<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">ESPN Insider Chad Ford says one of the hottest rumors of the weekend was "The Truth" Paul Pierce to Portland for the No. 3 pick and Nick Van Exel: On Tuesday, Celtics director of basketball operations Danny Ainge shot that rumor down, telling Insider it was "ludicrous." Ainge said he had no intention of trading Pierce, especially for a draft pick.</div> Oregonian So much for that Chris Paul opportunity...
Yeah, you don't trade an All-Star for picks and a player who is supposedly retiring. Ainge isn't that crazy
Anybody that puts any credibilty in Ainge's words doesn't know Ainge. He never confirms rumors like this, whether they're true or not. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Yeah, you don't trade an All-Star for picks and a player who is supposedly retiring. Ainge isn't that crazy </div>I don't care if Pierce is an All-Star, that has to be the most overrated label on a player. I've watched Pierce play every night for years now. He may make the All-Star team on a yearly basis, but in no way is he untradeable. Also, the trade would not only bring the number 3 pick, but it would also free up about 11 million in cap room, THIS YEAR. So essentially, you could replace Pierce with a guy like Michael Redd, Ray Allen, or even a combination of lower tier free agents, and then have the number 3 pick left to use on a player like M. Williams, Chris Paul, Gerald Green, or even Andrew Bogut. I'm all for this trade. I know it's just a rumor at this point, but it's very good for the franchise. And considering that teammates of Pierce have openly said that Pierce is not happy to be in Boston, then we might as well ship him off so we don't have to deal with his pouting any longer.
Yeah and The Celtics didn't send Gary Payton to Atlanta without already knowing he would resign after being released. Yeah Danny Ainge also had no interest in reaquiring Antoine Walker. You hear GM's and Coaches shoot down rumors all the time, regardless of what they come out and say to the media, they're operating behind closed doors 24/7. Coaches and GM's wish they could just come out to the press and say these rumors aren't true and that would be the end of it, the fact is, it's never that easy. It shouldn't be either, because half of the time they're just making those statements to get the spot light off of their negotiations. It's alot harder to close a deal when everyone is speculating about it in the media. Look what happened in baseball with A-Rod and The Red Sox. This deal was NEARLY finalized, however the media got ahold of it, the pressure was maximized on the shoulders of The Red Sox and The Texas Rangers, and the deal suddenly fell apart. No one wants to work under pressure, it makes things so much more difficult, that's why these statements are made. This deal makes sense, bottom line. Portland doesn't want the No.3 Pick, Chris Paul. Why? They have Telfair waiting to become their franchise player in the next couple of years. Do they want Nick Van Exel? No, he's going to get released via Portland's team option on his contract. So they get an ALL-STAR shooting guard, Paul Pierce, in exchange for their No.3 selection and Nick Van Exel would they would already be letting go of anyhow. Boston gets a franchise Point Guard, Chris Paul with The No.3 selection, and they move Pierce's contract for Van Exel's. Than release Van Exel and spend the money they would have been paying him, several Millions of dollars to find Pierce's replacement (Redd, Allen, etc). THIS DEAL MAKES SENSE! Both sides benefit greatly, and to just believe such a great proposal isn't being talked about behind close doors is simply absurd. End of story, Ainge pull the trigger!!!
