With the defending Atlantic Division champion Boston Celtics coming to town tonight, Nets Are Scorching gets the skinny from Zach Lowe, of the dynamic Celtics TrueHoop site, Celtics Hub.
NAS: With his contract extension, it looks like Rajon Rondo is in the Celtics’ long-term plans. Over the summer, there was a rumor of a Rondo-for-Devin Harris swap. Do you see the logic of this trade from the C’s side and if you were GM, would you have done it?
Lowe: No. I don’t like the idea of shaking up a championship contender to that degree. Rondo fits the rest of this roster better than Harris does, in that he doesn’t need to control the ball or take a ton of shots. Adding Harris at the expense of Rondo only makes sense–at least to me–if you’re overhauling the roster in a larger way. If you’re committed to Allen-Pierce-KG and defensive dominance, Rondo fits. Three years from now, would Harris fit better? That’s impossible to know and not really relevant.
NAS: Another Celtic linked to the Nets this summer was “Big Baby” Glen Davis. Have the Celtics missed Davis at all since he went down with an injury to start the season?
Lowe: I mean, not in any serious way. The team is undefeated (note: this interview was conducted before Boston’s loss last night to the Phoenix Suns), KG’s playing fewer than 30 minutes per game and Shelden Williams is mostly doing what the team is asking him to do. But would the team be better and deeper with Big Baby taking minutes from Williams, Sheed and KG? Absolutely.
NAS: How has Rasheed Wallace fit in with the Celtics so far?
Lowe: Exactly as expected. His presence and 45 percent shooting from deep have loosened up the team’s second unit offense. The team can run three-man pick/pop plays with Ray Allen, Eddie House and Sheed. That is damn near impossible to defend. His defensive activity comes and goes, but it has mostly been there. He hasn’t gone down on the block as much, but he has shown the ability to hit 12-footers down there when the situation demands it. Really, I couldn’t be happier with his play.
NAS: Besides age and health, is there anything/anyone who can stop the Celtics this year?
Lowe: Sure: The Lakers, Cavs, Magic and Spurs. None of those teams has gelled as quickly as Boston so far, but it’s June that matters most.
