Boston Celtics Blog – Page 44 – NBA Blog

Celtics president Rich Gotham preaches optimism

Here’s ESPN Boston reporting on the Celtics, who continue in their transitional period. They’re rebuilding. Winning isn’t expected. Nevertheless, the team president, as he’d be expected to do, shared optimism:

Gotham, a pair of gardening gloves sprouting from his back pocket after he joined members of the Celtics’ organization, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and City Year to revitalize the grounds at Hennigan Elementary School in Jamaica Plain on Friday, thinks this season’s team is ready to roll up its sleeves and do the dirty work necessary to take the next step in its development.

“I think the expectation for this year’s team is that the future will come a little bit more into focus,” said Gotham. “Some of the guys who showed promise last year, guys that took a step last year like Jared [Sullinger] and Avery [Bradley] and [Olynyk], I think their continued development is a great reason to be optimistic. The addition of Tyler Zeller helps us a lot as we have a pure center on the roster now. I think a healthy [Rajon] Rondo is a huge difference-maker for us. And so I think, while we were very competitive last year, in a lot of these games … I think we have a better shot to take some of those games that come down to the last two minutes. Guys will have another year in [coach] Brad [Stevens’] system, I think we have great depth on this team, we have quality depth. We just look forward to taking the next step in our progression.”

Ray Allen still undecided about future

Here’s the Hartford Courant reporting on NBA veteran Ray Allen:

Ray Allen could play one more year in the NBA. He is wanted, and he knows it.

Or he could retire with no regrets, all business finished. All the years of solid play and diligent work at conditioning have put him, at 39, in this rare position — to script his own ending, and take his time doing it.

“I’m not in any rush [to make a decision],” Allen said during a break in the Citi Ray Allen Basketball ProCamp at East Granby High on Saturday morning. “I’ve played 18 years, and the way I look at my career, I’m content with everything that I’ve done. I just want to take this summer and see how it goes.”

Allen, an All-American who scored 1,922 points at UConn, is back in Connecticut doing his usual summer round of good works, including hosting this camp for 200 boys and girls in grades 1 through 12. Last week, his Ray of Hope Foundation provided a new computer lab for Ponus Ridge Middle School in Norwalk, something he has done for other schools across the state. On Monday, he will host his annual golf tournament, benefiting his foundation, at the TPC in Cromwell.

More summer hoops for Kelly Olynyk

Here’s ESPN Boston with a report on a key young Celtic:

Boston Celtics second-year forward Kelly Olynyk is expected to get additional offseason game reps as a member of Canada’s senior men’s basketball team.

Olynyk reported for camp earlier this week in Toronto before the team, which did not qualify for this year’s World Cup in Spain, instead traveled to Slovenia to open an 11-game European exhibition schedule on Thursday.

Olynyk, a Toronto native who grew up in Kamloops, British Columbia, did not play for the national team last summer while sidelined by a case of plantar fasciitis. He did attend camp with the national team and expressed a desire to compete for his county.

Boston Celtics re-sign Avery Bradley

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have re-signed guard Avery Bradley to a multi-year contract.

“We see Avery as a key part of our chase of Banner 18,” said Danny Ainge, Celtics President of Basketball Operations. “He keeps getting better and is still far from reaching his ceiling. We’re ecstatic to have him back.”

Bradley, a 6’2” guard, is coming off a breakout 2013-14 season where he recorded career-highs in points per game (14.9), rebounds per game (3.8), minutes (1855), field goals made (361), three-pointers made (79) and free throws made (90). Bradley tied a career-high for points in a game when he notched 28 points against Brooklyn on March 21. He recorded his first career double-double when he recorded 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds against New York on December 8. Selected with the 19th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, Bradley recorded his 1,000th career points in the opening game of the season against Toronto on October 30. He led the Celtics in scoring in 17 games and recorded 20 or more points in 16 contests.

Celtics sign first round draft picks Marcus Smart and James Young

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have signed their 2014 first round draft picks, guard Marcus Smart and guard/forward James Young.

Players selected in the first round of the NBA Draft are guaranteed to receive a contract, assuming they wish to come to the league right away. Therefore, these signings are standard, and not a surprise.

Smart, a 6’4” guard, was selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. He was a two-time All-Big 12 First Team selection, and was also named to the Big 12 All-Defensive team, USBWA All-District VI and NABC All-District 8 teams. Smart finished his two-year OSU career with 189 steals, the second-most in school history, and averaged 2.94 steals per game in his career, a school record. During his sophomore season at Oklahoma State he led the Cowboys with 18.0 points, 4.8 assists and 2.9 steals per game. His 2.9 steals per game ranked third in the nation. Smart garnered All-America honors from the Associated Press (Honorable Mention) and NABC (Third Team).

Young, a 6’6” guard/forward, was selected with the 17th pick in the first round. Young was part of the Kentucky squad that finished runner-up for the 2014 NCAA National Championship. In the national championship game he posted a team-high 20 points and a game-high seven rebounds against Connecticut. He was selected to the All-Final Four Tournament Team and All-SEC Second Team. He was the second highest scorer on Kentucky this past season with 14.3 points and finished 10th in the SEC in three-point shooting connecting on 34.9 percent of his attempts. Young was also named to the All-SEC Freshman team and led the Wildcats with 82 three-pointers which was the seventh most in a single season in Kentucky history and second all-time for a freshman. Young increased his three-point accuracy during the NCAA tournament when he connected on 42.6 percent of his attempts and also shot 85.0 percent from the free throw line.

Three-team trade sends Jarrett Jack to Nets, Tyler Zeller and Marcus Thornton to Celtics

The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired Boston’s 2015 second round pick (top 55 protected) as well as the rights to Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic in a three-team trade that sends Jarrett Jack and Sergey Karasev to Brooklyn and Tyler Zeller and the Cavs’ 2016 top 10 protected first round pick to Boston, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today. As part of the three-team trade, Boston will also acquire guard Marcus Thornton from the Nets.

The Cavs want salary cap space in order to offer LeBron James a maximum-level NBA contract. In order to accomplish this, they needed to trade Jarrett Jack’s contract. That’s what this deal is all about, at least from Cleveland’s side of things.

The 2015 second round pick that Cleveland received from Boston is top 55 protected. If Boston does not convey its 2015 second round pick to Cleveland, Boston’s obligation to convey a second round pick to Cleveland as part of this trade will be extinguished. Cleveland’s 2016 first round pick to Boston is top 10 protected in 2016, 2017 and 2018 and, if not conveyed, will be unprotected in the 2019 draft.

The Cavs also receive the rights to forwards Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic. Karaman, 24, was selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the 57th pick of the 2012 NBA Draft and most recently played in the Turkish Basketball League for Fenerbahçe Ülker. Bavcic, 30, who was originally selected by the Toronto Raptors as the 56th overall pick of the second round in the 2006 NBA Draft, currently plays for KAOD in Greece.

Zeller, a 7’0” center, appeared in 70 games for the Cavaliers last season where he averaged 5.7 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 53.8 percent from the field in 15.0 minutes per game. In his nine games as a starter Zeller averaged 9.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 21.6 minutes per game. The product of the University of North Carolina was originally selected with the 17th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks before being traded to the Cavaliers on draft night. Zeller recorded a career-high 23 points to go along with six rebounds against the Houston Rockets on March 22 this season. He pulled down a career-high of 15 rebounds against Philadelphia to go along with 18 points in just 25 minutes on February 18. During his rookie season (2012-13) Zeller averaged 7.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 26.3 minutes per game and was named to the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team while also participating in the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend.

Thornton, a 6’4” guard, split last season between the Brooklyn Nets and the Sacramento Kings where he averaged 9.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.1 minutes per game. After being acquired by the Nets on February 19 he appeared in 26 games for Brooklyn and spiked his scoring average to 12.3 points while also averaging 2.8 rebounds per game. In those 26 games Thornton recorded double-figures in scoring 14 times and reached 20 or more points six times. Earlier in the season with Sacramento Thornton matched his career-high with a 42 point outburst against Indian on January 24 when he made seven three-pointers. Thornton has appeared in 341 career games between Brooklyn, Sacramento and New Orleans and has career averages of 13.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.

“Jarrett is a proven NBA veteran who will add versatility to our backcourt,” said General Manager Billy King. “The team had a need in that area and we are excited that we were able to secure Jarrett to fill that role. Sergey is a player who we have followed closely for several years. He is a versatile forward and will be a welcome addition to our roster.”

Jack, a nine-year NBA veteran, played 80 games (31 starts) last season for the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he averaged 9.5 points, 4.1 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game. The 6’3″ guard has played in 691 career games for Portland, Indiana, Toronto, New Orleans, Golden State and Cleveland with career averages of 10.9 points, 4.3 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game. Originally drafted by Denver with the 22nd pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, Jack began his career in Portland, where he played his first three NBA seasons. The Georgia Tech product had his best statistical season in 2011-12 with New Orleans when he averaged career-highs of 15.6 points 6.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game. Jack has twice helped his team reach the postseason, playing in 18 total playoff games. As a member of the Golden State Warriors, Jack played in 12 postseason contests in 2012-13, making four starts. En route to helping the Warriors reach the Western Conference Semifinals, Jack posted averages of 17.2 points, 4.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game.

Karasev was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 19th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. The 6’7″ swingman out of Russia played in 22 games for the Cavaliers, averaging 1.7 points in 7.1 minutes per game. Karasev also appeared in 18 games for the Canton Charge of the NBA Development League last season, where he posted averages of 13.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. A member of the Russian national team, Karasev won bronze at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, and was a member of the gold medal winning team at the 2013 World University Games in Kazan. Prior to joining the NBA, Karasev played three seasons internationally with BC Triumph in Russia.

Photo: Celtics dance team auditions

Final auditions are ongoing for the Boston Celtics dance team. I will use this as an excuse to post the following photo:

Avery Bradley hopes to stay with Celtics

Here’s ESPN Boston reporting on the Celtics and guard Avery Bradley:

On the eve of restricted free agency, Avery Bradley reaffirmed a desire to be back with the Boston Celtics, but said his offseason focus remains on simply improving as a player and letting his future take care of itself.

The Celtics formally extended a $3.6 million qualifying offer on Monday that gives them the chance to match any outside offer that Bradley receives when free agency opens at midnight. The two sides failed to reach an agreement on an extension to his rookie pact before a late-October deadline, but talks should resume now with outside interest likely to play a part in Bradley’s final price tag.

“I haven’t been worried about [free agency],” said Bradley, wearing a Celtics cap and colors as he instructed campers on the final day of his Avery Bradley Skills academy at UMass-Boston. “I’ve been worried about getting better. I try not to think about anything I can’t control. All I can do is continue to try to get better every single day, and I know everything else will work out.”

Asked about talks with Boston, Bradley added, “We really haven’t [spoke about] any numbers or anything. Obviously, I want to be here. And I let those guy know that. When the time comes, we’ll just see what happens, and see if we come to an agreement.”

Celtics extend qualifying offer to Avery Bradley

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have extended a qualifying offer to guard Avery Bradley.

Bradley, a 6’2 guard, is coming off a breakout 2013-14 season where he recorded career-highs in points per game (14.9), rebounds per game (3.8), points (891), rebounds (226), minutes (1855), field goals made (361), three-pointers made (79) and free throws made (90). Bradley tied a career-high for points in a game when he notched 28 points against Brooklyn on March 21. He recorded his first career double-double when he recorded 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds against New York on December 8. Selected with the 19th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, Bradley recorded his 1,000th career points in the opening game of the season against Toronto on October 30. He led the Celtics in scoring in 17 games and recorded 20 or more points in 16 contests.

Boston Celtics draft Marcus Smart, James Young

The Boston Celtics selected guard Marcus Smart with the fifth overall pick and guard/forward James Young with the 17th pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.

Smart, a 6’4” guard, was selected with the sixth overall pick. He was a two-time All-Big 12 First Team selection, and was also named to the Big 12 All-Defensive team, USBWA All-District VI and NABC All-District 8 teams. Smart finished his two-year OSU career with 189 steals, the second-most in school history, and averaged 2.94 steals per game in his career, a school record. During his sophomore season at Oklahoma State he led the Cowboys with 18.0 points, 4.8 assists and 2.9 steals per game. His 2.9 steals per game ranked third in the nation. Smart garnered All-America honors from the Associated Press (Honorable Mention) and NABC (Third Team).