FlawlessVictory

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7073708

Sources: Celtics close to deal for Garnett
Jeff Goodman
FOXSports.com, Updated 2 minutes ago STORY TOOLS:


The on-again, off-again deal with the Boston Celtics acquiring Kevin Garnett apparently is back on.

According to sources, the current deal on the table has the 6-foot-11 Garnett heading to Boston and the Celtics dealing away Al Jefferson, Theo Ratliff's hefty expiring contract and Rajon Rondo. There may also be other players and draft picks involved.
It's not quite done, but three industry sources — including one close to the Celtics — told FOXSports.com that it's extremely close and could become official within the next 48 hours.

"It's basically done," one source said. "If it does happen, this will make the Celtics relevant again."

Celtics boss Danny Ainge attempted to trade for the Minnesota Timberwolves star forward prior to the NBA Draft, but the 31-year-old perennial All-Star had no interest in heading to Boston.

However, things may have changed now that Ainge and the Celtics pulled off the draft day deal with Seattle for Ray Allen.

There have been numerous discussions during the last week between Ainge and Wolves vice president Kevin McHale, who are good friends dating back to their days playing together on the Celtics.

Garnett has the option to get out of his contract — which pays $22 million next season — after the 2008 campaign and become a free agent. He averaged 22.4 points and 12.8 rebounds per game last season — his 12th in the NBA.



Garnett is a 10-time NBA All-Star and was the league's MVP in 2004. He is also one of the better defensive players in the NBA.

The deal would give Ainge a team that could compete with anyone in the Eastern Conference with the trio of Paul Pierce, Garnett and Allen. The Celtics would also have nearly $60 million in salaries between the three players for next season alone.

The Wolves would get one of the league's top young players in the 22-year-old Jefferson, who averaged 16 points and 11 boards in 69 games a year ago, and a second-year point guard in Rondo with plenty of potential. They would also get Ratliff's $11.7 million salary, which will come off the books after this season.

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Props to BEAT0 for the sig

$HypeBeast216$

damn if they get garnett they could be tuff.

FlawlessVictory

NBA Market Watch: KG to Boston

by: Eric Weiss
July 30, 2007
Multiple sources close to the situation told DraftExpress Sunday that the Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves have come to terms on a trade exchanging Kevin Garnett for a package including Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, and Theo Ratliff. The exact details of the trade aren’t known at this point, but it is believed that the deal will be completed shortly with similar parameters.

This deal has been rumored for most of the summer, but according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation, the main hold up had been the negotiation of a contract extension for Garnett. According to this source, Garnett’s camp is asking for a 5 year extension worth 125 million dollars. Whether or not the two parties have altered the initial proposal or agreed to it is not known, but apparently some accord has been reached. Garnett has an opt-clause in his contract for next season that he has essentially been using as leverage to get traded and secure his financial future with the team that acquires his services.

It had been widely assumed that the initial deal between the clubs had fallen through when Garnett’s agent publicized that his client was not interested in going to Boston. But circumstances seem to have progressed since that stage, to the point where one prominent player on the Celtics responded to inquiry by stating the team was “winning the Eastern Conference” next season, after having learned of Garnett’s imminent arrival.

This move signifies a major power shift in the Eastern Conference. Garnett joins veterans Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to form arguably the best trio in the NBA. The team now has three potential Hall of Fame players in their prime to contend in a conference that is wide open. Each player is over 30 years of age, but should remain effective for the life of their deals.

Executive Director of Basketball Operations chief Danny Ainge has mortgaged a sizable portion of the team’s long-term future to secure a title contending team however. Jefferson was recently selected by USA Basketball as one of the rising stars in the league and is only 22 years of age. The team will have to rely on their faith in the All Star veterans’ abilities to maintain a high level of performance deep into their 30’s. If KG, Pierce, and Allen can duplicate the career longevity of Karl Malone, Scottie Pippen, and Reggie Miller for example, the Celtics will have a larger window to work with.

Ainge has been highly scrutinized for his apparent lack of organizational direction these past few years, but his patience looks to have paid off. His commitment to acquiring young assets and parlaying them into more established stars has come to fruition. The team is scheduled to hold training camp overseas this season, so the timing was flawless for a move that is sure to re-invigorate the sizable international fan base. The team is sure to enjoy a sizable increase in national media attention as well. The team didn’t have a single network game scheduled last season. That should change this year.

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Props to BEAT0 for the sig

cgkK6690

i've been waiting for a while to say this-the c's are back!

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JeRz1e JoE

Kg ...paul Pierce ...and Jesus Aka Ray Allen Wooooowww

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