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The Celtics Ultimatum
The Boston Celtics are currently sitting as the second seed in a flawed eastern conference.
Consequently, they are said to have contemplated and attempted to trade for a superstar. President of Basketball operations Danny Ainge has discussed the various trades they almost made. Thus, Celtic fans continue to grow more and more anxious by the day and the rest of the NBA becomes more skeptical if they’ll ever do anything.
For years there were rumors that it was the Celtics that were the team with the best chance to get Demarcus Cousins and after the Kings put the clearance tag on and traded him to New Orleans, we wonder what are they waiting for.
Perhaps they shouldn’t be looking to trade for a superstar; the notion that they would want a superstar would mean that they believe the roster already has championship pieces.
Why wouldn’t the Celtics trade for a superstar talent like Demarcus Cousins or Jimmy Butler? Well, the Celtics aren’t quite sure what they have yet if we’re being honest. Danny Ainge stumbled upon Isaiah Thomas. As a result, Thomas jump started the team to a playoff berth by sneaking into the seventh seed.
The Boston Celtics is what is referred to simply as “The Brooklyn Picks,” which are the two most valuable things the organization have to offer in any trade, as either one could potentially be a number one pick and at the very least a top 5.
If the Celtics were to trade for a superstar, they would more than likely have to give up one if not both of these picks and one of the players they already have just to get a star caliber player. It would be reckless to deal this year’s Brooklyn pick for any available star player for one simple reason: the player they get back won’t be as good as LeBron James–not even close. The Celtics need to build their young core with an old core and aim for their title aspirations in two or three years. In addition with the approaching draft class, there are players that can fill that superstar role.
Markelle Fultz and Lonzo Ball have superstar potential, and with the Brooklyn pick this year, one of them could land with the Celtics and add another prominent playmaker to their roster. With young players like Ante Zizic and Guerschon Yabusele potentially coming to the U.S., the Celtics next season will look to have an influx of young talent-talent that can potentially prolong the careers of Thomas and Al Horford .
The 2015-2016 playoffs and finals show as proof that anything can happen. Furthermore, LeBron James has been to the Finals six years in a row and there’s a reason behind that. While the rest of the league is getting hurt, LeBron doesn’t. As a result, he has consistently maintained a level of play nobody currently playing can match.
Finally, even with the young players already on roster like Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown, the Celtics must build for the future, and continue to build their roster, developing their young players. Most of all, a team like the Celtics should not be playing for an individual title, but, rather, they should be building a dynasty.
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