Category: Boston Celtics Blog

Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers made his first phone call on Sunday, the official opening of free agency in the NBA, to Ray Allen. He said he does not think the call was in vain, despite a variety of reports that have the Celtics’ guard ticketed for Miami, Memphis or ABB (Anywhere But Boston.)

“It’s a stretch for me to see him go somewhere else,” Rivers said after completing a morning round of golf in the Boston area.

As for fellow Celtics free agent Jeff Green, Rivers said, “We’re going after Jeff. We’re going to get Jeff. I believe that, yes.”

Green missed all of last season after needing heart surgery.

So with the re-signing of Kevin Garnett and the potential re-signings of Allen and Green, the 2012-13 Celtics are going to look a lot like the 2011-12 Celtics?

“We want to add players and we’re going after a couple of free agents who I can’t name,” Rivers said.

— Reported by Peter May of ESPN Boston

The Boston Celtics selected Jared Sullinger, Fab Melo and Kris Joseph with their picks in the 2012 NBA Draft.

Sullinger, a 6’9” forward, was taken with the 21st pick in the first round. The native of Columbus, OH was a consensus First Team All-American, Wooden Award finalist and First Team All-Big 10 Selection in each of his two seasons at Ohio State.  He also was named the 2011 Big Ten Freshman of the Year.  Sullinger posted the third-most points (1,282) over his first two seasons at Ohio State behind Jerry Lucas (1,381) and Michael Redd (1,361). Sullinger also earned National Freshman of the Year honors from the Sporting News and the Wayman Tisdale Award from the USBWA. He averaged 17.5 points and 9.2 rebounds this past season in helping the Buckeyes get to the Final Four.

Melo, a 7’0” center, was taken with the 22nd pick in the first round. The native of Juiz de Forz, Brazil was the Big East Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore. He is the Syracuse record holder for most blocks in a single game with 10 against Seton Hall this past season. He also was named Preseason Big East Rookie of the Year as a freshman. This past season he ranked first for Syracuse in rebounds (5.8 rpg) and blocks (2.9 bpg).

Joseph, a 6’7” forward, was taken with the 51st pick in the second round. The native of Montreal, Quebec, earned First Team All-Big East during his senior season and is one of 55 players in Syracuse University history to record 1,000 points in his career. During his senior season he ranked first on the Orange in points (13.4 ppg) and third in rebounds (4.7 rpg). During his junior season, he also was ranked first on the Orange in points (14.3 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.2 rpg).

The Boston Celtics, the Maine Red Claws, and the NBA Development League today announced that the Celtics and Red Claws have entered into a single affiliation partnership beginning with the 2012-13 NBA D-League season.  Boston will be Maine’s sole NBA affiliate and will have full control over the team’s basketball operations.

This partnership, also referred to as the “hybrid affiliation,” is the fifth of its kind in the NBA D-League.  It allows for NBA teams to secure control of and cover the expenses related to the basketball operations of an NBA D-League team while partnering with existing local ownership, which maintains responsibility for the team’s off-the-court business operations.

The Celtics join the Houston Rockets with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Brooklyn Nets with the Springfield Armor, the New York Knicks with the Erie BayHawks and the Portland Trail Blazers with the Idaho Stampede as NBA teams with “hybrid affiliations.”

Six other NBA teams are singly affiliated with their NBA D-League affiliates.  The Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs fully own and operate the Canton Charge, Dakota Wizards, L.A. D-Fenders, Tulsa 66ers and Austin Toros, respectively, while the Dallas Mavericks and Texas Legends are one-to-one affiliates.

“The newly-enhanced relationship between the Celtics and Red Claws is an exciting development for both franchises,” said NBA D-League President Dan Reed.

The Red Claws and Celtics have been affiliated since the 2009-10 season, Maine’s first in the NBA D-League, sharing the affiliation with the Charlotte Bobcats and the Philadephia 76ers during the 2011-12 season.  New affiliates for the Bobcats and 76ers will be announced at a later date.

“We are excited to formalize an already great relationship we have established with Maine. Not only is it a perfect fit geographically, but the people of Maine are some of our most loyal Celtic fans, and Bill Ryan Jr. and the Red Claws staff have been great to work with,” said Danny Ainge, Celtics President of Basketball Operations.  “What a great opportunity for our young players to get game reps and develop their skills, while still maintaining the continuity and direction of our organization.”

Boston’s partnership with Maine follows the NBA D-League’s 11th and most successful season, where records were set with 60 GATORADE Call-Ups and 67 assignments, while 27 percent of players on 2011-12 NBA end-of-season rosters spent time in the NBA D-League. For the third consecutive year, the NBA D-League saw more than one million fans attend games across its 16 cities.

“The Maine Red Claws have enjoyed a strong three-year partnership with the Boston Celtics, dating back to the team’s inaugural season of 2009-10, and today we enter into a new era of that relationship,” said Maine Red Claws Team Chairman Bill Ryan, Jr. “The further strengthening of this partnership can only benefit both organizations, and we look forward to seeing Celtics talent come through Maine for years to come.”

Kevin Garnett was huge for the Boston Celtics in the playoffs and played like he was in his 20s again. Now that the offseason has started for Boston, Celtics fans are still unsure if the All-Star still feels young enough for yet another season.

Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge shed some light on Garnett’s status on WEEI on Wednesday. Ainge said he spoke with Garnett last week, and that he still needs more time to make his decision. However, when the time comes, Ainge felt confident that Garnett at least won’t be playing in a different uniform.

“I hope that he wants to come back,” Ainge said. “That’s sort of been the indication that, if he’s going to play, that he would like to come back to Boston. That’s where we are right now.”

— Reported by Timothy Killian of NESN

You can now officially add Brandon Bass to the list of free agent targets for the Celtics.

While there has been considerable speculation as to what Bass will do this summer, his agent tells CSNNE.com that the 6-foot-8 forward plans to opt-out of the final year of his contract, and thus test the free agent waters.

However, all indications are that Bass is hoping to return to the Celtics with a multi-year deal.

“Oh absolutely,” his agent Tony Dutt said when asked if Boston was his client’s first choice. “Without question, he would love to go back.”

The decision to not pick up the final year of his contract, worth $4.25 million, is driven by Bass’ desire to sign a long-term deal with the C’s.

— Reported by A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE

The Boston Celtics announced today that guard Ray Allen and guard/forward Mickael Pietrus both underwent successful surgery at New England Baptist Hospital this morning. Both surgeries were completed by Celtics Team Physician, Dr. Brian McKeon and were assisted by Dr. Mark Slovenkai.

Allen, who had successful arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle, averaged 14.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.07 steals in 34.0 minutes per game for the Celtics during the regular season.  He also shot 45.3 percent from three-point range which ranked fourth in all of the NBA this past season and was a career-high, besting his previous career-high that was set during the 2010-11 season (44.4 percent).

Pietrus, who had successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, averaged 6.9 points and 3.1 rebounds in 21.9 minutes per game for the Celtics during the regular season. He also finished third on the team in three-point field goals with 61 behind Allen (106) and Paul Pierce (100). Pietrus scored a season-high 16 points against Oklahoma City on February 22.

From the Celtics’ end of the spectrum, they are bent on keeping their flexibility as they move through what is, to some extent, a transition period. That means the C’s would be overjoyed to get Garnett to stay on a one-year deal, though there is at least some reason to believe they would discuss an option for 2013-14, knowing KG’s pride wouldn’t allow him to stay if he wasn’t a factor.

Financially, the Celtics don’t want to go overboard, but considering it’s unlikely they will be able to find a worthy recipient for what could be significant salary cap space, they could afford a decent number for Garnett to keep said space warm. But it won’t be in the same area code as the $21 million he pulled down this season.

The bottom line for the Celts is that they could greatly benefit from the presence of a veteran who takes practice so seriously (and it is presumed the club actually will have a few practices when the schedule returns to normal next season) and has a strong effect on younger players. It’s also important that the guy can still, you know, play the game.

Garnett was a revelation in the latter portion of the season, which is a fairly bold concept for someone in his 17th year. The way he took to the center position and showed a far greater willingness to play inside on offense answered some long-held prayers by the staff.

— Reported by Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald

Ray Allen vowed to take care of his problematic right ankle quickly, and the Celtics guard was as good as his word.

Allen will have surgery to remove bone spurs from the ankle at 6 a.m. on Wednesday at New England Baptist Hospital, according to a source.

The problem, which first surfaced during in Los Angeles during the C’s’ eight-game road trip in mid-March, eventually forced Allen to miss 15 regular-season games as well as the first two games of the Celtics’ first-round playoff series against Atlanta.

By Allen’s own admission, the ankle had a serious impact on his ability to cut, plant and rise for his fabled jump shot. It even affected his free throw form.

— Reported by Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald