NBA Trade Deadline: Did the Boston Celtics Trade Away the NBA Title?

The big trade that went down at the trade deadline involved the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Celtics acquired the best overall player in the trade by acquiring Jeff Green, as well as Nenad Krstic. The Thunder added big man Kendrick Perkins to go along with Nate Robinson.

Nate Robinson and Kendrick Perkins were both fan favorites in Boston, while Nate Robinson was allergic to defense, he can score in a hurry if he gets going and adds great energy off the bench. Kendrick Perkins was the rock of the Celtics interior defense, while Perkins is not much of a scorer, he plays excellent defense and does a solid job on the boards.

In Green, the Celtics acquired the best offensive player in the trade. Green is still only 24 years of age and is averaging over 15 points per game this season. However, with Green, they acquire a player who isn't known for his defensive abilities and isn't much of a rebounder for someone with his size.

In Krstic, the Celtics acquired a 7'0", who again isn't known much for his defensive abilities, but does have the potential to be a good offensive player. However, Nenad is only averaging 7.6 points per game this season.

On paper, it looks like a steal for the Celtics. They got a young talent and a solid backup center—so what did they sacrifice? 

Teamwork. Family. Leadership. Chemistry.

Now, I'm sure the Celtics are going to embrace Krstic and Green, but the issue at hand is that they simply lost a "family member."

Many people may forget that the Celtics went toe-to-toe with the Los Angeles Lakers in the finals last year, and likely could have defeated them if they had Perkins in the lineup.

For a team that was the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference coming out of the All-Star Break, the risk of destroying chemistry among your stars is simply irresponsible on the part of Danny Ainge. 

The Celtics did not need to make a splash at the deadline. The Miami Heat, the Chicago Bulls and the Orlando Magic all remained quiet, while the best of the bunch pulled off an unnecessary blockbuster.

Basketball is a business and players understand that, but trading away your best center when he is just getting healthy is a very questionable decision by the Celtics.