So Danny Ainge continues the "get older faster" philosophy as the Celtics reportedly agreed to a 2 year deal with Rasheed Wallace which presumably pushes out Leon Powe. Most of us would agree on this being a fail. Sheed will undoubtedly be less productive than he was in his last three seasons in Detroit (12 and 6 with 1 point something blocks and too many three point attempts) as he will have likely have limited minutes sharing a front court with Perkins, hopefully Garnett, and hopefully Big Baby. Which is really the reason this deal is weird, the Celtics were a team with a lot of young bigs and instead of letting them develop in the youth friendly situation of playing with KG they push Powe out and take away playing time from the rest. Not to say Sheed is worthless or anything, he would have something to contribute to a team that really needs a shooting forward like Cleveland or San Antonio. But in Boston's case he seems like an obstacle.
I guess it would have been nice to see him go someplace where he could showcase what's left of his versatility and be a contributor again. Long before Sheed was in the D he was one of my favorite players in the NBA. At his best he was one of the most versatile and skilled bigs in the league. The combination of insanity, intensity, and passion was explosive (both in an entertainment and a basketball sense). From yelling "ball don't lie" to answering every single question in a press conference with "both teams played hard" Sheed provided the kind of instability that made people watch basketball. Its too bad that as his game faded he stayed just as crazy, and he could no longer back up his antics with those mad skills. He definitely falls into the unfortunate category of players who will be unfairly remembered more for their later suckier years than their supertight prime (Gary Payton style). I can only hope the fact that I sign every single post with my favorite quote from him will help to maintain his legacy.
"Both teams played hard...goodnight and godbless."
It's unfortunate... Sheed should have gone to San Antonio. I think he could have been a good fit there (ignoring personality differences between him and the rest of the Spurs). Parker, Ginobili (or Mason), Jefferson, Duncan, Wallace. Would have been a pretty sick starting 6.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the age issue goes, I don't think it's that big a deal. The Celtics basically know they are on a clock. In a couple years, 3/5 of their core will be too old to be competitive, at which point the Celtics would have to look to rebuild. Davis, Powe, and company are good role players, but hardly a core you can build around. So putting Sheed on that same clock isn't unreasonable.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I just don't really see how he's a good fit on that team, at least not offensively. Garnet doesn't really play on the block anymore - he's a jump-shooting big. Sheed does the exact same thing. Is Sheed just an expensive backup for KG? Or is he supposed to start in Perkins' place? Both situations are a waste of his talent.
Defensively, I'd rather have Perkins manning the middle on that team than Sheed. Is Sheed going to do a better job guarding Dwight than Perkins did? Doubtful.
Remember when Karl Malone and Gary Payton came to the Lakers?
ReplyDeleteYeah, and late career antics from title hungry gais still didn't rescue the flake-show.
This is not to say that sheed can't help the Celts, but I just don't see a withering RayRay and questionable KG and human (as judged by this yrs playoffs) Paul Pierce contending in the east. I pick either Orlando or Cleveland. Emphasis on Orlando. G, I hear Cleveland might implode if they don't win a title this next year. And they won't.