Why aren't the Celtics talking to.....?

[timepiece33]

Danny didn't want Damon Stoudamire when he was released last year and wanted to come here. Why would he look at him now?

He knew he was getting Cassell?

With regards to Najera.  We have an effective backup PF in Powe.

Najera is a 3/4 and he's a lot better than Powe to a lot of people.

I know he is better than Powe, but we have additional needs.  If you believe he can play SF, he'd be a good pickup.

[Brickowski]

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

Why all the Telfair hate?  He's still youing enough to develop into a good player.  He can bring the ball up under pressure and run an offense.  The question is whether or not he can keep his man in front of him.

[Finkelskyhook]

Rod Benson!

I saw Benson at an NBDL game in February.  Carrys on a humorous diologue with the fans whenever there's a stop in the action.    Seems to have a love for the game.  Very funny guy.

He's 7ft but rail thin.  Seemed to get pushed around by much smaller players underneath.  He battled but seemed overmatched in the paint by the typical NBDL undersized 4s and 5s.  Davis and Powe would torch Benson on the boards. Runs the court great and a rarity in the NBDL.  He actually finishes at the rim.  I think he needs to get a lot stronger to make an NBA roster.  

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

Why all the Telfair hate?  He's still youing enough to develop into a good player.  He can bring the ball up under pressure and run an offense.  The question is whether or not he can keep his man in front of him.

Agreed.  Players who had poor reputations defensively have flourished under Thibodeau.  Telfair's defense looked a lot better in Minny. 

[Spraypaint Victory]

I would like to see Pargo here, however after his career year least season he is looking for more money then he is worth. I also think that he is more of a combo, rather then a true point.  I would rather see a veteran point who is in the mold of Rondo, to help mentor him.  Such as Jason Williams.

[Roy Hobbs]

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

What do you mean he doesn't have 3-point range?  Over 40% of his shot attempts were from three, and he hit 36.1% of them.  It's one of the things Najera does well.

He is not, however, all that great a defender.  He puts in a lot of effort, but he struggles against big power forwards and just about all small forwards.  He's not a poor defender, but he's also not a good one.  He does have good defensive instincts, but he doesn't have the necessary athleticism to excel.

[winsomme]

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

What do you mean he doesn't have 3-point range?  Over 40% of his shot attempts were from three, and he hit 36.1% of them.  It's one of the things Najera does well.

He is not, however, all that great a defender.  He puts in a lot of effort, but he struggles against big power forwards and just about all small forwards.  He's not a poor defender, but he's also not a good one.  He does have good defensive instincts, but he doesn't have the necessary athleticism to excel.

yeah, that was a very recent addition to Najera's game. they were talking about it in the playoffs this year.

Danny will look under just about every rock to find guys. i think it is pretty safe to say that about him at this point. Darius Miles should convince those wavering...

if Posey turns out to not work out, i would like to add Gomes to the list....he's a RFA, so i'm not sure if we would have to trade to get him.

[BrickJames]

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

What do you mean he doesn't have 3-point range?  Over 40% of his shot attempts were from three, and he hit 36.1% of them.  It's one of the things Najera does well.

He is not, however, all that great a defender.  He puts in a lot of effort, but he struggles against big power forwards and just about all small forwards.  He's not a poor defender, but he's also not a good one.  He does have good defensive instincts, but he doesn't have the necessary athleticism to excel.

I think Brick the 2nd was referring to Najera over the course of his career.  He just recently (last year) extended his range to the 3pt line.  As you pointed out, he is pretty effective.

As for Telfair, he's not coming back after all the off-court issues he's had.  Wyc personally removed his locker from the Gah-en.

Edit: as for Najera's D - he has always been an above-average defender, at college and at this level.  He gets called for a lot of fouls given the sieve of a defensive he plays in, plus having to compensate for others' missed assignments.  I've always been impressed with Najera's D at the NBA level - I guess we just see it differently.

I would wager he'd gain a little more ref respect on a defensive-minded team like ours, and thus his natural knack for defending would be more lauded, especially to the untrained eye (not saying yours is untrained Roy, but I've found that the vast consensus doesn't consider Najera a defender).

[CoachBo]

Najera can defend 3 positions.  But he does not have 3 pt range.

What do you mean he doesn't have 3-point range?  Over 40% of his shot attempts were from three, and he hit 36.1% of them.  It's one of the things Najera does well.

He is not, however, all that great a defender.  He puts in a lot of effort, but he struggles against big power forwards and just about all small forwards.  He's not a poor defender, but he's also not a good one.  He does have good defensive instincts, but he doesn't have the necessary athleticism to excel.

As a Sooner who followed Ed's college career into the pros, you're quite correct, Roy. On a 100 scale, I'd rate him a 45 to 50 defensively - average to slightly below average. His game is effort, pure and simple. He is, as you say, rather unathletic and isn't EVER going to be confused with Posey. He'll make effort plays on the defensive end, but he's nowhere near lockdown defender status.

[wdleehi]

I put Najera in the same category as Barnes.  Small PFs that are not quick enough to replace Posey's defense at SF. 

[Brickowski]

Najera was a great defender before he hurt his knee. Dallas should never have given him up. He's not as good as Posey, but he's the only free agent out there who can give some of what Posey brought.

Matt Barnes is a dirty player and a punk.  I would throw up several times if Ainge brought him here.

[Mean Gerald Green]

Najera was a great defender before he hurt his knee. Dallas should never have given him up. He's not as good as Posey, but he's the only free agent out there who can give some of what Posey brought.

Matt Barnes is a dirty player and a punk.  I would throw up several times if Ainge brought him here.

I'm with ya, this kid's a complete punk.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=F256m3T-qKE

[Who]

1. Eduardo Najera-- Best Posey replacement out there.

2. Francisco Elson, DJ Mbenga, Earl Barron and Primoz Brezec.  Four perfectly adequate, inexpensive backup centers.  Barron playeed very well for the Heat when given the opportunity, and he would be my first choice.  All of these guys are way better than Randolph Morris.

3. Damon Stoudamire, Jannero Pargo, Kevin Ollie and Sebastian Telfair.  All would be adequate backup point guards.

4.Salim Stoudamire and Juan Dixon.  House replacements if they can't resign Eddie.

I would also consider Bostjan Nachbar-- can flat out shoot.

Now it may be that Danny knows that none of these guys would be interested in the Celtics or are asking for too much money, but I have not seen anything reported that would take these guys off my list.

There's a couple of players there I don't want any piece of.

Najera heads the list. He adds absolutely nothing to this team. He's ridiculously overrated. I don't want him on the Celtics. He's not better than Powe or BBD and he's not better than half a dozen small forwards the Celtics can get in free agency. He has no position and his game has gone downhill hugely since his last batch of injuries. Also, paper talk said that his agent was looking for 4-5mil per annum which turns me off even more.

No to DJ Mbenga and Brezec. DJ is useless and has no basketball skills. He's just tall and willinging. Brezec is soft and doesn't add enough to the team. Earl Barron is an interesting 3rd stringer but I'm not sure I have enough faith in him to bring him as the primary backup center.

Francisco Elson is a very good name, I'd like Elson.

Damon Stoudamire is finished. He shouldn't get anywhere near a basketball team next season, nevermind a contender, nevermind a rotation spot. Time to start looking into a coaching career.

Jannero Pargo will require the MLE. He opted out of his contract for a pay rise and he'll get it. If the Posey/Maggette situation falls through I'd be happy to consider him for the MLE but not ahead of those guys. Solid player.

Bassy is one of the better free agent point guards on the market as crazy as that sounds. It's not really that large a compliment to Bassy, more that the free agent market for point guards is very weak. I think the Celtics will need to resign Eddie House or bring in a combo guard type. I also reckon Bassy should get 2-3mil from someone ... possibly Minnesota or Toronto.

Kevin Ollie is an interesting name. Not sure what he has left in the tank because he hasn't played a whole lot recently. I don't really want him as a primary backup, more of a 3rd string which he'd be very good for. That said I'd rather give 3rd string to Pruitt than sign a veteran so Ollie doesn't do it for me.

Salim Stoudamire isn't good enough to be here in Boston playing a role on a contender. Juan Dixon is someone I don't like because he's self-involved on the basketball court, decent fallback option I suppose but not high on my list.

Boki Nachbar is someone I'd pass on because I'm not convinced he's that good of a fit here in Boston and whether or not he's worth a near MLE deal. Like him overall but not sure the Celtics is a good fit for him (lack of defense, not enough reliable offense to make up for it).

I would add Walter Hermann to the Bostjan Nachbar line, both can shoot and both play hard on the floor. Both are bench scoring weapons that would be nice.

If the Posey/Maggette situations both fell through Walter Herrmann would move near to the top of my list. He won't command a large paycheck so Danny could spend the MLE elsewhere (probably the point, say Pargo) and then add a low contract replacement for Posey. Herrmann in that scenario is a great choice. He's tough, he plays defense, he plays well under pressure, he's got good size and athleticism, combo forward, great shooter, runs the floor. He's very good at power forward in those small lineups. Very solid player.

Herrmann could be one of the steals in this free agency. Hopefully he'll get himself a good home with a team that will actually play him minutes. He'd look very good in San Antonio, especially in a small ball lineup next to Duncan and if they got Maggette too ..... that would be a nice sight.

[CoachBo]

Chuckle.

Najera isn't a Posey replacement. Not seven years ago in college and not now. Guy's never been a "great" defender because he's simply not athletic enough.

There's a place for people who play as hard as Ed does - but it isn't James Posey's spot on our roster.

[Brickowski]

If the Lakers sign Posey, there is no longer a "Posey spot" on the roster and you have to make do.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Najera was a great defender before he hurt his knee. Dallas should never have given him up. He's not as good as Posey, but he's the only free agent out there who can give some of what Posey brought.

Matt Barnes is a dirty player and a punk.  I would throw up several times if Ainge brought him here.

I'm with ya, this kid's a complete punk.

Did you guys made these comments when we signed James Posey? He's had quite a few of those body checks in his career.