Basketball Is Back In Boston

With the completion of the Kevin Garnett trade the Boston Celtics become relevant in the East and have a decent shot at contending for Conference title. In exchange for Garnett, the Celtics gave up one prized young player (Al Jefferson), one solid young role player (Ryan Gomes), an expiring contract (Theo Ratliff) and two young players with questionable impact potential (Sebastian Telfair and Gerald Green), as well as two number one picks. Not a bad deal to get one on the game’s best players, and one of the top-50 of all time.

What this does for Boston is give fans a reason to be interested again. Since the end of the Bird-Mchale era there has been little to enjoy on the court in Beantown. From Reggie Lewis’s death to moving out of the Boston Garden to losing out on Tim Duncan to the uninspiring Pitino era to Danny Ainge’s ineffectiveness, basketball has not been very good for Boston Fans. When the highlight of the past 15 years is seeing Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker lose to New Jersey in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2001-2002, Celtics fans have every right to be disappointed as they hold onto the distant memory of their 16 NBA Championships.

With Kevin Garnett (22.4 ppg; 12.8 rpg; 4.1 apg last season), Paul Pierce (25.0 ppg; 5.9 rpg; 4.1 apg last season) and Ray Allen (26.4 ppg; 4.5 rpg; 4.1 apg last season) on the same team the Celtics will have the best trio the league has seen in a long time. What these guys seem to have in common is that they are all good guys who have been desperate to win but have found themselves on awful franchises mired in losing for the past several years. They are all very good shooters, with Allen being exceptional, each from different spots on the floor. (They also shoot free throws very well.) Garnett is an excellent defender and rebounder while Pierce fairs well on the boards for a swing man and Allen contributes on the glass for a shooter. Interestingly, they each averaged 4.1 assists per game in 2006-2007, showing that they can share the ball. Most importantly, they have all carried a team for several years and seem willing to sacrifice personal accolades for the betterment of the team.

So can Garnett, Pierce and Allen lead the Celtics back to the NBA Finals? Though the other two starters, Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo, don’t evoke fear, the Celtics big-three is fantastic and the competition is weak. With an Eastern Conference highlighted by an aging Detroit team, and under-manned Cavs team, a young and inexperienced Bulls team, and a Heat team with several major questions, why not add the Celtics to the mix. While they may not win an NBA title the new Boston trio will certainly make the Celtics relevant again, fun to watch and who knows, we might just be watching the Celtics in June Again. Just don’t bring back Tom Heinson to call the games.