Twitter
Facebook
Reddit
Digg
Tell us what you think!Send a letter to the editor about this or any other article in The Maine Campus.
It seemed inevitable that Mark Blount was going to be off the Boston Celtics roster at some point during this season. On Thursday, all the speculation came to a standstill when Blount was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves along with Marcus Banks, Justin Reed and Ricky Davis for Wally Szczberiak, Michael Olowokandi, Dwayne Jones and a first round pick.
The surprise of this deal was certainly not Blount leaving because if you follow the NBA at all, it was no secret he was on the trading block.
Seeing Ricky Davis leave Boston was the biggest surprise of all. He was a fan favorite in Boston with his high-flying dunks and overall exciting style of basketball. He had a troubled past before he came to Boston, was known as a “me first” basketball player and had major clashes with Paul Silas.
His track record vanished when he came to Boston. He was a solid player night after night and knew how to score. A lot of fans are upset to see Ricky leave Boston, but I am trying to stay on the positive side.
In return for Ricky, Boston received Wally Szczerbiak. A forward out of University of Miami- Ohio who was drafted sixth overall in 1999. He has been named to the all-star team once and in his eight seasons in the NBA, he has career averages of 15.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.
This season Szczerbiak is having the best year of his career. In fact, when you compare Wally to Ricky statistically they are very similar. This season they are both averaging 20 points, and although Ricky has the edge in assists and steals, Wally has better field goal and three-point field goal percentages.
So the question still remains, who got the better end of this deal? In my opinion, Boston came out a better team when this deal was done. They got rid of a center in Mark Blount who did absolutely nothing except hit mid-range jump shots. Not to mention his five-year, $30 million contract is off the Celtics’ books. Olowokandi brings in rebounding, and if he doesn’t work out, then his contract is up at the end of the season anyway.
As much as I loved Marcus Banks and Justin Reed, I can’t say it hurts me to see them go. Banks never really found a role here in Boston, and Justin Reed is talented defensively, but he didn’t fit anywhere offensively for the Celtics. Trading Davis for Szczberiak is basically swapping for equally talented players.
This trade will also allow more playing time for players that we all know will be in Boston in the future. Kendrick Perkins had 13 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks in his first game without Blount.
I’m sad to see “Get Buckets” leave Boston, but, overall, I think the Celtics are a better team after this trade.
Bangor Daily News