Boston Celtics Rumors: Why Missing out on David West Won't Damage Title Hopes

After failing to acquire point guard Chris Paul in a trade with the New Orleans Hornets, the Boston Celtics shifted their focus to Hornets forward David West. A deal never came to fruition in that case either, but it won't damage the Celtics' chances this season.

When the Celtics couldn't work out a sign-and-trade deal with the Hornets, West decided to sign a two-year pact with the Indiana Pacers. West certainly would have been a nice veteran addition for the Celtics, but ultimately it wasn't a necessary move.

The Celtics are a team with aging stars in Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, but they still have the pieces necessary to make one last run at the NBA championship. If anything is going to prevent them from doing so, it is the lack of a true center, and that isn't a void West would have filled.

Trading away center Kendrick Perkins last season in a deal that brought forward Jeff Green to Boston was a move many thought would damage the Celtics' chances in the postseason. That is exactly what happened as the Miami Heat victimized Boston's interior defense.

West is a purely offensive player and since neither he nor Garnett can adequately handle playing center over the long haul, acquiring him would have been a pretty unnecessary move. In fact, by trading Glen "Big Baby" Davis to the Orlando Magic, Boston got Brandon Bass in return, and that isn't a major downgrade from West.

Boston has a fairly deep team overall with guys like Green and Bass coming off the bench, so it isn't as if there were tons of minutes to go around anyway. Had West been signed, it almost assuredly would have meant West and Garnett being on the floor together for long periods of time, but that would have killed the Celtics from a defensive standpoint.

Getting back to the NBA Finals will be a tall task for the Celtics, but with Pierce, Garnett, Allen, Rajon Rondo and a solid supporting cast, it isn't out of the question. West would have been a nice addition, but in terms of "bang for their buck," the Celtics did much better in acquiring Bass.

While he isn't as good of an overall player as West, I think the Celtics would have been better served targeting free agent center Samuel Dalembert. While Dalembert is very limited on the offensive end, he could have given Boston the interior presence it is looking for.

Instead it appears as though the Celtics are pretty much ready to do battle with the roster they have. A top-four finish in the Eastern Conference in pretty much guaranteed, as is a trip to the semifinal round of the playoffs. They may not get further than that, but West wouldn't have changed a thing.