July 1, 2006
Bill Simmons posted a letter from a NY State coach concerning his impressions of Telfair. It has me excited about what the Celtics can do this year.

I coach Varsity Basketball in New York State. This does not qualify me as a super NBA scout, but I do have a pretty good knowledge of basketball. I just wanted to share with you a few incidents regarding Sebastian Telfair that most people probably have never heard about. Every year the New York City champions travel to Upstate New York and play for the Federation title at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Three years in a row Sebastian Telfair led his team to New York City Public School titles. This is something that has never happened before and likely never will again. He also won a Federation title as a junior and then lost as a senior in his last high school game vs Mount Vernon, a team featuring five division one players. Three different occurances at the Federation Tourney sum up what type of kid Sebastian Telfair is and how different he is from 99% of the McDonald's All american types we see nowadays. [More] source: The Sports Guy Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!

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June 30, 2006

BOSTON (AP) -- The Boston Celtics waived guard Orien Greene on Friday, two days after picking up two point guards in trades during the NBA draft. The 6-foot-4 second-round pick last year out of Louisiana-Lafayette averaged 3.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 80 games as a rookie. He averaged 15.4 minutes per game. The Celtics had until Friday to waive him and not owe him any more money. [More] source: SI Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!

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June 30, 2006

In addition to Ryan Gomes, Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Dwayne Jones, Telfair and Rondo, Ainge also mentioned a few names that will be joining the Celtics on their Summer League team next week, the most notable of which is shooting guard Allan Ray from Villanova, who went undrafted Wednesday night. "I've never seen a college kid have as good a career as him and not get drafted," said Ainge. "We think he has a chance to make our team, and he was one of the best shooters in college basketball." Also expected to join the squad are two other players who worked out for the Celtics before the draft. According to Ainge, Wes Wilkinson (Nebraska, shot blocker and three-point shooter) and Akin Akingbala (Clemson) will be on the team as well. source: celtics.com

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June 30, 2006

It is very confusing trying to figure out what is going on with Danny and trying to trade for Iverson. Depending on which paper or blog you read, The deal is close to being made or there is nothing to the rumor. If you are a Celtics fan you either salivate or cringe at the thought of bringing him in. You need to look no further than this morning's papers to see both sides. Steve Bulpett's article in the Herald makes the case that bringing in Iverson will make the Celtics relevant again. Watching Pierce and Iverson play together would make the Celtics a must watch game. On the other hand, Jackie MacMullin shares her opinion that AI is not the answer in Boston. He blows off practice, disrespects his coaches, and would send the complete wrong message to our core of young players. To top that off, Jackie mentions how Danny was concerned with Pierce's night life a couple of years ago and Iverson would make Pierce look like a shut in. I agree with Jackie. I think that AI would be a complete wrong fit for our team. In spite of all the assurances that AI and Pierce could play well together, I have my doubts. Both have been the top dog for long enough that neither one would want to relinquish that spot. And we have some very hard working kids on our team and bringing in a player who has no use for hard work or for practice would send the wrong message to them. This team has built a very good chemistry and I am afraid that bringing in AI would disrupt that. You can go back to the Laker team that had 4 all stars on it... Kobe, Shaq, Malone and Payton and still couldn't win the championship because their chemistry was off... and that would be a distinct possibility if Iverson were to be brought in. And then if we get past the debate over whether we even want him, there are the reports that the deal is next to being done and the others saying that it is no where close. This morning on Philly Sports radio the report is that the deal will be Green, Rondo and Gooden to Philly, AI to Boston and Wally to Cleveland. But at the same time, yesterday in an SI article, King was quoted as saying that there were talks at one time but that any potential deal with the Celtics is no longer alive. Danny is saying that he is exploring a deal with Philly for Iverson but that Iverson isn't the only name on his list. On one hand he says that he won't give up our future to win a few games now but that he may have to give up some of our young players to make a deal. Will he give up Jefferson? Yesterday's paper quote's Big Al saying that he asked Danny and was told he has nothing to worry about. Will he give up Green? Who knows. Will he give up West? With all the PG's he is bringing in, that is a possibility or he may trade one of the new PGs even though he seems very excited to have both of them. Will he give up Gomes? Drafting Powe may point to that. Will he give up Tony? Nothing has been said either way about Tony so there is no way to know. We are seeing smokescreens and mixed messages from both sides. I know many Celtics fans feel we need Iverson to get to the next level. They feel that we need another major move. Danny says that he will trade only if the price is right. But what price is too high? Is Gerald too big a price to pay? Is Big Al? Is Delonte? Is Perk? I happen to think so. I would be happy to keep our team just the way it is now. I think Danny has made some good moves and would be willing to give the kids a year to prove that they have real talent and not just potential before giving up on any of them. We don't need an All Star because we may have a few on the roster already if we just give them a chance to prove it. source: Various Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums! Related Articles Bulpett Article MacMullen Article Billy King Quote

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June 29, 2006
Danny was on WEEI today and shared his thoughts on the draft, Allen Iverson, Stephen A Smith, making a trade, and the state of the Celtics. He doesn't sound pressured to make a trade and doesn't want to make a mistake by giving away a player who will end up better than the player we trade for. Good news that Allen Ray is coming to Summer League.

My take: Danny didn't seem like he is ready to mortgage our future to bring in someone to help. It seems as though he is stockpiling talent. Telfair, Rondo, Powe, Ray... He could easily trade Gomes, Allen, and a point and the team wouldn't skip a beat. He sounds like he is going weigh very carefully who he gives up with who he gets back. Iverson isn't the only player he is going after but that is the name that has been in the news. It is going to be an interesting summer.

They asked him if the deals last night were an end or a means to an other trade. Danny said that no deal is just for it's own merit. We are always trying to get better and accumulate as much talent at each position. He likes what we have now. They asked Danny about going for Rondo when Williams was still available. Rondo was the highest ranked PG on his board. Rondo has a special something. He has length and athleticism and is a great defender. Rondo is one of the best athletes in the draft versus Williams who was one of the lowest ranked athletically. He compared 2 football player to make the comparison that we took vince young over matt leinart and I am not sure who they are so didn't get the comparison. Danny wasn't surprised that Williams dropped. He said that each team ranks players differently and mentioned several teams that were high on Williams but he just wasn't the right fit for their team. He also mentioned that no other team but the Knicks would have taken Balkman that high. [More] source: WEEI Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!

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by bchistorian

June 29, 2006

i really like the draft results for the celtics. and i would prefer getting garnett to getting iverson.
if we were to get iverson then west is gone i think. philly would prefer the local product who currently might be the best of our young pg bunch.

Going into the NBA Draft, the Celtics needed a point guard. But in the days leading up to last night, they decided none of those floor generals available were worth taking with the seventh overall pick.

Undaunted, they got the distributor they needed anyway - and then some. The Celts acquired Sebastian Telfair from Portland along with shot-blocking center Theo Ratliff and a 2008 second-round pick, sending the No. 7 choice (they took Randy Foye for the Trail Blazers, who then moved him to Minnesota), Raef LaFrentz and Dan Dickau. The C’s also parted with some cash in the move.

the phoenix deal is better than initally thought as well

When one of the point guards they liked still was on the board late, the Celts swung another deal with Phoenix, using a trade exception to get the rights to No. 21 pick Rajon Rondo for Cleveland’s first-round pick next season. In addition, the C’s will get Brian Grant, but the Suns will send enough cash to pay for the last year of his contract ($1.8 million). The Celts currently plan to release him.

overall every "expert"seems to be thinking we got better, so the only thing hurt is the wisful thinking of the overzealous celtics fans. who btw as expected, are divided into haters and lovers

Said one Western Conference personnel man with a strong track record on evaluations, “Paul Pierce is going to love playing with Sebastian Telfair.”

Ainge is known to have been a Telfair fan since seeing him as a high schooler in New York.
“We think that he is probably the most ready of all the young point guards that were in the draft,” Ainge said. “He’s the same age as most of those guys (21), and he’s got (2,971) minutes under his belt.”

again, danny was able to buy when the price is low. kudos for that!

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Original article:
Boston Herald

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7 pm
(Refresh the screen to see when a player has been selected.)

1.  Raptors          Andrea Bargnani
2.  Bulls            LaMarcus Aldridge (Traded to Blazers)
3.  Bobcats          Adam Morrison 
4.  Blazers          Tyrus Thomas (Traded to Bulls)
5.  Hawks            Sheldon Williams
6.  T-Wolves         Brandon Roy (Traded to Portland)
7.  Celtics          Randy Foye (Traded to T-Wolves via Blazers)
8.  Rockets          Rudy Gay (Traded for Battier)
9.  Warriors         Patrick O'Bryant 
10. SuperSonics      Saer Sene
11. Magic            JJ Redick
12. Hornets          Hilton Armstrong
13. 76ers            Thabo Sefolosha (Traded to Bulls)
14. Jazz             Ronnie Brewer
15. Hornets          Cedric Simmons
16. Bulls            Rodney Carney
17. Pacers           Shawne Williams 
18. Wizards          Oleksiy Pecherov
19. Kings            Quincy Douby 
20. Knicks           Renaldo Balkman 
21. Suns             Rajon Rondo
22. Nets             Marcus Williams
23. Nets             Josh Boone
24. Grizzlies        Kyle Lowry
25. Cavaliers        Shannon Brown 
26. Lakers           Jordan Farmar 
27. Suns             Sergio Rodriguez 
28. Mavericks        Maurice Ager 
29. Knicks           Mardy Collins 
30. Blazers          Joel Freeland

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June 28, 2006
So much for all being quiet! - Here is an addition to the article... WEEI is right now reporting that the trade is Telfair and Theo Ratliff for #7, Raef, and Dickau... More as it comes in.

This from cnnsi.com
"Hours before the draft the Celtics agreed to trade their No. 7 pick, Raef Lafrentz and Dan Dickau to Portland for Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and an ‘07 second-rounder."

NEW YORK -- The Boston Celtics acquired second-year Portland Trail Blazers point guard Sebastian Telfair for the No. 7 pick in Wednesday's NBA draft, as well as one or two other players, multiple sources told ESPN.com. The trade was agreed upon Wednesday afternoon but it came after the 2 p.m. ET deadline which means the Celtics will still be on the clock, selecting for the Blazers, when the No. 7 pick comes up during the draft. Portland will pick at No. 4 and No. 7, barring any more trades. One of the players from the Celtics could be injured point Dan Dickau (Achilles), but that wasn't confirmed as of Wednesday. [More] source: Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!

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June 28, 2006

Well, Draft Day is finally here and after a week filled with rumors springing up everywhere it seems like we have hit the calm before the storm. No one still knows what will happen in the draft and this morning's glance at the mocks show just as much confusion as yesterday, if not more so. The Mocks are all in now and all that is left is the waiting to see where the chips may fall.

Rumors have been coming in from everywhere including:

Dickau and #7 for Telfair and #30 (Portland)

#7 for Duhon and #16 (Chicago)

#7 and Wally for Iverson (Philly)

Wally to Jazz, Boozer to Philly, Iverson to Boston (Philly/Jazz)

Green, Jefferson and Wally for Iverson (Philly/?)

Same Trade as above only looking for a 3rd team (Philly/?)

#7 for #12 and #15 (New Orleans)

#7 for #12 and a player (New Orleans)

#7 for #11 and a player (Orlando)

The Celtics will not take Gay even if he is available (Katz)

Boston is taking Foye, S Williams, M Williams, Simmons, Roy, Gay, Thomas, Aldridge, Bargnani, and __________ (fill in the blank with player of your choice)

It has been a very crazy week. Today has been relatively quiet with everyone preparing for the draft tonight. We know that the Celtics didn't swap picks with anyone because that had to be done by 2 this afternoon. But they can make a trade after the picks have gone down tonight.

As far as the Iverson rumors go, everyone seems to be sure that they have legs and that Danny is doing all he can to bring Iverson to Boston. I wouldn't mind a Wally for Iverson trade. I wouldn't mind a Wally and #7 for Iverson trade. I wouldn't even mind a Wally and #7 and future pick trade for Iverson. Or even a Wally, Allen, and #7 trade for Iverson... or maybe even a Wally, exception, #7, future pick, Allen, Scal, Dickau, trade for Iverson.... BUT I am definintely opposed to any trade that moves Big Al and Green but that seems to be the dominant rumor out there right now. From all reports, they are trying to find a team that has a player that Philly wants who will take Wally and whoever for Iverson. The latest is that Cleveland is a possibility.

But since that will more than likely happen after the draft, I am concentrating on that today. I have my special Draft Day shirt all ready for tonight... I have my Hondo card taped to the TV for luck and am all set for a wild ride tonight. Don't forget the live call in show over at CelticsStuff tonight. It should be a lot of fun!!!

[More] source: All over the web and news Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums! Related Link: CelticsStuff Live

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June 27, 2006

It is becoming more and more evident that no one can read this draft. I checked out 26 different mock drafts and there is no real consensus as to who the Celtics will take. The closest it comes is that 10 of the mocks have us taking Marcus Williams. However, most of those mocks are from 10 days ago or more. Very few of the recent ones have us taking Williams. There are 11 different players being projected on the various mocks as going to the Celtics.
3 mocks have us taking Tyrus Thomas
10 mocks have us taking Marcus Williams
1 mock says we will take LaMarcus Aldridge
5 mocks say that we are going to take Randy Foye
1 mock has us taking Brandon Roy
1 mock says we will take Shelden Williams
1 mock says that Cedric Simmons will be our pick
1 mock has us taking Bargnani
1 mock has us taking Ager
1 mock says we will take O'Bryant
1 mock says we will take Rudy Gay
Now, it isn't just the Celtics that have all the "experts" scrambling but all the other teams as well. Although Chad Ford admitted that the Celtics were the hardest to read of all the teams. Every team could make a list similar to the one above. This shows no one really knows what will happen.

Add to this all the rumors of draft day trades... Telfair, Duhon, Iverson, etc to the Celtics; Hawks and Rockets swapping picks; Everyone trying to move up or down and you have a very interesting scenario.

This draft holds more mystery with more interesting side notes than any draft in recent history. Even the top team isn't sure who they will pick or even if they will keep the pick and it is the day before the draft.

All I can say is stay tuned because we are in for one wild ride!!!

[More]
source: My Poor Adled Brain

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June 27, 2006
Danny is talking about trying to acquire an All Star caliber player if he trades the 7th pick. What worries me is that he is also talking about including a young player or two. Which of these future All Stars would Danny give up? Things are heating up surrounding tomorrow night's draft. Anything can happen.

While the Celtics are enamored of many of the players in tomorrow night’s NBA Draft, their first choice would be none of the above or below. League sources confirmed that the Celts are hunting hard for a quality veteran, offering in trade some combination of their No. 7 overall pick and a young player or two. The Celtics placed calls regarding Shawn Marion, Rashard Lewis, Richard Jefferson, Allen Iverson and Kevin Garnett, and while it’s entirely possible none of the discussions will bear fruit (the Iverson talk weeks ago was brief and appears ended), it seems clear that Danny Ainge is acting on the need for experience.[More] source: Boston Herald Related Articles Globe Article

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June 26, 2006

WALTHAM - With the NBA draft just two days away, the Celtics brought back some familiar faces for a workout on Monday, bringing in Marcus Williams, Randy Foye, Rajon Rondo and Cedric Simmons for a second look, along with first-timers Anton Gavel, Wes Wilkinson and Nik Caner-Medley. While the drills were exclusively for four forwards or four guards when the players first came to workouts, today's drills mixed guards and forwards, giving the workouts a slightly more realistic feel for the players. Much has happened since the last time these guys worked out for the Celtics. Williams claims that he's dropped some weight since his first workout, while Simmons says he's confident in his decision to stay in the draft and has improved his game considerably since he last worked out in Waltham. As for Rondo, he was fast as ever and Coach Doc Rivers said that his speed "jumps out at you." [More] source: Celtics.com

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June 26, 2006

This just in from Draft Express. The rumors are numerous today and the draft is changing hourly with trades being brought to light. Also in this update is the fact that the Hawks and Rockets are finalizing their Draft Day Deal. If the deal with Chicago goes through, this scraps just about every mock draft out there. I can see Danny going for Cedric Simmons or Sene if he does move down to #16.

Earlier today we reported that Boston is exploring trading down in the draft. A trade that appears to be in the works between Chicago and Boston involves Chris Duhon going to the Celtics with the #7 and #16 picks swapping hands. That trade would give the Celtics the true playmaker they covet and allow Chicago to potentially draft Tyrus Thomas if he continues to slip and is there at #7. Duhon would have to agree to any trade due to the fact that the Bulls matched his offer from Toronto this past summer as a Restricted Free Agent. [More] source: Draft Express

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June 26, 2006


The big rumors today center around Danny and Philly talking about a trade of Iverson. It seems as though Philly is the one doing the contacting but you know the old saying... where there is smoke there is fire. Danny likes AI but I don't see Iverson fitting on our team. He is a tough player and a very good one but the attitude is all wrong. And just as Danny said that Ricky and PP were too much the same player, it seems as though AI and Pierce wouldn't be a good fit unless they let us play with 2 basketballs this year.

A recent conversation between the Celtics and 76ers concerned a possible trade involving Allen Iverson, according to a league source. Trade talk between teams usually increases as the draft approaches. For now, it appears the conversation was just one of many commonly held by teams at this time of year. The same source said no deal was on the table, or even close to being considered. Per standing policy, Celtics executive director of basketball operations Danny Ainge declined to comment on rumors. [More] source:Boston Globe Related Articles AI to Boston, Boozer to Philly, Wally to Jazz Philly.com confirms talks

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June 25, 2006

Jon Duke over at Full Court Press has a great analysis of most of the players who could be available to us at 7 as well as how they would fit with the Celtics. I still have this gut feeling that Danny will take S Williams but like everyone else, I really don't have a clue. Sene is very intriguing and if we are going to take a chance, he may be the one to grab. S Williams is the safe pick. If Gay falls expect Danny to grab him but then I also expect a trade of someone. Only 3 days to go and the rumors and speculation are heating up...

Ever since we dropped our look at the Top 6 all hell has broken loose and looks as if we may end up with 100 mock drafts with 100 different opinions on how the Top 10 will ultimately shake out. Players are scheduling last minute meetings and guys who once thought they were destined to be amongst the top players in the draft are now scrambling for last minute workouts further down in the lottery. Gotta love it, eh? Well for Danny Ainge there are still I’s to be dotted and T’s to be crossed, but from comments in Friday’s MetroWestDaily it seems he is all but 3 players away from understanding who is in his Top 7. If there is one thing we know about Ainge’s methods of drafting, his draft board rarely looks like that of Draft Express or Chad Ford’s on ESPN. Remember, this is the same guy who said he had Delonte West ranked as the 2nd best point guard in the 2004 draft. Or, also known as the same draft as Devin Harris, Shaun Livingston, Ben Gordon, Sebastian Telfair, Jameer Nelson, Chris Duhon, and Beno Udrih. Like I said, Danny has different opinions of value, and I can rarely take issue with his selections. But, assuming for a second that the Top 6 does hold somewhat to form, Ainge will need to find a player out of what is left after what most prognosticators believe is the upper echelon of this draft. I can’t crawl in Danny’s head, but I can do my best to understand who may eventually reside within that Top 7. [More] source:BSMW Full Court Press Related Articles: None

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