Many general
managers of NBA franchises blow in any direction with the slightest
breeze. Often on the hot seat and threatened with the loss of their
jobs, they eagerly embrace the latest fad, probably hoping that their
tenure will at least last through the trial period. Get a big point
guard, find a 3-and-D wing, go all-in for the latest breakout-season
darling; it seems that there is no end of fashionable “new”
approaches. At the other end of the spectrum, we find the Celtics'
leader—comfortable with his relationship with his owners, choosing
adroitly and sticking with his coaches, and with the memory of an
elephant when it comes to players that catch his eye. Danny Ainge is
far from whimsical in his enchantments.
This summers'
acquisitions are a prime example. He tried to woo David Lee when he
hit free agency five years ago. Then Lee chased the money, but now
he seems pretty pleased to be joining the resurgent Celtics. Ten
years ago, when Amir Johnson was still available as the C's
second-round pick approached, Danny tried to get Orion Greene to
forgo Ainge's promise to draft him. Ainge did so with an offer to
sign him to a free-agent contract should Greene not be picked in the
remaining seven selections after Boston exercised their choice at
53. The reason was the fact that the high-schooler Amir had slipped
deep into the second round, a fact thought unlikely by Ainge. Orion
balked, Danny kept his promise, and Johnson was taken 56th
by Detroit. A decade later when Toronto decided their both-ends
efficient veteran was expendable, Danny pounced, and Amir,
remembering Ainge's interest on that long-ago draft night, eagerly
came “home” where he had always been wanted and welcome. If
Danny likes what he sees in a player but can't acquire them, he
remember, and watches, and waits, and acts when the opportunity
appears.
Take a look at
Danny's coaching hires since becoming head of basketball operations
with the Celtics. Doc Rivers was doing color commentary on televised
games after being fired by the Orlando Magic; when Ainge plucked him
from the announcer's chair to lead Boston's rebuild from the
sidelines. Nine years later, when Doc balked at undergoing a second
rebuild, Danny pried a first round pick out of the L. A. Clippers for
the privilege of giving Rivers the coaching job he wanted. At the
time Doc Rivers was the longest tenured coach in the NBA, unless, of
course, you want to count Popovich who had led San Antonio since
sometime during the last ice age. No fickle affair there, and when
Doc wanted to go, Ainge moved him to the franchise of Rivers' choice.
Enter Brad Stevens, on an unprecedented 6-year contract, plucked
from a mid-major college, into an NBA setting that had chewed up and
spit out college wanna-be's for decades. Think Danny hadn't been
following Brad for years? I don't know the Latin for it but I'm
pretty sure there should be an inscription below the BIA (Boston
Intelligence Agency) seal on the door of the Celtics' basketball
office: He came, he saw, he remembered.
And now a value
added subscript for this post, as I researched some of the dates for
this article, I came across a delightful and informative piece on
Ainge by Ian Thomsen (this is the second time I've run across his
work and felt inspired to share it with my readers), I highly
recommend it:
Only 59 days until
camp
[Discuss on CG Forums!]
I agree totally. I find it much easier to imagine myself as a GM then imagine myself being 7' tall and able to jump out of the building. So Danny is my favorite Celtic. I describe him similarly to the article above, but make it short......saying: Name me another GM who was a starter on a championship team, a all star, a Coach, a TV commentator as well as being a GM....... AND MADE THE MAJOR LEAGUES IN TWO SPORTS.
ReplyDeleteDipper
Up until that last phrase, Larry Bird fits the description... But Danny stands alone in the two sport area.
DeleteAnd I have read that Larry really wanted to come back to Boston as a Coach/Exec/Whatever , but was refused by "Thanks Dad" who didn't like him. Tricky question: Who was worse for the Celtics?
Delete"Thanks Dad" or Rick Pitino?
I'd have to say Pitino. Thanks Dad was just the owner. Pitino insisted on pushing Red out as president and he was also coach. I'll never forgive him for pushing Red out like that. He was power hungry.
DeleteOne time I'm glad Danny didn't get his man is Robert Swift. Reports were that he did all he could to get Swift in the draft but he was taken by the Sonics before Danny could strike. Danny settled for Al Jefferson. There were a lot of rumors that Danny even tried several times to make a trade for him that first season. Danny finally got Swift in summer league after he was out of shape and all but out of the league already. Danny's man crushes can be good as with the examples of Lee and Johnson, but they can also be bad as with Swift. We can all be happy that didn't work out for him. I've often thought that the best way to become a Celtic is to have a few big games against them.
ReplyDeleteThank you for both your article and the link to Ian's article. Both are well-researched, well written and informative. Danny is truly the central cog in the Celtics' fascinating organization, and the more insight we gain into his character, the better we can appreciate his work.
ReplyDeleteAlthough some might argue to the contrary, Danny Ainge is one of the better GM's in the league. It's not easy to build a contender with all the cap restrictions etc but he did it once in 2008 and is doing a good job of building assets to build one again. He has a nice young core of players and a ridiculous number of draft picks. He also was smart enough to grab Brad Stevens before another GM was able to get him.
ReplyDelete