Dissecting Danny Ainge’s WEEI Interview

Posted by Ryan DeGama on Jun 21, 2012 3069017 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2012%2F06%2F21%2Fdissecting-danny-ainges-weei-interview%2FDissecting+Danny+Ainge%27s+WEEI+Interview2012-06-21+14%3A57%3A16Ryan+DeGamahttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D30690

Danny Ainge did an unusually long stint on WEEI on Wednesday. In the spirit of draft and free agent season, which is so rife with speculation and disinformation, we thought we’d parse the interview for insights. We trust you’ll find it a pleasing blend of fact and fiction.

What Danny Said About the 2011-12 Celtics: “I thought that the team overachieved. In the end, we just didn’t have enough.”
What Danny Meant: Two of my Big Four were injured by the end of the playoffs and one of them couldn’t guard anyone even when he was healthy. And my bench could barely put up 6 points a game. And we haven’t rebounded for three years. And we can’t score. And we lost a game where Rondo scored 44 points and shot 275% from the field on long, fadeaway threes. All of that’s going to change next year because the players are going to change and I’m not going to replace them with people like Jermaine O’Neal and Sean Williams, who most of you didn’t even realize was on our roster, did you?

What Danny Said About Kevin Garnett’s potential return: “That would be option A.”
What Danny Meant: It’s entirely possible our entire defense would collapse without Garnett because he is one of the defining defensive forces of the last twenty years and we keep asking him to carry a heavier burden as Ray Allen and Paul Pierce lose the ability to guard elite wing players and Rajon Rondo loses interest in keeping his man in front of him for multiple games at a time.

What Danny Said About KG’s timeline for a decision: “He may want to wait and see what kind of team we have.”
What Danny Meant: He is not coming back just so he can be a mentor to the next generation of late first round big men I acquire in the draft. He’s made it clear, via hyper-expressive profanity and other means that also involve swearing, that he’s only coming back if we’re going seriously after a title.

What Danny Said About Austin Rivers: “I think he’s going to be a top-10 pick.”
What Danny Meant: Please stop assuming I have some master plan to get him. I have nothing. Honestly.

What Danny Said About Potentially Using The Amnesty Clause On Paul Pierce: “No.”
What Danny Meant: No.

What Danny Said About Avery Bradley’s Potential: “Avery has a chance to be a very, very good player.”
What Danny Meant: I flat out stole this guy at #19 the way I flat out stole Rondo at #21. I love his offensive potential, I love his defense right now and there are no circumstances under which I will trade him.
What Danny Meant By That: You can expect to hear his name in about half a dozen trade rumors a year for the next five years.

What Danny Said About His Drafting Record: “We’ve been pretty fortunate. We have seven guys that were drafted in the second half of the first round that are starting on playoff teams [around the league].”
What Danny Meant: I don’t ever want to hear about JR Giddens again.

What Danny Said About LeBron’s low foul rate: “I really believe he is better at avoiding fouls than [other players]”
What Danny Meant: I would trade my entire roster for him right now.