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What Is Really Going On??

BigKen

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The C's and Philly officially made the deal this morning. Philly gets the #1 and the Celtics get the #3.
The Celtics get the Lakers pick next year if it's between #2 and #5 otherwise they get Either Sacramento or Philly's 2019 pick. If either are #1, the Celtics get the lower pick.

Steven A. Smith is reporting that the Celtics will give up #3 to Chicago for Jimmy Butler.

CSNNE A Sherrod Blakely says that now the Celtics and Pelicans can start discussing Anthony Davis in earnest. The Pelicans haven't made the playoffs with Anthony and even adding Cousins didn't get them into the playoffs. They have crap for draft picks and no one is going to their games. It would make a ton of sense if they could pick up the #3, Brooklyn and the Lakers picks next year and either Brooklyn or Memphis pick in 2019. Maybe have the Celtics toss in Jae Crowder and Marcus Smart and the Pelicans give the Celtics Cousins salary. The Pelicans need to get younger and rebuild their team and getting 5 or 6 top picks would go a long way in improving their future.

Another rumor on NESN says that Sacramento is trying to get the Celtics to trade the #3 for the #5 and #10. Possibly a couple of players may be involved. If the Celtics are looking to draft Jayson Tatum or John Issac they might be able to get both by trading down.
 

BigKen

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So now the Bulls are going to work out Josh Jackson?

With the Lakers and Pacers now working furiously to get a trade worked out for Paul George before the draft on Thursday, the Bulls are making Butler available.

Several problems to deal with here. First, the Lakers have the #2 pick this year, but the Celtics or 76ers own their pick next year. If the Lakers deal this year's pick and the 2019 first round pick to the Pacers, where does that really put the team? Will a 36 year old LeBron going to LA in 2019 make up for no new blood in 2017,18,19??

According to CSN Chicago, the Celtic refused a trade of the #3 for Butler and the Cleveland Cavaliers were talking a trade of Kevin Love plus for Butler. Butler isn't your typical forward. At 6'&' he like to bring the ball up or at least move with it. He played his best with Rhondo at the point.

So what happens if the Lakers deal the #2 to the Pacers? No question that the draft would be in shambles.

76ers.................Markel Fultz
Pacers................Josh Jackson?? D'Aaron Fox??
Celtics................Lonzo Ball ??(hahahaha) Johnathan Tatum? Trade it to the Kings for #5 & #10

This is getting more interesting by the minute.
 

BigKen

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* * *

UPDATE: 1:38 p.m.: The New York Knicks are, understandably, seeking much in return if they do end up dealing Kristaps Porzingis, writes Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today:

New York Knicks center Kristaps Porzingis is being discussed in trades, two people with knowledge of the situation confirmed to USA TODAY Sports’ Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt.

Both people requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.

One executive described the Knicks’ asking price as “very aggressive” in shopping Porzingis, who’s about to enter his third year in the league. Porzingis averaged 18.1 points and 7.2 rebounds last season for the underachieving Knicks.

Another person with knowledge of a potential Porzingis trade characterized the situation as job preservation for the front office, which is struggling to make the Knicks a playoff team. Phil Jackson has been unable to turn the team around since becoming team president in 2014.

* * *

UPDATE, 1:04 p.m.: The Boston Celtics, who yesterday completed a trade to swap their No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 Draft for the Philadelphia 76ers' No. 3 pick, are among the teams in the thick of the Kristaps Porzingis trade chase.

Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily Newshas more on the trade pursuit of the New York Knicks' young, star forward:

As Phil Jackson's stated publicly, he's not ruling out dealing anybody — including Kristaps Porzingis. And the Celtics, who own the third overall pick in the NBA draft, are interested.

Now that trade season is in full swing ahead of the draft, the Knicks have been flooded with interest in their star, sources confirmed. And according to a source, the Celtics are among those teams.

It has reached the point that New York is already planning for a future without the Latvian, according to The Vertical, which reported Jackson met Monday with a potential replacement in Lauri Markkanen.

Markkanen, a 7-footer from Finland, is a projected lottery draft pick who plays the same position as Porzingis. The Knicks draft eighth on Thursday.

Marc Berman from the New York Post reports on some other aspects that could be playing into Porzingis availability in trades ...

The Knicks hold the No. 8 overall pick in Thursday’s NBA draft, and Jackson met on Monday with prospect Lauri Markkanen, a source confirmed. Jackson views Markkanen, a sweet-shooting big man out of Arizona, as a potential replacement if the Knicks decide to trade Porzingis. Jackson repeatedly had said he is looking to draft guards or wings.

The Knicks’ relationship with Porzingis took a turn at the end of last season when the Latvian star skipped his exit interview with Jackson and GM Steve Mills. Porzingis boycotted over frustration with the Knicks’ lack of direction, according to sources.

Porzingis has still not talked to Knicks coaches or representatives of the front office since the season ended bitterly. A source told The Post the Knicks are not sending any of their assistant coaches to Latvia to work with Porzingis this offseason. The source said Porzingis has hired two physiotherapists from New York on his own dime.

According to a source, the Knicks are frustrated that Porzingis may have fallen under the spell of Carmelo Anthony, who is anti-Jackson.

* * *NBA Draft approaches and trade talks swirl, the Knicks aren't ruling out possibly trading Porzingis.

Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical was the first to report the news, which has since also been reported by Ian Begley of ESPN.com ...
 

redseat

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*Jayson Tatum
 

BigKen

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Mike Giardi of CSNNE is implying that the Celtics could get Porzingis for the #3 and Avery Bradley or Marcus Smart. Only one little hang-up. The Knicks want the C's to also take Carmelo Anthony or it's no deal. They figure that the Celtics have both the available money and the cap space. Phil Jackson needs to do something and the team with the most to offer is the Boston Celtics.
 

BigKen

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A bunch of pieces fell into place last night and early this morning.

Paul George traded to OKC

Blake Griffin decides to resign with the Clippers for 5 years and $173M

Gordon Hayward has changed his itinerary for the third time in 24 hours:
Visits with the Miami Heat today (Saturday 7/1)
Visits with the Boston Celtics tomorrow (Sunday 7/2)
Visits with the Utah Jazz (Monday 7/3)

If Hayward decides to sign with Miami or Utah, what are the best possible moves for the Celtics in Free Agency or potential trades?

Greg Monroe 27 C
Vince Carter 40 F/G

OR how about this????? Make an offer that the Warriors can't....................

Kevin Durant 5 years $210M..........?????? Maybe he has second thoughts about resigning???
 

poewelch84

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A bunch of pieces fell into place last night and early this morning.

Paul George traded to OKC

Blake Griffin decides to resign with the Clippers for 5 years and $173M

Gordon Hayward has changed his itinerary for the third time in 24 hours:
Visits with the Miami Heat today (Saturday 7/1)
Visits with the Boston Celtics tomorrow (Sunday 7/2)
Visits with the Utah Jazz (Monday 7/3)

If Hayward decides to sign with Miami or Utah, what are the best possible moves for the Celtics in Free Agency or potential trades?

Greg Monroe 27 C
Vince Carter 40 F/G

OR how about this????? Make an offer that the Warriors can't....................

Kevin Durant 5 years $210M..........?????? Maybe he has second thoughts about resigning???

They can't offer Durant 5 years only his current team can, the best they could do is 4.
 

poewelch84

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The Pacers had a better offer from Boston but took Oklahoma City's deal instead nothing Boston can do about that. I've read that Miami are the favorites for Hayward but one of the reasons was Spolestra and I don't think they have any coaching advantage with Hayward over Brad Stevens.
 

BigKen

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My gut tells me that Hayward will stay with Utah. Comfort and money. no stress, no high expectations.

I think Boston will go after Monroe and Milsap to help educate the young guys.

Ainge will pull off a couple of minor trades. Overall the team gets a little better, beats Cleveland in 7 and loses to the Warriors in 6.
 

BigKen

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Celtic formally signed Ante Zizic and Jayson Tatum

By
Rich Levine
June 16, 2017
COMMENTARY

Who is Ante Zizic?

This was the first question on many minds last June, when the Boston Celtics selected a relatively unknown Croatian teenager with the 23rd pick in the 2016 NBA draft. Fans were initially upset. Underwhelmed. A little confused. On TV, ESPN cut to a row of Celtics fans in the crowd at Barclays, giving a double thumbs down.

“I would caution those Celtics fans,” said Fran Fraschilla, ESPN’s international basketball guru. “[Zizic] is one of my favorite kids in this draft. He’s 6-11, 240. He has a mean streak.”

But Zizic was still at least a year away. On draft night that’s another lifetime.

Who is Ante Zizic?

The question re-surfaced in the fall, as Zizic was establishing himself as the best big man in the Adriatic Basketball Association. Before you laugh, the ABA is a respectable league. Dario Saric, Jusuf Nurkic and Nikola Jokic are all recent alums. It’s easily one of the 10 best basketball leagues in the world and Zizic was on another level.

On October 11, the young center dropped 37 points and 20 rebounds in a single game for KK Cibona. He was named the ABA’s October MVP. By December, still only 19, Zizic led the league in scoring (20.0), rebounds (9.2) and field goal percentage (69.5).

Then, the day after Christmas, about a week before his 20th birthday, Zizic made headlines overseas — and back in Waltham — when he signed with Turkish club Darussafaka Dogus. For those who don’t know, Darussafaka is legit. It’s one of the best teams in Turkey’s top league. The third-best league in Europe, according to Fraschilla.

For the Celtics and their fans, this was a clue that maybe this kid was a little more developed than once thought. For Zizic, it was an opportunity to cut his teeth against bigger, stronger and just plain better competition. Most appealing? It was a chance to play for former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach David Blatt.

“I chose Darussafaka because Dave Blatt was the coach there,” Zizic said in a telephone interview. “He was in the NBA, of course. He knows NBA basketball.”

Believe it or not, Blatt was equally excited about coaching Ante Zizic.

Who is Ante Zizic?

There’s a great video on YouTube, posted around this time last year, of David Blatt speaking to a group of players at Adidas EuroCamp 2016. This event is a pretty big deal in the basketball community. It’s the only NBA sanctioned pre-draft camp outside of the United States. Every year some 50 players from around the world show up, and on this day, Blatt wants them to understand that everything they do is important. Everything matters. Every decision they make in every aspect of their lives can make or break a career.

If you only know Blatt from his successful but awkward run with LeBron, he’s a legend overseas. He’s one of the greatest coaches of his generation and an incredibly sharp and insightful guy.

“I’m gonna tell you a story,” Blatt says to the packed gym, pacing back in forth.

He goes on to recall a day two and a half years earlier, when he was coaching Maccabi Tel Aviv. This was Blatt’s last year with the team. They’d eventually win the EuroLeague championship. But this was early in the season — preseason — a handful of guys were off playing with the Israeli national team. Blatt needed extra bodies for practice, so the GM brought in two kids from Croatia, both only 16 years old. He remembers organizing a scrimmage and watching one of the Croatian kids, a big prospect, struggle with the competition.

“It was obviously hard on him,” Blatt says. “He was 16 years old. He was playing against grown men.”

To this point, Blatt’s tone is relatively subdued. He’s pacing himself. Then he starts talking about the other Croatian kid — and the words and emotions start to build.

“This other kid,” Blatt says. “A big man. He was matched up against Sofoklis Schortsanitis.” Blatt laughs. “Do you guys know who Sofo is? Either way I can tell you he is one of the biggest, strongest human beings I have ever seen.”

(FYI: THIS is Sofoklis Schortsanitis)

“We called him Baby Shaq,” Blatt says. “He was a tremendously strong guy. Agile. Athletic. This kid from Croatia is matched up with Sofo, and guys, what I’m going to tell you right now is the truth.”

Blatt pauses for the effect. He’s good at this.

“This kid was flying all around the room. He was bouncing off the walls. Bouncing off the floors. He’s getting hit every which way possible. And you know what stuck out most? He kept getting up.”

Blatt really sells this. He really believes it.

“This kid reminded me of Ali on the ropes,” he says. “Just sitting there yelling ‘Punch me! Punch me! Punch me!’ until the guy’s tired, and then he KNOCKED George Foreman’s ass out.”

Blatt throws an upper cut into thin air.

“That’s what this kid was doing. He just kept coming, and coming, and coming. And old Sofo finally just said the ‘The hell with it, I’m going home.’ He walked off the court, and this kid was left standing.”

One more pause.

“That was two and a half years ago,” Blatt says. “And I remember I said to myself that day: This kid’s gonna be a player. This kid’s going to the NBA.”

Blatt stops and looks out in the crowd, then turns to one of the organizers …

“Where’s Ante?” he asks. “Is Zizic here?”

Who is Ante Zizic?

The question re-surfaced in March, but now there was a different ring to it. Annoyed disbelief had been replaced by a tone more curious, almost flirtatious. Who IS Ante Zizic?

By then, the big man was already adjusting to life at the next level. He hit double figures in six of his first nine EuroLeague games with Darussafaka. That included three double-doubles.

Meanwhile, there were already whispers the Celtics were quickly falling in love — but now they didn’t care who knew about it. They were screaming from the rooftops.

“[Zizic] just turned 20 in January, and he punishes grown men physically,” director of player personnel Austin Ainge told The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach in March. “July 1 just has to roll over on the calendar, and we’ll sign him. He wants to be here, and we want him here.”

Then it was April, and suddenly Zizic was in the EuroLeague quarterfinals, doing stuff like this to Real Madrid.
 

BigKen

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Celtics add German forward Daniel Theis with two-year deal
By CSN REPORT July 01, 2017 1:54 PM

As was reported last month, the Celtics have agreed to a two-year deal with German forward Daniel Theis.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN also reported the signing Saturday, the day NBA free agency officially began.

Theis, 25, 6-8, 243 pounds, a power forward/center, averaged 9.6 points and 4.6 rebounds for Brose Bamberg of Germany, while shooting 41 percent from 3-point range and 64.5 percent on two-point attempts.

He has been an important contributor on a team that won three consecutive national titles in Germany in addition to the 2017 German National Cup.

With Amir Johnson, Jonas Jerebko and Tyler Zeller all not likely returning, the Celtics need to bolster their frontcourt. They lost out on All-Star Paul George, who was traded to the Thunder, and have targeted free agent Gordon Hayward.

Two Celtics big men, 2016 first-round picks Gershon Yabusele and Ante Zizic, spent last season playing overseas but are likely to be with the Celtics for this upcoming season. Zizic will play with the Celtics summer league team that opens Monday in Salt Lake City.
 

poewelch84

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It looks like Hayward is going to Boston!!!!
 

redseat

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My gut tells me that Hayward will stay with Utah. Comfort and money. no stress, no high expectations.

I think Boston will go after Monroe and Milsap to help educate the young guys.

Ainge will pull off a couple of minor trades. Overall the team gets a little better, beats Cleveland in 7 and loses to the Warriors in 6.

I honestly didn't think Hayward would go the the C's either... Guess we were both wrong
 
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