That is EXACTLY what happened. This is NOT a rumor. It was just a caller on the radio discussing the possibility. Ugh.
there is no way this works out. the celtics have no other PG besides GP right now, and if you think they can go out and sign or trade for 2 of them, take a look at how easy its been for us to find one. unless we offer lue....but then we still need another PG. im not gonna get my hopes up.
Gary Payton's stats the year before last: 19.6 ppg, 7.4 ast, 2.0 to, 1.4 stl, 46.6 fg%, 74.6 ft% Maybe it was the system, and he can still be good. Then again, he's not exactly what we need. He can't shoot 3's well and his one-on-one defense is not very good. Furthermore, if he wants to prove himself, does he want to come into another system where he defers to the Big Two?
The problem with this is that we get a PG in Payton who would be good for one or two seasons and then done. I would like to see us get somebody who will grow with the team for the next 5 or 6 years. The PG initiates the offense and sets the tempo, I don't want to have to get our chemistry right every two seasons. Then again it looks like we are going into the season with a ? at the point anyway. Payton looks a lot better than anything we have right now.
You said it best, there is nobody who can grow with the team, so we have to get the best pg we can get. He the best available PG aside from Jason Kidd. I'd rather have a "has been" than a "never was".
They have very high hopes for Delonte West, which is why they traded their starter and backup in the first place.
For those who say having Payton for one year is no risk, I agree IF we were to sign him as FA. BUT we need to trade for him. That's another story. Who are we willing to give? To me, the only players I'd give up to risk a year of Payton are Lue, Gaines, AG, Pike and Spoon (basketball-wise, forget about contracts). That's not much. A year ago, I would have traded anyone other than Yao and Francis for Payton straight up in a heart beat. After last season, I think I'd pass. He has attitude problem. He always has. But he had always been the best player on his team. Now, he's not anymore and his attitude is not tolerable, imo. He didn't just have an off year. He has lost his physical abilities. I can understand the struggle in a different offensive system. Offensive players do have off years. Defensive players don't. You don't lose your defensive abilities just because you go into a new system. You lose it when your body can no long do what your mind commands. That's what happened to Payton. He lost his speed. He got burned left and right. That's a sure indication that he has lost his physical abilities. And that, unlike your shooting touch, cannot be regained. In sum, I'd only trade for him with part of the TE or one of the unused players on our bench, and nothing else.
Gary didn't suddenly lose his defensive abilities... He had been losing them for a long time, and no one really noticed until last year because he was with the Lakers. People were talking about how he'd make Milwaukee's D so much better, but it was still horrible when they acquired him. That said, neither teams had anything resembling decent defensive rotations. According to some on this board, Derek Fisher is a good defensive PG. Well guess what? Before Payton came along, Fish was getting burned left and right by the likes of Troy Hudson, Tony Parker, and Mike Bibby. Shaq was lazy and didn't show on the pick and roll, and Fisher was torched. GP had the same problem. Gary still knows how to force opposing points into strong help areas and he can still trap on the baseline. He's still a pest in full court pressure. But he had no help on D the last couple years and wasn't allowed to wear his opposite number down by frequently posting him up. In Houston, he'd have plenty of help rotations and would be allowed to post up all the time. Bottom line: he's not the defender he once was, but he's still better than Damon Jones, Mike James, or Antonio Daniels. I'd give up a first round pick for Payton, even a 36-year-old Payton. That said, I don't think Boston is looking to trade him.
