Brad Stevens has been a magnificent GM.

by **worcester** Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:03 pm

There. I said it. I never imagined he'd be this good as a GM. He was a fine coach, even though I questioned his judgment way more often than I should have then. Now as a GM he's been flawless. He is the epitome of class, as is Joe Mazzulla, as is the entire staff and organization. We are so lucky Danny made the bold moves to pick him as coach and then to recommend him as GM. Boy, have we been blessed.

by **bobc33** Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:12 pm

Totally agree.

In Brad We Trust.

by **bobheckler** Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:48 pm

I'll admit it. Two seasons ago I was scared. We had a rookie head coach (Ime) and a rookie GM. That year turned out pretty well, but a lot of it had been put in place by Danny before he left. Last year we had yet another rookie head coach (inheriting a locker room mess) and a 2nd year GM. That turned out better than I thought too even though we didn't make it back to the Finals in part because of injuries to RWill.

We now have the #1 team in the NBA, with the #1 MoV (+10.3). To put this into perspective, the 2008 Championship team of Pierce/KG/Allen had a MoV of +10.26. Now, our current +10.3 might be rounded up, but that still means it's at least +10.25. That happened because Brad took a big gulp and traded away Marcus Smart for The Unicorn and then traded the reigning NBA 6th Man and the anchor of our defense, The Time Lord, for Jrue. Basically, BIG changes to a team that was in the Finals when he was a rook and was in the EC Finals last year, and it's working out great.

And then, this year, he trades a spare part (Lamar Stevens) and some 2nds for 25 year old workhorse Xavier Tillman for depth at center and 21 year old Jaden Springer who is a lockdown defending guard. And he has the Bird Rights for both of them.

And Brad's only 47.

Bob

.

by **cowens/oldschool** Tue Feb 27, 2024 12:19 am

Yeah these trades that Brad made have exceeded my and I’m sure most of our expectations. Also brilliant moves getting good veteran coaches to further help out Joe and adding Van Gundy. I was sorry to see Timelord go and Brogdon is actually younger than Holiday, but seeing Holiday on the floor, such an unselfish 2 way impact player, he has fit in like a glove.

by **dbrown4** Tue Feb 27, 2024 9:30 am

There are only two main things to worry about and prepare like a madman for this post season, once it's clear they are happening. All the rest, we've got covered.

1. Ty Lue vs. Joe Mazulla if that even happens. Great matchup. But Coach Joe is a KG as a coach. Maniacal in preparation and execution. There's your leader just like Red was on all those winning teams.
2. Jrue vs. Dame and who wins that contest. Who shuts down who. I'm going with the guy that's actually been to a Finals, won a championship and is the best defender in the league with no one even in a distant 2nd position.

Everyone forgets (no one here) we branded LAC in LA. Yes, they were sans Leonard. But I believe we were sans KP. Everyone (no one here) loves to recall we recently had our asses handed to us by LAC in Boston. Great. So we torched each other on the other's home court. Quid pro quo. Comme se, comme ca. BFD. That would make a good Finals, though. Us vs. DEN as well.

I'd put PHI on that list at a very distant 3rd, but I'm almost 100% positive someone will mercilessly take PHI out early and will not be a problem at all, regardless of Embiid condition or if he's playing.

db

by **worcester** Tue Feb 27, 2024 10:32 am

dbrown, That Davidson education really shines through your posts. You get the tri-lingual award for that missive. English. French. Latin. Can you dish out a little Serbian for us the next time we play Denver?

by **dboss** Tue Feb 27, 2024 12:00 pm

So far so good with Brad at the helm.

However, may I remind everyone that all the accolades are relatively meaningless without winning banner #18.

Danny and Brad are quite different but very similar. They are both farmers and have turned the soil over every year in search of the perfect crop. The rebuild of the Celtics has taken so many twists and turns that it would be easy to forget the turnstile effect of remaking the roster over and over again. The Celtics have been an endless public works project.

In search of the more perfect team, Brad has managed to assemble an amazing group of complimentary players. The roadmap has not changed. Build the team around the jays. That is easier said than done.

The missing piece has always been a high level center. In the age of 3 point shooting, any old center would not give the Celtics the edge.

The Celtics have a difficult task ahead of them before they reach their destination. Even within the context of great optimism, there remain unanswered questions. Do we really have enough to win it all? 1-5 remains top of the line and AH continues to provide this team with whatever it needs. But it is going to take a lot more than 6 guys to win this thing.

We all know that playoff rotations shrink as your starters are expected to play more minutes. None of those guys are 48 MPG players so CJ has to rely on his bench. How will KP perform during the playoff rounds? He is our least experience player with no extended playoff runs. How will CJ use SH and PP. If they miss a couple of open looks will they get really short minutes? How committed will CJ be to playing an 8 and maybe 9 man rotation in the playoffs. Will the Jays finally exorcise their demons or will the most difficult matchups cause them to revert back to ISO basketball.

There is something different about this version of the Boston Celtics. If this regular season run is an indicator of Christmas yet to come, we have reason to be guided by our optimism.

Brad should be named GM of the year.

by **dbrown4** Tue Feb 27, 2024 2:59 pm

Thanks, worcester. I had to look up and spell check comme se, comme ca to be sure! Serbian is not in my wheelhouse but in this technology day and age, I can whip something up on the fly!

dboss, all true. As much as we'd like to celebrate, Boston is held to a different standard, as are the Lakers, like it or not. We don't get as much heat as the Lakers do on a daily basis, but when we do edge ourselves into the conversation(s), we are usually dismissed with what you have carefully outlined above. Lots of "Yes, But's" from the media and Celtic Haters. We've got no answers at this point. You are absolutely correct! There are those unanswered questions and until those are definitively answered, we will have to take a back seat this season to LeBron, NYK, everybody out West, PHI, MIL, CLE & MIA.

This team is juiced for sure. Haven't seen anything like the current team since 2008. While the playoffs should be spectacular, I've been burned many times in the past thinking it's going to go a certain way and it's the complete opposite every time. For example, this year's Western Conference looks formidable, with all the potential playoff series being a coin flip while the East looks, well, boring and uneventful. This means the West will be a totally disappointing snooze fest and the East will be Hari Kari.

We don't need that BS. We all remember the 2008 team who had a great regular season and then almost played the maximum number of playoff games before taking the title. I'd take that same run for sure this year, but it would be nice to blow through a couple of rounds unscathed before any sphincter-tightening begins to get out feet under us.

db

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