Thursday, February 18, 2010

Quick Recap of the Nate Robinson Deal

The Boston Globe reports:
The Celtics have acquired Nate Robinson and Marcus Landry from the New York Knicks in exchange for Eddie House, Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens, who were thrown into the deal to match salaries.

The Celtics are waiting for NBA approval and the deal may not be announced until later this afternoon.
Well, it's not necessarily what we wanted nor what some of us expected, but how can Little Nate hurt us? Sure, I don't want to see Bill Walker go. But he barely got off the bench, and when he did, it was generally in games that didn't matter. He was just another body for us. Trading him won't do anything to affect the team. And while I would've hoped that we didn't let him loose this deadline, I guess we have to think from a perspective that focuses on what's best for the team.

And Eddie House? Look, I really enjoyed watching Eddie play, and he was most definitely a very important piece to the team over the past couple of years. But this year? Eddie just wasn't the same, just like Garnett wasn't the same in the first half, just like Pierce wasn't the same in the first half. And not only wasn't he the same statistically, but to be honest, I really haven't seen anything from Eddie this year that made me think "Wow, even at this age, Eddie still has the same energy." I'm trying not to be too harsh here, but I'm really getting frustrated with a lot of fans saying that Eddie was a fan favorite and he kept the crowd abuzz. He was... in the previous two years  Eddie House was flat this year, and while I hate to say it, that's all there was to it. I'll miss him, but it had to be done. Especially if it's what the Knicks wanted and we didn't trade Ray.

But anyways... let's concentrate on who we got in return. We got an energetic, exciting, motivating (with his ferocious play and electric spirit) guard whose game is literally instant offense, something we were in desperate need of off the bench (which Eddie used to provide). And as I've said, as long as his attitude stays in check, I think he will be an underrated piece to the team. You never know, you just need that one new, fresh, spunky guy, even if he plays 20 minutes coming off the bench, to get the crew going. And just to let you know the odds of Nate thrashing out, it's about 1-3%.

Truthfully, and I'm not being biased, Robinson will be FINE here. He's on a winner. He's with guys that are respectful but still constructively critical at the same time. He has a coach that has a good reputation with the players. And plus, he's under the watchful eyes of Red Auerbach. What guy whose major accomplishments include a mere dunk contest victory is going to have an overly-dominant, disruptive attitude on a team like this? With Kevin Garnett breathing down his neck? With Paul Pierce watching closely from the bench? With Ray Allen beside him in practice? It's OK for Robinson to have some spice and to be unafraid of speaking out. It's just him taking a larger role than we need him to that we need to cautiously watch.

And whose that other Knick that we got in return? Marcus Landry you say?

From NY Daily News:
Undrafted, undersized but mostly undeterred, Landry is becoming the feel-good story of training camp. The 6-foot-7 rookie out of Wisconsin is making a strong push for a roster spot, having survived the first round of cuts while impressing Mike D'Antoni and Donnie Walsh with his work ethic and toughness.

Blog Archive