Tending the House: Small Forward Situation
How you feel about Wally dictates what we do with this spot. Either we are set here or we are still looking for an upgrade at the starting spot at this position. I am in the latter camp and am very interested to see what we can get at the 3 spot this offseason.
The Current Tenants: Wally Szczerbiak, Ryan Gomes, Tony Allen, Brian Scalabrine
Wally is really the only true small forward on the team. In most scenarios, Paul Pierce moves up to this spot and Allen, Green, or even Delonte take over the shooting guard responsibilities. While that isn't such a bad situation, it would be nice to have a legit option on the roster who can actually guard opposing small forwards. The Free Agents
The Big Ticket Items: Al Harrington
The Mid-Level Luxuries: Matt Harpring, Devean George
The Bargain Bin Jumaine Jones, Adrian Griffin, Amir Johnson, Waltuh!, Ndubi Ebi, Justin Reed, Stacey Augmon, Trevor Ariza Al Harrington would have to be a sign-and-trade although I'm not sure how interested Atlanta would be in taking back Raef or Wally. Then again, they have been the worst managed franchise in the '00 decade so maybe... Outside of that pipe dream, Harpring would be interesting but would eat up most of our MLE, which means we have even MORE money invested in the swing spots. As for the bargain bin, Amir Johnson is an interesting project and a player that Ainge wanted to take in the draft (but couldn't get out of the promise he made to Orien Greene). Trevor Ariza is another possibility but is another project that Danny may not be interested in taking on. Also, I'm not sure how interested a kid from Miami who went to school at UCLA would be in Boston. The Trade Bait
Rashard Lewis: Word around the campfire is that Seattle may be looking to move him. Would they be looking to get Raef or Wally back? I would think probably not so it would take one of our young talents and possibly our pick to make this happen. Wally, Gomes and our pick for 'Shard? I highly doubt Seattle would be interested but it's always worth the call to find out what they'd be looking for.
Darius Miles: No. This guy is a cancer and the last person you want around your young players. Even Marbury is better to have around because at least your guys will bond over their hate for Steph.
Quentin Richardson: Not bad but not worth his paycheck and doesn't really give us anything we're looking for.
Corey Maggette: Corey Maggette
Maggs has been injury prone and hasn't been able to get his starting spot back for the Clippers. This could be a sign that he's on the block. The only issue is if we have anything the Clip show would be interested in return. I can't imagine they are interested in Wally so again this would likely have to be a multi-team deal where we swap out Wally and bring in Maggette. And again, highly unlikely.
Josh Smith: As I said in my dream offseason post, I'd give up a lot to get Josh, but I really don't see him being on the block as he's one of the few crowd-pleasers in Atlanta right now.
Andres Nocioni: I can't see him or Deng moving in any deal that doesn't bring Paul Pierce to Chicago. Small forward trades usually come out of nowhere so who knows what could happen this offseason. If dealing Wally is not part of the procedure, then I highly doubt that the Celtics would be interested in bringing in a well-paid small forward. Wyc and Co. don't seem like the type of owners with which you can really afford to have a big contract coming off the bench. The Draft
We have a definite shot of landing a top notch small forward at the #7 pick. Rudy Gay could fall to us but the most likely candidate is Rodney Carney from Memphis. A senior, Carney could very well come in and help out from Day 1 and he has the athleticism that would fit in with a running team. On the downside, his defense isn't the greatest but then again, when has that mattered to Danny? A sleeper is the Swiss prospect Thebo Sefolosha (Who?!). He is projected more as a late first rounder but someone always moves up out of nowhere in the draft and he was one candidate. Able to play both guard spots as well as SF, he is a great talent who Draftexpress compares to Josh Howard. The downside is that he's a role player but that is really what the C's need: a guy who gets dirty on defense, rebounds, and is adept at moving the ball on offense. If the C's could snag a late first round pick it might be worthwhile to take a look at this kid. Then again, foreign prospects are such a crapshoot, this kid could barely know how to spell basketball let alone play it. If we keep the pick, odds are that we take a small forward or reach for a PG prospect.
Wally is really the only true small forward on the team. In most scenarios, Paul Pierce moves up to this spot and Allen, Green, or even Delonte take over the shooting guard responsibilities. While that isn't such a bad situation, it would be nice to have a legit option on the roster who can actually guard opposing small forwards. The Free Agents
The Big Ticket Items: Al Harrington
The Mid-Level Luxuries: Matt Harpring, Devean George
The Bargain Bin Jumaine Jones, Adrian Griffin, Amir Johnson, Waltuh!, Ndubi Ebi, Justin Reed, Stacey Augmon, Trevor Ariza Al Harrington would have to be a sign-and-trade although I'm not sure how interested Atlanta would be in taking back Raef or Wally. Then again, they have been the worst managed franchise in the '00 decade so maybe... Outside of that pipe dream, Harpring would be interesting but would eat up most of our MLE, which means we have even MORE money invested in the swing spots. As for the bargain bin, Amir Johnson is an interesting project and a player that Ainge wanted to take in the draft (but couldn't get out of the promise he made to Orien Greene). Trevor Ariza is another possibility but is another project that Danny may not be interested in taking on. Also, I'm not sure how interested a kid from Miami who went to school at UCLA would be in Boston. The Trade Bait
Rashard Lewis: Word around the campfire is that Seattle may be looking to move him. Would they be looking to get Raef or Wally back? I would think probably not so it would take one of our young talents and possibly our pick to make this happen. Wally, Gomes and our pick for 'Shard? I highly doubt Seattle would be interested but it's always worth the call to find out what they'd be looking for.
Darius Miles: No. This guy is a cancer and the last person you want around your young players. Even Marbury is better to have around because at least your guys will bond over their hate for Steph.
Quentin Richardson: Not bad but not worth his paycheck and doesn't really give us anything we're looking for.
Corey Maggette: Corey Maggette
Maggs has been injury prone and hasn't been able to get his starting spot back for the Clippers. This could be a sign that he's on the block. The only issue is if we have anything the Clip show would be interested in return. I can't imagine they are interested in Wally so again this would likely have to be a multi-team deal where we swap out Wally and bring in Maggette. And again, highly unlikely.
Josh Smith: As I said in my dream offseason post, I'd give up a lot to get Josh, but I really don't see him being on the block as he's one of the few crowd-pleasers in Atlanta right now.
Andres Nocioni: I can't see him or Deng moving in any deal that doesn't bring Paul Pierce to Chicago. Small forward trades usually come out of nowhere so who knows what could happen this offseason. If dealing Wally is not part of the procedure, then I highly doubt that the Celtics would be interested in bringing in a well-paid small forward. Wyc and Co. don't seem like the type of owners with which you can really afford to have a big contract coming off the bench. The Draft
We have a definite shot of landing a top notch small forward at the #7 pick. Rudy Gay could fall to us but the most likely candidate is Rodney Carney from Memphis. A senior, Carney could very well come in and help out from Day 1 and he has the athleticism that would fit in with a running team. On the downside, his defense isn't the greatest but then again, when has that mattered to Danny? A sleeper is the Swiss prospect Thebo Sefolosha (Who?!). He is projected more as a late first rounder but someone always moves up out of nowhere in the draft and he was one candidate. Able to play both guard spots as well as SF, he is a great talent who Draftexpress compares to Josh Howard. The downside is that he's a role player but that is really what the C's need: a guy who gets dirty on defense, rebounds, and is adept at moving the ball on offense. If the C's could snag a late first round pick it might be worthwhile to take a look at this kid. Then again, foreign prospects are such a crapshoot, this kid could barely know how to spell basketball let alone play it. If we keep the pick, odds are that we take a small forward or reach for a PG prospect.
