I like the Boston Celtics and Danny Ainge just as much as the next guy and think the C's are the best team in the league but Danny Ainge is far from being the NBA Executive of The Year. Look at his tenure with the Celts: crazy draft picks and trades that made no sense. This award is a joke if the NBA thinks Ainge is the top executive.
His acceptance speech better give thanks to Kevin McHale and the seven players for the lopsided trade to obtain Kevin Garnett, as well as his draft day trade to land Ray Allen. Without these two trades Ainge's leadership, or lack thereof, would've been somewhat of a mystery.
Let's rewind back a few years and look at some of the lousy trades like when Ainge and the Celts traded Brandon Roy in a multi-player deal that eventually brought Sebastian Telfair to Boston. Roy was the 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year and has averaged nearly 20 points per game in his two NBA seasons. Telfair was terrible and could only muster six points per game in his only season in Boston.
Even before bringing Telfair to the Bay State, Ainge has often been controversial as he's traded three-time All-Star Antoine Walker, only to get him back through a trade. Then Ainge ran off head coach Jim O'Brien, who had a record of 139-119 just as the Celts were recovering from the Rick Pitino debacle.
The team hit rock bottom last season with a 24-58 record, the second worst record in team history, and had fans asking if the players had just given up in order to get a top draft pick.
In my opinion Ainge has done a lackluster job in his six seasons in Beantown and yet somehow has remained in charge of the team. At least Boston fans can be excited with Garnett, Pierce and Allen running the show.
But you can just add him to the list of former Celtics that have dropped the ball in taking their team to the next level. In fact the best leader in team history, Red Auerbach, didn't even play one minute in the NBA. It just goes to show that you don't have to be an ex NBA player to be great in the front office.
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4 months ago
I have to disagree, he executed two massive trades that led to the largest turn-around in nba history. I also would not consider them "lopsided", sure the Garnett involved almost an entire team, but look where we are: one win away from the Eastern Conference Finals!
I think he is a very good evaluator of talent. He has drafted 2 of the 5 startes of the Celtics (Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins, out of HS), both who have become good players. He has also drafted Leon Powe, who has been a work horse. He drafted Ryan Gomes, Al Jefferson (out of HS), even though they are no longer with the team, they were certainly vital pieces to the trade.
He nabbed James Posey, who has hit a few big shots, Sam Cassell and PJ Brown all out of Free Agency of retirement.
I think he is well deserving of this reward.
4 months ago
Actually he didn't draft Rondo...he was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in 2006 and then traded to the Celtics...that trade also brought over Sebastian Telfair from Portland. Kendrick Perkins was drafted by the Memphis Grizzlies and was part of a trade to the Celts for Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones. I could've made that trade...Bell and Jones were two players that weren't that good.
And I saw in an interview with Kevin Garnett and he said he talked with PJ Brown and convinced him to come out of retirement...not Danny Ainge getting him sign.
Look I'm actually a huge Celtics fans...this goes way back to the Larry Bird days, but Ainge isn't all that. In fact if it weren't for somehow convincing McHale to trade Garnett, Ainge would be looking at the bottom of the Eastern Conference again.
4 months ago
I find it curious that Kevin Pritchard of the Trailblazers has gotten NO run whatsoever. He executed said trade to get rid of Sebastian Telfair, aquired Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, got James Jones for CASH, resigned Joel Przybilla and Steve Blake...hardly All-Stars but extremely valuable members of the team...for below market contracts, got rid of Zach Randolph for Channing Frye and got rid of the horrific contracts of Steve Francis and Darius Miles, and reshaped the franchise from the "Jailblazers" to "the best young team in the league", a team that got rid of their best scorer/rebounder/shooting percentage guy and still improved by 8 games in the W column...
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