(Photo Credit: Boston Sports Journal)

I will preface this by saying that right now I’m extremely fed up and pissed off. But hey, maybe thats when the writing juices are flowing the best. But nonetheless, the Charlotte Hornets have agreed to sign Gordon Hayward to a deal worth 4 year, $120 million, FULLY GUARANTEED. I personally think that deal is horrendous. I am by no means blaming Ainge for not matching that deal to keep Hayward here, no thanks, no way. I am however totally blaming Ainge for not pulling the trigger yesterday or this morning on a sign and trade deal with Indiana. Yes, we don’t know for sure that that deal was in place, but it was strongly reported by Adrian Wojnarowski, Shams Charania, Marc Stein, and other very credible reporters on top of all the happenings in the NBA that the Pacers were offering Myles Turner and Doug McDermott for Gordon Hayward and that Indiana was Hayward’s preferred destination.

Now, a lot can change in a few short hours, especially when Charlotte comes out of nowhere with a cool 120 mil guaranteed. But this has been the story time after time with the Celtics the past 5 years. Ainge is ready to make a deal, holds onto his chips too long being greedy, and it doesn’t work out and someone else makes the deal. We saw it with Paul George, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, Kristaps Porzingis, I’m sure others, and now Myles Turner and Doug McDermott. Now I know, Turner is nowhere near the caliber of player of any of those other names. 100% true. But what are the Celtics 2 biggest needs right now, a starting caliber big man and a bench shooter. That is EXACTLY what Turner and McDermott are. Instead, Hayward is off to Charlotte for nothing, as the Hornets will waive and stretch Nic Batum’s contract to create the roughly 10 million in cap space they need to fit Hayward’s deal into their cap, as first reported by Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. So you Danny is left with a less deep Celtics team that was already thin, while we watch Milwaukee nab Jrue Holiday and the Heat keep Goran Dragic and get deeper with veteran pieces Avery Bradley and Moe Harkless. Holiday is a big get for the Bucks, potentially the key piece in convincing Giannis to stay. For the Heat, Bradley and Harkless are not game changers but they are solid, experienced vets that improve a team that already beat you in 6 games while you’ve done nothing.

As it stands right now, the Celtics still have Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, a formidable trio in their own right. But after that? A clear lack of depth and a huge vulnerability down low with only Daniel Theis, Robert Williams and Tacko Fall as big men options. The starting lineup would presumably be Walker, Smart, Brown, Tatum and Theis right now. The bench options would be Grant Williams, Robert Williams, Romeo Langford, Semi Ojeleye, and rookies Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard. Carson Edwards, Tremont Waters, Javonte Green and Tacko are also on the roster for next year but I don’t expect much more than end of the bench spot minutes for those guys. I list all of the roster to point out how razor thin they are. I believe in the future of Tatum and Brown, but in a top heavy NBA rich with elite teams, we are going to need more than those 2 to reach true championship caliber.

So what’s next? First and foremost, you better hope Nesmith and Pritchard can play. I like their potentials but how much can you expect them to do in a rookie season that thanks to COVID will have no summer league and barely a month of preseason preparations? The Celtics and Paul Millsap reportedly have mutual interest and the Celtics can use up to the full MLE (mid-level exception) on him. That would be a solid add no doubt, but after rumor after rumor not coming to fruition with this Danny Ainge led front office, I need pen on paper before I bank on that. I am trying to be optimistic and I still think the C’s are a top team in the East and the league to be quite honest. The problem is, they aren’t on the level of the Lakers, Bucks, or Heat and missed a huge chance to close that gap. Let’s let the rest of the offseason play out, but as of right now, Danny Ainge should be on the hot seat, end of story.