Use It or Lose It - Clock ticking on Celtics' Disabled Player Exception

Clock ticking on Celtics' Disabled Player Exception

NBC SPORTS BOSTON By A. Sherrod Blakely December 05, 2017 1:39 PM

BOSTON – When you are rolling along the way the Celtics are, it’s hard to imagine a ton of thought is being put into shaking up the roster.

But when it comes to change, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has proven himself to be open to it regardless of how the team is performing at that time.


Which is why the Celtics are very much open to using the Disabled Player Exception (DPE) they were granted by the NBA for Gordon Hayward’s left ankle injury – possibly this week.

Because if the Celtics want to utilize the $8.4 million exception to acquire a player and use him in a subsequent deal, they have to do it by Friday.

Utilizing the exception, the largest ever granted to an NBA team, would not be a major issue for the Celtics, who have an open roster spot available to sign or trade for a player without having to do any roster shuffling.

Boston has 16 players under contract, but only 14 have fully guaranteed contracts. The league maximum for guaranteed contracts is 15. Boston signed rookies Kadeem Allen and Jabari Bird to two-way contracts, which do not count against a team’s guaranteed contract total.

If the Friday deadline comes and goes without Boston using its DPE, two other dates to keep in mind are Feb. 8 (trade deadline) and March 10 (DPE expiration date).

Multiple league sources tell NBC Sports Boston that the Celtics are more likely to use the DPE, if at all, closer to the trade deadline.

Because right now, the Celtics (21-4) have the best record in the NBA and don’t have any specifically glaring hole in their lineup. And of the players that are knowingly available via trade, they are not viewed as players who could come and significantly bolster the Celtics’ roster. Plus, there’s a growing sense in NBA circles that the buyout market for players will be more fruitful in the coming weeks.

Kenneth Faried (Denver), Jahlil Okafor (Philadelphia) and Greg Monroe (Phoenix) are all players who may be in line for a buyout in the coming weeks if their respective teams can’t swing a deal for them, which would make them potential targets of the Celtics.

And historically, teams with a DPE typically let it expire because acquiring players who are the right fit and available, has proven a difficult match to make.

There have been 39 DPEs granted since 1995, but only 10 times have they been used.

If there is an area of concern for the Celtics, it would be the team’s lack of experience. So, if they were to use the DPE, it would in all likelihood be to add an experienced veteran who can handle being called upon to play big minutes one night and to not play at all another.

112288

112288 wrote: Clock ticking on Celtics' Disabled Player Exception

NBC SPORTS BOSTON By A. Sherrod Blakely December 05, 2017 1:39 PM

BOSTON – When you are rolling along the way the Celtics are, it’s hard to imagine a ton of thought is being put into shaking up the roster.

But when it comes to change, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has proven himself to be open to it regardless of how the team is performing at that time.


Which is why the Celtics are very much open to using the Disabled Player Exception (DPE) they were granted by the NBA for Gordon Hayward’s left ankle injury – possibly this week.

Because if the Celtics want to utilize the $8.4 million exception to acquire a player and use him in a subsequent deal, they have to do it by Friday.

Utilizing the exception, the largest ever granted to an NBA team, would not be a major issue for the Celtics, who have an open roster spot available to sign or trade for a player without having to do any roster shuffling.

Boston has 16 players under contract, but only 14 have fully guaranteed contracts.  The league maximum for guaranteed contracts is 15. Boston signed rookies Kadeem Allen and Jabari Bird to two-way contracts, which do not count against a team’s guaranteed contract total.

If the Friday deadline comes and goes without Boston using its DPE, two other dates to keep in mind are Feb. 8 (trade deadline) and March 10 (DPE expiration date).

Multiple league sources tell NBC Sports Boston that the Celtics are more likely to use the DPE, if at all, closer to the trade deadline.

Because right now, the Celtics (21-4) have the best record in the NBA and don’t have any specifically glaring hole in their lineup.  And of the players that are knowingly available via trade, they are not viewed as players who could come and significantly bolster the Celtics’ roster. Plus, there’s a growing sense in NBA circles that the buyout market for players will be more fruitful in the coming weeks.

Kenneth Faried (Denver), Jahlil Okafor (Philadelphia) and Greg Monroe (Phoenix) are all players who may be in line for a buyout in the coming weeks if their respective teams can’t swing a deal for them, which would make them potential targets of the Celtics.

And historically, teams with a DPE typically let it expire because acquiring players who are the right fit and available, has proven a difficult match to make.

There have been 39 DPEs granted since 1995, but only 10 times have they been used.

If there is an area of concern for the Celtics, it would be the team’s lack of experience. So, if they were to use the DPE, it would in all likelihood be to add an experienced veteran who can handle being called upon to play big minutes one night and to not play at all another.  

112288

Here is the key quote:

Because if the Celtics want to utilize the $8.4 million exception to acquire a player and use him in a subsequent deal, they have to do it by Friday.

Otherwise Danny has until March to use it.


bob


.

I don't think any further trades are necessary.


KJ

Patience is a virtue. Good things come to those who wait.

No trade is required to get whoever fills the void.

gyso

I see no need to rush.  Brad is still in the process of getting multiple combinations to play well together.

Danny may use the DPE down the road probably in Feb or he may wait until the March deadline to sure up the roster for their playoff run.

Brad has a very deep rotation so adding another player and finding minutes for him will not be easy.

Dboss

I am still in on using it to take a flyer on Okafor.

a future second round pick, for a player picked that high and is that young, is a gamble well worth it, IMO.

dboss wrote:I see no need to rush.  Brad is still in the process of getting multiple combinations to play well together.

Danny may use the DPE down the road probably in Feb or he may wait until the March deadline to sure up the roster for their playoff run.

Brad has a very deep rotation so adding another player and finding minutes for him will not be easy.

Dboss

And imagine finding minutes if we didn't have this problem to begin with. (Hayward healthy and playing)  
Can only wonder if a kids like Tatum and Brown would have emerged as much.  

And with a little luck maybe come May we'll get a little glimpse......maybe.  
I have no hope he plays till next season but..........

beat

And what is so wrong with Greg Monroe that we would not want him?

worcester wrote:And what is so wrong with Greg Monroe that we would not want him?

Worcester

Monroe has an expiring contract. He is making around $18 million. They have the CAP space to resign him at the end of the year. The Suns are a team trying to build through the draft and they also received a protected 1st and 2nd round pick from the Bucks. If they moved Monroe they would probably want a player (i.e. Terry Rozier) and maybe a pick. Depending on when this move was made Boston would have to pay the balance of his $18 million salary.

The Suns have already been fleeced by Danny so I really doubt this would be an easy negotiation. After moving Bledsoe they need help at PG.

I do not see Monroe as anything other than a rent-a-player. He is not going to be with Boston next year if they traded for him.

The Suns are a horrible team and are more likely to let Monroe walk so they can conserve their CAP space,

dboss

Makes sense. Thanks for the explanation Dboss.

http://celticswire.usatoday.com/2017/12/11/crucial-deadline-passes-for-celtics-to-utilize-disabled-player-exception-in-package-trade/



Crucial deadline passes for Celtics to utilize disabled player exception in package trade











By: Jared Weiss | 24 minutes ago





As the public spent the fall concocting various methods for utilizing the Gordon Hayward disabled player exception, one solution that seemed like a dream scenario for the Boston Celtics was to use the $8.4 million DPE to acquire a player now who would be packaged in a trade at the deadline for a much better and more expensive player.



But that deadline expired Friday night.


The NBA allows you to trade for a player with an exception and then repackage them with other players only after two months, so the latest this could be done considering the February 8th trade deadline was on December 8th.


So at this point, if Boston ever uses the exception, it will be for a player they are keeping for the year. They have until the deadline to complete a trade and March 10 to use it to sign a player before it becomes a footnote buried deep within the annals Real GM.


The most likely outcome is Boston waits until deadline day to wait for a team looking to dump a good player to clear out salary on a multi-team trade or just to get below the tax. Teams that are underachieving and are over the tax line are always a great target to squeeze out a valuable player at a cut rate.



bob



.

Bob,

Good point about the Cs losing the ability to trade a guy who might be signed now at the trade deadline, but since now a signee must be kept I am sure that Ainge will be more than sure of whomever he decides to sign.

Part of not using the DPE now, I would suggest, was not to disrupt the team's chemistry with a "maybe" type of addition. Okafor could possibly have been put into this category. "Maybe" he would have helped, but perhaps not as he is certainly a prospect type player at this time much more than a proven commodity.

Waiting longer may provide a veteran who probably will have a much more proven track record.

It will be interesting to see who may show up later in this very interesting season.

It is hard to really justify using the exception because the team continues to play very well.

Maybe Boston thinks there is a chance that Gordon returns.  I think that is very unlikely but none of us know about his ability to heal quickly nor his endurance to sustain a grueling rehabilitation process.  Celtics fans are concerned that if he gets to come back this year he could get hurt again and possibly threaten a return to full health next season.  

Again, we do not know enough about his recovery time to make a determination.

Danny is probably surprised that his team is in fact a contender to win this year.  So he may get someone for our playoff run.  I am not surprised that he did not attempt to initiate a package deal combining the exception with a player who would still be on the books next season.

Danny is unlikely to screw around with the money because he needs to make space to resign Smart.  I am not certain he has made that decision yet.


Dboss

I had a patient last week with virtuaally the same injury as Gordon...broken tibia and fibula at the distal ends and broken ankle bones. She had so much hardware in there...plates and screws. I sure hope Hayward does not have metal in place. Sure, short term recovery may be faster but long term he'll feel that stuff in there and keep on feeling it.

I treated my patient externally with a hemp oil cream and her poain of 1 year duration went away in 30 seconds. THC free. I hope Gordon has better doctors than Isaiah.

worcester wrote:I had a patient last week with virtuaally the same injury as Gordon...broken tibia and fibula at the distal ends and broken ankle bones. She had so much hardware in there...plates and screws. I sure hope Hayward does not have metal in place. Sure, short term recovery may be faster but long term he'll feel that stuff in there and keep on feeling it.

I treated my patient externally with a hemp oil cream and her poain of 1 year duration went away in 30 seconds. THC free. I hope Gordon has better doctors than Isaiah.

Worcester

I think I read that he had a rod inserted.  Once the healing is complete would the rod get removed?

Dboss

A rod will probably stay in place. Screws are more problematic.

Dewayne Dedmon for the spot?

Reasons for:

his salary fits under the exception.

he's a big man who can block shots and rebound

Played well as a BU big man in SA's rotation last year.

is 28YO now.

Reasons against:

Atlanta will want either a young prospect or draft picks back

he has a player option for next year at $6.3M


I think he would fit the bill fro sure, but Danny might have to give up our own first round pick next year and maybe even the year after to get him.

Frankly, If I'm Danny I am not moving either the LAL/Sac or Mem first rounder at this point. But two of our own late first I would do for the right player.

kdp59

I think Danny is going to wait until Feb when more teams are likely to deal. We definitely could shore up the front line but we also could use a scorer for the bench.

Rozier seems to be playing better and if he has a productive January the bench scoring may not be as big of a problem for us. A healthy Morris would also be needed. Danny could then turn his attention at getting frontcourt help. Dedmon would help. ATL is in full tank mode already and are so bad that they can still be horrible by keeping the low cost Dedmon. Maybe we could move a bench player. Would consider giving up a first but only one and it would have to be one of our own. However the clippers pick may also work.

I agree that there's no rush to use the DPE.

Right now what the Celts need is a shooter/scorer off the bench.
Someone like Lou Williams.

Nothing wrong with giving playing time to young players like Ojeleye, but in the playoffs, the Celts need proven veterans.

Lou Williams' salary also fits the DPE.

Lou Williams just scored 40 points against the Hornets.

It would be great if Ainge can get Lou Williams from the Clips.
Lou Williams would definitely be a big help to the Celtics in the playoffs.

fierce wrote:Lou Williams just scored 40 points against the Hornets.

It would be great if Ainge can get Lou Williams from the Clips.
Lou Williams would definitely be a big help to the Celtics in the playoffs.

A nice veteran or two could give the playoff run a more realistic chance. A scorer would be nice, but that might be Rozier. Morris can also score off the bench. The starters are all scorers except for Baynes. I like how Brad takes one or two out early to give the second unit a boost. Maybe he is trying to tell Danny something. It's not just the DPE getting rusty. There's an open slot as it is implying a trade might be coming. No one should expect much out of Nader or guys below him. Losing even just one guy hurts for individual games. I think Danny should do something sooner rather than later. And he should just tinker. Prune and consolidate. Fortify the top ten or eleven players. I think the Celtics mostly need a big to help preserve Horford for the playoffs.

I'm happy the Celtics got a cheap win today and that Cleveland is next. It'll be extra fun if Isaiah plays.

Phil Pressey wrote:

fierce wrote:Lou Williams just scored 40 points against the Hornets.

It would be great if Ainge can get Lou Williams from the Clips.
Lou Williams would definitely be a big help to the Celtics in the playoffs.

A nice veteran or two could give the playoff run a more realistic chance. A scorer would be nice, but that might be Rozier. Morris can also score off the bench. The starters are all scorers except for Baynes. I like how Brad takes one or two out early to give the second unit a boost. Maybe he is trying to tell Danny something. It's not just the DPE getting rusty. There's an open slot as it is implying a trade might be coming. No one should expect much out of Nader or guys below him. Losing even just one guy hurts for individual games. I think Danny should do something sooner rather than later. And he should just tinker. Prune and consolidate. Fortify the top ten or eleven players. I think the Celtics mostly need a big to help preserve Horford for the playoffs.

I'm happy the Celtics got a cheap win today and that Cleveland is next. It'll be extra fun if Isaiah plays.

Theis and Baynes are enough bigs behind Horford.

A veteran like Lou Wiliams will have a bigger impact than just another big who would not play a lot because his purpose is just to preserve Horford.

Let's not forget Brad Stevens likes to play small ball most of the time.

Unless a player who is better than just a roster dump falls into Boston's hands before the trade deadline, I think that Ainge waits until after the deadline to use the DPE. Ainge will have the best chance (money) for any guy who gets bought out by a non contender. And, after the DPE is used he may still add a another veteran player at the pro rated vet minimum to further make and effort for #18 this year.

fierce wrote:Theis and Baynes are enough bigs behind Horford.

A veteran like Lou Wiliams will have a bigger impact than just another big who would not play a lot because his purpose is just to preserve Horford.

Let's not forget Brad Stevens likes to play small ball most of the time.

I think you're right that my one person fan analysis is clashing with Brad's affinity for small ball. He will play big in between 2-4 roles, say Brown as shooting guard, but he also will put in three pg's or three guys with pg height at the same time.

Brad seems to not like the big center and goes to Baynes because Baynes forces the issue.

If Morris can be counted on, then there are four bigs. After that it gets dicey against certain opponents. Tatum needs more time to become a big. He is a 3-4 tweener?

Yabusele is a project. Semi is another tweener. Morris is almost a tweener?

I guess my concern is for mimimizing Horford's work duties against the bigger bigs. I think he is as good as if not better than the 2008 version of KG. They are different players and KG is one of the elites of history, but I think it's fair to say this year's Al Horford is producing. He is starting to approach basketball's version of old age. He's got maybe two more prime years. Kyrie matches Pierce for the scorer. I imagine Brown plus Tatum is better than Ray.

60 win teams are usually guaranteed to offer legitimate title contending. I understand that with Hayward out and Brown/Tatum still on a learning curve (case in point Tatum's rare awful game yesterday), Danny is not going to jeopardize the future for fool's gold.

I see Horford as the true MVP of the team. He just does much more than Kyrie for overall impact. If Kyrie gets hurt, of course the season would become an immediate bridge year, but the same could be said of Al.

The C's need more easy wins, so Horford can finish them around 25 minutes for court time. Doc did a good job managing KG minutes.

My biggest fear is Morris' knees. It's not just about preserving Al, but him too. One more big is needed, imho. You are correct too the team needs better scoring. But that could develop internally.

Al Horford could become a historic Celtic. He was born in the Dominican Republic on June 3, 1986. If this is a bridge year, then when we are finally going after Golden State next year, he will be 32 and nearing 33. That's when players start to tail off. In regards to Horford, his future is now. I think Danny will do right by him and get him some support, just a minimum of one or two more guys to fortify the rotation. Like when he got Isaiah Thomas for Brad when most GMs would have tanked.

I'm not saying Horford will fall off of a cliff starting next year, but more often than not age 32-33 is it for one's pure prime. Regular season wins will mean squat if he is out of juice for the playoffs. Horford and Irving are the main reasons this cannot be considered a bridge year. They are too special.

Ainge will not sacrifice the future, but I am guessing he will add to the team's core. Yabusele and Semi are not ready or you can't rely on them. Morris still needs to prove he is not damaged goods. That's why I ask for another big. Mostly to keep winning while keeping Horford's minutes down.

Horford looked like Bill Russell out there for a couple of series, blocking shots all over the place. He never seems to get the ball stripped. Opponents don't even try. He consistently puts up games with around seven assists and no turnovers.

If Horford is healthy with stamina for the playoffs, I truly believe that would be a good reason to root for a miracle. Golden State is the only scary team at this point and the Celtics seem to have had as much success against them as anyone.

If Hayward makes it back for the playoffs, that will give the team a huge Willis Reed psychological lift. Al Horford is vintage wine. Treat him accordingly and #18 might arrive earlier than expected.