CSKA Moscow trying to woo Nenad Krstic from the C's

Our European expert Bohemian sent me this link earlier today. If you recall, Krstic left the US already once to go back overseas to play ball. Here's the relevant quote:

CSKA Moscow are reportedly interested in signing Boston Celtics’ Serbian centre Nenad Krstic (27 years old, 213 cm). According to Serbian website Sportske.net, the Russian club has offered the player a long-term contract.
Meanwhile, commenting on this information CSKA president Andrey Vatutin has refrained from giving a direct confirmation or denial.

How would you feel if Nenad took his talents back overseas? Remember there's a good chance the lockout will force many players to head elsewhere to earn some money, so being proactive might be a smart move for a player like Nenad.

The reason Boston traded Semih Erden

On multiple occasions, I wrote about the most indefensible trade Danny Ainge made this year: no, not that one—Luke Harangody and Semih Erden for a second-round draft pick. Trading away a seven-footer with potential (and Harangody) just to open a roster spot for Sasha Pavlovic (and Carlos Arroyo) made as much sense as reading with a blindfold on.

But there was a reason for the trade after all: the Celtics feared Erden would return to Turkey after this season because of a bout with homesickness. (Boston Globe)

Apparently, the Celtics traded Semih Erden to Cleveland because they felt he would return to Europe anyway out of homesickness. The Cavaliers have yet to see what they have in Erden because of shoulder and groin surgeries and a lack of conditioning. The Celtics relayed to Cleveland that Erden needed shoulder surgery, but the groin issue is new. Erden played in just four games after being acquired from the Celtics Feb. 24.

With the Celtics big man situation currently “Kevin Garnett and whoever A) decides not to retire or B) re-signs for a smallish contract,” the Celtics could have used Erden next season. But if he’s going to return to Turkey anyway,  trading him for a basket of potato chips makes more sense in retrospect.

Golden State Warriors and Chicago Bulls Trade?

After watching the Chicago Bulls fall apart against the Miami Heat it is apparent the Warriors have something the Bulls need. The Bulls desperately need another scorer to go along side Derek Rose. Anytime Rose struggled to score the Bulls struggled to score. How sexy would Monta Ellis look sitting next to Derek Rose? That back court would have any team shaking in their boots.

On the other side of the coin the Warriors need something the Bulls have, defense. This team needs more of a defensive mind set and a guy like Taj Gibson would give them just that for a long long time. He would be a very nice starter at PF for this team.

To make a trade like this actually happen Luol Deng would probably have to accompany Gibson to the Bay. I am not a huge Deng fan but I would gladly take his contract if it means getting Gibson. I feel Monta would compliment Rose nicely. He isn’t much of a defender but I think he would probably improve his defensive skills in a system like that. He is bringing so much scoring to the table that his defense would only need to be average.

I see both teams improving in this trade but I am not sure it would really ever happen. How excited the Bulls would be to get an undersized guard that needs the ball in his hand quite a bit I am not sure of. I could see them being excited about a guy like Ellis and not excited all at the same time. However the Warriors I am sure would be super excited about this move.

It probably won’t happen but it is a call the Warriors front office should make.

Phoenix Suns Offseason Priorities: Improve Bench

One of major reasons why the Suns shocked the entire league last season by getting to the Western Conference Finals against the Lakers was the strength of their bench. Phoenix’s second unit played well for the most part last season, but looking to improving will be a must for the organization this summer.

With Vince Carter not coming back, that more than likely means that Jared Dudley will stay in the starting rotation, unless Robert Sarver goes out and spends money on a starting two guard. With Sarver’s history and the lack of quality talent on the free agent market this summer, that seems very unlikely.

That leaves Mickael Pietrus as the only guy off the bench who can play the two spot.Aaron Brooks, who should be brought back, is too small to play the position and Josh Childress is more suited to play the two forward spots because of his length.

Pietrus was up and down in his 38 games with the Suns. He did put up betteer point totals while in Phoenix than he did in his 19 games with Orlando despite getting less playing time, but he also sat out the final 12 games because of a quad injury. It seems likely that he will pick up his $5.3 player option this summer.

Despite Dudley expected to start and Pietrus expected to be back, the Suns should still be in the market for a shooting guard. Dudley played well in the starter’s role late this season, but it remains to be seen if he can do it over a 82-game schedule. Pietrus has been banged up for most of his career, so he can’t be counted on for the entire season.

The Suns aren’t expected to have a lot of money this offseason, so they are going to either get creative with a either trade, drafting a player or finding a cheap option through free agency. One option could be Michael Redd, who has played in only 61 games the past three seasons with a numerous amount of knee injuries. Because of his injuries, he could be had for the veteran’s minimum.

Redd would be a low-risk, high-reward signing for Phoenix. The veteran’s minimum for only one season wouldn’t break the bank for a guy that is only a few years removed from averaging 20+ points per game. It remains to be seen if both sides are interested in one another and whether Redd is still a quality player.

Another offseason priority for Phoenix will be looking for a backup point guard. The most likely option remains Brooks, who really struggled in his time with the Suns. However, it was well known that the former Oregon point guard was battling injuries for most of the year, so the Suns will keep that in mind when deciding if they want to bring him back.

If the Suns decided to go in a different direction and not bring Brooks back, there aren’t a ton of attractive alternatives on the free agent market. Earl Watson, Ronnie Price, Mike Bibby and Anthony Carter are cheap veteran options that they could look at, but none of them  are better offensively than Brooks at this stage of their careers.

Sebastian Telfair and Earl Boykins are better options, but they too aren’t better offensive options than Brooks. The best name on the free agent list at the position is clearly J.J. Barea, who has had a brilliant postseason for Dallas, but it is highly unlikely that Mark Cuban would let him go. He would probably be out of the Suns price range anyways.

In short, it would be shocking to see Phoenix not bring back Brooks. He is the best and the most economically sensible deal for the Suns as of right now.

The last thing that the Suns need to do to improve their second unit is making a decision on whether or not to trade Robin Lopez. If they do trade Lopez elsewhere, the Suns would be in need of a backup big man behind starter Marcin Gortat.

Unlike the point guard and shooting guard spot, this year’s free agent class offers some good options at center. Look no further to the Celtics, who have Glen Davis, Nenad Krstic and Troy Murphy all as unrestricted free agents. There is no way that Boston can afford or even would be interested in bringing all three back, especially Murphy, who saw almost no time in the playoffs.

Like Redd, Murphy is another guy that the Suns could grab for relatively cheap. Murphy played in only 35 games this past season splitting the season with Indiana and Boston. When he did play, Murphy didn’t play well, posting career lows in points and rebounds. Many teams may stay away from Murphy all together.

There are plenty of other options out there for Phoenix besides Murphy. Kwame Brownplayed very well at times for the Bobcats last season, but most Suns fans probably want nothing to do with the former Laker. Dan Gadzuric and Francisco Elson are two guys that the Suns have shown interest in the past and both would come at little to no money.

Whatever the Suns do over the summer, improving the bench should be at the top of the organization’s list. A good bench is essential to a winning team, especially to a team like the Suns with their two best players are on the wrong side of 35.

Boston Celtics Danny Ainge Should Make A Push For Carl Landry

If Glen Davis continues his foolish look on his role with the team, Ainge has a great option to replace him.This man is a reliable scorer and would probably rebound a lot better than Davis. This man would also make the bench scoring a lot more potent. The man I am referring to is one Carl Landry.
I will begin with my argument with I know the obvious drawbacks. The first is the obvious fact that Davis was wide enough to play center at times. Granted it was not the ideal situation, but it was still a nice option to have with a couple veteran centers. However, my solution is simple. Ainge needs to get an actual reliable body to man the center position that is actually a center. There are guys in the draft and free agents that could fill the 12 minutes at the center position that Davis played. The Celtics need both a better answer at center than Davis and more scoring off the bench. Landry fills the scoring off the bench.
I also understand the fact that Landry is a bit undersized for the power forward spot as well. He has a lengthy frame, but the width on his generously listed 6 ft 9inch frame is just not there. However, the man can do his job despite his size issues. The man has averaged double digits the last three seasons including a tremendous 17 points a game in 09-10. He has a solid jump shot, but his bread and butter is his inside scoring. The man has great instincts around the hoop to get the basket. He was playing so well at one point that the Rockets were able to get the Kings to part with the scoring dynamo that is Kevin Martin. This kind of scoring would look real good coming off the bench in place of KG at the power forward spot. I do not see the long scoring droughts with this man on the floor.
I know the funds are limited, but I do not think this is impossible to happen. There could be a mid level and biannual exceptions. The Celtics could also have the sign and trade with Davis should the Hornets want an undersized forward off the bench. Ainge would also need to do some convincing that Boston would be a great place for Landry to not only chase a ring, but flourish off their bench. Ainge has pulled off bigger miracles (KG coming ring a bell for anyone?). I am hoping Ainge at least looks explores this avenue. Remember Go Green Or Go Home!!!!!!!

Garnett, Durant & The Importance Of Shot Creation

On the May 26 BS Report, ESPN’s Bill Simmons and Ric Bucher spent time talking about Oklahoma City’s struggles to get key scores down the stretch against Dallas. Bucher attributed it in part to the difficulties of getting Kevin Durant the ball, and how OKC’s top-scorer wasn’t physically strong enough to avoid being pushed around the court, and out of his preferred areas.

They also talked about Carlos Boozer’s failures against Miami. Boozer is still taking deserved heat for his porous defense, but the power forward shot only 40.7% for the series. Three games of five, Boozer failed to exceed ten shots. This isn’t entirely his fault, as Simmons and Bucher noted, as the Bulls weren’t exploiting the high screen-roll that Deron Williams and Boozer used so effectively in Utah.

But these failures to get the ball to key, expensive players may remind Celtics fans of game four of the Boston-Miami series.

We seem to have committed to a narrative where Kevin Garnett had an incredible game three (28 points, 18 rebounds) and then found himself gassed for the remainder of the series (he was 7-23 the final two games despite hauling in 21 rebounds).

There’s some truth to that story but if you re-watch game four, you’ll notice how hard the Heat worked to deny Garnett the ball, sending weakside defenders to apply pressure, pushing him off his spots and crowding him. The Lakers did the same thing in the 2010 finals and as a result, Pau Gasol outplayed Garnett. This is distinct from the 2008 finals, where KG routinely managed to get deep position on Gasol.

With all three of these elite players, you can seriously impede their offense by just keeping the ball away from them. The same holds true of Ray Allen, but for different reasons: a relatively weak handle and lack of explosiveness for his position.

Certain players are harder to deny. Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul, Derrick Roseand Russell Westbrook (all of whom had their names bandied around as MVP candidates at one point this season) can pick up the ball just across the half-court line and do damage with it.

Of course, this is partially due to the way the game is officiated now. A defensive player can get away with more physicality pushing a big off his spots than can a perimeter defender, who isn’t permitted to hand check, or even extend his arms.If championship teams almost always require two superstar players, it seems increasingly crucial to have at least one of those two be a shot-creating scorer with a great handle. That’s not, by the way, an argument for late-game clearouts for your scorer to go one-on-one (or one-on-five), but a reflection of the difficulty of generating good looks against elite NBA defenses that routinely choke off individual offensive stars. This is why Paul Pierce remains Boston’s best offensive player. He can dribble, shoot, drive, and finish. He’s not the world’s greatest passer, and he’s aging, but he remains a difficult cover, especially given his strength.

All this lends itself to an argument for and against Rajon Rondo as the leader of the next prospective Celtics’ title contender. Rondo can take almost anyone off the dribble, and once by them, can draw the defense and find the open man. But he doesn’t fit in that above group of MVP candidates because of his shooting deficiencies and stretches of tentative play on offense.

If you think Rondo can overcome his offensive problems (and let’s not kid ourselves — they are significant), then you could move forward with him in confidence. A Rondo with a reliable jumpshot, who shoots 75% from the line, could easily be first-team all-NBA.

But if you think Rondo’s headed for another five years like his first five, you have to seriously consider moving him for an offensive upgrade. Because if winning titles is your goal, the incremental upgrade at the top of your roster is probably worth it. There’s a difference between a star who rates an A- and one who rates an A+. Just ask Larry O’Brien.

Jim Buss talks Mike Brown, Kobe Bryant

Jim Buss, Los Angeles Lakers executive and son of owner Dr. Jerry Buss, says he regrets not talking to Kobe Bryant about the decision to hire Mike Brown as Phil Jackson's successor.

"Looking back on it, we should have contacted Kobe," Jim Buss said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that ran Saturday night. "Kobe said it was management's job to pick a coach. He just said, 'Defense first.' That's what we were doing, but we should have reached out to him."

Bryant had previously endorsed longtime Jackson assistant Brian Shaw to be promoted to the head-coaching job. The Lakers struck an agreement with Brown on Wednesday, and sources told ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin that Bryant has great respect for Brown and is on board with the hiring, despite not being consulted about the choice.

During an interview on ESPN during halftime of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday, Brown said he already had exchanged text messages with Bryant. Brown also said he's "looking forward to getting to know Kobe and being able to work with him to go and get us a championship."

Jim Buss, Lakers executive VP of player personnel, expressed confidence that Bryant would mesh well with Brown, according to the Times report

"The way Mike impressed the three of us, I would think Kobe would be impressed as well," Buss said. "Mike is a workaholic and Kobe is the workaholic."

Buss was unconcerned about the possibility that Brown wouldn't be able to corral Bryant's talents for the good of the team.

"I've seen Kobe go off the place a few times, but I'm sure the coach will know how to handle it," Buss told the newspaper. "My dad loves Kobe and so do I; we think he has a lot left. And I know Mike has some ideas on how to elongate Kobe's career."

The Lakers' bid for a three-peat ended unceremoniously when the Dallas Mavericks swept them in the Western Conference semifinals.