10 consequences of the trade

1) On realgm, I spent most of last spring reading the Memphis and Milwaukee boards, culminating in the surreal highlight of the season- that tanktastic contest against the Bucks with two weeks left that "clinched" more ping pong combos.

Now I'm happily looking at the Suns, Spurs, Pistons, and Mavs boards.


2) On a related note, I couldn't stand to peek at the Portland board after the lottery. Now I look over there and read again and again just how great things will be for them in a few years when their talented young guys get some experience. Man, that's vaguely and unsettlingly familiar....

3) I no longer care about Yi. He has no place on the current Celtics. They need guys who can help win now.

4) Steven A Smith picks the Celtic to do great. I don't know what to say about this odd turn of events. The only thing more surprising is if he would choose to speak softly and thoughtfully.

5) The Red Sox made a big trade the same day, and though FSNE covered Garnett and the Celtics for two hours that evening, I don't think they mentioned the Red Sox (or Patriots) once. NOT ONCE! Cripes, it wasn't that long ago that Celtic halftimes were hot stove reports.

6) There will be no more "second five" playing on the court at the same time- except of course when the Celtics are up 20 with four minutes left- which with any luck will be fairly frequent. Instead, two or three of the BIG 3.2 will be on the floor at all times. The rotation should be tighter and shorter with anyone not ready to produce wins right now, sitting.

7) EDDIE HOUSE: He's the team's Steve Kerr or Craig Hodges (two of the luckiest guys this sport has ever seen). He's a quick release dead eye downtowner. All he's gotta do is dribble the ball upcourt, stand on the perimeter for 5 to 10 seconds and wait for the inevitable kickout after the opposition defense scrambles to double team all three of the main guys at once. House will get open looks galore.

8) Due to his creative shot selection, I grew to despise Antoine Walker at one point. However he's always been reputed to be a great guy off court, and after selling Garnett on the city of Boston, I will never ever again get on Antoine's case. That was a generous and decent thing he did.

9) I've said this before- Tony Allen is coming off *major* knee surgery. The chances of him being a full fledged contributor should be tempered for a while. Maybe he can really play with confidence by mid season if we're lucky. That's why they've signed Wallace and Manuel.

10) THE RICK ROBEY/GERALD HENDERSON PHENOMENON: For the same reason that House will get so many open shots, the "other guys" are going to look great (and if needed, their trade value will rise). So much defensive attention will have to be paid to Pierce, Garnett, and Allen, everyone else will contribute at unexpectedly high levels. Rondo and Perkins especially should benefit.

...by the way, speaking of Perk, has anyone else noticed that if you arrange the letters from Pierce, Allen, and Garnett's first names, it spells PRK? Coincidence? Perhaps. Or perhaps it's a sign from the hoop gods of a vast repositioning of stars, one that signifies the universe coming back into realignment: A good universe. A kind universe. A green universe. A universe where banners get hung from welcoming rafters.