Open letter to Danny Ainge

Dear Mr. Ainge,

I have just had a chance to read all the Celtics related news, i.e. Doc-KG trade news, and it was truly a kick in the guts. No wait, that's not descriptive enough: I feel like Zoltan Mesko just punted me for 60+ yards and then Rex Ryan returned me for a touchdown, all the while whispering into my ears how much he liked my feet.

Why do I feel that way, you might ask. (Well, you probably won't, but I just hope that the Ryan bit has earned me some sympathy.) Am I sad that Doc and KG are likely gone? Well, of course, yet still, I knew that it had to happen one day. Maybe not like this, however it is perfectly clear to me that KG isn't getting any younger, and Doc would not probably renew his contract when it expires. I have also been preparing myself for months the possibility that the Truth will be in another jersey this year, so that also feels OK to a certain extent.

No, Mr. Ainge, what gave me a irresistible urge to throw up was your apparent lack of negotiation skills so far. Now, if I had a chance to read all the rumors in an extended period of time, I would have probably found opportunities for justification, but this is what things sound like when you read them in a row:

- Hey Danny, so we want these from you, and we'll give you this for them.
+ Huh, well, in return I would want this and that and thos..
- No, you can't have those.
+ Ah, OK, well, this and th..
- NO! You can't have that.
+ Umm, OK can I go back to having this, then?
- Sorry, too late, you can only have th now.

Mr. Ainge, at this point I'm not sure whether you realize that you've the upper hand in this deal or not. The Clippers are in a very difficult position as there are trying to hold onto Chris Paul for the long run. You know, the superstar that they threw under the bus for the firing of Vinny Del Negro. You know, the superstar who's reportedly plotting to unite with Dwight Howard. You know, the same superstar who would re-sign if the team succesfully traded for Doc and KG, but will likely be gone in case of any unsatisfactory offseason performance.

Mr. Ainge, if the latest report by Woj is true, trading for DeAndre Jordan and two draft picks that will definitely be of very little value does not make sense. Why?

- If the Celtics want to rebuild, they need to create cap room. Taking on an untradeable asset like DeAndre Jordan for 2 years at 11 mil/year does not help that. Letting KG retire for nothing would likely make more sense come next year.

- On that note, we have an abundance of highly paid role players. If we're going into post-KG era, we'd better offload some of those salaries. They don't have much value by themselves, so you'd have to package them with another player that another team is very much interested in. With all due respect, sir, any bells ringing?

Mr. Ainge, for the longest time I have defended your trade deadline moves. I have always thought of you as a GM who does not shy away from any deal that will improve the team. I have highly respected your pragmatism, your analytical approach to trades without caving in to emotions. But this proposed trade does not make any sense, Mr. Ainge.

The Clippers are trying to come out as absolute winners. If you do this deal the way they want to, you will neither cut salaries nor improve the team in the short-run nor gain valued assets for rebuilding. This move will put the Celtics in a really bad place both for now and for the future as they will have lost their leverage for future deals.

Please, sir, walk away from that table until the Clippers realize that they need this trade desperately. I am quite sure that if you make this trade on these conditions, this will be an even worse blowup than the Perkins trade, which I have always defended you for.

Please, Mr. Ainge. You don't look like the pragmatic GM I have appreciated any more. The Ainge I know would not want his name mentioned on every other Bill Simmons post for the next 10 years. Just ask David Kahn about it.