Celtics ☘️ Sentinel

 The Boston Celtics can no longer rest on their laurels and keep that 15th roster slot unoccupied . The Milwaukee Bucks adding veteran Goran Dragic to the mix changes much. Dragic may be heading to the autumn of his career but he has the ability to cause The Green some signifiant headaches in the post-season. In Thursday's win over the Nets, Milwaukee went 9-deep , and neither Giannis Antetokounmpo or Dragic played. The Celtics are reportedly ‘pissed’ at the Bulls for allowing the Bucks to acquire Goran Dragic, per @SeanDeveney . “If you go back to the Christmas game, the Celtics have always felt good about what they can do against Milwaukee. But now, Milwaukee has this extra layer of… https://t.co/DKv0yvQxbU pic.twitter.com/nxockEkJzM — Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 10, 2023 Adding former-Celtic, Jae Crowder , to the Milwaukee ranks certainly didn't help the Celtics future fortunes in the playoffs, and Goran's addition just may prompt Brad Stevens to find the "...

 Don't get me wrong. Kevin Durant's trade to Phoenix makes the Suns a worrisome foe - for now. The "Fearsome Foursome" of Chris Paul, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton and Durant is damn potent. But Durant will be 35 years old prior to the start of next season - has a 4-year deal worth $194 million - and has a significant injury history. Phoenix will be good if KD is healthy, but for how long? That return, with those unprotected picks, is an amazing haul for an unhappy player. — Josh (@poundcoyne) February 9, 2023 The Nets get three players back from Phoenix (Jae Crowder, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson) and a gold mine of unprotected draft picks (2023, 2025, 2027, 2029) and a pick swap in 2028 . That haul dwarf's what Danny Ainge got when he sent Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to Brooklyn.  This move makes Phoenix maybe the top contender for the NBA 2023 Title - if the stars remain healthy (and happy). Durant has moved around the League like a gypsy. He can't be cou...

 The Phoenix Suns are still trying to find a new home for former-Celtic, Jae Crowder , and the name of Payton Pritchard has surfaced once again as a bargaining chip.  The Celtics right now are guard-rich and wing-poor - or are they? The point guard spot seems solid with Marcus Smart, Derrick White, Malcolm Brogdon and Pritchard manning the duties. I had previously broached the idea of Crowder joining The Green as a combo-forward, but the performance of Payton this far in pre-season play causes me to say, "no way"! Brad Stevens has always seemed to have the mindset of - "Gather as many wings as possible" , so he may just pull the trigger to get Crowder's toughness back in Boston. Stretching things out a bit by having Smart, White and Brogdon play the small forward position would be an alternate - and maybe workable - solution.

 Former Celtic, Jae Crowder is asking out of Phoenix, and both sides are trying to work out a trade. At 6'6", Crowder certainly doesn't fit the big-man role as an early-season replacement for Rob Williams, but the 32-year-old forward is a tough, 2-way player that fits anywhere. He can play either forward position and averaged 9.4 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 2.4 APG and 1.0 SPG for the Suns in last season's playoffs. News that he may lose his starting job in Phoenix may have prompted Crowder to seek greener pastures. Is it possible that Celtics fans may see 3 "Js" on the parquet for the first time? pic.twitter.com/m6ysCbTMS1 — Tom Lane (@CelticsSentinel) September 27, 2022 Jae is in the last year of his contract and is set to earn $10.2 million this season. NBA Insider, Shams Charania lists the Boston Celtics as one possible landing spot, possibly joining two other "Js" on the TD Garden parquet "Sources tell me that both the Suns and Crowder are now working ...

The Celtics-rival Miami Heat were already performing well beyond pre-season expectations, currently in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with a 34-16 record. They have now undoubtedly improved by adding Andre Iguodala, Jae Crowder and Solomon Hill to the fold via a trade that sent Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters and James Johnson to the Memphis Grizzlies. Miami has agreed to trade Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters and James Johnson to Memphis for Andre Iguodala, Solomon Hill and Jae Crowder, league sources tell ESPN. No picks in the deal. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 6, 2020 Iguodala's addition gives the Heat a former Finals MVP that brings veteran leadership, playoff savvy and versatility. He will make a positive difference. The acquisition of Crowder can not be minimized. In 29.4 minutes per game, he is averaging 9.9 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.8 APG and 1.0 SPG. He brings much-needed toughness and further depth at Miami's wing position. This trade moved the needle in a pos...

The Memphis grizzlies are not cooperating! Before the start of the season, they were slated to be high-lottery bound by the end of this year's campaign. That's not happening - at least not yet. They are currently sitting in the 8th spot in the Western Conference with a 19-22 record. They are looking at the playoffs rather than acquiring a high-lottery pick. The Boston Celtics own the Grizzlies first rounder this year, top-6 protected. Most Celtics fans were hoping for Memphis to falter this season and walk away with one of the top-6 picks in the draft, thereby allowing Boston to acquire the Grizzlies first round pick, totally unprotected, in 2021. JA MORANT x JAREN JACKSON JR... OH MY! 😳✨💥 📺: @NBATV pic.twitter.com/VtXey3nt4x — NBA (@NBA) January 15, 2020 Danny Ainge can blame super-rookie, Ja Morant, veteran center Jonas Valanciunas and former-Celtic, Jae Crowder for much of the disappointment. Crowder leads the Grizzlies in minutes with 30.2 MPG, averaging 10.4 PPG...

The Boston Celtics are clearly missing a vital ingredient for a successful NBA team with legitimate Title hopes - and former Celtic Jae Crowder knows what it is. The Celtics lack toughness - the determination to do the grit and grind - in plain talk, to do the dirty work. Boston currently sits in 5th place in the Eastern Conference, behind Toronto, Milwaukee, Indiana and Philadelphia . The team is under-performing expectations. The Celtics have the number-one Defensive Rating in the League, but a woeful 27th-place in Offensive rating. Their offense often sputters, but that is not their only failing ( per Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett ): “Obviously they have a lot of offensive players that can really score the ball. But you have to have guys that do their dirty work. Marcus (Smart) can’t do it all by himself,” he (Crowder) said of former teammate and still friend Marcus Smart. “You’ve all got to buy into it, I feel like. And that’s one of the problems they’re going throu...