there have been reports of specific trade offers the Celtics have made to Brooklyn as well as counter offers by the Nets. (Tatum completely sidestepped the question when asked if he wants the team to keep Brown or go after Durant so that must be confidence inspiring for Jaylen.) My original point remains though, the Celtics need to stay the course rather than blow up their core to bring in Kevin Durant, who is without a doubt an all-time talent, but will also be 34 when the season starts with a significant injury history. As tempting as it is to chase the dragon here after years of the Celtics promising fireworks (and Kevin Durant is the Drogon of NBA trade bait), if I’m the Celtics I am standing pat.

The Celtics literally just got to the NBA Finals and lost to a once in a generation type dynasty. Disappointing, but losing to a team that has won four of the last eight NBA championships is hardly a reason to blow up your entire roster. If I could get Durant without giving up Tatum or Brown then yes absolutely 100%, but that’s only happening in NBA2K after you turn off the fair trade feature.

The Nets super team experiment clearly has imploded with some going so far as to call it “the biggest disappointment in NBA history.” I’m not ready to give it that lofty title quite yet, but it is the kind of calamity that people will write books about. After Kyrie hemmed and hawed about whether he even wanted to come back to Brooklyn (all while trying to secure that max deal from the very same employer), he finally decided to opt in for the last year of his deal. Not long after Kyrie hit send on the tweet, Kevin Durant decided he’d had enough of the clown show and wants off the ride.

While the internet mockery of the Nets has died down in recent weeks, it still seems like just a matter of time until Durant is dealt. With a young team on the verge of a title and having just brought in key reinforcements, I hope Brad Stevens doesn’t try to move up the timeline and make a trade that could derail the whole thing.

PS – With all that being said, it would be high quality entertainment if the Celtics were to trade for Durant and then win a championship at the expense of yet another Brooklyn trade. Nets fans would be screaming at their TVs like Obi-Wan on Mustafar.

Kyrie Irving Was Acting Like an Insufferable Asshole Once Again Before the Nets Celtics Game

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Is Kyrie gonna read some horoscopes and tarot cards like your earthy crunchy ex-girlfriend after the game too?

I understand this probably comes off as sour grapes to anyone that hasn’t had to listen to Kyrie’s bizarre press conferences and media appearances on a daily basis (buckle up Nets fans), but I swear the Celtics dodged a bullet when this guy decided to skip town. I’m not a very religious or spiritual person so I’m not here to dump on anyone’s beliefs, but seriously what in the hell is Kyrie doing here? He is legit every girl I went to school with that uses crystals and what position the moon is in to guide their life decisions.

If there’s one thing I give credit for it’s for just not giving a shit how out to lunch you appear to be to just about everyone because this little act came just hours after Charles Barkley roasted Kyrie for his media act.

The Celtics Are Hosting the Nets on Christmas Day

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Christmas Day NBA is my favorite sports day of the year hands down. You get five marquee basketball games to watch from your morning mimosa coffee all the way to your post-Xmas dinner blackout when all the IPAs you’ve been guzzling catch up to you late night. Obviously 2020 is a little bit different as I had Thanksgiving dinner at my house with just my wife and my dog like I live in Siberia, but Christmas Day NBA is a tradition that needs to continue. Not to mention we get gifted with the excellent Christmas present sneakers (we used to get Christmas Day jerseys before the Nike overlords stole that joy from us).

The Celtics are no stranger to Christmas Day games as they were featured for five straight seasons during the Pierce, KG, Ray Allen era when they were routinely one of the best teams in the league. They got relegated to spectators during much of the post-Big 3 rebuilding era and didn’t play again on Christmas until 2016, but the Celtics actually hosted their first Christmas Day game *ever* in 2017.

Now we turn to the actual matchup, which is so choice. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and co. vs the rebuilt on the fly sudden powerhouse New Jersey Brooklyn Nets led by Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Now Kyrie would like everyone to think he doesn’t care about any perceived “rivalry” with his former team in Boston, but he does seem to dodge the Celtics every time the Nets play them. This would be Kyrie’s first game back in Boston since leaving the C’s in free agency if he does indeed suit up. With his buddy KD back in action though I would expect Kyrie to want to show off his shiny new toy.

And for that reason…

This will be the biggest rivalry shit talking season between myself and James in a decade when the Patriots made a habit of breaking my heart and losing to the Giants. Well after YEARS of us roasting all Nets fans for the trade that shall not be named…

…Brooklyn is looking for some long awaited revenge. How this Nets team is actually going to mesh though remains to be seen. With notable pill Kyrie, otherworldly talented yet hyper sensitive KD, and a brand new first year coach in Steve Nash, the Nets are either going to come out of the gates on fire like the ’07-’08 Celtics and win 66 games orrr they’ll be a complete dumpster fire.

So even though Kemba Walker will miss this game with his everlasting gobstopper of a knee injury, I need Tatum to drop 40 on the Nets on Christmas Day. Don’t want it, need it.

Steve Nash is the New Coach of the Brooklyn Nets

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ESPN – Hall of Fame guard Steve Nash has signed a four-year contract to become the next coach of the Brooklyn Nets, sources told ESPN. The Nets announced the hiring Thursday afternoon.

In recent weeks, Nets owner Joe Tsai and general manager Sean Marks have been aggressive in recruiting Nash to make the leap that he had so far resisted in his retirement as a transcendent player: head coaching.

The Nets are keeping Jacque Vaughn as the lead coach and making him the highest-paid assistant in the league, sources said. Vaughn made a strong impression on Tsai and Marks after taking over for Kenny Atkinson in February, including during the league’s restart in Orlando, and he likely would’ve been the Nets choice had Nash been unconvinced of taking the job, sources said.

My first reaction was WOW Steve Nash is jumping into coaching! Followed immediately by wow the Nets are AGAIN hiring a head coach with zero coaching experience just six years after the unmitigated disaster that was the Jason Kidd experiment. But in all seriousness, I love this move for the Nets.

Ironically enough, Nash and Kidd went into the HOF the same year, but Nash is a different story entirely. A lot of people don’t realize Nash has actually been running the Canadian National Team for years as its GM from 2012-2019. So he has quietly been developing his team building chops for a while behind the scenes. I completely forgot he was a consultant for the Warriors too so he apparently already has a relationship with Kevin Durant. Add in the fact the Nets’ GM Sean Marks was a teammate of Nash’s in Phoenix and he’ll have solid backing right out of the gate.

Despite all that I do wonder how Nash as the guy in charge for the first time will mesh with mercurial superstars in Kyrie Irving and Durant. But these guys likely hand picked Nash so they should be on board. It will be interesting to see how the three work together when things inevitably get rocky like they do for any team. We’ll see just how much of LeBron has rubbed off on Kyrie, as LeBron is infamous for working behind the scenes to hire and fire coaches.

Nash is an extremely intelligent guy who has played with Hall of Famers, superstars, and mercurial talents like Kobe Bryant, Shaq, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Grant Hill, Amar’e Stoudemire, Dwight Howard, Jason Kidd, and Joe Johnson among others. This guy has probably been an armchair psychologist for the better part of 20 years. He played with Ron Artest for christs sake.

Not to mention he has been teammates with a handful of guys that went into coaching themselves like Kidd, Avery Johnson, Walter McCarty, and Steve Blake. He even played for Danny Ainge in the late 90s!

This is all before you even mention just how great of a player Steve Nash truly was. He’s a 2x MVP and an 8x All-Star so this isn’t some stats nerd holding the clipboard, this is one of the greatest players of all time. Yet he’s still young enough at 46 for Durant and Kyrie to be violently aware of Nash’s stature as a legend of the game. That grants him boatloads of respect just walking through the door.

Although as a rookie head coach Nash needs to be prepared for the ball busting that will inevitably come from the veterans on the team for his ill advised Sports Illustrated cover shoot in LA.

I am fascinated thinking about how Nash will coach his team considering he was part of arguably the most famous offense ever created (behind the Triangle Offense) with the Seven Seconds or Less Suns. He won two MVPs playing for Mike D’Antoni in that style of offense so I wonder is something like that going to be his bread and butter? Add in the fact he was a consultant with the Warriors and you get a guy that has institutional knowledge of how to run a fast paced, pick and roll focused, three ball launching type of offense. Kyrie would EAT in that type of offense. Now he obviously has two superstars on his roster that can score from anywhere regardless of the offense, but Nash is more than aware of how too many stars on one team not buying into a system can sabotage a seemingly great thing. Remember his comments from his time in LA where he not so subtly criticized the offense they installed/the lack of adoption from some of their core guys.

“I think Dwight just didn’t hide the fact that he didn’t like it. You either have to decide and say ‘I’m not going to like it and move on or just eat it and make it work. You could tell he wasn’t committed to moving on. He didn’t like it. He was stuck in ‘I don’t like it mode.’ I’m not putting it on him but you can tell it really bothered him.”

…Howard resisted playing pick-and-roll with a point guard who perfected that play.

“He wanted to get the ball in the post,” Nash said. “Kobe can be a pain in the [butt]. Tough beans. That’s tough beans. Instead of being like, That’s Kobe and moving on and trying to work with it, it bothered him and ruffled his feathers. The ball didn’t move enough for him. When the ball doesn’t move enough, it means he didn’t get the ball enough.”

Either way I think his collection of experience of being the best player in the world, the pilot of the best offense in the league, the teammate of future NBA coaches, the elder statesman on a disastrous Lakers team, the GM of Team Canada, and a consultant for the All-World Warriors teams puts him in a unique position as a rookie head coach. I’m excited to see what he does for the Nets even if I do hope the Celtics crush them for the next decade.

Kyrie Irving Elected VP of NBA Players Association. HAHAHA

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Kyrie Irving is now second in command of the NBA Players Association, and his fellow players just put him there. Only in America.

But seriously, Kyrie is the real life version of Michael Scott who says things just to see what happens.

The guy who famously said ridiculous things like “What does government mean to you?” and “Fuck Thanksgiving” is now going to have a hand in shaping the future of the league.

This is a list of ridiculous stuff Kyrie said in 2017 alone. That is who now has his hand on the bag representing every player in the league. Good luck guys. I’m sure negotiations will go well when he tells Adam Silver he’s not woke enough and moves to have all Christmas Day games cancelled.

But seriously, Kyrie is going to say something outrageous in a meeting sooner than later and then blow up when it becomes a news story.

You are a celebrity that gets paid millions of dollars a year so yes people pay attention to what you say. And now Kyrie’s in a position where his words and actions will have a real affect on his NBA peers, which is something he has not shown a willingness to accept in the past.

So we’ll see how this goes because Vice President of the Players Association is far from a symbolic position.

Twitter is already batting a thousand with reactions to the news.

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The Gamblers Guide to Betting on the Celtics and the Atlantic Division This Year

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So we’re two weeks into the 2019-20 NBA season and the Celtics are a solid 4-1 with wins over the Knicks (twice), the Raptors, and an incredible comeback win over the Bucks. Their only loss came on opening night to the Sixers, made worse by the sight of Al Horford in a Philly jersey. The Celtics look like they’ll be a pretty good team made better possibly with addition by subtraction. Kemba Walker looks like a match made in heaven as a guy who can drop 30 a night, yet is more than happy to pass up a last shot to blossoming superstars like Jayson Tatum.

What made that Tatum game winner even better was that it was the exact same play that the Celtics ran in Orlando last year leading to Kyrie throwing a fit on the court for not getting the ball. Oh and Kyrie continues to be an absolute PILL in New Jersey, memorialized by Jackie MacMullan’s great piece last week. Enjoy the ride, Nets fans.

Now for the most important part: the gambling.  Its a little early to overreact one way or the other and the Celtics’ unlikely come from behind double digit win over the Bucks probably skews things a little bit. But pick your spots with this C’s team and you could make some decent cash as they continue to surprise people.

  • Philadelphia 76ers
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 57-27, 2nd in the East
    • Key Storylines: Addition of Al Horford, Finally Getting Over the Hump, Overcoming Lack of Depth
    • 5-0 Against the Spread

The Sixers took their biggest weakness last year, a lack of bench depth, and doubled down on it. They lost Jimmy Butler and JJ Reddick, but picked up big man Al Horford to pair with Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. The Sixers have arguably the best starting 5 in the league, but the end of the bench is pretty barren yet again. With that being said they are 5-0 and the current No. 1 seed in the East so while they don’t have much margin for error, they are one of the most talented squads in the league.

  • Boston Celtics
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 48-34, 3rd in the East
    • Key Storylines: Loss of Kyrie Irving and Al Horford, Addition of Kemba Walker, Addition by Subtraction, Jayson Tatum the All-Star
    • 3-2 ATS

If the Celtics are going to go anywhere this year its going to largely be due to Jayson Tatum. Sure Kemba Walker is the latest max free agent in town and Jaylen Brown just got PAID, but this team needs Tatum to become an elite wing player this season if they want to do some damage. I’ve been predicting big things for Tatum despite a less than stellar second season. So far this season he looks excellent averaging 22 PPG while shooting 40% from the field, an impressive 48% from three and an abysmal 75% from the line. Along with Pascal Siakam, Tatum was voted by ESPN as the most likely player to make their first All-Star team in the East, both earning 68.2% of the votes. With Tatum and likely Kemba making the All-Star team, an improved Brown, a finally looking like a basketball player again Gordon Hayward, and All-World defense from Marcus Smart, this team could be in business. As we seem to say every year since KG and Perk left town, the Celtics will need someone to step up as a rim protector/rebounder/big man presence. Whether thats Enes Kanter, Daniel Theis or Robert Williams evolving into the role, the C’s will need someone to step up if they want to compete with the Sixers.

  • Brooklyn Nets
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 45-37, 5th in the East
    • Key Storylines: Addition of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, Kyrie Still a Pill
    • 2-4 ATS

This will be a much safer bet next season when Kevin Durant returns to the court, assuming he’s healthy, but in the meantime they will be a fun team to watch. Despite all his bizarre antics and issues with the media, Kyrie Irving remains one of the most electric one on one players in the league. While thats not necessarily the best path to winning a title, it definitely will steal the Nets some games they have no business winning.

  • Toronto Raptors
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 45-37, 6th in the East
    • Key Storylines: Defending Champs, Loss of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, Growth of Pascal Siakam
    • 4-2 ATS

Man what a roller coaster ride 2019 has been for Drizzy Drake’s favorite squad. Sorry let me clarify, I meant Drake’s hometown team the Raptors not his other favorite squad the Golden State Warriors. Winning their first title behind a Herculean effort from Kawhi Leonard solidifying his spot as the best player in the NBA…to Kawhi walking away and now defending their title with Pascal Siakam and not much else. Siakam was voted by ESPN as the co-favorite to earn their first time All-Star bid in the East. Its hard to be mad as the defending champs, but they went from the favorites (especially with a rapidly imploding Warriors team) to a team that will be scrapping for a bottom half seed in the East this year.

  • New York Knicks
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 26-56, 13th in the East
    • Key Storylines: ….lottery picks and 2020 Free Agency?
    • 1-6 ATS

If you bet real, actual, American dollars on the New York Knicks then you are on your own. Sure Marcus Morris is great to watch when he’s on, but you are banking on the latest iteration of James Dolan’s madness here. Maybe if you get them in a parlay, but other than that I cannot advise gambling on this dumpster fire.

So to wrap it up, who has the best shot at winning the division? Lets not get ahead of ourselves and ask who’s going to take down LeBron and the Lakers or Kawhi and the Clippers in the Finals quite yet. As of late October, the Sixers had become -200 favorites to win the Atlantic, improving from -160 on opening night. The Celtics remained the second-favorite, but were well back at +420, only a shade ahead of the new-look Raptors at +490 with all odds via Sports Betting Dime. Expect those odds to be a little closer together when they’re updated next. Boston’s impressive 116-105 win over the 60-win Bucks made a statement that Brad Stevens’ team is going to be a tough out this year.

I LOVE the Celtics at +420 to win the division. Sure that means catching the Sixers and winning 50+ games, who ESPN has them finishing 9 games behind, but those are odds to bet on. The Sixers at -160 is almost even money and forget it if Embiid misses time with the annual injury or load management concerns. The Raptors feel pretty unlikely to leapfrog both Boston and Philly so I’m not sold on them, and I think this season is a holding pattern for Brooklyn and yet another rebuilding year for the Knicks. So slap down some cash on the Celtics and enjoy the ride.

#The300sPodcast – Next Up for the Celtics: Kemba Walker

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Red and Mattes jump into The 300s Podcast studio to discuss all the swirling Celtics rumors that are out there. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; the NBA Offseason is the best show on TV.

– Kemba Walker signing a max deal with the Celtics?

– Kyrie Irving is a PILL

– Al Horford is likely gone

– Are the Celtics’ young guys getting off too easy for their role in the drama around the team last season?

– Recapping the Celtics draft night and what it means for the 2019-20 roster

– NBA Free Agency and potential fits for the C’s

The Celtics Now Belong to Jayson Tatum

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Danny Ainge refused to include Jayson Tatum in any Anthony Davis deal (as he should have). Kyrie Irving is as good as gone. Al Horford just opted out of his last year. Look around guys.

The Celtics now belong to Jayson Tatum.

If you had asked me two years ago (23 months ago but whos counting) I would have traded “every player on the Celtics roster” for Anthony Davis. But so much has changed since then. AD shot his way out of New Orleans, he demanded a trade to the Knicks or the Lakers, his agent Rich Paul tried to strong arm a deal to LA mid-season and then made it wildly clear that AD would not re-sign with Boston. Now I get it that it’s Danny Ainge’s job to call that bluff and pull the trigger on a trade because A. Davis may end up loving Boston like Kevin Garnett did and B. Davis suddenly would be sacrificing $50 Million dollars to leave Boston for LA. But, by landing in LA, Davis and Paul both get exactly what they wanted. Maybe it was a bluff, maybe it wasn’t. All I know is I’m not trading Tatum and the rest of the team for a guy who may or may not play in Boston for less than 12 months. I’m just not doing it. Tatum has shown way too much promise and you’d have to throw in heart and soul guys like Marcus Smart *just* to make the money work. Pass.

As for the Kyrie situation, I have been going back and forth on my thoughts because I hate reacting to news that hasn’t happened. I don’t want to bury a guy for a decision he hasn’t made yet. BUT, it sure seems like Kyrie is already out the door. There are reports that the Celtics are resigned to losing him in free agency. In fact Adam Himmelsbach wrote in the Globe that Kyrie has essentially “ghosted” the Celtics leading up to free agency, which would be the least surprising shit I’ve heard about him if true. Kyrie has shown that, despite all his grandiose speeches and delusions of grandeur as this elder statesman, he is just immature. A leader, or even a grown ass adult for that matter, handles last season very differently. I’m 30 and even I know that publicly criticizing younger, more impressionable co-workers is a piss poor way to inspire confidence and improve performance. Read a management book on one of your 6 hour flights for christ’s sake. Even Cleveland.com is criticizing Kyrie for making the same mistakes as the guy he so desperately wanted to get away from on the Cavs.

That doesn’t mean I think things are beyond repair though; I honestly believe Kyrie could come back, show a little embarrassment at the way everything has been handled the past 12 months, put up a good month of basketball and all would be forgiven. But, I just don’t think thats the way he’s wired.

And this is why the Boston Celtics do not kowtow to superstars. The C’s did everything they possibly could have to appease their young superstar in Kyrie Irving and he still is less than two weeks away from likely leaving them at the altar. You may need to do that in order to win an NBA title, but I’d rather live and die with guys like Marcus Smart and Isaiah Thomas than beg a superstar to please come play for our historic franchise. Why?

Woj also tweeted earlier today that Horford has reportedly opted out of his contract.

To be completely honest, I fully expected this from big Al. He is 33 years old with one year left on his deal in a suddenly barren free agent market. This is his last chance to get a long term deal. So he could opt in and cash the $30M check, or he could opt out and potentially negotiate a 3-year $60M deal to stay with the C’s and secure the bag for another $30M. Nobody is going to pay Horford $30M per on his next deal so it makes perfect sense for him to opt out. Orrr he could see the writing on the wall in Boston and try to take a lesser deal to jump ship to a more clear cut contender. Except, theres not so many clear cut contenders out there now with Golden State’s rash of injuries, Kawhi’s uncertainty in Toronto, LA’s revival with AD, Philly’s 3 starters heading towards free agency [plus Ben Simmons needing a max extension next summer], Milwaukee lurking, not to mention the apparent turmoil in Houston. So theres a whole lot of second tier teams that think they have a legit shot at a title next year.

I know Mattes wrote about this potential deal before, but with Al Horford opting out it makes a trade for Mike Conley seem unlikely at this point. Not that a soon to be 32-year-old point guard would necessarily become the face of the Celtics, but its another legit player seemingly off the board. In fact, just check out Mattes’ entire breakdown of what the Celtics can do this offseason with AD off the board.

So to Tatum, Brown and the other young guys: you all privately and publicly battled with Kyrie last year for mostly petty reasons. Kyrie is definitely to blame for that, but Tatum, Brown and co. aren’t without fault. Either way the team suffered as a result. Tatum, Brown and the young guys reached Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals without Kyrie (and Hayward) so I get it. Well now Kyrie is all but gone so here you go. It’s your team now Jayson. Jaylen can be your 1A, but this is your team.

Tatum has the best pedigree, the highest ceiling, has shown the most elite offensive flashes, and has the length to play D, can be a spot up shooter or get to the rim. I am excited to see what a 3rd year Jayson Tatum looks like with the ball in his hands a lot more. I think Tatum will be an All-NBA player before long….but he better be. Danny just bet the next decade of the Celtics’ fortunes on Tatum being that good. Because if he’s not, we have become the Atlanta Hawks.

OK We Now Know Kyrie Irving is as Good as Gone, but I’m Not Buying Brooklyn Just Yet

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Image result for kyrie irving

While the biggest news story from the past 24 hours in the Association is obviously the fact that we have a new champion – and I mean a truly “new” champion, as the Toronto Raptors just won their first-ever NBA title – we also already received our first big free-agent news break on Thursday. And it involves none other than one Kyrie Irving.

On Wednesday, Kyrie fired his agent Jeff Wechsler and signed with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. As a result, the Internet then exploded on Thursday with a hailstorm of “KYRIE IS GOING TO THE NETS” articles; seriously, pretty much everyone and their brother seems to think this absolutely, without a doubt, unquestionably means Kyrie will be in black and white next season. After all, he wouldn’t sign with Jay-Z’s agency if he wasn’t also obviously going to sign with the NBA franchise Jay-Z partly owns, right?

“Sources” are also saying that he is “preparing to sign with the Nets.” So it’s gotta be true then, right? RIGHT???!!!

Here’s the thing, though, folks: Jay-Z sold his stake in the team and gave up any ownership rights to the franchise six years ago! Everyone seems to be forgetting that Jay-Z is no longer (officially at least) associated with the Brooklyn Nets. He will forever be connected with the club, especially after being the driving force behind their big move from New Jersey to the legendary rapper’s hometown in 2012. But again, Jay-Z is no longer a part-owner of the team and has not been for over half a decade.

Image result for jay-z nets

H.O.V.A. gave up his role with the Nets a long time ago.

Roc Nation also represents over 20 other NBA athletes (as well as plenty of athletes in pretty much every other sport) from various teams across the league. And besides Caris LeVert, none of them are big-time Nets players – or even on the Nets roster to begin with.

And finally, let’s not act like Kyrie hasn’t mislead us before. Remember last October when he directly told the TD Garden crowd that he was planning on re-signing with the Celtics this summer?

To be honest, I think Kyrie’s signing with Roc Nation has much more to do with his interest in the overall entertainment industry as opposed to an undying allegiance to the Nets. Sure, I do believe he might be seriously interested in playing in Brooklyn. It makes sense, and it could indeed happen. But Kyrie has also always been about his brand off the court, and what better way to take such pursuits to the next level than signing with one of the greatest business men/entertainers in history?

Again, Kyrie signing with the Nets would be quite the boon for all involved. After a sixth-place finish in the East and giving Philly a run for their money in the first round of this year’s playoffs, the Nets are definitely a team on the rise. A guy like Kyrie could easily vault them into the top half of the conference in 2019-20. However, the team would likely need much more than just Kyrie to make them true contenders, and Kyrie knows it. The Nets do have the money to bring in another player along with Kyrie. A lot of people think this might finally be the chance for him to team up with his best bud Jimmy Butler. Kevin Durant is also a client of Roc Nation. Just sayin’.

Image result for jimmy butler kyrie

Kyrie and Jimmy have always been best buds…

But the Knicks still loom large on pretty much everyone’s horizon. The Lakers also make a LOT of sense for Kyrie, and to be honest they’re the team I’m predicting he ultimately ends up with. Not only would he reunite with the guy with whom he won a ring a few years ago, but he and LeBron have also seemed to rekindle quite the bromance lately. Plus, what better place than Southern Cali to keep making headway in the movie industry?

Image result for kyrie irving

…but the King will always be his true love.

So, while it’s pretty safe to say Kyrie will not be a Celtic next season – which, everyone knows, I am more than OK with – I’m not ready to say that we officially know where the first big NBA free agent is headed this offseason. The feelings, desires, and “reported intentions” of NBA athletes today could mean absolutely zilch tomorrow, and we still have a long way to go on this one, folks.

Stay tuned.

Today Marks the 5 Year Anniversary of the Infamous Boston Celtics Brooklyn Nets Trade of Pierce and Garnett for ALL the Draft Picks

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So Facebook reminded me that today marks the 5 year anniversary of the Celtics-Nets trade of Paul Pierce and KG for a BOATLOAD of draft picks. At the time I was a young’n living in Allston still holding onto the heyday of the Celtics. Hell, that 2012 NBA playoffs commercial for the Celtics is still my favorite NBA commercial to this day.

Young, athletic teams are exciting, but in my opinion nothing is more fun to watch than the old, proud, savvy veterans making a last stand.

I still vividly remember when the trade was first announced on ESPN because I was sitting at White Horse crushing some $2 Coors Lights. At the time I was pretty bummed because I loved Paul Pierce and KG is my favorite Celtic of all time. Cue the Facebook memory!

This was the best Celtics squad of my lifetime finally broken up, and probably a couple of years too late. But don’t tell that to former Nets GM Billy King, who was more than willing to pay top dollar for guys entering their age-36 and age-37 seasons in Pierce and Garnett.

Just look at the fucking quotes from King and former Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov.

“Honestly, did I think we could pull something like this off? No,” Nets general manager Billy King said during a Friday conference call. “… But (Celtics GM) Danny (Ainge) and I just kept working at it and got to the point where we both were comfortable.”

“Today, the basketball gods smiled on the Nets,” team owner Mikhail Prokhorov said in a statement. “With the arrival of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, we have achieved a great balance on our roster between veteran stars and young talents. This team will be dazzling to watch and tough to compete against.”

Laugh out loud funny looking back.

Obviously that trade has been roasted in the years since and while it seemed like an overpay at the time, it wasn’t completely outlandish. People, Sports Illustrated included, thought the Nets were going to be awesome.

So the thinking was, “welp whats a few late first round picks?”

As we joked on the podcast the other day, the Celtics drafting this year at No. 27 overall is house money — just draft an absolute scrub or roll the dice on an asshole. Late first rounders in the NBA are rarely game changers.

Except, as we all know, the Nets experiment bombed miserably. Historically bad. I joke with my buddy who is a Nets fan that this is going to be the greatest 30 for 30 ever.

For the price of FOUR first round picks the Nets got 75 games out of Paul Pierce and 96 games out of KG. In those two years the Nets went 44-38 and 38-44.

The Nets then blew it up and proceeded to go:

  • 21-61 (2015-16)
  • 20-62 (2016-17)
  • 28-54 (2017-18)

Holy. Shit. What a bad deal.

Meanwhile, with those Nets picks the Celtics went on to draft and/or acquire via trade:

  • James Young – No. 17 overall (2014)
  • Jaylen Brown – No. 3 overall (2016)
  • Jayson Tatum – No. 1 overall (2017) *Celtics traded down to No. 3 to take Tatum and in the process picked up the following piece below
  • Kings 2019 1st round pick
  • Kyrie Irving – via trade of the Nets’ No. 8 overall pick, Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and a second round pick

So we actually get one more bite at the apple due to Danny’s draft day trade last year. As long as the Kings don’t get the No. 1 overall pick it goes to the Celtics and that will officially wrap up this debacle of a Nets trade.

Thanks again to Mikhail, Jay-Z, Billy King, and the borough of Brooklyn for fast tracking the Celtics rebuild and putting us back on the brink of the NBA Finals in just 5 years! If Jayson Tatum becomes the 1st-Team All-NBA player like I think he will then Nets fans probably have no choice but to become full blown Celtics fans. I mean when you think about it, this is basically the Bizarro Nets. God its good to be a Boston fan.

 

PS – Oh yea, Jason Terry was part of that deal too, but the Jet only played one season with the Nets as well. Terry is *still* playing by the way as he just wrapped up his 18th season with the Bucks.

Double PS – Lets go back and look at some of the reactions to this trade when it was announced because with hindsight being 20/20 these are some of the worst takes you’ll ever see.