Celtics ☘️ Sentinel

 Celtics Head-Honcho, Danny Ainge had the 15th, 24th and 25th picks in the 2004 NBA draft - and initially appeared to have done quite well.  He took C/PF Al Jefferson at #15, and that worked out fairly well. Jefferson had the foot-work and inside moves to make a statement in the NBA - and eventually became the major trade piece that brought Kevin Garnett to Boston. In the latter portion of the first round, Danny went with toughness , taking Delonte West and Tony Allen. West showed promise but mental instability intervened, and the point guard moved around the NBA and (then-called) D-League - finally ending up as a homeless man on the streets. Tony had a decent career as a Celtic but became disenchanted with his role behind Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett - finally deciding to move on to Memphis in free agency - where he became known as the "Grindfather" for his dedicated defensive ability. Now recently, "The Grindfather" was sentenced to community service and su...

Celtics have sputtered with late-first-round picks. Until now? Rookie Payton Pritchard was taken with the 26th pick.   The Boston Celtics, the greatest basketball organization of all time, has been masters at drafting talent, from Cousy, Heinsohn, Jones & Russell, to White, Hondo, Cowens, Bird & McHale, then Pierce, Rondo, and now Tatum, Smart & Brown.  What all of these players have in common besides being all-time (or potential all-time) Celtics greats is that they were all high draft picks.  Once we get to number 26 or later the Celtics have never (and I mean never) drafted a player who made an immediate impact.  Let’s look at some of those guys: The closest we get to the present is 2004 with Delonte West & Tony Allen. (24th & 25th overall). Neither was an immediate contributor, although Tony Allen did have his moments in 2008 helping us win our 17th World Championship   In 1991 we drafted Rick Fox 21st. He had a decent rookie season, play...

Most of you can recall what happened during the 2004 NBA draft. The Boston Celtics had the 15th, 24th and 25th picks and used them effectively. High-schooler and big man, Al Jefferson was snagged at number-15, and tough-nosed guards Tony Allen and Delonte West were taken with the 25th and 24th picks, respectively. Jefferson acquired most his fame as the major piece in Ainge acquiring Kevin Garnett from Minnesota, but he also had a solid 14-year career with his superior post moves and rebounding prowess. Allen also had a long NBA career, earning a Title ring with Boston in 2008. But it was in Memphis that he truly starred, earning the moniker of "Grindfather" with his relentless defensive efforts, while also being named to the All-Defensive First Team three times and All-Defensive Second Team three times. Despite his recent battles with mental illness and addictions, West became Doc Rivers' starting point guard in the 2005-06 season, averaging 11.8 PPG, 4.1 RPG and 4.6 APG...

I speak from experience when I write that the much-troubled Delonte West needs the right mentor more than anything right now. And that person needs to be a stable, well-meaning person dedicated to leading West back into a contented life. That needs to happen before monetary donations and visits to medical folks and social services. pic.twitter.com/W3QxPsbYSu — Jameer Nelson (@jameernelson) January 21, 2020 As a police lieutenant, I dealt almost daily with situations similar to what DWest is going through - mental illness and alcohol and drug abuse. Arrests were common because it was the only way to quickly take away the threat that the erratic and often-combative individuals would harm themselves or others, and that would include the threat of harm to the responding officers. The courts and Social Services would usually come into play, but the results were almost always the same. The troubled individual would soon be back on the streets, and law enforcement would await the...

As a retired Police Lieutenant, I have seen what is contained in the following videos all too often. Young lives destroyed by alcohol, drugs and mental illness. Delonte West has taken a self-destructive path since his days in the NBA, four of those years spent in Boston. Slim doing bad NBA need to offer him some help pic.twitter.com/b7MtTj9JAt — Maybe: Damani (@damani_givens) January 21, 2020 The former 24th-overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft had his best season during the Celtics 2006-07 campaign in which he notched 12.2 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.1 SPG. He was traded to the Seattle Supersonics after that season as part of a package that brought Ray Allen and Big Baby Davis to Boston. West was reacquired by the Celtics for the 2010-11-season as a backup to point guard, Rajon Rondo. Recent videos apparently show Delonte getting beaten on the street and in handcuffs yelling out an unintelligible rant. He is clearly close to the end of the line and needs help quickly and despe...