Perk Up!

Kendrick Perkins

Many blame the decline of this Celtics club on Danny Ainge's controversial trade of Kendrick Perkins. Make no mistake, Boston would be in the same situation whether they traded the scowling center or not. Kendrick's first return to Boston as member of the Oklahoma City Thunder brought back all of the chatter of last season's most shocking trade.

Over the last 3 seasons, Boston's areas of weakness (offense, rebounding, and athleticism) have steadily gotten worse. While Perkins had great chemistry with the Big 4, he wouldn't solve any of the issues that are hurting the team now. For all of his great defensive work in the post, Kendrick's limitations on offense actually hurt his team quite a bit. This squad needs more speed on the perimeter, and big men that can rebound consistently. His presence wouldn't stop the likes of Dirk, Melo, or Westbrook from sinking trick shots in the clutch.

In hindsight, Danny Ainge made a wise move to trade a center that was seeking too much money to acquire the swingman, Jeff Green, that averaged 15ppg in the (then) tough Western Conference. Nobody could've predicted that Krstic (also in the trade) would jet for Europe, or that Green would develop a heart ailment that'd put him out for the season.

The real crime here was the handling of draft picks during the last several seasons. From Bill Walker to JR Giddens to Jajuan Johnson now, Doc rarely gives young guys enough playing time to prove whether they are valuable or not. As a result, Ainge filled the end of the roster with veterans on one-year deals. Now, as the rest of the league has become both younger and quicker, the Celtics have invested little time in a draft pick since Big Baby Davis.

Perkins is hardly a starting quality center and he is very fortunate to be under contract with a contender for several years. The two sides probably shouldn't have split so soon, but the Celtics ship was sinking slowly regardless.