major trade looms as draft approaches

Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, together? Yes, it's true, the Lakers and Timberwolves, along with help from the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers are working on a four team deal that will send Garnett to the Los Angeles Lakers, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom to the Pacers, Jermaine O'Neal to the Celtics, and the #5 overall pick (from the Celtics) and either the #19 pick (from the Lakers) or Al Jefferson to the Timberwolves. This may or may not keep Bryant in Los Angeles after he demanded to be traded last week, but I think that this will keep him in LA with an improved team with Garnett as his sidekick.

This deal makes sense for all teams except for Boston. After all, rumors were swirling about Garnett going to the Lakers, Jefferson and the #5 pick going to the Timberwolves, and Bynum and Odom going to the Pacers, although all of them were in separate deals. In order for this big deal to get done, it will probably have to happen before the #5 pick is announced. The draft is this Thursday and begins at 7:00 EST.

Kobe, Garnett are on the trading market

Over this past week, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves appear to be on the available for trades. Both are superstars on teams with minimal support and are headed nowhere fast. Bryant asked to be traded last week after a meeting with team owner Jerry Buss and Timberwolves GM Kevin McHale is finally listening to calls for Garnett.
Bryant is in his late 20s and Garnett is in his early 30s, making it possible for both to contribute for about 5-7 more years apiece. Reportedly, the Lakers are actually interested in acquiring Garnett, but they do not have the pieces necessary unless they are willing to trade every decent player except for Bryant. The Celtics have also shown some interest in acquiring Garnett, but will probably not trade Paul Pierce in a deal. They would need to trade Al Jefferson, their #5 overall pick, and enough contracts, maybe Wally Szczerbiak, to acquire Garnett. Obviously the Knicks are interested, but Garnett wants to go to a winner and I don't think the Knicks would even contend for the Eastern Conference title even with Garnett. Garnett could also go to the Bulls, but I don't think GM John Paxson will pull the trigger on any deal if he needs to give up more than one of the following players: Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, or Luol Deng.
As for Bryant, He could go to the Phoenix Suns for Shawn Marion and maybe another player or a draft pick, but GM Mitch Kupchak is unlikely to trade him to their division rivals. This would put the Suns over the top with more offense and more defense in addition to a great closer and Steve Nash as his point guard. Reports also say that he could go to the Bulls or Knicks. Another intriguing possibility is to the Washington Wizards for Gilbert Arenas, who will opt out of his contract after next year.

What Boston Should do this offseason

The Boston Celtics, like the Memphis Grizzlies, were the big losers of the NBA Draft Lottery. Of course, under the non-lottery system, the Celtics and Grizzlies would have had a coin flip to see who pick number one and who gets to pick number two. Unfortunately for both, that was not the case. Instead, the Celtics draft fifth this year. A decade ago, the Celtics had a 36% chance of getting the #1 pick and Tim Duncan and they lost that year too.
In this year's draft, I expect the Celtics to trade the pick to a team that is willing to give them a couple of good, experienced veterans to teach the young Celtics how to win. Maybe a deal with Portland for Zach Randolph and Jarrett Jack will help out them. After all, Sebastian Telfair is most likely out and Jack would step right in as starting point guard.
The Celtics will also probably need to have some major changes, beginning with getting rid of Telfair. The Celtics will probably release him if they cannot find a team who wants to trade for the troubled point guard. Also, don't be shocked if Paul Pierce gets traded. I know that this hasn't been publicised, but Pierce is probably frusturated in Boston and he is deserving to be on a championship team. Miami could potentially be interested, as would the Knicks if Pierce makes himself available. I also could see a major trade happen involving some of the Celtics younger players to get Pierce some help right now. If this were to happen, Delonte West, Rajon Rondo, or Ryan Gomes could be gone. Either way, I expect a busy offseason for the Celtics.
A lot of their problems are from blunders by general manager Danny Ainge. During last year's draft and earlier this year, he had the chance to get Allen Iverson in a trade. To get him, the Celtics just had to package a couple of their younger players and the #7 pick of last year's draft for the current Nuggets star. Instead, Ainge traded the pick for Telfair. That #7 overall pick could have given them Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy. Instead, it just gave the Celtics another bust and trade bait for this offseason.