Wow. David West now newest Celtic

bobheckler wrote:Keerist! A guy can't even lay his head down on a pillow for a few hours without all hell breaking loose.

bob

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tjmakz wrote:Mr. Stern,

The rumored trade of David West to the Celtics for Jermaine O'Neal and Sasha Pavlovic makes tremendous basketball sense for your NBA Hornets.

Wow, would this be a good move for Boston, which has already done a fantastic job filling its bench despite a near total lack of cap flexibility. As I’ve mentioned before, Boston’s primary issue over the last two seasons has been a decline in its offense, which ranked below the league’s average last season in points per possession. It’s almost impossible to win a title with a below-average offense.

West helps in so many ways. He’s one of the league’s deadliest mid-range shooters, and the Celtics’ ideal is to surround Rajon Rondo, one of the league’s least-deadly jump shooters but one of its best creators, with four players who can fill it up from 20 feet and out. A lineup of Rondo, West, Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen would be scary in that regard. It’d be a major upgrade, in terms of scoring, from lineups that featured Boston’s core four with Kendrick Perkins (a nonentity on offense) or Davis (an inconsistent jump shooter).

Having West and Garnett as dueling pick-and-pop threats is also great for Rondo. Because defenders almost always go under screens on Rondo pick-and-rolls, daring him to shoot, Boston often has to run two pick-and-rolls in a row in order to get the All-Star point guard closer to the paint and see if any holes open up. The Celtics can do that by having Garnett set consecutive screens, but adding West opens up more options, including having two elite jump shooters set screens on either side of Rondo. More holes will emerge this way.

West is also an underrated post-up threat, something Boston lacks on a night-to-night basis. West ranked 50th among all players last season in points per possession in post-up chances — ahead of Dwight Howard, Chris Bosh, Pau Gasol and other elite interior scorers — and New Orleans was often happy clearing out for him on the block and running cutters around him, Karl Malone-style. West can face up and shoot, drive to the paint with both hands for hooks and flip shoots, and he’s a genius at using his body to create space.

West isn’t an elite defender, but he’s smart about angles and positioning and works well in a team context. He doesn’t have the quickest feet, so big guys who can work off the dribble can hurt him, and he’ll have trouble now and then closing out on a shooter if he has to go a long distance to do it. But he’s stout in the post, and he has proved he can function nicely in a strong system. Few teams have stronger defensive systems than Boston.

Another side benefit: Adding all of these power forwards means that Boston can play Jeff Green — who has agreed to return on a one-year deal — mostly at small forward, where he has historically been much better than at power forward. And adding West for around $9 million per year should still give Boston enough room to make a maximum-level offer on the free-agent market next summer.

If the deal gets finalized, it’s a great move for these ring-chasing geezers. The Celtics have done wonderfully in adding Bass, Marquis Daniels (a valuable wing backup who can spell both Allen and Pierce) and Wilcox (fine for 10 minutes per game), and they still have the mini mid-level exception. They didn’t get Paul (yet?), but this team can push Miami and Chicago if all goes right. That’s a big “if,” but that’s life when most of your core players are in their mid-30s.

WojYahooNBA:

David West has agreed to a 2 year, $20 million deal with Pacers, league source tells Y. [via Twitter]

gyso wrote:West isn't coming East!!

WojYahooNBA:

David West has agreed to a 2 year, $20 million deal with Pacers, league source tells Y. [via Twitter]

WojYahooNBA:

Celtics simply couldn't make 3 way deal with Hornets and Jermaine O'Neal contract. [via Twitter]

WojYahooNBA:

Celtics no longer have to wait to sign two rookies from Purdue -- Moore and Johnson. They could've been in sign and trade to Hornets. [via Twitter]

WojYahooNBA:

Great signing for Larry Bird, who has a deep, versatile frontline and huge grown up presence for locker room. West's a total pro and winner. [via Twitter]

WojYahooNBA:

To be accurate, Boston had a sign-and-trade with New Orleans for David West ready to do. West wanted more money annually, took Pacers offer. [via Twitter]

dboss wrote:Does anyone know what condition JON is in?