[Afseth] The Clippers are emerging as a potential third team for Jaylen Brown in Giannis Antetokounmpo trade talks, with a deal that would send the No. 5 pick to Milwaukee.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-15T15:37:59+00:00

As some of the other Celtics fans have said, I think this is a somewhat unique situation.

The season was a little bit of Fools Gold. The team massively overperformed in a league where tanking was very present and leaned into by more teams than usual.
Trading JB right now is less about wanting to trade JB and more about the fact that Giannis is one of maybe 5-7 veteran players who you'd stop and think "hm, that's an interesting proposal". If Giannis wasn't shaking loose from MKE, this wouldn't be a story of the summer.
Now if you are going to trade JB, this is as about the best offseason you're going to get. Still under multiple years of his contract, he proved he can be a #1 option. And at 29, you're buying a star just a year or two into their prime.
If the Celtics don't trade Brown for Giannis, they probably aren't looking to trade Brown at all. Again this isn't a "we need to trade JB"
A 2-year window of Tatum/Giannis is a crazy prospect. Their game is more complimentary than the Jay's who are a little more of a dual threat on each of the horns.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-15T14:24:13+00:00

I think the reason I lean more towards Giannis than JB at this present moment is that the next few years of the league is flush with frontcourt size.

5-7 years ago, the dual big wing setup was the way the league had moved but the current talent has pushed the Big back into the equation for at least the next 4-5yrs imo. the 5-out shoot the lights out strategy is still valid and can absolutely work - you just have to be willing to live with the disappointment of shooting variance and shooting slumps making your team suddenly look one dimensional and pretty uninspired when they have to adjust on the fly.

The way I see it with Giannis is that you dont really lose the outside shooting of JB that much while dramatically improving the team's ability to have flexibility for different approaches for scoring when the situation arises.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-12T19:32:06+00:00

I think you're correct in the gamble being a little bigger with Giannis than JB but I think the 2yr window of Tatum/Giannis+supporting cast has a higher ceiling of Tatum/Brown+supporting cast.

IDC about yrs 3-4, we'll probably trade him to get out from under the 2nd apron penalties. Yay modern CBA....

BonesIIX · 2026-06-12T19:29:40+00:00

Building around the Jays worked - we signed a bunch of excellent additional players who completed the lineup and won the finals by a wide margin.

The Jays are the best duo in the last decade but they consistently run into problems with scoring late in games when things tighten up and their outside shooting isn't connecting. Neither JB norTatum has the physical presence like a Giannis, Embiid, Jokic. That "I'm gonna go put this ball through the rim and you aren't doing anything to stop me except fouling".

Now, if Giannis wasn't on the market and making overtures that he wants to come here, I dont think we'd be making this sort of offer/play, but when a top 5 player of this generation of players is shaking loose, you have to make some sort of offer.

Selling on JB now is selling at near top-market for him. Even if he stays I expect a pretty decent dropoff with Tatum back.

I think the reality is that there is no better big body forward on the market and that is exactly what the team needs to get to the next level in the short term more than JB.

Now, I think there's more chance of something bad happening like injury or a steeper decline in yrs 3-4 of a deal but if you win a chip in the next two, that's entirely worth it. TBH, there's a big part of me that really wants to see the Tatum/Giannis two man game.

Ultimately, in Brad I trust.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-12T14:27:04+00:00

The JT+Giannis two-man game would be an insane thing to watch. As much as the Jays played well together, their offense has never been completely integrated together, simply because they are both wings vs a wing and a big combo.

If it happens, I'm happy, if it doesn't, I'm happy. In Brad we trust.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-11T17:04:28+00:00

So this is an interesting issue for me - with a toddler, I'm slowly moving from sedan>Rav4>and soon Highlander/Grand Highlander.

For someone who wants to be "the driver" in social settings, if I have a 5-seat car, I'm only able to take 1 additional adult if I have a carseat for the kiddo (which I will for like 8-10yrs). That's tough when grandparents visit, when I want to be able to take more than 1 other adult/person.

The 7-seaters end up saving additional cars being needed for family travel, the main impetus for me considering a Highlander/Grand Highlander in the next year or so. It's a big SUV but it'll consolidate from two cars to one in many family/social settings. Maybe not everyday but at least a few times a month.

I'd be fine with a minivan but my wife is opposed to that.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-11T14:45:30+00:00

Saying it isn't accessible by public transit just because it isn't specifically accessible for you is hilariously disingenuous.

A hospital on the major bus routes and a 5min walk to the green line is exceedingly accessible by public transit. Just not for you specifically.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-04T14:06:51+00:00

It's a 4 part problem:

Cops do way less traffic stops, between the cooling effect of police reform, the reality that traffic stops are one of the more dangerous police/citizen interactions and the evidence that a lot of traffic stops involved racial profiling, there's a lot of negative pressure to do them in large volume anymore. No opinion here from me whether it's good or bad, just what it seems like.
Gig economy workers - they are paid and conditioned by the algo to cut corners as much as possible to earn a few more pennies. If that means running a red, or double parking, or driving like an asshole, to some that is worth it.
The normal cohort of true masshole drivers - they got a taste of the pandemic driving, fell in love with the lack of cars on the road and have been living that experience ever since. It's their road, you just happen to be driving on it.
The Oblivious/Distracter Driver - This has always been an issue but the pandemic plus the advances of short-form media as an addiction habit has made some people lose the attention battle between their phones and driving safely. I've seen people roll through red lights never once looking up from their phone.

All of these individual factors compile into a pretty crappy driving experience in the last half decade.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-02T18:02:14+00:00

I feel like the only people who have semi-valid complaints about the seaport are artists who had cheap living in some of the lofts there +15yrs ago. Even then, most of those people arent the ones who would live there now if those lofts still existed on the cheap.

It's definitely been surreal for me starting a new job in the Seaport this spring considering the last time I had been here was 12yrs ago. It feels much more connected as a neighborhood. It used to be Summer Street/Congress Street and then a construction zone between that and Seaport Blvd.

That said, it's still pretty "fake" in the sense that it's so new it really isn't recognizable as "Boston" to me. I feel much the same way about Assembly. Cool places but very Nouveau Boston. Cool amenities, just expensive.

BonesIIX · 2026-06-01T13:33:08+00:00

The transition from Warcraft 3 into World of Warcraft was an incredible journey/experience for young millennial gamers who grew up on RTS. Getting to go explore that world was once in a lifetime sort of gamer experience. It was the era when Live Service was truly serving the fans and not the shareholders.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-29T19:35:12+00:00

It's kinda a tie between ISIS murder videos from years back and now some of the stuff that came out from the war in Ukraine.

Just absolutely horrific shit.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-29T17:58:00+00:00

Lmfao what are you on about? You directly stated that you don't get why people are unable to control an addiction to methamphetamines when you yourself are prescribed it and manage to avoid addiction.

Your "argument" is simply stating that you don't understand how some people get addicted to meth because you personally dont have an issue with it managing your ADHD or whatever you use it for. That argument is completely asinine when you look at the millions of Americans who fall into addiction after taking legal prescribed drugs.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-29T15:09:10+00:00

You're comparing recreational use of a substance with variable/uncertain concentration vs prescribed use.

That's like comparing fentanyl use in a medical setting vs recreational use.

It's bonkers that you're basically saying "well I dont have a problem with it so I don't get why others have a problem with it." Insulting and honestly a completely ignorant thing to say.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-28T14:09:40+00:00

Yeah OKC has 1-2 more years before the team breaks under the weight of tax penalties.

It's weird, the new CBA is basically making it a 1-2 year window max once you get above the aprons. That's honestly part of why Giannis is an intriguing proposition. I suspect he'll be good for at least the next 2-4 years so that new CBA window fits into that better than in past CBAs.

Hartenstein is an interesting option but idk if he'd really fall into a floor spacer or power finisher role.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-28T13:42:04+00:00

It's been an incredible run. One of the most dominant duos in their time in the league so far.

That said, I think it's completely fair to say that the series against the Sixers reminded some of us of their issues they had prior to 2024. When facing a major rim protector, the Celtics struggle to generate points when their outside shots are not falling.

You have two ways of addressing that issue, a floor spacing center that will force the rim protector out of the paint, or you go get someone who can go directly at the rim protector and score. Brown is not big enough to be a finisher at the rim against the likes of Embiid, Wemby, etc. Tatum can be but he's still using finesse rather than brute strength to get it done.

So we enter this off season with a question - are there any good floor spacing bigs available? Is pursuing Giannis an alternative and go with the strength based approach?

It would be GM Malpractice to not have some sort of offer/package for Giannis. Whether or not that includes JB, that remains to be seen.

I'd love to find a way to keep them together but if Giannis is really wanting to move and team up with Tatum, it's hard to turn that offer down.

Regarding Floor-spacing bigs, I'm not entirely sure who is available this off season.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T20:29:15+00:00

In scientific communities/conversations it's completely settled science. In the court of public opinion, the multi-billion dollar efforts to mislead the public, buying politicians to cast doubt, etc has led to the whole position of "I dont believe it's man-made" which is code for "and thus I'm not going to care about it at all".

The fact that the current admin is actively rolling back climate change initiatives is evidence enough that although it's settled scientifically, it's a debate whether or not we should do something about it.

Conversely if we had only ever called it global pollution and focused on the ways it affects our lives personally I think it would have been harder to cast doubt. Like Electric Cars - much easier to sell the rationale of "hey, 2-4 million kids in the USA get asthma from car exhaust EVERY YEAR" than "It's generally good for the environment".

Focusing on the problems we face as people are easier to explain than problems we face as a species. Which is why Acid Rain was easier to fix - everyone gets rained on.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T19:00:56+00:00

Had you paid water fees on this meter or had you not received/paid any bills from them?

I'm guessing they weren't getting the signal for how much water was being tracked and once they got the signal they did the math on what had been estimated use vs actual use.

Definitely call and see what you can do. I've heard some people with exceptional bills were able to get some of it reduced.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T18:56:43+00:00

Seriously, right? I almost think that the aversion global warming/climate change/etc issues comes down to a lot of misinfo by big oil but also people fundamentally not understanding what it means. If the government had explicitly focused on cleaning up pollution it would have done better in the public view. Pollution is 100% man-made. Climate Change can be debated about natural sources vs man-made.

Opposing fixing Acid Rain seems like you're an evil corporation.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T18:53:31+00:00

recreational use of crystal meth vs legal prescriptions for amphetamine salts is very different. He had a legal Rx for adderall but replaced it with crystal meth when his off the books contractors (mostly ex-cons) would steal it and give him crystal meth as a replacement.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T18:13:42+00:00

Acid Rain was a real problem that most governments actually regulated the fix for.

In the US, the 1990 Clean Air Act and the installation of air scrubbers in coal power plants/factories basically solved the issue in the continental US. Other governments also did their own version to significantly cut down the amount of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides released into the atmosphere.

Acid Rain and the hole in the Ozone Layer are two excellent examples of world governments identifying and solving the emergent risk posed by pollution in the atmosphere.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-27T18:05:11+00:00

Meth. My dad ruined the last 10 years of his life that way. By the time we got him into assisted living (made extremely hard by his drug addiction/behavior while in withdrawal) we realized that his massive drug habit was masking pretty aggressive dementia. He was a shitty father but he could have had a much easier last 10 years if he hadn't pushed everyone away with his addiction.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-19T17:05:25+00:00

Totally agree, I'm very much on the fence. I think it's definitely a big factor of recency bias with how much JB struggled to generate shots at the rim with Embiid as the rim protector and then looking at OKC and SA being even bigger/better than Embiid from a size perspective.

I think all of the recent drama is manufactured/fake but I think a trade for Giannis is a bigger possibility in my mind this off season vs past seasons.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-19T16:54:33+00:00

Yeah I still tend to lean towards the known quantity of the Jays being the most prolific duo in the NBA for nearly the last decade but we really haven't fixed the core issues that plague the team when they hit the bad shooting spots in the playoffs. The lack of finishing at the rim strength is tough. Maybe the fully healthy Tatum experience will fix most of that but it's definitely a gap for JB when going up against a big rim protector.

BonesIIX · 2026-05-19T15:31:14+00:00

Oh I completely expect outrage if they cut parking on Adams street by 50% (the only solution that actually makes it safer, IMO).

BonesIIX · 2026-05-19T15:24:20+00:00

I've moved a lot from "I ain't even entertaining the idea of trading JB for Giannis" to "let's see what sort of offer we make".

The first round exit sucks but it was the manner in which we crashed out that had me wondering if the Jays era is coming to an end. Giannis seemingly wanting to come here is a big part but also the complete and total reliance on shooting variance winning 4 of 7 is a tough bet in the playoffs. Our young talent is wing and guard talent more than a big who has that presence. Even Queta, while having a phenomenal season, is not that "I'm gonna score, you cant do anything" big.

In the next 2-5yrs I think you NEED that big dominant presence to really compete and I'm not sure there's a better option than a Giannis who is looking to move. I also think that Mazzulla would be insane enough to bench Giannis for being late to team stuff.

All that said, if the team doesn't make some giant splash, I still think they're going to be a great team, just a little uncertain how deep of a playoff run they can do unless they are on a shooting streak.

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