Tony, Eddie Returning

From RealGM.com:

The Celtics agreed to terms with guards Eddie House and Tony Allen to return, GM Danny Ainge announced today. Both will get two-year contracts (although House’s second year is a player option, according to an NBA source).

These re-signings definitely help solidify our paper thin bench. Eddie gives us that scoring point guard option off the bench that we came to really appreciate late in the playoffs last season. Tony Allen, now an entire year and a half removed from that gruesome knee injury, hopefully can become the defensive stopper he used to be. If he can get his offensive confidence back as well, that would be a huge boost to the 2nd unit. Now it’s time to see who else Danny will scoop up before the season starts.

Posey Crushes Our Hearts, Heads to Hornets

From ESPN:

James Posey, arguably the most coveted unrestricted free agent left on the market, agreed to a four-year deal with the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday worth an estimated $25 million, his agent, Mark Bartelstein, said.

This news hurts this team deeply. Not only did we lose probably the best glue guy in the league, but we also missed out on opportunities to sign a replacement such as Corey Maggette or Mickael Pietrus. Only positive about Posey not re-signing is we now have money to pay Eddie House to stay, but that decision is up to Danny.

Hornets’ fans, embrace James for every penny he is worth because he truly is a special player. I would have liked to see him make Boston his final team, but the cards just didn’t fall that way. I wish you the best, James, as you have earned every dollar any team would be willing to pay you.

Camby a Clipper

Link

The Los Angeles Clippers have agreed in principal on a trade with the Denver Nuggets to acquire center Marcus Camby as their replacement for Elton Brand, according to NBA front-office sources.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Clippers will only have to surrender a second-round pick to acquire Camby, who is being jettisoned by the Nuggets purely for payroll relief.

This is the epitome of a salary dump if I have ever seen it. This is obviously a great deal for the Clippers as they are getting a potential Defensive Player of the Year in Camby in return for a measley 2nd round draft pick. The Nuggets do rid themselves of Camby’s contract, but now have a gaping hole at center. It will be interesting to see what the Nuggets front office does to this roster in the near future.

As for the Clippers, Camby isn’t nearly the offensive replacement in the post that they would have liked for Elton Brand, but his defensive skills are nearly unmatched in the league. It’s going to be interesting to see how Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby play together on the floor. Kaman showed a greater offensive game with Brand out for most of last season with decent range on his jumpshot, but I can see a lot of problems with spacing when they are both on the floor at the same time.

Posey Decision Imminent?

James Posey, the best available free agent, may make his decision on where he will play next in the very near future.

Free agent forward James Posey could soon make a decision about where he’ll be playing next year, according to The Boston Globe.

Agent Mark Bartelstein said Sunday that something could happen “contract-wise” for Posey as early as Monday.

Boston, Detroit, Washington, Cleveland, and New Orleans are all rumored to be seriously interested in signing Posey.

Rumors were that the decision would come as early as Monday, but today is [just about] yesterday meaning we will have to wait yet another day to see if our “glue guy” will be returning for another championship run.

I ultimately believe that it will come down to Boston and New Orleans. I just hope that the Celtics’ brass makes the right decision regarding Posey’s contract offer, do enough to retain him yet don’t overpay.

Celtics Sign O’Bryant

So the Celtics surprise us all and sign Patrick O’Bryant, the two-year veteran center from Bradley. The Warriors selected him 9th overall in the 2006 NBA Draft. His stock rose not only because he was a mobile big man with some decent moves, but he carried Bradley to two wins in the NCAA tournament to boot. His career in the NBA has been almost non-existant, but his NBDL numbers aren’t too shabby. Obviously, a championship team would like a much more proven commodity as their backup center, but let’s not give up hope just yet.

If anyone can work with raw talent in the forms of power forwards or centers, it’s assistant coach Clifford Ray. He’s turned Al Jefferson into a budding all-star and Kendrick Perkins into a legit starting center in this league. O’Bryant has got all the physical tools to be a good player in this league, maybe he just needs a coach to really whip him into shape.

Now that we have signed Patrick O’Bryant, we can all exhale that our free agency frenzy has ended. We could possibly re-sign James Posey, but would that come close to topping the O’Bryant deal?!? [end sarcasm]

Basketball News Around the League (and Globe?)

There has been some serious free agents agreeing to deals, summer league games starting up and even a little college basketball news. Here’s the run down:

• Elton Brand going to accept a 5-year, $82 million deal from Philly.
• Corey Maggette will sign with the Golden State Warriors.
• Orlando Magic and Mickael Pietrus agree to terms.
• Philly makes very interesting deal to clear cap space.
• Michael Beasley dominates in first summer league game against Rose, Bulls. Not so hot second game.
• Brandon Jennings, University of Arizona ‘commit’, decides to opt out of scholarship and play in Europe.

A lot of this news will affect the Celtics in one way or another, so these moves are very significant to the defending champs.

Celtics Make Offers to Both Posey and Maggette

Link

The Celtics have made contract offers to two forwards in their own free agent James Posey and Clippers free agent Corey Maggette, sources told the Boston Globe. The most the Celtics could offer is the mid-level exception (about $5.8 million), and it’s doubtful that they could sign both players. The terms of the offers were not disclosed.

Posey averaged 7.4 points and 4.4 rebounds and was a NBA Sixth Man of the Year candidate in his first season with Boston. The two-time NBA champion was a strong leader for the Celtics and opted out of the second year of a two-year deal on Monday to become an unrestricted free agent. Maggette averaged 22.1 points and 5.6 rebounds last season for the Clippers and played for Celtics coach Doc Rivers in Orlando during the 1999-2000 season.

Well we all knew that Ainge would offer a contract to Posey, but who could have guessed we would also throw a deal Maggette’s way? Obviously both players would be looking for the full MLE, so there’s no way to sign both of them. I would love to have Posey back, but to bring a player like Corey Maggette off the bench would be very interesting. My #1 priority is to re-sign James Posey, but if he decides to go else where, then I am all for bringing in Corey Maggette to replace him.