Keith Smith's latest rumor updates out of vegas...C's not finished yet.

[tankcity!]

Gotta love the hope around this thread.

Brad Turner ‏@BA_Turner  8h8 hours ago
Paul Pierce is planning on returning to the Clippers for the 2016-17 season, his 19th in the NBA, per source.

[TA9]

He moderates that cesspool of a forum.  That's all I need to know about his credibility.

Lol. I'm not buying it either.

Edit: "But these are sources I trust implicitly so I'm sharing."  Wow. He is a man with a plan. I'll place all of his validity on whether or not these blockbusters occur within the next "week and a half."

You guys might be right as it seems like he got afraid of getting exposed :

Alright guys. Well what I posted here is now being screen grabbed and posted on Twitter. I apologize to vast majority who are great about it, but I'm not putting this stuff on Twitter for a reason. It isn't strong enough for that as I have explained before.

I'm going to have to refrain from posting stuff on here once again. I can't have it being put on Twitter. I apologize once again to everyone who has been so cool, but that is a serious no go on my side of things

[Roy H.]

He moderates that cesspool of a forum.  That's all I need to know about his credibility.

Lol. I'm not buying it either.

Edit: "But these are sources I trust implicitly so I'm sharing."  Wow. He is a man with a plan. I'll place all of his validity on whether or not these blockbusters occur within the next "week and a half."

You guys might be right as it seems like he got afraid of getting exposed :

Alright guys. Well what I posted here is now being screen grabbed and posted on Twitter. I apologize to vast majority who are great about it, but I'm not putting this stuff on Twitter for a reason. It isn't strong enough for that as I have explained before.

I'm going to have to refrain from posting stuff on here once again. I can't have it being put on Twitter. I apologize once again to everyone who has been so cool, but that is a serious no go on my side of things

A "rumor" not strong enough for Twitter = fan fiction.

[Roy H.]

http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=guldx9q

LOL~  Let me make you laugh a little.

Doesn't work, we only have 2 (not 3) BKN picks.

Can someone please link the thread, though? A little Smitty isn't so bad...

Starts here and goes to like page 42.

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1467630&start=700#p48862794

Thanks man, TP. Does any one know what he actually does? I have read here that he "paid to attend Scout school." Is there reason to believe he has credibility? I obviously hope so, don't assume, but would rather not ****foot around it.

I do know he writes a lot for RealGM (writes, as in, original content. Not tabloid stuff). He works with other writers on the site. He also mods the Celtics page I think.

In other words, he's got the same credentials I do? Although SB Nation > RealGM.

My sauces are telling me we're close to landing KAT and Wiggins, but hope not to give up any rotation players or Brooklyn picks.

[TA9]

http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=guldx9q

LOL~  Let me make you laugh a little.

Doesn't work, we only have 2 (not 3) BKN picks.

Can someone please link the thread, though? A little Smitty isn't so bad...

Starts here and goes to like page 42.

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1467630&start=700#p48862794

Thanks man, TP. Does any one know what he actually does? I have read here that he "paid to attend Scout school." Is there reason to believe he has credibility? I obviously hope so, don't assume, but would rather not ****foot around it.

I do know he writes a lot for RealGM (writes, as in, original content. Not tabloid stuff). He works with other writers on the site. He also mods the Celtics page I think.

In other words, he's got the same credentials I do? Although SB Nation > RealGM.

My sauces are telling me we're close to landing KAT and Wiggins, but hope not to give up any rotation players or Brooklyn picks.

Great! Had to share the news so I justed posted it on Twitter for everyone to see

[Redz]

http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=guldx9q

LOL~  Let me make you laugh a little.

Doesn't work, we only have 2 (not 3) BKN picks.

Can someone please link the thread, though? A little Smitty isn't so bad...

Starts here and goes to like page 42.

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1467630&start=700#p48862794

Thanks man, TP. Does any one know what he actually does? I have read here that he "paid to attend Scout school." Is there reason to believe he has credibility? I obviously hope so, don't assume, but would rather not ****foot around it.

I do know he writes a lot for RealGM (writes, as in, original content. Not tabloid stuff). He works with other writers on the site. He also mods the Celtics page I think.

In other words, he's got the same credentials I do? Although SB Nation > RealGM.

My sauces are telling me we're close to landing KAT and Wiggins, but hope not to give up any rotation players or Brooklyn picks.

Congrats on your promotion Roy.  Your sauciness has not gone for naught!

[i believe in brad]

Why is it so hard to believe that a guy is somewhat plugged in around the league? 

He never claims to have a "rock solid source in the Celtics FO", or a "friend of a friend of a cousin who knows Danny".  He's never said "big blockbuster trade this weekend, I'm 99.5% sure!" like other guys we've all seen. 

To my knowledge he is just in some of the (more distant) NBA circles, and when he hears the same thing from multiple people he shares it with realgm because it's interesting.  Obviously the info floating around in these circles might be bs, smokescreens, etc, but he acknowledges that and constantly reiterates that he is only repeating what he's heard.  I just don't see the point in a guy like Smitty, who's trying to gain respect and make a name for himself in educated bball writing (not scooping Woj), making up fan fiction.

[Bobshot]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

[mqtcelticsfan]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Why would the Clippers care if Blake Griffin is willing to sign an extension with Boston? Sure, you shouldn't be willing to give up as much for a rental as you would for someone that you're going to extend, but if you're the Clippers that's none of your concern. You hold out for the deal you think is fair.

[saltlover]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

[bogg]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

To be clear, does this mean you believe Ainge isn't attempting to make any more deals this summer?

[saltlover]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

To be clear, does this mean you believe Ainge isn't attempting to make any more deals this summer?

I don't think discussions for Blake Griffin have ever been very serious, and I don't think he has the slightest clue what he's talking about.  I do think Ainge will complete at least one trade before the beginning of the season.  But as I've been saying the three weeks this rumor has somehow had legs (despite the fact that supposedly it was on the verge of being completed), that the conversation was approximately something like:

Ainge: Hey Doc, Griffin is a free agent next year -- what would the right offer be?
Doc: We really liked our chances last year if Paul and Blake didn't both get hurt vs. Portland, and we like them even more this year since it should be very possible to get the #2 seed, and no worse than the #3 seed.  So I need an All-Star who plays the 3 or the 4 in return.
Ainge: Makes sense.

And that was it.  If that.

I'm sure Ainge has made at least a casual inquiry on every star player in the league, from LeBron on down.  I'm sure he's offered IT and all three Brooklyn picks for Curry.  Ainge thinks big and will always swing for the fences.  But I do not remotely think that some guy who moderates a web forum and had a fantasy GM experience in Vegas suddenly found himself with high-level insider information.  He hasn't had a SINGLE trade proposal involving Blake that has worked for the salary cap.  Not one.  He's had some very specific proposals that he's put out there, that included fringe players like John Holland, and they've all been demonstrably false by the salary cap alone.  So, no, he's either been making it up from the beginning, because he's smart enough to know how to fool people, he got fooled and he's trying to walk it back without too much egg on his face, or he's still clueless.  I'm going with some combination of the first two.  But the Griffin deal is not happening now, was never remotely close, and will never happen.  I've been saying that from Day 1, and I stand by it with all the (small amount of) internet credibility I have.

[bogg]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

To be clear, does this mean you believe Ainge isn't attempting to make any more deals this summer?

I don't think discussions for Blake Griffin have ever been very serious, and I don't think he has the slightest clue what he's talking about.  I do think Ainge will complete at least one trade before the beginning of the season.  But as I've been saying the three weeks this rumor has somehow had legs (despite the fact that supposedly it was on the verge of being completed), that the conversation was approximately something like:

Ainge: Hey Doc, Griffin is a free agent next year -- what would the right offer be?
Doc: We really liked our chances last year if Paul and Blake didn't both get hurt vs. Portland, and we like them even more this year since it should be very possible to get the #2 seed, and no worse than the #3 seed.  So I need an All-Star who plays the 3 or the 4 in return.
Ainge: Makes sense.

And that was it.  If that.

I'm sure Ainge has made at least a casual inquiry on every star player in the league, from LeBron on down.  I'm sure he's offered IT and all three Brooklyn picks for Curry.  Ainge thinks big and will always swing for the fences.  But I do not remotely think that some guy who moderates a web forum and had a fantasy GM experience in Vegas suddenly found himself with high-level insider information.  He hasn't had a SINGLE trade proposal involving Blake that has worked for the salary cap.  Not one.  He's had some very specific proposals that he's put out there, that included fringe players like John Holland, and they've all been demonstrably false by the salary cap alone.  So, no, he's either been making it up from the beginning, because he's smart enough to know how to fool people, he got fooled and he's trying to walk it back without too much egg on his face, or he's still clueless.  I'm going with some combination of the first two.  But the Griffin deal is not happening now, was never remotely close, and will never happen.  I've been saying that from Day 1, and I stand by it with all the (small amount of) internet credibility I have.

So you do in fact think that Ainge has interest in Griffin, and if a deal doesn't happen it will be because Ainge couldn't make something work, rather than Ainge never being interested in the first place. Debate the RealGM guy's sources all you want, I don't care one way or the other. However, I have zero sources or connections and I'm wholly confident Ainge is trying to land at least one of Westbrook/Griffin, and both if possible, in a way that makes sense for Boston. A trade may or may not happen, but if it doesn't it'll be because the teams couldn't agree on a price, not because the discussion never happened.

[saltlover]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

To be clear, does this mean you believe Ainge isn't attempting to make any more deals this summer?

I don't think discussions for Blake Griffin have ever been very serious, and I don't think he has the slightest clue what he's talking about.  I do think Ainge will complete at least one trade before the beginning of the season.  But as I've been saying the three weeks this rumor has somehow had legs (despite the fact that supposedly it was on the verge of being completed), that the conversation was approximately something like:

Ainge: Hey Doc, Griffin is a free agent next year -- what would the right offer be?
Doc: We really liked our chances last year if Paul and Blake didn't both get hurt vs. Portland, and we like them even more this year since it should be very possible to get the #2 seed, and no worse than the #3 seed.  So I need an All-Star who plays the 3 or the 4 in return.
Ainge: Makes sense.

And that was it.  If that.

I'm sure Ainge has made at least a casual inquiry on every star player in the league, from LeBron on down.  I'm sure he's offered IT and all three Brooklyn picks for Curry.  Ainge thinks big and will always swing for the fences.  But I do not remotely think that some guy who moderates a web forum and had a fantasy GM experience in Vegas suddenly found himself with high-level insider information.  He hasn't had a SINGLE trade proposal involving Blake that has worked for the salary cap.  Not one.  He's had some very specific proposals that he's put out there, that included fringe players like John Holland, and they've all been demonstrably false by the salary cap alone.  So, no, he's either been making it up from the beginning, because he's smart enough to know how to fool people, he got fooled and he's trying to walk it back without too much egg on his face, or he's still clueless.  I'm going with some combination of the first two.  But the Griffin deal is not happening now, was never remotely close, and will never happen.  I've been saying that from Day 1, and I stand by it with all the (small amount of) internet credibility I have.

So you do in fact think that Ainge has interest in Griffin, and if a deal doesn't happen it will be because Ainge couldn't make something work, rather than Ainge never being interested in the first place. Debate the RealGM guy's sources all you want, I don't care one way or the other. However, I have zero sources or connections and I'm wholly confident Ainge is trying to land at least one of Westbrook/Griffin, and both if possible, in a way that makes sense for Boston, a trade may or may not happen, but if it doesn't it'll be because the teams couldn't agree on a price, not because the discussion never happened.

Okay, ignore everything I said.  That's fine.  All I've said is that no deal is close, was close, or ever will be close to happening.  And that this guy is making crap up and stringing you along, and is now saying "Oh, well, Ainge will have tried, so I'll still be right."  That's utter nonsense.  If you want to believe him anyway, however, I can't help you.

I'm just annoyed his making crap up has dominated not only his own website, but this one as well, for the past three weeks.

[A Future of Stevens]

If you believe Smitty's latest post at RealGM, there's a helluva lot going on behind the scenes to bring Griffin, Pierce and Westbrook to Boston.  Ainge is persistent, and benefits from good relationships with Doc and Presti.

There is some talk even of doing a deal for Griffin without extension--which might be cheaper. Then getting Westbrook to create a contending team neither player would walk away from in a year. The kind of thing I alluded to in some previous posts.

I suspect Sam is trying to sign Westbrook right now. If he can't, I would expect him to deal him. And Ainge is right there at the door waiting with all the pieces.

Link to this?

Same link as the first post in this thread. The RealGM thread is 40+ pages long.

Smitty, by the way, doesn't think Ainge can pull it off. Two deals too big to do.
The caveat is all the things Ainge and even Doc are doing to set something up.

Doesn't think Ainge can pull it off, or is covering himself because he's just making crap up?  I'm going with the latter.

To be clear, does this mean you believe Ainge isn't attempting to make any more deals this summer?

I don't think discussions for Blake Griffin have ever been very serious, and I don't think he has the slightest clue what he's talking about.  I do think Ainge will complete at least one trade before the beginning of the season.  But as I've been saying the three weeks this rumor has somehow had legs (despite the fact that supposedly it was on the verge of being completed), that the conversation was approximately something like:

Ainge: Hey Doc, Griffin is a free agent next year -- what would the right offer be?
Doc: We really liked our chances last year if Paul and Blake didn't both get hurt vs. Portland, and we like them even more this year since it should be very possible to get the #2 seed, and no worse than the #3 seed.  So I need an All-Star who plays the 3 or the 4 in return.
Ainge: Makes sense.

And that was it.  If that.

I'm sure Ainge has made at least a casual inquiry on every star player in the league, from LeBron on down.  I'm sure he's offered IT and all three Brooklyn picks for Curry.  Ainge thinks big and will always swing for the fences.  But I do not remotely think that some guy who moderates a web forum and had a fantasy GM experience in Vegas suddenly found himself with high-level insider information.  He hasn't had a SINGLE trade proposal involving Blake that has worked for the salary cap.  Not one.  He's had some very specific proposals that he's put out there, that included fringe players like John Holland, and they've all been demonstrably false by the salary cap alone.  So, no, he's either been making it up from the beginning, because he's smart enough to know how to fool people, he got fooled and he's trying to walk it back without too much egg on his face, or he's still clueless.  I'm going with some combination of the first two.  But the Griffin deal is not happening now, was never remotely close, and will never happen.  I've been saying that from Day 1, and I stand by it with all the (small amount of) internet credibility I have.

So you do in fact think that Ainge has interest in Griffin, and if a deal doesn't happen it will be because Ainge couldn't make something work, rather than Ainge never being interested in the first place. Debate the RealGM guy's sources all you want, I don't care one way or the other. However, I have zero sources or connections and I'm wholly confident Ainge is trying to land at least one of Westbrook/Griffin, and both if possible, in a way that makes sense for Boston. A trade may or may not happen, but if it doesn't it'll be because the teams couldn't agree on a price, not because the discussion never happened.

So you are saying we are still in this thing?!?!? Yes!!!!!!!!