Another Celtics Trade - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

Evilmav2 · 10-23-2003, 08:42 PM

Houston and Boston radio sources are reporting that Ainge has traded "El Busto" Tony Battie and Eric Williams to the Rockets for Cuttino Mobley and Eddie Griffen...

Sounds like a good trade for the Celtics.

Stay tuned for more details...

grbh · 10-23-2003, 08:43 PM

It does if Griffen gets his head screwed on right. he has had a lot of problems which have made the papers in the last week

aexchange · 10-23-2003, 08:44 PM

well damnit. i guess houston officially doesn't have the dumbest backcourt in the nba.

good move for the celtics though.

i like a pierce, mobley, and raef starting lineup.

bogey · 10-23-2003, 09:06 PM

Ainge made a good deal there.

LRB · 10-23-2003, 09:25 PM

Ainge is fighting for his professional life after that brain fart of a trade he did with us. Better hope that Griffin doesn't go nuclear in Boston. If he can keep Giffin under control this will be a good trade for the Celts.

jayC · 10-23-2003, 09:48 PM

I don't know Griffin is a cancer. But anyway here is another boston trade rumor:
Ainge may not be done dealing

Battie could be next to go
By Peter May, Globe Staff, 10/23/2003

So, who's next?

No one at the moment, Celtics hoop boss Danny Ainge said last night before Boston crushed the pseudo-Timberwolves, 96-80, before 12,279 at the FleetCenter. "I don't anticipate anything before the start of the season," said Ainge, when asked about any new deals on the horizon. "But that doesn't mean I'm not trying."

One name to surface in the wake of the Antoine Walker-Raef LaFrentz deal is that of Tony Battie. League sources said yesterday that the Celtics had put Battie "in play" even before the Walker trade and that there was interest from Toronto and others. (The Raptors supposedly talked about Antonio Davis.) Yesterday, Battie's agent, Joel Bell, reported nothing new as far as he could see.

"There's really been nothing since the trade," Bell said. "Hey, if they trade him, they trade him. That's life."

That's precisely how Battie views it as well.

"It's a business," he said. "Things happen all the time. You gotta move on. If Antoine can be traded, then anyone can. He was a cornerstone here. You just have to be professional about it and carry on, whether it's here or wherever you go."

Battie may be on the losing end of a starting berth, depending on what coach Jim O'Brien decides to do with LaFrentz. O'Brien said last night that he expected LaFrentz to start, but he didn't say at what position. He could start at power forward alongside Battie or at center alongside Vin Baker.

"Whatever adjustments they make, whatever role I have, that's what I'll do," Battie said. "I just take orders from the coaches."

Ainge said he liked the team's depth at the center and power forward positions now with Battie, Baker, LaFrentz, and Mark Blount.

"They can all play either position and we have two other guys, Eric Williams and Jumaine Jones, who can also play [power forward] when we go small," he said.

. . .

In easily their best outing of the exhibition season, the Celtics led from wire to wire in their 16-point victory. (It was a 28-point lead with 7:09 to play.) Paul Pierce came close to a triple double (14 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds), Baker had 11 rebounds in 25 minutes, and LaFrentz showed little rust or sluggishness with 9 points and 5 rebounds in 19 minutes. "I thought it was a very, very solid effort," O'Brien said. It was hard to make too much of the W. The Wolves were without Michael Olowokandi (knee) and Wally Szczerbiak's exhibition debut was a disaster (0 for 5, 9 minutes). Latrell Sprewell was playing in only his second game. Nonetheless, Pierce said he saw a lot of good things. "I was pretty happy with the way we moved the ball [19 assists] and the way we defended," he said. "I think we can match up with anyone in the East." O'Brien saluted Baker's effort, saying, "You can't play any harder than Vin is playing. It's impossible." Then, in something O'Brien could never have said last year, the coach added, "I think Vin needs to be on the court as much as possible." Baker got a nice reception from the crowd and was aggressive throughout. "I've got the lift back and I've got the bounce back," he said. "But I'm nowhere near where I need to be." The Celtics close out their exhibition season tomorrow night at home against the Nets.

. . .

The Celtics have until Oct. 31 to exercise an option that would guarantee the fourth year of Kedrick Brown's five-year rookie contract. They have yet to pull the trigger, but it's not because they're wavering. "That decision was made before the start of training camp," Ainge said. "There's no rush." Many of Brown's draft class have had their deals extended to Year 4 . . . For a brief spell, the Celtics went over to the Dark Side, showcasing a public address announcer to rival the obnoxious, insufferable boors in other NBA locales (Dallas, Orlando, Detroit to name a few.) But after an awful start with some idiotic inflections, someone must have gotten to the lad because he mercifully ratcheted it down and was bearable the rest of the way. The Celtics said he was only trying out for the main job . . . If you're wondering about the curious timing of the Walker deal, here's one possibility why it went down when it did. Two of the principals, Jiri Welsch and Chris Mills, were traded from Golden State to Dallas Aug. 18. Under NBA rules, a player cannot be traded with another player if he had previously been traded within the last 60 days. That is why the deal had to wait until Oct. 20 so that Mills and Welsch would have been in Dallas for the needed 60 days. Welsch had 2 points (1 of 3) in 10 minutes . . . Quick Work Dept: There are 27 18 X 24 color pictures of Celtics on the wall entering the locker room. By last night, there were still 27, but not one of them featured Walker.

. . .

O'Brien is the son-in-law of Hall of Fame coach Jack Ramsay. So here's Dr. Jack's take on the Walker deal, courtesy of ESPN.com. "A black cloud hovered over Antoine Walker's situation with Boston Celtics' management ever since they decided not to extend his contract. With the air cleared, it looks as if Boston has come out fairly well in the deal." Ramsay wrote further that the Celtics acquired not only talent, "but added to team unity." LaFrentz, Ramsay added, "doesn't possess Walker's passing abilities, [but] he certainly won't hurt the Celtics in that regard. Overall, he's a better fit for the structure of the team." . . . Yankee fan supreme Eric Williams owned up to the unthinkable: He fell asleep watching Game 7 of the American League Championship Series with his Yanks trailing, 3-0. Williams has a new spin on the Red Sox' tortured history. "It's the Curse of the 4 B's: Bucky, Buckner, Boone and the Babe."

Evilmav2 · 10-23-2003, 09:53 PM

I'm still looking for confirmation of this, and they haven't said anything about it on TNT's NBA coverage. I pulled this from Kingsfans, so maybe this it's all smoke... We'll see...

MavsFanFinley · 10-23-2003, 09:57 PM

What a great trade for the Celtics. I wonder if they had this going before our trade went through? Must have something to it with both sides reporting it.

Nash13 · 10-23-2003, 10:25 PM

What in the H E double hockey sticks were the Rockets thinking. I particuarly do not like Mobley at all, or his game. But the Rockets could've got more out of those two.

So what's going to happen to the Rockets now. Are they going to start Jackson at the 2? Battie at the 4?

The bright side to this trade for the Rockets is that Yao will get the ball a lot more, which is what Van Gundy wants.

Tony tha Mavs fan · 10-23-2003, 10:25 PM

If this trade is legit, it's a great trade for the Celts. I dont understand why Houston would do the deal unless it was just to get Griffin off their hands, they already have Cato and Yao there, i guess Battie would play PF . Mobley, Pierce, and Raef is a nice, young crew to go to Battle in the East. This trade could make up a little for the Walker trade made by Ainge earlier this week in some Bostonians minds. Either way it goes it helps both teams in some way.

Max Power · 10-23-2003, 10:35 PM

Great trade for the Celtics. There have been a lot of head-scratching trades this year

bogey · 10-23-2003, 10:37 PM

Any official announcements yet? I still can't find anything.

u2sarajevo · 10-23-2003, 10:51 PM

On the ESPN boards they are calling the trade rumor crap.....

Interesting that ESPN has not reported it yet.

Nash13 · 10-23-2003, 10:52 PM

If Ainge thought he'd have his hands full with Walker hogging the ball for Boston, imagine Cuttino Mobley. At least Walker rebounded and passed. All Mobley ever does is shoot.

MavsFanatik33 · 10-24-2003, 08:47 AM

Good trade for both teams, I like it.

Big_Dog · 10-24-2003, 08:32 PM

that´s a great trade for boston, maybe ainge isn´t THAT stupid after all[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

bogey · 10-25-2003, 12:43 AM

This is bunk.

Cuttino Mobley played 33 minutes for the Rockets tonight and Eddie Griffin sat on the bench with a DNP.

V · 10-25-2003, 01:08 AM

From ESPN

NEWS: October 24
SKINNY: A Boston radio station reported Thursday that a deal -- sending Mobley, Bostjan Nachbar and Eddie Griffin to the Celtics for Eric Williams and Tony Battie -- was imminent, the Houston Chronicle reports.

SPIN: Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson denied such a deal was in the works, however, or had even been discussed. It looks for now that this is just a rumor, and it wouldn't make much sense for the Rockets to get Battie when they already have Yao Ming and Kelvin Cato.

bogey · 10-25-2003, 01:21 AM

More bunk.

NYCdog · 10-25-2003, 10:49 AM

This trade has never been discussed according to the Boston Herald. Apparently, 1510 The Zone in Boston (who broke the trade rumor) must have jumped the gun or this may have been wishfull thinking on there part. I'm thinking the latter............

Quote:

Trade not in wind

The information age still has a few bugs to work out - like yesterday when a trade rumor had the Celts sending Battie and Eric Williams to Houston for Cuttino Mobley, Eddie Griffin and Bostjian Nachbar.

Aside from the fact the numbers don't work out, sources from both sides say it's never been discussed.

From the dead file, the Celtics and Portland did discuss a move that would have sent Battie for point guard Jeff McInnis, whose contract is more favorable - but the talk went nowhere.

Link to full article.........