Danny Ainge doesn’t Suck
Wow. Danny is getting crushed this season. This is the most heat he has gotten I think in his entire tenure as GM. As a professional he would have to go back to his days of being a little piss ant playing along side Bird and McHale to compare the temperature he is feeling this season. And you know what, rightfully so. This roster sucks. Anyone that is relying on Semi Ojeleye and Javonte Fucking Green is a Bonafide Knuckle Head. I know that’s harsh, but sorry “Comedy Central if didn’t want controversy you shouldn’t have invited the king.”
So, bad roster this year. Yup. But, he doesn’t suck. And as for this season we can go back to my blog, The Al Horford Celtics Failed where we explain you have to temper your expectation of a team lead by a 23 and 24 year old. Yes, they are All-Stars and they have under performed. The stretch of games centered around the no show in Atlanta are unforgivable. This aint AAU, kids. You come to play every night like someone was going to steal your kids if you lost. Can’t Wyc or Danny get KG in the locker room one night for some violent “Mutha Fuckers” directed at these “young kings”. KG should be like the NBA’s version of Scared Straight. I digress.
Danny Ainge doesn't suck. Let’s point out the obvious. Tatum and Brown. Boom.
Further more since 2013 and the trade of Pierce and KG, what most franchises would call a rebuilding phase aka Trust the Process, the Celtics have missed the play offs 1 year and been to the ECF 3 out of the 4 past seasons. He has acquired 4 All-Star players in that time and drafted 2 more. I get it, we count rings in Boston, but trust me a lesser GM and we would be slapping sticks in the mud with the Orlando’s of the world. Plus, It generally takes a top 3 player in the league to win the championship. Those are hard to come by. Lebron, Steph, Kwahi and “Larry Bird aint walking through that door!” So with out those guys, the Celtics have been knocking at the door in addition to having a decade of upside to look forward to in Brown and Tatum. Like, Does nobody remember 90’s Celtics or Pitino era basketball. Here’s a clue:
Look familiar? Didn’t think so. That’s Eric Williams. He was one of your better players for a time and he stunk. “Larry Bird aint walking through that door.” Is the most memorable thing from the Pitino ERA other than the fact he buried the franchise under a pile of pomade and secret hookers, probably.
So, Danny Ainge doesn’t suck. The nick name Trader Danny is mocked now because Kyrie Neutered him, but there is a reason he has that name. Examples 1 - 3. Brooklyn trade, IT trade, Philly draft night trade. Find me a GM who has pulled off 3 equal moves. The list is small. Now, is that fucking him over right now? We have a Western Conference front office executive via ESPN saying “They’ll only do something,” the West executive said, “if they think they’re going to bury you.” Ya, it may be time for Danny to start losing some trades if it makes the team better, but we weren’t saying that when he was fleecing “The Process”.
There is also a lot of criticism of Danny Ainge’s drafts. So, I went ahead and looked at every team’s drafts over the past 10 seasons. (2010 - 2019) Per Basketball Reference.com and taking into account trades of consequence. (e.i. Luka for Trae Young or the Donovan Mitchell trade)
I looked at 1st round picks, top 10, and lottery picks. I determined if a player was a “hit” (Not just stars, but a starter or a genuinely good NBA player)
Here’s the nuts a bolts.
Boston Celtics Draft history in the Past 10 years 2010 - 2019
14 1st round picks
6 hits 43% (Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart, Terry Rozier, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Robert Williams)
Lottery 3 for 4
Top 10 3 for 3
2 All Stars
Where does that rank in the NBA? Great question. Only 3 other teams have 3 or more All-Stars. The Lakers, Jazz, and Warriors.
The 43% hit rate puts the Celtics below the following teams.
New Orleans Pelicans 100%. 4 hits. 4 1st round picks. 4 Top 10 picks. (Anthony Davis, Austin Rivers, Buddy Hield, Zion Williamson)
L.A. Lakers 83%. 5 hits. 6 1st round picks. 4 Top 10 picks. (Julius Randle, Larry Nance, D’Angelo Russell, Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball)
Cleveland Cavaliers 57%. 4 hits. 7 1st round picks. 6 Top 10 picks. (Kyrie Irving, Tristian Thompson, Dion Waters, Collin Sexton.)
Denver Nuggets 50%. 4 hits. 8 1st round picks. 2 Top 10 picks. (Evan Fournier, Malik Beasley, Jamal Murray, Michale Porter Jr.) ((Jokic was a 2nd round pick))
NY Knicks 50%. 3 hits. 6 1st round picks. 2 Top 10 Picks. (Pozingus, R.J. Barrett, Iman Shumpert)
Toronto Raptors 50%. 4 hits. 8 1st round picks. 3 Top 10 picks.(Valanciunas, Anunoby, Terrance Ross, Siakam)
The worst in the League are:
San Antonio Spurs. 1 hit. 10%. 10 1st round picks. 0 Top 10 picks. (Dejounte Murray)
L.A. Clippers. 0 hits. 0%. 5 1st round picks. 0 Top 10 (suck)
So in closing what do I take out of Danny Drafting? He is better than most. He has 3 top 10 drafted players who are good if not great and 3 outside the top 10 who are good. And the rest were whiffs. But, the numbers do bare out more picks the better if you are good at evaluating talent and according to this exercise, Danny is better than 23 other franchises.
And compared to the likes of teams who have been competitive in this time period outside of the Lakers it’s not even close. I gasped at the San Antonio Spurs draft record and nodded in a agreement when I calculated the Clippers’ because they will forever inherently blow.
All of this doesn’t really mean shit at this point unless he pulls down banner 18. I’m just sayin’ he doesn’t suck.
