"It’s not my objective to be an eighth seed in the playoffs,” Ainge told the Herald. “My objective is to win championships, and we’re a long way from that.”
If the 8th seed were his objective, he would fire himself. Of
course being a low playoff seed isn't his objective. That does not mean he didn't enjoy making these playoffs as a low seed. I might prefer a mushroom pizza, but I'll still gladly enjoy a plain cheese pizza. His preference for missing the playoffs
had to have been weak, otherwise he wouldn't have traded for
any talent
whatsoever that would help the team this year. Instead, when he traded away his two expiring best players, he got back and
kept Crowder and Jerebko. Plus he traded a 1st for Isaiah. Real tankers don't do that. He was hedging, and it was a win-win for him either way, with a minor preference for lottery positioning, but an appreciation for the progress demonstrated and side benefits gained by a playoff appearance. He's a great GM. He had put himself in a place where he couldn't really lose. We wound up barely making the playoffs, instead of barely missing them. The difference is
small. The effect on his strategy is
tiny. His asset pile was
barely affected. If he had agreed with the one-track tank brigade, then we would have
really tanked. We didn't. He doesn't. If he had agreed with anti-tankers that making the playoffs was an imperative, then we would've used more assets to add more win-now talent. We didn't. He doesn't. He appreciates
both angles. Because he's
smart. Which is why he
doesn't have to tank.
What's stupid about this tank/anti-tank divide is that there are people who think our long-term success hinges completely on one or the other. No. It's both, or, rather, it's
either, or
neither. It's whatever circumstances make more favorable. Inflexibility is what dooms teams. We have nothing to worry about there, Danny will always keep things flexible enough to capitalize on opportunities, until we get #18.
Everybody should be enjoying themselves.