Boston Celtics make the worst trade of the summer

What a joke, he is an all star and top 2 player on a championship team who has in the playoffs been the BEST player on his team including LeBron James in a couple of games. The guy is a superstar, you don't need to like it but he is objectively that good. I don't even like him that much as a player, but to not recognize his talent level is what is truly laughable.

Laughable us calling Irving a superstar

Boston are one more piece away from glory now. Why I like this trade: - Irving is a GREAT player and he has been extremely clutch in the playoffs, without question one of the best offensive players in the NBA - we are getting the best player in the trade - Irving is locked up for two more years at great deal in today`s CBA, he is only 25 - I did not want to give IT the max in the summer – we would have series problems next offseason with IT`s contract situation and tax - IT will not age well - the biggest reason why I like the trade is that even though Irving is not a good defender, our defense will be much better because IT is a huge defensive liability due to his height. I advocated trading IT for a high pick in this draft instead of AB just because I think we suffer too much with him on the defensive end... - BRK pick will not be as high as some people here think, IMO (Russel, Lin, Crabbe can out a lot of points on the board) 1) Brad Stevens MAXIMIZES TALENT. He coached Jordan Crawford into an Eastern Conference player of the month accolade. He made Evan Turner look like someone deserving of a 4-year, 60+ million dollar contract. He made 5-9 Isaiah Thomas smell somewhat like an NBA star. He's really, really good. But he was NOT an all-star before CBS. Don't be surprised if he doesn't hit those highs ever again. - "Past performance is no indication of future results." Don't be surprised if the Nets DONT have one of the 3 worst records. There are several teams (Hawks jump to mind) who have stripped themselves of talent and have far greater reason to tank. The Nets are no guarantee. What if the Nets have the 4th worst record and land the 5th pick in the draft? Or a better record and an even worse pick? I'm not going to cry that Kyrie Irving cost us Mo Bamba (and I really like Mo Bamba). - Kyrie Irving is the best player in this trade. In any trade, you can't get a 50-cent piece for 3 dimes. It takes 4 quarters. And you do it. -any reasonable trade should be painful. Danny Ainge keeps fleecing his trade partners so consistently, that we've gotten accustomed to it. This is an actual, value-for-value trade wherein the winner is unclear. I give this trade an A-.

Thomas was not going to get the max from Celtics and would have left. so the trade is really Irving for Crowder and a first rounder That is a good deal. Celtics have set themselves up for when the Warriors get $120 million in luxury tax and have to cut their team apart. As much as I love this trade for the Cavaliers, I don't necessarily hate it for the Celtics, in no small part because the teams are operating on slightly different timelines. For Cleveland, it's mostly about next season, making Thomas' expiring contract actually somewhat ideal. From Boston's standpoint, Thomas' impending free agency meant a difficult decision. As he's repeatedly made clear, Thomas expects a max deal next summer as an unrestricted free agent. I'm not convinced such an offer is forthcoming given the limited number of teams who project to have cap space, but either way re-signing Thomas would mean handing a lucrative, long-term contract to a 5-foot-9 point guard heading into his 30s. (Thomas will turn 29 during the upcoming season.) Re-signing Thomas would have pushed the Celtics deep into the luxury tax and meant tying up the vast majority of their payroll in two players (Thomas and Al Horford) in the back half of their careers. Boston might have been able to survive that with internal development from the numerous young prospects on the roster, but that would have been tricky to manage. From an age standpoint, the 25-year-old Irving fits neatly between the Celtics' youngsters and fellow newcomer Gordon Hayward (age 27). As noted, his playoff track record suggests Boston has upgraded when it really counts for a team that should be favored to reach the Eastern Conference finals each of the next two seasons. So, overall, he's unquestionably an upgrade on Thomas despite the strong performance of the incumbent Celtics point guard. The question, then, is whether Irving is enough of an upgrade to merit giving up so much else. And that's where my answer is less positive. The loss of Crowder shouldn't be minimized. His RPM rating ranked him 20th in the league last season -- better than Irving or Thomas. That rating surely flatters Crowder's impact, but he's a versatile role player on one of the league's best contracts. Trading him simultaneously weakens Boston and strengthens the rival Cavaliers, a fascinating and unusual aspect of this trade between the top two teams in the East. The loss of Crowder further compromises the Celtics' depth, a strength the last two-plus seasons since Thomas' arrival. Suddenly, Boston has lost six of the seven players who saw the most minutes for the team last season. (Only Horford remains.) The Celtics are counting on recent lottery picks Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum to fill in those minutes, but neither figures to be nearly as effective in 2017-18 in terms of helping the team win as Crowder was. (I'd bet against them surpassing Crowder in 2018-19 too.) I think this trade makes Boston less likely to earn the East's No. 1 seed next season, and probably less likely to reach the NBA Finals. Assuming the Celtics can re-sign Irving when he reaches unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2019 (he holds a 2019-20 player option), they've got enough time for the young guys to mature around him. And James' potential departure could clear a path to the NBA Finals for Boston. So I understand what Boston was thinking here. But ultimately I'm not sure I would have given up this much to get Irving.

That 2nd line up looks incredibly thin. Rozier and to a lesser extent Brown haven't shown they are even close to being regular contributors in a NBA finals quality team. Semi Ojeleye and Tatum are complete unknowns at NBA level. Baynes is a one-dimensional big man. Obviously this isn't actually going to be a line up, but geez Celtics depth looks vulnerable once you put it on paper.

Huh? How would they be certain to get Porter or Bagley? If it's the 4-5th pick that would be unlikely. How can you be so certain they are THAT good? Remember Wiggins was meant to be the next LeBron? You can't grade these guys so far out. Boston Depth: Horford/Baynes Morris/Semi Ojeleye Hayward/Tatum Smart/Brown Irving/Rozier They have an easy 9 man quality rotation there of guys who can play multiple positions (Horford 4/5, Morris 3/4, Hayward 2/3/4 likewise Tatum and Brown, Smart can play either guard or some small ball 3) They traded IT's expiring for 2 years of Irving who is a young all star who is better in the playoffs and all it cost them was Crowder and a first rounder, when they still have their own pick and the Kings/Lakers pick (what's the point of having 3-4 picks next year when you still only have 15 roster spots?) The criticism of this trade is short sighted. Boston improved and obtained further long term flexibility and resolved the IT dilemma of this summer. It's a great result. I'm not even a Celtics fan...

Ben you nailed this on the head. The question that people need to ask themselves "Does this make them better than Cleveland? Let alone Golden State?" In turn they made Cleveland deeper and sturdier. The Celtics are shallow as the kiddie pool up front. That Nets pick represented an immense probability to select one of two players that are already projected to be generation talents in Michael Porter Jr. and Marvin Bagley. Bagley as a rookie offered more potential at a position of NEED, along with Jae Crowder and his friendly contract, to give Boston a dynamic lineup. They were always going to let I.T. walk because giving him the max was never an option. By the time Bagley/Porter Jr,/Bamba/Luka, Brown and Tatum were up for extensions the contracts of Hayward and Horford would have been up and allowed a smooth transition to the next stage of greatness. This opportunity is lost. Ainge ALMOST become on of the greatest GM's in the history of the NBA, but in years to come fans and analysts alike will reminisce on what could have been.

I think you're forgetting Gordon Hayward. Hayward is a decent playmaker and will more than likely be the go-to man playmaking-wise due to his old mate Brad Stevens. Cleveland are preparing for life after LeBron which is why the pick would have had to be included. And Boston are in a win-now situation which is why they traded Markelle Fultz away and got back Tatum. Notwithstanding they also have another likely lottery pick next season anyway in the Lakers first rounder. What they get back is one of the best scorers in the league who is 25, but is already a four-time All Star, an NBA champion and a gold medal winner. IT (28 with injury concerns) & Crowder are not enough to land someone of that level.

The second people refer to Kyrie's seasons without LeBron as a reason he can't be in charge of his own team now, is the second they need to stop being listened to. He was 22 the last time he played without the King at the Cavaliers, combined with an average roster with no real future plan. He also averaged 19 points a game in their playoff run in 14/15. Then posted 25.2 ppg and 25.9 ppg in the next two playoffs. You don't think he would have learned a bit of leadership from LeBron? Professionalism? Oh no, let's just throwback to when he was 22 and write him off forever. *facepalm*

And already on the decline!

Rubbish. The Celtics gave away their best defenders. Your kidding yourself.

There is a huge difference between the 1st pick and the 5th in value..... - The bottom of the East is absolutely dreadful - Russell and Crabbe, along with Lin actually playing and development of Levert/RHJ - They have no reason to tank and will be trying all year while the other terrible teams starting mailing it in - Had poor luck in close games last year which I would expect to re-centre somewhat I don't expect them to make the playoffs, but I don't think this is a slam dunk worst team in the league or even a slam dunk bottom 3 team. Once you get outside of the top 3 picks the upside for a transformative talent reduces significantly, hence the pick getting traded.

I don't think the trade is as bad as you are making out here. I think you are undervaluing Kyrie. There are a few things to consider: 1. The last season Kyrie played without Lebron was only his 3rd in the NBA. He turned 22 after the All-Star break. He was the best player on team where the next best was Luol Deng who played less than half the games and saw his worst per game outputs in 6 years. You can argue that GREAT players get it done regardless. That's true, but the list of post 2000 lottery picks who took their fledgling teams to 50 or more wins in their 3rd season is quite short. There are 16 players in total which includes the likes of: Lebron James Chris Paul Kevin Durant Derrick Rose in his MVP season It also includes: Blake Griffin (the year CP3 join him) Dwyane Wade (the year Shaq joined him) Amare Stoudemire (the year Nash joined him) Westbrook (had KD) Players like Kyrie who couldn't get it done in their 3rd year: Melo Dwight Howard John Wall Demarcus Cousins Chris Bosh Kevin Love Steph Curry Andrew Bogut I've been selective in those lists but I think it proves my point that early dominance is hard. 2. Kyrie is only 25 and about to enter his prime. IT is 28 and will be 29 while probably lookiing for (and getting) a 5 year max deal. I don't think Boston would be prepared to commit $30+mil(conservatively) to someone who would be 34 by the end of the contract. Instead they get Kyrie entering his prime at $20mil a year. 3. Isaiah Thomas might have already played his best season. I'll admit that this is speculative. That doesn't mean it's wrong. A 5'9 point guard who plays as hard as IT is only gonna last so long in the NBA. Defenders are getting bigger as they are forced to deal with bigger bodied superstars. The teams that play best against dynamic ball handlers are the ones that get physical. We found out this past season that beating up James Harden is a great way to slow him down. Steph Curry hates physical contact and Chris Paul has a history of struggling against taller bigger bodied defenders. I'm not convinced that Thomas would be able to continue on his current trajectory for much longer. All that being said, I definitely think the Cavs got the better end of the deal. if Lebron and IT walk after this season they have Crowder, Zizic and probably a top 3 pick to begin their rebuild. (and Love....) This doesn't necessarily make it a bad trade for Boston. The Celtics are moving in to their championship window with a 25 year old point guard with proven Finals experience. A top 10 wing. A veteran centre and an incredibly promising rookie. That should be more than enough to attract the right complimentary pieces and rules the east for a few years.

Quoting Green and Rose as defensive difference makers is laughable. You can't bank on Osman being a major playoff contributor when he is so untried in the NBA. They will be better because Irving and Hayward can carry a team in the playoffs, say what you want about Irving (and I do) as an overall year long player, his value in the playoffs is immense. Along with KD he would be about the best 1 on 1 scorer in the league. The Celtics have a better chance of beating the Cavs this year than last year, with the changes they have made.

How do you figure they are better come the playoffs? Boston have lost probably their two best defenders this off season in Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder. With Cleveland getting better defensively adding Jeff Green, Jae Crowder and a PG in Derrick Rose who is a better defender than Kyrie will ever be. Not to mention Cedi Osman who is a really good 3 and D defender coming in from a couple of seasons in Europe. Crowder is more than a solid player and he is an in your face forward defender the Cavs didn't have last year. If anything the Cavs have gotten stronger.

Nope. The bottom of the East is worse and the Nets are better than last year. Irving is younger and under longer team control than IT (expiring at the end of the year and up to give a 30+ small PG a max 4-5 year extension? yeesh) Crowder is a solid player but that's the price of doing business to get a superstar. Celtics may not be much better in the regular season, but with Hayward and Irving they are SO much better in the playoffs now.

Nope. The bottom of the East is worse and the Nets are better than last year. Irving is younger and under longer team control than IT (expiring at the end of the year and up to give a 30+ small PG a max 4-5 year extension? yeesh) Crowder is a solid player but that's the price of doing business to get a superstar. Celtics may not be much better in the regular season, but with Hayward and Irving they are SO much better in the playoffs now.