I think the Celts have to be a lock for the NBA finals next year. Why didn't I put a bet down on them a couple of weeks ago when I was in Vegas?
Knowing the Celtics, I knew it had to be this... http://www.nba.com/celtics/history/RetiredNumbers.html
OK, I realize that folks in Boston are all atwitter over the trade but why does ESPN have to drag the Rockets into the conversation? From Bill Simmons' column today on ESPN.com: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/070730 Just think of these three guys thrown together. All three carried playoff teams further than they should have gone: Pierce in 2002, Garnett in 2004, Allen in 2005. All three were on suicide watch as recently as six weeks ago, wondering how they could extract themselves from untenable (and unwinnable) situations. All three are about to become relevant again in April, May and June. Would you bet against them having monster seasons? Would you bet against them embarking on a 100-game mission to make the Finals? Hell, have three star teammates ever had more to prove in one season? There's one precedent: In August 1996, when the Rockets mortgaged their future by trading Sam Cassell and Robert Horry to the Suns for Charles Barkley, teamed the Chuckster with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler and crossed their fingers that a paltry supporting cast (basically, Eddie Johnson, Mario Elie and a gigantic hole at point guard) wouldn't sink them. Although Dream and Glide already had won titles, their careers were at a similar point as the KG-Pierce-Allen trio -- each (including Barkley) had peaked as impact players, but each had something left in his tank. Dream averaged a 23 points and 9 rebounds, Barkley recorded 19-13.5, Drexler chipped in with an 18-6-6, and the Rockets won 57 games and came within two victories of the '97 Finals, losing to the Jazz for one reason: Rookie point guard Matt Maloney was absolutely eviscerated by John Stockton. This was like watching Frankie Williams get destroyed by Roddy Piper on Piper's Pit, only if it happened for six straight games over the course of two weeks. That's why they lost. One year later, Glide and Dream were just about done, Barkley was headed that way and the Rockets finished .500. They haven't won a playoff series since. The question remains: If you're a Rockets fan, would you make that trade again? You had that Utah series tied 2-2 before blowing a nailbiter in Utah and losing Game 6 on a Stockton buzzer-beater. You were right there. Was it worth it? In my opinion, absolutely. The whole point of fielding an NBA team is to win a title -- if you have the chance, you have to try. Even if it means crossing your fingers with the likes of Matt Maloney. Eleven years later, the Celtics find themselves in a similar spot: Three All-Stars coupled with a talented but woefully inexperienced point guard (Rondo), a promising defensive stopper coming off major knee surgery (Tony Allen), a decent backup center who plays hard (Kendrick Perkins), a new Mark Madsen for KG (Brian Scalabrine, who's already working on his high-fives and fist-pumps), two undersized power forwards (Big Baby Glen Davis, Leon Powe), two athletic rookies (Brandon Wallace, Gabe Pruitt) and that's it. There isn't an Eddie Johnson or Mario Elie to be seen. Then again, since they're likely to add one or two more ring-hungry veterans, and since the '08 Eastern Conference is between three and 200 times worse than the '97 Western Conference, who knows? In the words of Chris Shiherlis, the bank is worth the risk. I mean, give me a break...
What's wrong with Simmons talking about the Rockets in his article? What he said was true. The Rockets were still going for it all when they made that deal and Matt Maloney was really the weak link on that team. And I would say that the majority of the people here would do that deal again. The only thing that Simmons is reaching here is to say that Pierce, Allen, and Garnett are on the downsides of their careers or that their careers now are similar to the ones of Dream, Clyde, and Barkley in '96-'97. Our guys were older and more prone to injury than the Celtics trio. But other than that, I felt it was a good comparison. I know some people don't care for Simmons, but I like to read his stuff. He knows what he is talking about (most of the time). It could be worse; he could throw cheap shots at us all the time like he does to Zeke Thomas.
