Boston Celtics

Forbes has posted their The Highest-Paid Coaches In American Sports 2013 list. NFL coaches dominate the top 10 with only 2 NBA coaches breaking into the list. Doc Rivers is in a 4 way tie with 3 football coaches for the 3rd highest paid coach this year and is tops in the NBA. The only other NBA coach to break into the top 10 is Gregg Popovich. The Patriot's Bill Belichek is 2nd on the list behind Sean Payton. Here is the list of the 10 highest paid coaches in the US, according to Forbes. 1. Sean Payton $8 Million 2. Bill Belichek $7.5 Million 3. Andy Reid $7.5 Million 3. Pete Carroll $7 Million 3. Jeff Fisher $7 Million 3. Doc Rivers $7 Million 3. Mike Shanahan $7 Million 4. Tom Coughlin $6.67 Million 5. Chip Kelly $6.5 Million 6. Gregg Popovich $6 Million [Discuss on CG Forums!]

Looks like it will be at least another 4 years before Doc Rivers can be discussed again as a possible successor to Coach K. Mike Krzyzewski to return as USA Basketball coach for 2016 Olympics - Olympics - Pete Thamel - SI.com Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski will be returning as the head coach of USA Basketball for the 2016 Olympics, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. A formal announcement is expected in the next 48 hours. Back in the last Olympics Doc was on the short list that would be considered for the job. Doc Rivers one of few candidates for the Olympics head coaching position - CelticsBlog Doc Rivers and Doug Collins were standing just feet apart on the sideline as the Celtics [team stats] met the 76ers, and their names have been in even closer proximity in regards to a job opening. The two are among the few names being mentioned most prominently as potential head coaches of the United States men’s national team for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Oh well. It would have been nice for the exposure and experience, but he's got some work to do in Boston anyway.

Twenty-five years ago today, on May 22, 1988, the Celtics played the Hawks in game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Little did they know as that game began that this would be a game for the ages with a shooting duel between two of the greatest small forwards in NBA history. It was Larry Legend versus the Human Highlight Reel in an epic showdown destined to become one of the most memorable games in NBA playoff history. In an interesting side note, the point guard for the Hawks in this game was one Glenn "Doc" Rivers, who is now the coach of the Celtics. Dominique scored 16 of his 47 points in the 4th quarter duel while Bird scored 20 of his 34 points in that final quarter and, more importantly, Bird's Celtics got the 118-116 victory, and a 4-3 win in the series. The Hawks have posted Nique vs. Bird: An Oral History of the NBA's Greatest Playoff Duel on their website and it is a great read to take you back to this iconic game. The one and only Tommy Heinsohn was calling the game for CBS that day. "It’s a duel. Who’s going to blink first?" -- CBS analyst Tommy Heinsohn I doubt we will ever see a display of pure basketball greatness like this ever again. As Magic Johnson said, "There will never, ever, ever be another Larry Bird." [Discuss on CG Forums!]

photo courtesy @Celtics instagram Photo via Instagram/@celticsRead more at: http://nesn.com/2013/05/boston-celtics-co-owner-presents-team-jersey-to-pope-at-vatican-photo/ According to NESN, Celtics minority owner James Pallotta was at the Vatican on Wednesday and presented Pope Francis with a Celtics Jersey with "The Pope" and #1 on the back. That is just too awesome. Mr Pallotta, the president of AS Roma soccer team, was in Italy for the Italian Cup final and was part of a visit by AS Roma and Lazio, the two teams in the finals. Each soccer team presented Pope Francis with their team jersey and the Celtics jersey from Pallotta was a bonus. [Discuss on CG Forums!]

Prosecutors need more time to review case against NBA’s Terrence Williams | NBA in Seattle | Seattle Times King County prosecutors said they need more time to review the allegations against NBA player Terrence Williams, who was arrested Sunday after the mother of his 10-year-old son told police he had flashed a handgun at her. "There’s an ongoing investigation and a charging decision will be made at a later date," Dan Donohoe, a spokesman for the prosecuting attorney’s office, said today.

What I'm going to write in this fan post is very unrealistic and will probably Never happen. Never ever. This is just something that's been a day dream in the back of my mind ever since I read Danny Ainge's talk about the Celtics future including Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Again there is no source of this and there will most likely never be one of this nature. Before I mention my "dream team" team, I would like to say I feel like Ainge should be in the hot seat. He not only brought in 6-8 players last season who barely did a thing for this team to be able to contend for a Championship. He also mentioned after the season ended, to the crappy NY Knicks, that they're more than 1 player away from contending unless they picked up a "great player" in Free Agency. Management above him should put him in that hot seat. I also feel like Doc is putting him in that seat too. To me, I feel like Doc Rivers is contemplating whether to come back as a Celtics head coach. I think he wants to see what Ainge brings to the table without having Pierce and possibly KG not in the lineup next season. Again, before I write this, there is no source and this is highly doubtful to actually happen. I 'm the last person who's willing to accept the Celtics future without the likes of Pierce and Garnett. With that being said, here's my dream. Through my eyes, with Ainge being in the hot seat. He needs to make some pretty BIG moves this off season, plain and simple. For the time being, he starts waiving players including Wilcox and White for now. Next, he somehow makes a deal with the Clippers to move Pierce and Rondo as a sign and trade for Chris Paul. Before making the move, he tells KG the plans and KG just decides to hang up his jersey and retire a Celtic while Pierce feels like he can go another year before retiring a Celtic. With those moves opening some cap with the players waived. Then moving Rondo for CP3, Ainge decides to go even deeper. He finds a crazy way to sign and trade O.J. Mayo for Avery Bradley. Stay with me now, after grabbing CP3 and Mayo for giving up Pierce, Rondo and Bradley. He looks to open more cap space and at the same time make a push in the draft. In another crazy manner, he finds a top 5 draft pick team willing to take Courtney Lee and Brandon Bass and the #16 pick to make that push for Nerlens Noel. Stick with me for another minute, the dream is almost over. With all the moves being made and all the cap space opened, a BIG man looks at our team and calls Ainge. Mr. Dwight Howard enters the building. He finds a way to sign D12 to a nice contract to put him in a Celtics jersey. So all in all, my dream ends with this Celtics "Dream Team" lineup.. Chris Paul / Terrence Williams O.J. Mayo / Jason Terry Jeff Green / Jordan Crawford Jarred Sullinger / Nerlens Noel Dwight Howard / Shavlik Randolph Lastly this is a fictional dream with no sources of any kind. Just a simple dream that I (A Die Hard Celtics Fan) needed to get off my chest. Hopefully to anyone reading this understands this and feels the laughter. What I'm going to write in this fan post is very unrealistic and will probably Never happen. Never ever. This is just something that's been a day dream in the back of my mind ever since I read Danny Ainge's talk about the Celtics future including Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Again there is no source of this and there will most likely never be one of this nature. Before I mention my "dream team" team, I would like to say I feel like Ainge should be in the hot seat. He not only brought in 6-8 players last season who barely did a thing for this team to be able to contend for a Championship. He also mentioned after the season ended, to the crappy NY Knicks, that they're more than 1 player away from contending unless they picked up a "great player" in Free Agency. Management above him should put him in that hot seat. I also feel like Doc is putting him in that seat too. To me, I feel like Doc Rivers is contempl

In the 3-point era of the NBA, only 9 guards have averaged 22 PPG at the age of 22. The list is comprised of Jordan, Kobe, LeBron, Isiah, Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Derrick Rose, Kyrie Irving, and Eric Gordon. Gordon’s company in the list makes it easy to see why Phoenix was willing to sign him to a 58 million dollar offer-sheet over 4 years. With this in mind, why wouldn't the Celtics jump at a trade to bring him to Boston? The most glaring issue with Eric Gordon is health. He has played in just 107 of his teams’ last 230 games. To say that Gordon has been plagued by injuries is a gross understatement. His recent career has been defined by injuries. This presents the biggest risk in trading for Eric Gordon. Giving up pieces for a player who missed 53% of available games is extremely worrisome. Holding off on this concern though, assuming he’s healthy, would Eric Gordon be worth trading for? To state the obvious, Eric Gordon is a very gifted scorer. He has a smooth jump shot with a quick release that leads to few of his shots being blocked. He good at catching and shooting off screens and very effective at scoring during transition. However, the majority of his offense comes through isolation and the pick and roll, where he is not quite as effective. Gordon is a high volume shooter who dominates the ball. Using Hollinger’s ratings for Usage Rate, Gordon is one of 10 players to post a USG% greater than 27. Gordon himself ranks at #7 with a Usage rate of 27.8. Of these 10 players, Gordon ranks dead last in FG%, Turnover Ratio, and PER. He ranks ahead of only John Wall in TS% and EFG%. This gives a broad picture of inefficiency, so a more in depth look at his 2012-2013 shooting might be of use here. His 2013 shot chart isn't terrible, especially if you enjoy the warm colors of subpar shooting. Gordon takes about a third of his shots at the rim, making only 52%, which is very low for compared to his past seasons. The gaping wound that is the midrange area accounts for a little over 20% of his shots. For whatever reason, Gordon is steadily declining as a three-point shooter. He shot 39% in his rookie year and has fallen every year, landing at 32% in 2013. This isn't terrible, but it is a concern, especially considering he takes four of them per game (closer to 5 per 36 min.) The midrange disaster combined with the diminishing three point percentage is the biggest obstacle to overcome offensively. To put it bluntly, scoring is all Eric Gordon can do. He doesn't produce many assists and needs to cut down on turnovers. Gordon is also a truly awful rebounder, even accounting for his position. He is undersized, but that isn't an excuse to post such mediocre rebounding totals. Defensively, he leaves a lot to be desired as well. Gordon has never played on a good defensive team, and it shows in his own statistics. The Hornets ranked 28th in Def Rtg this year. Gordon’s own Def Rtg falls below the bottom half for the team, which is a rough way to say it’s not very good. Using stats from Synergy Sports, his PPP allowed on defense is .91, which is about equal to James Harden or Ricky Rubio. Not exactly the comparisons you want being made about you defensively. While Gordon appears to be a bad defender on a bad defensive team, there is always a chance that playing in Doc’s system might turn that around. (Ignoring of course what the loss of Bradley and probably KG will do, which can't be overstated) Some of this critique is unfair to Eric Gordon. He has only played for bad teams where he was required to be the number one scoring option. It is not a common, or easy thing for a player in this position to play efficiently. Also, given the lack of games he's played, there isn't a very large sample size to judge his last couple of years on. It is hard to predict what effect playing with Rondo could have on his game, or how the emergence of Jeff Green could affect his touches. H

After the Olympics, it was reported that Team USA coach, Mike Krzyzewski was thinking of retiring and that Doc Rivers, along with Gregg Popovich and Doug Collins, was a frontrunner to replace him. Doc had said that he would be honored to coach the US Olympic team. Now, it seems that none of the 3 will take over the job as according to SI's Pete Thamel, Krzyzewski will return as the coach of Team USA. Under Krzyzewski Team USA has won gold medals in both the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics. He has an incredible 62-1 record as coach of Team USA. After returning from London, he said that he was retiring and maintained for months that he would not return. However, he reversed his decision in an interview with SI.com on Saturday. He will will remain Team USA coach for the 2014 FIBA World Championship in Madrid and the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Doc will have to wait a bit longer for another chance at the gold medal that eluded him in 1982 when the USA team won the silver in the World Championships. Between the United States' Moscow Olympics boycott in 1980 and a Los Angeles basketball gold medal in '84, Rivers staggered off the floor at the 1982 world championships, devastated over the defeat. (Getty Images) "We had to stand in line for our medals, and I wanted to throw the thing in the garbage," Rivers said Tuesday morning over breakfast on the city's Canary Wharf. "Silver [expletive] medal." After the public-address announcer in Cali, Colombia, summoned Rivers to accept his MVP trophy, 10, perhaps 20, seconds passed, and United States coach Bob Weltlich implored him: "Doc, you have to go get that trophy. YOU HAVE TO GET IT!" Hours later, Rivers tried to leave the trophy in the hotel lobby as the Americans departed for the airport, only to have some coaches or staff scoop it up and run the award back to him. "Bobby Knight [the '84 Olympic coach] was on the trip," Rivers says, "and I remember him telling me right afterward: 'You're on the Olympic team. Just stay in school, and you're on the team.' " However, Doc didn't stay in school and pros didn't play in the Olympics back then. He was given a promise from a team to take him in the first round but was once again disappointed when the team didn't honor the promise and he slipped into the second round. But, he still had no regrets and had a solid 13 year career in the NBA and now is one of the best and most respected broadcasters and coaches in the league. Maybe Doc's chance at Olympic redemption will finally come in 2020. [Discuss on CG Forums!]

Sports Illustrated is reporting that Mike Krzyewski will not retire from Team USA basketball: Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski will be returning as the head coach of USA Basketball for the 2016 Olympics, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. A formal announcement is expected in the next 48 hours. Krzyzewski led Team USA to gold medals in both the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics. He had maintained for months that he would not return before reversing course in an interview with SI.com on Saturday. Krzyzewski, 66, has a 62-1 record with USA Basketball, and his tenure will now be extended to coach in the 2014 FIBA World Championship in Madrid and the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Last August, Coach K told the media that Team USA’s gold medal game vs Spain would be his last as head coach. Not so fast. Doc Rivers emerged as a potential candidate thanks in large part to this glowing recommendation from Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Doc later confirmed interest in the gig, only if Gregg Popovich didn’t want it. Oh well. There’s always 2020.

Even though he's a Dukie (ugh), I like Plumlee in Boston. He's got a great motor and good size. NBA Mock Draft: Version 3 The Celtics need big bodies, as evidenced by the fact Kevin Garnett is finishing his career as a center instead of a power forward. Plumlee would give them some depth at C. He may not be ready to start right away, as his offensive game is still developing, but he's a solid defensive presence with some athleticism, and fits a need for the aging, and soon to be depleted, Celtics. They will also give Steven Adams a close look here.