Insane Anfernee Simons Trades the Celtics Could Make

Insane Anfernee Simons Trades the Celtics Could Make

Hold my banner time. That’s right. Travis Thomas here with the walking talking triple double himself. Balden Aante Campbell. How you doing, man? Good. Good to see you. It’s been a while. It feels good to be here. I feel like I’m home, reunited. And it feels so good. Come on. Oh, that’s smooth. That’s smooth. That boy got vocals. You know what we should do? What? We should go to karaoke. No. Why not? You can embarrass yourself. I’m good. They don’t make Well, you don’t You don’t sing at karaoke. They don’t make songs from a voice as deep as mine, dog. You do have a deep voice. Not anymore. You’re like the dude in Boys and Men. He He sang, but really he would talk to you, baby. I’m sorry. You could do that. I can do that. So, wait, you don’t go to You don’t do like karaoke. I haven’t in a while. But so you have Yeah, that was like high school, dog. Oh, it was a long time. Long No, no, I did it in college. I did it in college. Right after I finished college, I did it. That was it. We got to bring this back. We’ll talk about it. All right. Well, we’ll talk offline. We’ll talk offline. As far as online here and hold my banner, I want to get into this Anthony Simon thing because everything I see surrounding the Celtics is he’s the next to go, right? And we have some trade proposals here that we want to get into. They’re actively here. You see the tweet. They’re actively trying to trade Anthony Simons. Okay, no issue there. But I do want to have the conversation. If you can’t find a suitor, if you can’t find a dance partner, we’re talking about karaoke. What if you can’t find a trade partner, a dance partner here with the Celtics, what would life with Anthony look like? Because look, I I it’s hard for me to talk about the Celtics and not look at the totality and not look at the roster outside of Derek White, outside of Jaylen Brown. Duh. I I don’t feel real good about any of it. Now, even Payton Pritchard, who we’ll get to later, Yeah. him as my starting point guard. I love him as a sixman. Who doesn’t? But as my starting point guard, so as I look at Anthony Simons, I just don’t necessarily think he fits with what this team has done that we’ve seen in recent years. Obviously, the championship season comes to mind. Does I mean, what does a world with him look like if you can’t move them? Yeah, I I think it’s important to note that, you know, we’ve had some commenters comment and say, “Well, he’s not this good of a defender and he’s not this good of a team guy and all this other stuff.” Oh, like he’s selfish. And that may be true, right? And that may be true. But I think what it would look like immediately is guys like Jaylen Brown, guys like Derek White taking this guy under this under their wing because they’re a little bit older than him. You know what I mean? not to be like he needs a vet cuz he doesn’t need a vet at this point. But he would respect a Jaylen Brown doing that. A Derek White doing that champions now. You know what I’m saying? Guys who have, you know, come from, you know, smaller beginnings, you know what I’m saying? It wasn’t always pretty for Jaylen Brown here in Boston. You know what I’m saying? It was same thing. Not always pretty for Anthony Simons in Portland. So, you know, it’s one of those things where it’s like, okay, hey, we understand the past. It’s time to look forward to the future. We’re going to need you to buy in a little bit more on the defensive end and we’re going to show you what it takes to win a championship. I think that’s fair. So, all right. You said the comments have rolled in that he’s selfish. Have you heard I I have not heard that about him. Now, he’s not he’s not the caliber of player where I guess you would hear scuttlebutt around him here in Boston. You’re not going to hear about Portland stuff. So, I’m not taking anything away if people are in the comments saying that. Especially Blazer fans. They would know better than us. But I haven’t heard anything that he’s a selfish guy. Have you heard that? Well, to be fair, that commentary or those commenters aren’t Blazers fans. They just live in Portland. But I haven’t heard anything about that. And you know, I’ve have some ear. That’s what I’m saying. Have you heard that about him? I haven’t heard anything. And I haven’t heard anything about him being a bad teammate or anything like that. I I’ve heard that he’s quiet. I’ve heard that he’s like a little bit like Jaylen Brown where he kind of does things on his own when he’s not on the court with the team. Okay. But, you know, there’s nothing wrong with that. You know what I’m saying? It’s just that he, you know, I mean, I just think up there in Portland, you know, they’ve had a rotation of players. Yeah. Throughout his career there. I mean, how could he ever get that close or, you know what I mean, that comfortable with anybody? Yeah. I I really I respect their fan base, so I don’t want to be disrespectful here because I think Blazers I know a couple Blazers fans. They’re great fans. Yeah. And the Blazers are an institution there in that town. Yeah. I understand that. It’s a good soccer town, too. But I I mean, look, it’s the Blazers. There are I’m sorry. There are levels to this in terms of franchises and in terms of culture. So, what you were speaking to is true, but you’re speaking of individuals. Jaylen Brown, Derek White. True. But also the Celtics with the Celtics. I think offensively, automatically, you know, that’s Yes, it’s an upgrade. No, no question about it. Offensively, he can shoot the ball. This dude is going to get him up. He’s going to make 40% from three. he’s going to get a lot of great looks playing with this Celtics team and all this other stuff. It’s the defense that worries me. And that’s the part where it’s like, all right, he has to make some improvements. Can Missoula coach to the ability that the Boston Celtics believe that he can, but can he get this kid up to speed on the defensive end and get him to buy in and have improvements like we saw with Sam Hower, like we saw with Peyton Pritchard under Joe Mazula’s reign, comma, who’s protecting the rim? I mean, is that a fair question or not? Because of course it is. And we’ll talk about that and we’ll talk and we’ll get to we’ll get to the point guard position. We’ll get to the center position. Let’s get to some trade proposals. Yes. For Anthony. The first one is from Bailey Basset of Clutch Points. So, walk us through this one for Anthony Simons to the Grizzlies. Correct. So, this is a three-team trade that we see here in front of us. The Grizzlies will receive Simons and cash consideration from the Nets. Luckily, not from Boston. Okay. The Celtics will receive Brandon Clark, John Cartar, and two second round picks from the Grizzlies. And the Mets will receive GG Jackson from I don’t hate this one. Okay. Uh Brandon Clark. I like I I don’t know. I like their draft picks, too. Second rounders, though. Huh. Um I mean, the Celtics lost two from the Yeah, that’s right. So, you sign Yeah. So, you would get those two back. I I don’t hate this trade. I kind of feel like like you’re leaving some meat on the bone though. I I I think I want a little bit more here. But if this were to happen and obviously they are trying to move them. Yes, they’re actively trying to move them. So if this is a trade, I wouldn’t be upset by it. I kind of feel like there and we’re going to go through some more deals. Yeah. I feel like there’s probably better deals to be had around this league. Is that fair for me to feel that way? It is fair for you to feel that way. I think that the upside for John Codchar at this point in his career. I mean, he’s 28. He’s not really shooting the three. He should be probably shooting the three at his size and his ability. I feel like he does have touch. He’s shown the ability to make free throws now here in the later part of his career over 80% free throw shooter. So, if you have that kind of touch when you’re getting to the line and getting opportunities to make them and you’re making them, I feel like even though it’s a low low attempts, I’m looking at it right here. You know what I He’s only shooting one 1.3 a game, but he’s shooting 37% from three. You know what I’m saying? So, this is a guy that could be a three-point shooter and probably should be, I feel like they can do an opposite kind of effect of what they’ve done to or what Luke Cornett’s career went from being a shooting bid to a non-shooting big. If they can have that opposite effect and make him more of a shooting big and lean into the shooting aspect, I like it. I played against Brandon Clark. I’ve talked about that on hold my banner before. I think he’s a great player. He plays hard. It’s the health thing with him, which is always the question. I like his ceiling, but he plays hard. He rebounds. He does a lot of the day. They need all of the things he he would bring, but you need them healthy. Yes. You need them healthy. I would love that. So, okay. So, we we don’t hate this trade. We like what the Celtic We like, not love, we like what the Celtics would get back. Yes. The Grizzlies obviously would get Simons. Yes. And per used, the Nets were fleeced. GG Jackson. GG’s a good player. No disrespect. All right. I’m going to Okay. Uh, here’s another one. Yes. Okay. I like this one, how about this proposed trade. Celtics receive. This is who I want right there. Boo. Vousvich and a 2029. This drives me nuts. The future years. 2029 second round pick for Anthony Simons. Who says no? Not me. Okay. This is the one I want. I I’m such a Vous fan and have been for years. He’s a career double double. Yeah. Now he’s old as all hell. He is old as dirt now. Is he 35? He’s a dinosaur. He’s old and and even his style is kind of No one really plays like that at the center position anymoreish, but I don’t care. Like, have you seen the front court for this Celtics team right now as it stands? Yeah. Give me boosts. I mean, what are you what are you kidding me? He averaged 19 points and 10 boards last year for a trash Bulls team. I mean, he’s been on several trash bulls teams, okay? So, sign me up because what you have right now in the front court ain’t enough. It ain’t even close. So, this is a guy I can plug and play. Double double. There’s some contractual things here. So, right now, technically, he’s cheaper than Simons. Yeah. But he only has one year remaining. Okay. So, I guess I’m using air quotes when I say he could be a rental. Yeah. But I think the finances work out in your favor. And if you can get him here, yes, he feels the city. He feels the culture. He’s playing with a Jaylen Brown and a Derek White and he knows Jason Tatum’s coming. Yeah. Hey, Voose, take a little less. Yeah. Stay here. You’ve been a loser your whole career. And I don’t believe you individually are a loser. You’ve just been losing. You’ve been in loser franchises at this advanced stage of his career at his age. Why wouldn’t you take a bit of a pay cut, right? Right. And be on a potentially winning team and spend the end of your career winning titles. I I love this trade. Sign me up for this one now. Yeah. Here’s the thing. I understand that you love it, but I don’t. Why? And the thing is, I’ve growing up, kid from Los Angeles, USC fan growing up originally. I watched this dude at USC ball out. I followed him along his career because he was a USC alumni. You know what I’m saying? And the thing about Vousvich that I’ve always loved about him is is that he can score, he can rebound, he can do those things, but he’s never been a part of winning basketball. He’s never his fault. He’s ne partially. Yeah. It’s because the NBA has changed. Like you said, that style of basketball is gone. You need guys who are going to be above the rim blocking shots, who can switch pick and rolls, or at least if they’re in drop coverage, I know, hey, this guy’s going to block a shot or get a rebound for me, and we’re going the other way. You know what I’m saying? This guy has never shown us the ability to do that. Like you said, it’s a rental, so we’re taking a flyer. We’re already taking a flyer on young guys. We’re taking a flyer on Mari Williams. We’re taking a flyer on Luca Garzo. We’re taking a flyer on all of these young guys, right? And Tilman might even end up getting major minutes at this point and they never wanted to play him last year. You know what I’m saying? I still don’t. So, my only issue with that is yeah, I don’t see him being You said, “Hey, where’s the rim protection?” Talking about an effort assignment. He ain’t going to give you much defensive giving us that. No, he’s offensive. Like I said, I I think the term I used offense was kind of plug and play. Well, I just I I mean, from that position, right, there’s not enough offense right now. right now. So from that position, he’s plug and play. Yes, I know I’m getting a double double. I know here he’s going to if he if he averaged 19 and 10 as an old man with the Bulls, I can at least pencil him in for that. Yeah. And they need that. Now, I agree with you. I want winners in the building. I agree with you there. But listen, we said this about Anthony Simons. We have to be fair to Voose, too. Maybe, just maybe, being around winners helps. I need more. We talked about this with Simons. I need more defensively from Voose, but that’s Joe Mazula’s problem. But this 15 years, we’re talking about a dude who’s been in the league for 15 years versus a guy that’s been played six. You know what I mean? So that Okay, let’s let’s power rank so far. Okay. I like this trade way more than the Grizzlies trade. Yeah. You like the Grizzlies trade more? I do. I do like the Grizzly. All right, we have one more. This Sadd from Fade Away World. Fade away. Yeah. All right. Uh oh, look at this one, Tay. Okay. Yeah. So, we got Demard Rosen here getting the opportunity to come to Boston and learn how to win. And we’re talking about guys who need to figure out the opportunity to win. And then, uh, Simons is going to the Kings where they’re also getting the 2027 first round pick from the Celtics and a 2031 second round pick from 2031. What the hell are we doing? What is this? Back to the future. 2031. Yeah. So, how do you feel about this one, dog? Um, can I preface my comments by saying uh Oh, I’m a Demar. I’m nervous. Well, I’m a Demar D Roza fan. Don’t Don’t disrespect. I also respect Don’t disrespect USC players on here. That is true. I love Los Angeles. Yeah. I don’t want no parts of Demar D Rozan at this stage of his career. I don’t I don’t. He is what he is. Now, it’s weird because I just said I’m a big fan of Voose and he ain’t changing either, right? But I think there’s more of a need for what he provides, right? Uh D Rozan, you are you might be the mid-range goat. Honestly, you Mike Kobe, you’re in that you’re in that category for mid-range. I love his game. I’m such a big fan. He is old. He there are so many miles on him. He has been part a part of so many iterations of a big three or a piece here or you just need one guy here to get you over the hump except he hasn’t won Jack Schnikes in his whole career. I don’t want Demar Rosen flat out. Like I I just I don’t I if if I’m going to make if I’m going to roll the dice here, okay, I much rather get a big man, okay, than just another wing who with a mid-range game. He doesn’t shoot threes. Like it just I guess that’s what it is. The fit doesn’t I’m a fan of his but the fit here doesn’t work. Is that fair or am I being harsh? That is completely fair. I’m right there lock step with you because here’s my thing about Demar D Rozan, right? Like you said mid-range killer. He’s a goat. Basket getter supreme clutch. All the things that all the things that you want from a a two guard, right? But he doesn’t shoot the three. No. And defensively he’s kind of fallen off a little bit. He’s older and he’s been stuck in all of these back courts with guards that do a lot of the similar things that he does. You He’s a great facilitator. He learned how to facilitate when he got the opportunity to play under Papovic in San Antonio. Yep. And he’s been great at doing that and some teams have tried him out at point guardish and he’s been really the half court point guard because even when you talk about the first years in Chicago when he played with Lonzo Ball, Lonzo Ball was really kind of a fast break point guard. Yeah, he was. And then Demar De Rozan was kind of their half court set up the offense blah blah blah facilitator off you know because they had the opportunity to pair him up with Zack Lavine and the scoring and all the other stuff when we saw it didn’t work right right my thing here in Boston is yeah if you put him alongside with a JB I mean JB’s a good shooter he’s a good shooter but they do a lot of the similar JB does it better but they do the same of course at a higher level 100% and this guy won finals MVP we’re not gonna disrespect But it’s just not the fit. I think that he can go somewhere else and help another contending team. I really do. I just don’t think it’s Boston. Yeah. I’m trying to think aware though cuz like again kind of same conversation with Voose, you got to be able to shoot the three consistently now. Yes. Mid-range is important and it’s always there. Like he can get he can get in mid-range and get a bucket against I don’t give a damn who it is, right? But like you have to be able to shoot nowadays. Yeah. And as you said, as he gets older, his defense is falling off a bit. I just don’t know where it works. I don’t know where is a good fit for him. And by the way, times are hard around here right now with Tatum. We’re waiting for him to get back and all these bills being due and we’re losing all these guys. But the Celtics just got a ring five minutes ago, right? Times and we know Tatum’s coming and times are going to be great again here shortly. Yeah. If you’re a Kings fan, I mean, I’m sorry. Oh man. I’m sorry for your loss because it is over. I mean, what what do you have to hang your hat on? Sabonas will be gone in 5 minutes. Yeah. D Rozan’s being shopped. Yeah. De’Aran you couldn’t give him enough money to stay. They tried to give them all the money in a while. Tyresese Hallebert and almost Well, they blew that. They blew that. They blew that. That’s on them. But I’m just saying Kings fans. Yeah, they’ve been through a lot. They lost them, dog. I’m sorry, Kings fans. I mean, for the two of you that are out there, I I’m taking a lot of shots today. All right, so here’s the deal. Okay, power ranking. Y I want Moose. That’s number one for me. I like the Grizzlies trade second with Brandon Clark and them. And then I want no parts of I It feels so icky for me to say that I don’t want Demar Rosen as a but that’s last for me. I think we just flip-flop on one and two, right? One and two. Yeah, I would rather have the Grizz, but that’s it. All right. I think that’s fair. That’s fair. I think that’s fair. All right. still to come here on Hold My Banner. Let me be clear here. If you are really tall, can walk and chew bubble gum at the same time, can you please come play center for the Celtics, please? No. Okay, fair enough. We’ll get into maybe who could next right here on Hold My Bear. Re resigning Al Horford would be a priority. Is that still a priority to you guys at this point? I don’t know what I can say about this or not say about it. I mean, we we we made offers to both Luke and Al. We would love to have had both of them back. Um, I’d say that’s unlikely. Um, and you know, the only reason I haven’t talked about Al is cuz that’s not final. I could probably talk about Al my whole press conference and not say enough. Um, but you know, I don’t want to speak in absolute terms until an ultimate decision is made. Oh, Brad Stevens say it ain’t so, but it’s clearly so. Al Horford’s not coming back. We all kind of assume that would be the case. Yeah. But hearing it there, I want to give credit to Brad Stevens though before we get into this. Okay. I mean, listen, he sits up there. He is as transparent as it comes. Yeah. Like he he literally led with saying, “I don’t know what I can and can’t say.” Y, but he still brought us into the conversations. They obviously made an offer to Al. That’s below what Al believes he should be getting. But that’s because that’s the only offer they can make to Al because the the money’s funny right now. Right. Right. Right. But I I mean, listen, you and I talked about Luke Cornett getting the bag from the Spurs. And I’ll never forget when he when he got that bag, we were both very happy for him. Thank you for the ring. Thanks for the contributions. Yeah. Ain’t no damn way if you had the money, you were paying that for Luke Cornet. Okay. So, good for you to go to Spurs, get your bag, and you’re on a good team. 100%. We were happy for him. Yeah, Al feels different to me. I I dream of a world where Al would take a pay cut. Stay here just for when Tatum comes back and you can kind of run this thing back like a like a two, threeear deal. I know. I said I dream. Okay, it’s a dream. A brother can dream. I know it’s not going to happen. You’re dreaming wild right now. I know. But I’m saying I I do dream of that. I wish there was a world in which he would he loved it here so much that he was just like, you know what? I want to be here for when Tatum comes back and make another run at this thing. Yeah. Now, what what we’re hearing rumor-wise with Al makes a lot of sense. Yeah. Retirement or the Warriors. Yeah, I get it. If he goes with Steph, I’m not even upset with that. I’d probably do the same thing in his role. Yeah. But somebody’s got to play center. This front court right now as a whole, oh my god, it is the struggle bus. Yeah. and and the whole front court is driving it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, I mean it’s a you look at what the Celtics did this off season and you knew, okay, they’re making some deals to get under the apron. They were making deals to get under the apron, but you have to. Were they really that focused on trying to build up a center for the future? No, it doesn’t look like it. You know what I mean? But I mean, they went out and they traded back, which I was pissed about in the second round. But, you know, I started to learn about this Amari Williams kid. I watched him throughout the year. Yeah. And he looked he looked pretty good with Kentucky. You know what I mean? With coach Mark Pope, he looked good over there. So, you know, I’m not saying that he’s the starting center of the future for the Celtics, right? I’m just saying that this kid is a talent that gets me excited for what he the possibilities are for him in this Celtics system. Luca Garza get you excited? No. Okay, so let’s talk centers here. Okay. I mean, somebody’s got to do it, right? Yeah. I told you like just for the record, rewind back to the first segment. Vousvich is who I want. That is the top of my wish list. Like Santa, please bring me Boost. Okay. If you can’t go that route, I’m going to give you a guy I have a little history with. Okay. Thomas Bryant. And I’m not saying he’s the answer. Stay with me. Why does his name keep coming up? Because here’s why. I Here’s why. First of all, let’s start with recent. I liked the role he played with the Pacers. Yeah, I like I thought he did really well. He was energy. By the way, this has been his whole career. He was energy. He He did it with the Lakers. Yes, he’s a big body. He is athletic. I like Thomas Bryant and I think the fit here would work because of the culture here. He’s a likable guy. Now, when I say I have history, I covered him with the Wizards. Yep. And with the Wizards, you know, at that time the expectations were high for him. That was your first mistake. Okay. That’s not who he is. He’s a role player. He’s a role playing big and he can be that here, but I think here he would get more playing time. And what he does bring to the lineup is needed. I think they’ll they need an athletic big. I think they need someone who brings that kind of energy. I think they need someone who’s been on a winning team. He knows what that looks like coming off the Pacers run. and he played really well down the stretch for them. He did in his role. Yes. I like Thomas Bryant as far as depth and as far as you just need someone like that. Now, if you’re just throw right now what it feels like to me front courtwise, they’re just throwing bodies out there. Okay. Well, why the hell not add a Thomas Bryant who is another body, but he’s someone who fits here and I think could be could bring some value to the Celtics. You hate it. Yeah, I do. I do. Why? And the and the reason that I hate it is just like I don’t see Thomas Bryant as something that’s gonna get them over the hump. You know what I’m saying? Of course not. I don’t see him accepting that low of money. Like you said, he just went on a championship run. He’s going to be looking probably to get paid a little bit here. You got to think about this dude is 27 now. You know what I’m saying? He hasn’t gotten that contract. You know, he’s been around these winning teams now. He was with Denver. You know what I mean? After the year that they won the championship, you know what I’m saying? he was with Miami, you know, and they’ve always been kind of a winning culture, you know what I’m saying? Now I’m with Indiana, you know, I’m at I’m at this point where I’m like, is he he’s going to be searching for money? I don’t think he’s in it for, you know, a win or championship or anything like that. I think he’s trying to get paid. Well, he could get time here, though. Like, if it’s Let’s have this combo real quick. Two-year deal. Well, let’s before we even get to the financials, I’m saying if he’s a big picture thinker, right? I would go to Boston because A, it’s a Celtics. Yeah. And you have a chance to win, of course. But B, you this year in particular, you’re going to get burned. You’re going to get run. Yeah. So, big picture thinker, okay, I can win. It’s a high-profile, you know, one of those ones in terms of organizations and franchise. It’s high-profile, big stage, and I’m going to get minutes, which can then lead me to the bag. I think right now possibly could be a little premature for him to think what I’ve done with Indiana is going to get me a bag. In fact, if I remember properly, against the Knicks, he was great. Yeah. I don’t have many Thomas Ryan memories in the finals. No disrespect, but the Knicks series I he stands out in my head. Yes, I could be wrong. Check the numbers on that. I’m sure they will in the comments. Yeah, but with that being said, it’s not like he went out and had a great series against the Thunder. I I just I it could be premature for him to think I’m going to get a bag yet. But then again, everyone in the NBA who literally has any size on him at all is getting a bag. So, I could be tripping on that. Yes, he’s also expanded his game out to three. He took a one-year deal this year with the Pacers. Okay. You know what I’m saying? So, he was clearly looking to show, hey, I can shoot the three. I can do this. I can do that. This was a proven year for him. You’re right. He’s going to want to he’s going to feel like he proved it. Yeah, you’re right. But I Okay, you’re talking You’re right. Free agency. I’m going to talk trade with you. Okay. Yes. The answer’s yes. Jenny iso. Yes. I don’t give a damn who you name. You could tell me old man Shaq right now. Okay. Yes. So, what about this? What about Nick Claxton? What about trading for him? Loservillerooklyn. Loserville with Brooklyn. I stand corrected. But this is what everything that you want in a in a big right now. Oh, vertical, athletic, above the rim, rebounds. What’s his money block shot? What’s the money situation? He’s got he’s he’s just under um this would be for Simons possibly be he’s like I think he’s like he’s a depreciating he’s a depreciating contract so it goes down every year which is a contract that you would like knowing that Tatum’s money is going to get bigger every year JB’s money is going to get bigger every year he’s about 24 million right now how did we get here man the appreciate well 20 25 this year 23 the next year 20 the year after that how did this happen what you don’t like Nick Clack I don’t I Yeah, fine. The answer is yes. I I’d make the trade. Okay. Okay. So, fine. Fine. Fine. You don’t like Nick Claxton? I don’t dis I don’t. No. No. No. You don’t like Nick Claxton being a Boston Celtics? You’re not in love with it. That’s the honest truth. Yeah. Okay then. So, who looks the most ready to start for this team then? Oh my god. Yeah. Give me that. Claxton, come on down. No, no, no. Stay with me. Who looks the most ready? No one. We haven’t seen Williams play a game yet. I I’d still give him the star. Garza hasn’t played a game in the in the in the Celtics jersey. I’ve seen enough in other jerseys. Not interested. Kada was the young guy that we were hoping that would come along and defensively he never just came along. He faded in the playoffs because of it. Tilman. No. And Tilman hasn’t played here for whatever reason. I like Tilman, but I just don’t think he fits whatever the Boston tells us. I’ll take the youngster. So, you’re going to start Williams? Yes. And you haven’t even seen him play a game. Exactly. Okay. Well, we’re going to see him play this, but I don’t I don’t hate the Simons Claxton works financially. Okay, so then Yeah. So, yeah, I don’t hate it. So, then Simons and Claxton Simons for Claxton like Okay, hold on. Would you rather have Claxton over Voose? Cuz I’d rather have Voose. No, I would rather have Claxton. Okay. I mean, that’s where we differ. You 100%. We’re talking about a 26-y old. Yeah, my guy’s old is old man river. And like I said, a depreciating contract that’s going to be here with D. My guy’s more consistent. He we don’t need him to do anything. We need him to freak. You don’t need throw it in, hit a 15footer. That’s not the Celtics game. You know what I’m saying? You’re saying that athleticism set that screen, roll hard as heck to the rim. Force defenders to freaking collapse and then defense. He’s a good defender. He’s a good defender. He’s played with the Nets though. Like they didn’t have nothing. They had Cam Johnson out there and then Cam Thomas who’s still a free agent right now because he doesn’t guard a lick or do anything on the defensive end either. They had a bunch of defensive teams, right? They had mismatched guys out there. They are horrible defensive team. Some really good defenders, some bad defenders. Keon Johnson being one of the really good defenders, you know, and some bad defenders like Cam Thomas. This dude’s he’s gonna with Tatum and Brown, he’s all you got to do is and he’s young. roll to the rim, block shots. He’s showing the ability that he’s getting better with his free throw making so dudes can’t just foul him and do whatever. But you see what you see where we differ a little like hearing you kind of paint the picture for me and it makes a lot of sense. Yeah. You’re still thinking long term, which makes sense and that’s probably what Brad Stevens is doing. I’m thinking about next season. So, I look at I’m in love with the Voose idea of I can pencil in 19 and 10 a night and I don’t look like trash in the front court. Yes. Whereas then you have to figure out, okay, but then he’s a free agent and he’s 36 by then or whatever. So, you got to figure that out. Whereas with your scenario, the finances work now. So does loose. But the finances work now and they work long term and it’s a young guy who can grow within your system 100%. I can’t knock it. I see the vision. 25 last year average 10 points a game. I understand what you’re saying, but he’s getting he’s getting better. He’s getting better. He’s growing. Hopefully the free throw numbers keep to climb and he gets more touch and he can do some more things around the basket. But realistically with this Celtics team, they weren’t doing things around the basket anyways. Al Horford was getting a rebound. They were kicking out. You know what I mean? KP was getting rebound. He was kicking out like it is what it is. There’s another glaring need to point guard. Do you have any more big men or can I move to point guard? You can start with point guard. All right. So, here’s the deal. We all love Pton Pritchard around here. We do. I want to I want to like lead with that. Yes. However, I mean, let’s assume he’s your starting point guard next season. You’re going to need to figure out the production at the sixman. Yes. And also, what if he struggles as your starting point guard? So, not only do you need a really solid backup, but you need someone that if Pritch struggles, you can say, “Nope. Uh, Pritch, you’re going back to the bench and you’re in whoever you are.” With that being said, I don’t want any, and this is so opposite of who I am. I always want the big names. Yeah. But because of the scenario here that we just laid out, and it’s fair how I laid it out, right? Because of that, I’m not interested in a CP3. I’m not interested in Russell Westbrook who’s still available. I’m not interested in any of these bigname deals. I kind of like Cameron Payne and and the reason why is because he’s not a pain in the ass. So, he’s a good team agency. Yes. Okay. He’s and I like that you’re going the trade angle, but I’m thinking who’s available to me. Okay. He He should work financially. He’s not a pain in the ass. He’s never been a meme me guy. Teammates like him. He can He’s okay as a shooter. He’s a good defender. Yeah. I like Cameron Payne and I think he’s a kind of player you can bring in. He’ll fit into your culture. Yeah, he’ll be a backup. And then if you have to start him, it’s not the end of the world if you send Pritchard back to the bench and he’s your starter. He’s a capable what’s the word I’m looking for? Serviceable point guard in the NBA, starter or backup. Is that fair? That’s fair. I like campaign. I think he’s I think he’s done a lot of great things. I think he’s a winner. I think he brings a lot of the things that Brad has asked for. Energy, winning, fighter, defense, ball. He’s not He’s bossing energy. You know what I’m saying? He’s a FU energy. You know what I’m saying? I think it’s a good fit. So, I I would agree with that. Uh I’m going to give you a trade really quick. Okay. We’ve been talking about trading Simons all day, so we’ll figure out the money with this one. Okay. Simons and either Hower or Tilman. All right. I’m good with this so far. Signing trade for Josh Giddy. I you know, I said Giddy a while ago, like maybe during the season, and everyone went off on me. Yeah. But it wasn’t for basketball. It was because of who he is. Yeah. Okay. And that matters. That matters because these are all good guys here, right? They’re all good dudes. And that and that does matter. They brought in Nang. So I don’t even care about any of that. Looks like they’re going to keep bro. So go ahead. Good dudes. Yeah. Likable. All this whatever. You couldn’t you couldn’t just I’m just saying like clearly that doesn’t matter that much, right? Like they don’t like him and he’s on the team right now. We couldn’t go one show without taking shots at the Gang Dog. Bro, go. You just couldn’t help yourself, dog. Go, bro. Look, I I like his game. I like his game and I think he works here, but if I’m not mistaken, he’s expensive. I don’t have the numbers in front. No. So, he’s Yeah, he’s looking for about I think I’ve heard he’s looking for 30. Yeah. No, it’s not going to work. He’s a restricted free agent. I think he’s going to settle around 25 to 28. We’re playing Simons for 27. Yeah, but you’re trying to move that. But that Yeah, but like if we can get him for 25. Hey, bro. You want to play in Boston by I don’t maybe that’s where I don’t believe I don’t think Chicago might match and say you’re not getting them for you know what I’m saying I don’t think 25 is a real number I don’t think it’s happening I think he wants to get paid which I respect and someone will pay it Celtics won’t I guess in your scenario but that’s why I also added Hower because Hower would open up another 10 million would you know what I’m saying that’s why I said Simons and how forgeti that would open up another Okay let’s have this combo real quick right so I so I like campaign Because campaign can be my starter or he can come off the bench. You with me? Y if you trade for Getty I mean I’m sorry Pton Pritchard’s not your starter. No, he’s coming off the bench which is good for me. I’m looking for the future. I keep You see the way that I’m building I’m trying to get him back. Aren’t we going into this assuming he’s your starting point guard? I’m not. I think the Celtics are you can but that’s what I mean. Yeah, Brad said that, you know, Peyton has been doing great in his work ethic and all that other stuff. We like listened to him talk about it last episode, but sounds like a starter. I personally don’t think Peyton’s ready to be a starter in the NBA. And so I would like to have Josh Giddy. You have 66. He’s defense switchable. He’s a playmaker. He’s shot 37% from three last year. Please don’t think I’m disagreeing with you, okay? Because if you get Josh Giddy, that’s my starter, right? What’s wrong with that? What’s wrong with Payton coming off the bench? He did it. He’s six of the year. Even hearing Brad talk, it it does feel like Pton Pritchard is going to get an opportunity to start. And I think if you trade for a Josh Giddy, you’re not that’s not going to happen. No. And I don’t think that’s necessarily fair to Pritchard. That’s why I’m saying you need to get someone who can be a backup and is a serviceable starter in case you you with me? In case of emergency, break glass. Boom. And you send Pritchard back to the bench. If you get a giddy, Pritchard’s not even going to sniff the starting lineup. That’s where I’m at. And that could I’m not saying it’s going to cause a rift, but Pritchard could feel a type of way. He could and maybe he should. Listen, with next season, we’re already punting. Like, it’s already a punt. Why not give the kid an opportunity? I don’t think you’re punting. If you’re t you have, if you get giddy, you’re not. You have a Giddy, you have Derek White, you have Jaylen Brown, then you’re not punting. This ain’t a That don’t sound like a punt to me. I would agree with that. That sounds like a five seed in the East. Yeah, maybe higher in the East. Maybe higher. Maybe. I I don’t hate it. With moves to go at the big hopefully Chris Buchche, you know, Al, if you want to come back, you know, I think it’s a minimum deal. It’s not going to happen. It’s not going to happen. I think I brought up Giddy at the deadline. Maybe that’s what it was. And everyone just went after me. Hey, by the way, we’re doing all this like fantasy basketball stuff. There is real basketball being played right now in the summer league. We’ll talk about summer league next here on Old My Banner. roll with us. [Music] Welcome back to Hold My Banner. Friday afternoon, it’s time for some summer league hoops with your Boston Celtics. We are fired up for it. So, let’s talk summer league here. Yeah. Hey, I mean, everywhere you look right now, the hottest ticket in Vegas for summer league. Yeah. Bronny against Cooper Flag. in a Clash of the Titans. Look at these ticket prices, Andre. This is insane. In the membrane, 2500, the most expensive summer league game of all time. Now, everyone’s billing this as Cooper Flag against Bronny. But can we be honest? I mean, this is about Cooper Flag. Yeah. Bronnie’s just he’s there. Yeah. It ain’t got nothing to do with no damn Bronny. This is about Coop. This is about Coop. And you know, Ronnie brings a little bit of cashache. I saw him playing in those games in Golden State this weekend and he was getting some, you know, people were all excited about him getting steal and a dunk and all this other stuff. But yeah, we’re talking about the number one pick. This dude is supposed to be generational. That’s what everyone’s telling me, right? So, we’re going to find out tonight. That’s for sure. We going to learn tonight. I’m just, you know, it’s all right. It’s the first game. It’s the first summer league game. I’m not putting too much stock into it. Well, every I I actually saw like all the debuts for these star summer league game with the exception of LeBron who’s LeBron. Most guys don’t play that long, but they get in long enough where you see flashes. Zion comes to mind. Wii comes to mind. They don’t play many minutes. They get in, show you, hey, I can score. I can rebound. Couple block shots, you’re out of there. Right. I anticipate that for Cooper Flag. LeBron’s the only one and this just off the top of my head. LeBron is the only one that came out first summer league game and you were like, “Oh, he’s ready.” I ain’t going to lie to you. Who? Ben Simmons summer league was kind of I don’t remember debut his all of his games he was kind of Oh, well yeah yeah yeah. All the summer league games he was going cuz he was showing us the mid-range and stuff too. We thought, oh, there might be something there. But yeah, nevertheless, by the way, he’s still available point guard. Yeah, I’m actually kind of I’m just I’m actually I I saw that. I am kind of interested in that. We might talk about that on a different different episode. But um what matchups are you looking forward to other than obviously Bronnie and them this weekend? No, I mean no one really matchup wise. I’m looking at players really like I I don’t ever go into summer league and think I can’t wait to see this player go against that player. I always look at the rookies. So the entire rookie class I’m interested in seeing. But matchup wise, I don’t care. I mean, summer league for me, to be, if we’re being honest, we’re all family here. I like to gamble. I ain’t gonna lie. I’m not I’m not too good to tell you. I bet summer league games. What do I care? Yeah. I mean, it’s the action. So, I generally want to see players, year two guys, rookies. That’s what I’m into. Cooper Flag, obviously. I can’t lie. I’m excited for a couple matchups. I’m, you know, Cooper Flag verse um Harper. No, Dylan Harper on Saturday. I’m excited for that one. That’ll be a good match up. One verse two, which we’re normally supposed to get in the first night. One verse two. I don’t know why they’re putting cuz it’s Bronny. What do you mean instead? Um I’m also really excited because I know we’ve talked about the Hawks in their offseason as well. I want to see Ace and Noel verse. That’s going to be a good match up too. 7 foot bigs athletic obviously can kind of task to do a lot of the similar things in the draft coming in. and they were supposed to be guys who could shoot it out to the three-point line, who could put it on the deck a little bit. Obviously, wear being more of a center and Noel being more of a power for it. But I would like to see these two clash and they’re clashing on Friday night. So, that’s going to be a good Friday night after a Celtics game. Yeah. Ace Bailey, Derek Queen, shout outs to Baltimore. Yeah, those are going to be great. Dylan Harper, you mentioned Edgecomb. Like all the rooks I like seeing. Secondyear guys I have my eye on. Rob Dillingham, who has been playing really well so far in summer league. Yeah, that’s a guy I didn’t I don’t know why he didn’t get more playing time last season. Yeah, but I would think moving forward, especially with what we’re seeing now, and it’s still early. Yep. But that’s someone who should be in the rotation. Like I get it. Anthony Edwards, you you got all the stars, right? That’s someone who should be able who should get some minutes. Yeah. With the Timberwolves. So, I want to see him throughout the summer league. Can he be consistent from what we’ve seen so far? 100%. He was a guy that I had noted too just because I want to see the defensive improvements. You know what I mean? I think is that why you didn’t play much? I feel like that is, you know what I mean? They had Mike Connley, they had the vet, you know what I mean? It’s the two these two things, defense and playmaking. He’s able to make plays for himself. He can score, right? And he does pass the ball and he can pass the ball, but can he be a facilitator? There’s a difference, right? There’s the ability to pass the ball and there’s guys that get it done, right? Connley has always been a dude over the his NBA career that got it done right. He made sure LA ate. He made sure uh Zebo ate. You know what I’m saying? He made sure these guys ate when he was with them. Yeah. Can Dillingham play a secondary role and make sure guys like Anthony Edwards eat. They’re going to be paying attention to that. You you always use a term that that has stuck to my ribs now getting to know you and doing the show with you over the years of winning basketball plays. That’s what you’re describing. like can you make winning basketball plays? Here’s another guy and we talked about him a lot rookie season and he didn’t play much. Reed Shepard. That’s someone I want to see in summer league play really well and almost be I’m going to use this word but it is summer league so I I don’t want to be too dramatic here. Yeah. But like I need him to be undeniable so he can kind of break into the rotation for who I think could be a finals team in the Rockets. That’s someone who should be coming off your bench in a defined role and helping you as a rotational player. I think he has the skill set to do it, but I need to see him do it in summer league. He’s got to go out and hoop. I think this is going to be a Peyton Pritchard kind of upbringing for Reed Shepard. You know what I mean? Where we’re I don’t love that there’s going to be a lot of this guy could be good, this guy could be good. and everyone in Boston nation or Houston nation understand that this guy can play, but because of the guards and the things that they have in front of him, he’s not going to really get as many opportunities. I’m just being honest. I don’t I would like to see Reese Shepard ball out, but I think the Rockets already know what they have in him. Two guys that I wanted to know really quickly. Devin Carter from Providence. He didn’t play. We talked about the Kings earlier. You know, he didn’t play his rookie year. So, now he’s got to show us the opportunity of who he is. He going to get a lot of minutes now, right? He’s got to introduce us to who he is. And then the other guy that I think really needs to step up, especially with the off season issues that his team is having is Ron Holland with the Pistons. Oh, yeah. Uh because you know Malik Beasley is doing what he’s doing right and dealing with the things that he’s dealing with. They’re looking for guys who are going to come in and play defense and score. Yeah. Can Roden Holland develop the jumper enough to give the Pistons confidence that he’s going to be able to play alongside Assar Thompson and some of these other guards that are not really figured it out yet. Can he be in that rotation? Can he solidify himself? This summer league is important for him in that. Let me give you two guys on the same team that I had my eye on only because they traded a loser out of there. I I have never been a big Jordan pool guy as you know. I thought I I know Draymond punched him out in Golden State. I get it. But I still thought it would be smart for him to stay there. Instead, he goes to the Wizards. He gets a bag and he stinks. He’s a loser. I’m sorry. So, they moved off of him. So, now I’m looking at Bub Carrington and I’m looking at Alex R. And I want to see now like can they sort of elevate cuz they’ve showed you flashes. They could both play. I think the Wizards have a a really young nucleus that can work over the years. But I want to see if these two guys in particular who are the best out of that young nucleus can take the next step now that pool is out of there. Does that make sense? I want to see if these young guys can step up and lead, get minutes, and be productive. 100%. And that brings me to the non Celtic rookies, not named Cooper Flag, because we’re going to watch Cooper Flag. We’re going to watch the Celtics rookies. Um, you brought up fears in Queen. I can already check them off the list. I’m excited to watch them as well. Especially Queen. You You’re talking about pairs, Conanipple and Liam McNeely. I want to watch those two play for the Hornets and see if they can help LaMelo in this upcoming season. Man, the Hornets, bro. Yeah. When are when’s it going to work? They have a lot of young talent already. Yeah. Yeah. Like, and it just doesn’t translate. Yeah. I don’t know. That’s a conversation for another time cuz we got to got to play a game, dog. Oh, boy. Okay. Play a game. Coming up here on Hold My Banner. It’s game time with And who’s going to be sensational? Me. Disaster. You don’t want to miss it. Keep it locked here on Hold My Banner. Welcome back to Hold My Banner. It’s time for game time with Tay. What do we got, player? Yeah, we got a game called Ple. Shout out NBA PA for this game. Okay. Um, yeah, we got to basically figure out the player that they are thinking of. We have eight total guesses. All right. And we got it right here up on the screen for you. Here’s And we can ask them questions. Is that how this works? No. So, we just guess a player. You start out by guessing the player. All right. Any player. Any player, dog. Jason Tatum. All right. Jason Tatum. this. I’m going all Celtics, just so you know. That’s not how this is going to work. All right. So, they’re So, this means that this is not from Boston, not in the East. All right. Not with the Atlantic division, and they’re around a guard for height under 68, age under 27, and their number is higher than you do the next one. Okay. So, we got to think about somebody in the West who’s younger than Jason Tatum. What about uh Amen Thompson? Let’s do that. It’s a nice little guess there. Okay. So still a little green is good. Good. They’re from the green. They’re not They do not play with Houston. They’re on the Western Conference. They’re like a swing. They a four or I mean in the Southwest division forward under 67 just slightly over 22. Kevin Durant. No, under 27, dog. Over 22. Cuz Jason’s 27. So it’s like somebody who’s like under 27 and they don’t play for Houston. They don’t play for Houston. Oh, okay. You can tell. I can’t. I don’t I don’t even understand the rules. You do the next one. Oh my god. Um, you putting me on the spot. I’m already confused. Uh, let’s see. Who is uh Western Conference? Western Conference under 27 but over 27. Jayen McDaniels. I don’t know. Let’s see. Try it. I was going to say Dylan Brooks, but I think he’s older. All right. What we got here? Oh, so it is it’s in the Southwest division. I forgot that. Okay. So, over 24 number lower than three or is number one. They’re number one. What’s this game called again? Hurdle. You got me sweating. Hurdle. You got me on hurdles. Southwest number one. Memphis. Pelicans. Dallas. Zion. Zion. Is it? It can’t be Zion. Zion. Try Zion. That’s actually a good guess cuz how old is Zion? He looked 47 but he young. Oh, wait. It’s Zion. Let’s go. Let’s go. I was like, number one, dog. Hey, how did we do that? Yeah. So, number one, Zion. Yeah. I’m not going to lie. This game had me fighting for my life. I was getting cooked. All right. So, yeah, Zion Williamson. Let’s talk about, bro, for a little bit. Wow. What is there to talk about? Lord, how do you think his upcoming season’s going to go, dog? Man, I don’t want to talk about his season. We need to talk about his career. The question now is I I’m I’m not even playing. Yeah. Is Zion the biggest draft bust of all time? And I don’t think that’s a hot take or an unfair question. Cuz that’s exactly what the hell I’m asking about him. He’s never in shape. Y he can’t stay healthy. He has off the court issues. Yes. Everything has gone wrong for Zion. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. And I’m at the point now where I just I’m I’m honest. I think he could we could look back on this and he could be a trivia answer. Who’s the greatest draft bust of all time? Okay. And he’s the answer and there could be 30 for30s made of this. You’re you’re doing too much. No, I’m not. No.Wame Brown still exists. He didn’t have the hype as Zion. Anthony Bennett still exists. Did not have the hype as Zion. Greg Odin still exists. Did not Well, he had hype, but he didn’t have the hype as Zion. This dude was supposed to take there were people who suggested and I’m one of them. So I remember that he could be the face of the league eventually. He was on the cover of 2K. Hello. So he at some point he kind of was the face of the league. You know, that’s all I’m saying. I I think it’s a fair question. And at this point for him, he could be the biggest draft bust of all time. How’s he going to turn this [ __ ] around? You’re right. You’re right. He’s got to figure out a way. And Joe Dum Mars is putting in trust in him and saying that he believes that Zion can get it corrected. A lot of trust. Well, you know, we talked about respecting elders and all that other stuff in this episode. You know, when Joe Dumar says, “Hey, bro, stop eating the crab cakes.” Yeah. You know what I mean? Crawfish. Put it down. Stop messing with the nefarious stars. You know what I’m saying? Stop doing that. we need to get you locked in on basketball. I think he might he might listen. That’s he he might. And that’s the thing that the elders are coming to him with the right advice. Yes. The question is can he stop? Okay. He has not stayed healthy. He has not been in shape. He has not stopped the nefarious activity. So that suggests to me that he may not stop. And if that’s the case, I’m not doing too much. He could be the greatest draft bust of all time. That’s what we’re talking about. If he can turn around the ship, Yeah. and stay out of trouble and get in shape and stay healthy, Yeah. then he could turn it around. If not, it’s a wrap. At least they finally have put talent around him out there in, you know, in New Orleans. So hopefully having that talent around, seeing guys who rose and failed like Jordan Pool, maybe it’ll get him in the right spot. Maybe. That’s a wrap for us here on Hold My Banner. Until next time when we ask you to hold it again, Travis Thomas, the walking talking triple double himself. Dante Campbell. Peace. Jesus.

The Celtics are shopping Anfernee Simons… but are any of these wild trade ideas actually worth it? In this episode, we react to rumored deals involving Brandon Clarke, Nikola Vucevic, and even DeMar DeRozan. Which trade helps Boston win now, and which ones make zero sense?

Then we tackle the big question: who’s starting at center next season? With Al Horford likely gone and the depth chart thinning, can guys like Neemias Queta or Xavier Tillman step up, or should Brad Stevens swing another trade?

We also preview Summer League action, spotlighting Year 2 players under pressure and some exciting rookies to watch (no, not just Cooper Flagg).

To close the show, it’s time for the NBPA Guessing Game “Poeltl”. Can Travis & Ountae figure out who they’re is thinking of?

All that and more on this episode of Hold My Banner, hosted by Travis Thomas & Ountae Campbell.

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#NBAFreeAgency #BostonCeltics #Celtics

00:00 Celtics Trade Ideas For Anfernee Simons
18:26 Celtics Starting Center & Point Guard?
36:57 NBA Summer League Preview 
46:01 NBA Guessing Game: Poeltl