Now that Lebron has finally made his decision, in a much less acrimonious style that the first Lebron decision. The dominoes throughout the league have begun falling into place. To no ones surprise, many of the other top free agents (Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony) have stayed home, opting for the financial payday of the home team advantage.
With the top free agents off the market, it remains to be seen what Danny Ainge has lined up for the Celtics and how their offseason of rebuilding will take shape to improve the roster into the 2014 season. With the Kevin Love rumors still hanging around, its hard to imagine Minnesota and Boston making a deal without involing a third team, as the T-Wolves are stocked at point guard (Rubio, Levine) making the Rondo for Love trade a bit harder to piece together. The Cavs also have emerged as a potential destination spot for Love’s services, but most insiders believe Golden State holds the piece (Thompson) that the T-Wolves covet the most.
As we examine the Celtics options, they have been linked to Evan Turner, Lance Stephenson (not likely) and not much else. With a limited number of quality restricted FA still available, Greg Monroe and Eric Bledsoe, the Celtics are likely going to be doing some bargain shopping with players who have had their dreams of a big payday dashed (Rodney Stuckey?).
While the potential to add some relevant pieces before the fall certainly is possible, as of the 15th of July the off season has been extremely lackluster providing little hope for Celtics fans of a return to playoff respectability anytime soon.
