Boston Celtics 2013-14 Season

Agreed as well, you need to keep Bradley. I think 5 years / 35mil would be fair both sides. I think you should trade Rondo if you land a top 6 pick. I also feel like by draft night, a team will definitely be willing to offer a top 6 pick for Rondo if he commits to an extension. We should try and build with 2 of Embiid, Wiggins, Parker, Exum, Randle and Smart to go with Sullinger and Bradley. Building through the draft seems like the way to go with Danny at the helm. 2015 will most likely have an equal draft class to this year, so I hope DA is looking to deal Green and Bass for an unprotected 2015 1st.

I'm not arguing Bradley isn't a nice player and a very good 4th piece. I'd love to keep him, but 8 is high and more then that is just too much. You're paying then for what you hope, not what is, and you're paying top dollar for it. His current PER is just over 12. 15 is average, statistically he's below average,by that measurable. He does one thing at an elite level and that's guard people, but he's limited as to who because he's 6'2 and 180. He doesn't create for other teamates, can't create his own shot and doesn't help rebounding. He's an ok shooter who has room for improvement. Solid from the line, but has no way of getting there.

Despite this, I'm. Not way off from you as to Bradley being valuable and the type of player he may be, but I think you are way overshooting his market value.

Why do you think Bradley should get as much or more then Curry? I see him more in the JJ Reddick salary range then the Curry range. Reddick is at 6.5m. Different positions, but coming off a double double season, Hickson signed for 3/15. OJ Mayo only got 8m per year. Hell Paul Millsap, got under 10 per season. Jeff Teague just signed a 4/32 deal and he's a true PG who's same size as Bradley and a strong defender. Can get to the hoop and score better, but isn't as good a shooter. He's a more valuable player then Bradley and I can't see Bradley getting more or as much. IIRC, Teague was restricted, like Bradley, and this hindered his market a bit. Fewer teams get involved with restricted guys.

It's hard to have more then 3 ten million dollar players on a roster. The Knicks do, but most don't. If Bradley gets 10m per then Rondo is gone. Can't pay both of them that kind of dough. Too small then. You also have to pay Sully at some point, unless back issues resurface.

Bradley is ridiculously underrated - he's already worth $8-10 million.

Here is a per-36 comp of Jeff Teague and Bradley's contract years (so Teague's 2012-13 and Bradley's 2013-14). Teague is a much more dynamic player who sets up his teammates better and gets to the line more, but Bradley is the better defender and posts big advantages in turnovers and rebounds. The fact that Teague is a true PG makes him slightly more valuable, but they're generally pretty comparable players.

Here is a per-36 comp of O.J. Mayo and Bradley's contract years. I have no idea why you think Mayo is a good defensive player. A google search for "O.J. Mayo defense" produces mostly negative reviews, with particular criticism of his defensive effort and fundamentals. Defensive rating is a very poor measure of individual defense (it's basically just how many points your team gives up when you're on the court, so it's really contingent on exogenous factors), but Bradley's 105 is better anyways (smaller numbers are better) and 106 is only about league average. Bradley is pretty unambiguously the better defender by a pretty wide margin, and you'll have a hard time finding an informed analyst who thinks they're in the same league. Mayo is the better long-range shooter and distributor, but Bradley turns the ball over less, rebounds more, and has a higher usage. Bradley's defensive edge is greater than Mayo's offensive edge, I think, and Bradley has higher upside.

I also think you're generally underrating Bradley's offense, perhaps because you haven't watched him much this year. He can basically create a mid-range shot for himself anytime he wants off the pick-and-roll-- he's 8th in the league in total mid-range jumpers attempted (think about how crazy that is), and he hits them at a well above-average rate (44.3%) that ranks only behind Dirk (48.3%) and Durant (46.1%) among those with the top 10 most attempts (he hits them at a higher rate than the likes of LaMarcus Aldridge, Carmelo Anthony, and Kyrie Irving, for instance). Frankly, he shoots that mid-range shot too much out of pick-and-rolls, and it's still not an especially efficient shot, but being able to can that shot is only going to open up the lane for drives, and he only needs to extend his range a couple feet before he'll start hitting above-the-break threes. He's also averaging 4.7 rebounds per 36 min, which is borderline-elite for a SG. He still doesn't create for others much or get to the rim/free-throw line regularly, but your scouting report looks like it's a year old.

You're probably right that Bradley is closer to an $8m player than a $10m player, but he's an easy re-sign to me if you can get him for 4/$32m or so.

Not really thrilled about the C's wrapping up a back court of 6' and 6'1. Rondo and Bradley are a good pair, play very good "D" and at times shown they some chemistry on "O". But that is a small back court that too many good teams would be able to punish with matchups on the block.

Bradley held his own versus Wade in the post a couple years back, and both he and Rondo are the feisty sort who won't back down from a size mismatch. Besides, how many post-up guards are there in the league, really? Other than, say, Joe Johnson (who's more of a SF anyways), there aren't a lot that scare me.

Under 6'2"...

I think most everyone wants them to lockup Bradley, we just have a difference on what it will take to get it done. His health and production the next 3 months will certainly help bring that into clearer focus.

I'd love to see Gordon Heyward here as a free agent acquisition.

Second top 3 prospect is considering staying in school. Embiid joins Parker. For the Celtics, I wouldn't necessarily love this, but it'd be great for basketball if these kids started staying. Embiid isn't ready for the NBA and is smart enough to realize this. He can probably develop better in college where he can actually practice vs in the NBA where player development hasn't exactly been mastered by clubs. Terrible environment for it.

So if the reports are true (who knows what actually is) 2 of the Top 5 may stay in school and 3rd may stay in Australia if he's not picked by the Lakers.

No need to be an alarmist right now but that leaves Wiggins, Smart and Randle.

Chances lean to both coming out but don't underestimate Parker. He's very well grounded. Education is extremely important to him and his Mormon faith is strong. He's not your typical prospect.

As Chad Ford just reminded us in his chat, many of the past early declarers said the same thing at this time of year.

I don't really understand the education piece, to be honest (though, admittedly and not suprisingly, I've never been in this position). If education is that important, you can always go back to school. However, if you hurt yourself playing, you can't go back to being healthy (in the extreme cases, I mean).

If there is a chance to go higher in a subsequent year and you want to take it, I understand that. If you really want to win an NCAA championship (and you have a shot by staying), I get that too. I recongize the importance of education, of course, but that will always be there for those players who truly want it.