Ryan Gomes: Is He Coming Back?

There have been rumors swirling around that Ryan Gomes will have his contract bought out by the Minnesota Timberwolves and will return to the Celtics. The Timberwolves’ roster is very crowded, especially in the front court with Al Jefferson, Corey Brewer, Craig Smith, Mark Blount, Eddie Griffin, Trenton Hassell and Chris Richards. Losing Gomes in the deal was the hardest thing for me because I hoped we could hold on to him and still get KG, but that obviously didn’t happen. Gomes would be a great piece to have for this team and I would be all for getting him back in Boston.

Two More Added to Celtics’ Roster

After pulling off the grand daddy of all trades for Kevin Garnett, the Celtics quickly filled in two roster spots. They were receiving calls from the agents of Brevin Knight and Charlie Bell, but Danny Ainge and Co. decided on another point guard option.

The Celtics signed journeyman Eddie House. House will most likely play backup PG for the Celtics. Now I know what you are saying, “Since when is Eddie House a point guard?” I thought the same thing too. But then you take a step back and look at it and realize that when Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett are on the court, do you really need a distributor? I mean these are three perennial all-stars that know how to share the ball. Eddie House shot an astounding 42% from beyond the arc last year, so teams will have to think twice before doubling off of him to help on any of the Big Three.

The next player that the C’s signed was Jackie Manuel. You may know Manuel much better from his North Carolina days because nobody has seen much of this kid in the NBA. He was playing in the NBDL for Los Angeles last season and is seen as a good defender. I think this signing came out of left field and nobody could have seen this one coming, but bringing in a good defender to play the shooting guard or small forward position is worth it considering there won’t be a necessity for scoring.

The team is still looking to add another big body down low and my first option would be PJ Brown. The problem with him is he has effectively priced his way out of the Celtics’ budget as he is looking to get paid the full Mid-Level Exception. It looks like the C’s are targeting Dikembe Mutumbo to man the middle with Perkins and Garnett. Although Mutumbo doesn’t really do it for me, he can still block some shots and grab a couple boards, so he will effectively be what we thought we were getting in Theo Ratliff for a fraction of the cost.

I have to say I like how the roster is filling out and I can only assume that Gabe Pruitt and Glen Davis will be signed in the very near future. They will become part of a team that is going to win, not like most of the kids that were traded who were basically coached to lose. They could be the final pieces to this puzzle going into the season, or is there one more former Celtic making his way back….

Big Three Plus Who?

If there is a better trio in the league than Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, please, let me know now. These three have been franchise players on teams that haven’t achieved much at all in their respective careers. Each of them have only been to one conference finals each. Now the expectations are to make it to at least the Eastern Conference Finals this season and beyond in the very near future.

Now if this were the Hoop-It-Up 3-on-3 tournament, there’s not another team in the world that would be able to beat us. Considering that this is the NBA and the minimum roster requirement is 12 players, we’ve got some people to add to this squad. Remember just two short months ago when nobody wanted to play in Boston other than Rashard Lewis and Al Jefferson? Well that has quickly changed over the last 48 hours.

In a report from the Boston Herald:

In a rather amazing turn of events, Boston has suddenly become a desirable city for NBA free agents. Agents for legitimate veteran players were actually calling the Celtics [team stats] yesterday, looking to place their clients in Boston as news of Kevin Garnett’s arrival spilled out further.

Eddie House, Troy Hudson, Brevin Knight and Charlie Bell are reportedly on the point guard list. Bell is a restricted free agent, which makes his situation a little different (Milwaukee can match any offer he gets). Hudson had his contract bought out by the Timberwolves yesterday, making him a free agent. And while the C’s were previously steering away from Knight because of alleged locker room issues, a source said, “Hey, just about everyone that’s out there now has (a few) spots.”

As for big men, Doc Rivers said the Celts are “very interested” in Dikembe Mutombo as a backup center, while P.J. Brown, Michael Ruffin, Calvin Booth and Scot Pollard are also under consideration.

My dreams would come true if we could land Brevin Knight; a proven pass-first PG that would be great to give Rondo more time to grow. PJ Brown has also been a personal favorite of mine. He’s always been a good defender and a consummate professional. He’s a big body and can play, unlike the others mentioned (sorry, Dikembe doesn’t do it for me).

It will be very interesting to see who Danny adds in the next week or so, but you know there will be additions. All I can say is that I have already gotten a little teary eyed listening to people talk about the Celtics as NBA title contenders. What a roller coaster of emotions this team has been involved in over the past 12 months…

Thanks to the Celtics homepage for the great picture!