CELTICS GREEN BLOG by and for boston celtics fans: Random Thoughts on Celtics Goings On

Once again Larry Johnson over on WEEI has come up with another great Celtics cartoon: The Big Free

Celtics news is coming fast and furious these past couple of days. First came the news that Perk's injury was indeed an ACL tear and that his surgery is scheduled for a week from today. It was no surprise to me to hear that Perk has been working hard to strengthen the ACL before the surgery in order to speed recovery time. Perk is one of the hardest workers in this league and has been since his rookie season. If anyone can work his way back as soon as possible, it is Perk. The estimates for his return are December or January. The fact that Perk is walking on it now is a good sign that he will be fine. If Perk comes back in December or January, that will give him plenty of time to get his legs and conditioning into game shape before the playoffs. I know that Perk will be working hard on rehab and so will stay in shape, but only playing in games can get you in game shape. Perk will be ready and fresh for the stretch run and playoffs and that is good news.

Next up was Pierce's decision to opt out. His agent mentioned that he was going to talk with the Celtics first but would also listen to offers elsewhere. Apparently Danny tried to work out an extension but it wasn't what Pierce was looking for so he opted for free agency instead. There are a lot of teams that cleared cap space for the big free agent crop this season and once the top tier of FA's are taken (ie: LeBron, Wade, Bosh, Amare, Johnson), especially if some of them opt to stay with their current teams, there will be teams willing to overpay to get a player like Pierce. It may come down to whether Pierce's legacy as a Celtic is more important than an extra year or more money.

Finally, the bestest news. Doc Rivers has decided to stay with the Celtics. That is the most crucial piece to this team contending for another year. Not Pierce, not Ray, Not Perk's injury. Doc's return gives the team continuity and it also gives them added motivation to win one for Doc since he sacrificed to come back to get them there. Hopefully Doc's decision will aid in bringing in free agents, including Pierce and Allen, because the team remains stable and does have a shot at contending.

Hopefully the pieces will fall into place when free agency starts on July 1. In the meantime we have Summer League coming up on July 5. All the games will be televised live on NBA-TV and they are also offering a League Pass Broadband for Summer League where the games will be live as well as archived for later viewing. Now that we know that Doc is coming back, let's get this party started!!!!

[Discuss on CG Forums!]

Post a Comment