Celtics Bargain Shopping

As we Celtics fans sit around anxiously waiting for the Celtics to something, anything really, to improve their team for next year the reality is there simply isn’t all that much the team can do. The majority of their money is tied up in Pierce, Garnett, Rondo, Ray, and Perk.

After deciding to bring back Pierce and Ray the Celtics had precious little money left this offseason. With a good portion of the money they did have the Celtics decided to gamble on another veteran big man, Jermaine O’Neal, like they did last year with Rasheed Wallace. 

While the Celtics do have Rasheed Wallace and his expiring contract that they continue to search out trade options for; that’s about all the Celtics have as far as trading chips are concerned.

Another problem for the Celtics is that the number of veterans willing to take little money for the chance to win a championship is severely dwindling with players like Kurt Thomas, Theo Ratliff, and Tracy McGrady signing in other places. Other younger players Celtics fans may have hoped would don the green and white are disappearing off the market as well; like Matt Barnes, Ryan Gomes, and even Antoine Wright.

This leaves the Celtics riffling through the proverbial bargain bins to try to find some pieces to fit their puzzle. I want to take a look at a few different low cost options in this column, each of them with their positives and negatives.

First up is Rashard McCants, only because after the most recent ESPN the Magazine column on him everyone has been talking about him including Chris Forseberg of ESPNBoston.com. McCants has shown some flashes of serious talent in his short NBA career. Durign the 2007-2008 season McCants averaged 14 points a game while shooting 40% from the three point line, 45% from the field, and 75% from the free throw stripe. Then in the next season while splitting time with Minnesota and Sacramento McCants averaged around 10 points a game but his shooting numbers were down across the board.  The next season he was released from the Rockets training camp with injury and this summer he supposedly just didn’t show up to summer leauge where he was set to play with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

McCants is an interesting option for the Celtics. He has shown an ability to really score the ball in his short NBA career and in college, and everyone knows how badly the Celtics need scoring, but his recent history isn’t great. His numbers faded in his last NBA season and he sat out all of last year. McCants could be an interesting pickup for the Celtics if free agency nears a close and they still haven’t been able to find a backup wing scorer but most likely he will spend the next season overseas or in the D-League.

Another option for the Celtics is Larry Hughes. Hughes is a player I have never been a fan of, mainly due to his horrible shot selection and awful shooting percentages. However with limited options available Hughes might not be a bad option for the Celtics.

While Hughes has bounced from team to team in the NBA he has always been able to find a way to put the ball in the basket, albeit with plenty of chances. The hope for the Celtics if they brought Hughes in would be that on a veteran laden team with players like Pierce, Allen, Garnett, and Rondo to carry the load Hughes would be able to get the best out of talents. In all the season Hughes has played in the NBA he has never played for a truly great team. With the Celtics he would not need to be one of the top options and could hopefully settle into a relief role, providing needed shooting and defense off of the bench.

 A third option for the Celtics is Rodney Carney. Carney is a young athletic swingman who has shown some ability to score the ball in both college and the NBA. However Carney has never been able to really crack a rotation with bad teams in his four years in the NBA, averaging only 15 minutes a game during his career.

 Carney is a raw player who might just need the right the situation to thrive in the NBA. He has never played for a good team really and the Celtics veteran leadership has shown to have positive effects on the development of young players, see Rondo and Big Baby for evidence. Another alternative however is that he simply can’t be a productive

NBA player. Carney could provide the Celtics with an infusion of youth and athleticism if they decide to sign him. If Carney could find some semblance of the talent that made him a college star he could turn out to be a real steal for the Celtics this offseason.

 One final option for the Celtics could be one of two former Spurs, either Roger Mason Jr. or Keith Bogans. Both players enjoyed some success with the Spurs before falling out of favor and out of Greg Poppovich’s rotation. Both players shoot well from the three point line, Bogans at 35% and Mason at 38%, but can tend to be streaky. Both are solid defenders but certainly not spectacular ones. Either of these two would be a great pickup for the Celtics in my opinion. I know I have beaten this point to death in my columns but the Celtics desperately need shooting. If the Celtics can grab a veteran shooter with playoff experience for the minimum I think it’s a can’t miss opportunity.

 While that selection of players may not inspire any confidence amongst Celtics fans there things could certainly be worse. For example we could all be Cleveland Cavaliers fans.