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Celtics, Sixers Made Most Trades In 2014/15

March 10th, 2015 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

It’s tough to draw too many conclusions from a wild season of trades until more time has passed, but already there’s been at least a slight correlation between success on the court and willingness to trade. The sub-.500 Celtics and Sixers make the case that losing teams were more apt to trade this season, as each team has made a league-high 11 trades since the official start of the 2014/15 season in July. However, the surging Cavs are right behind them, having pulled off nine swaps. The Spurs and Warriors are two of only three teams not to have taken part in a trade this season, but the other is the Pacers, who’ve fallen on hard times without Paul George.

Still, it’s easier to see the link between winning and stability in the scope of last year’s on-court performance as well as this year’s. Only two of the top eight most active teams on the trade market made the playoffs last season, and none of the top four. All three teams that didn’t make a move are coming off playoff berths from last season, while only two of the nine teams that made fewer than two trades this year missed the playoffs in 2013/14.

Regardless, there was plenty of movement, with nearly half the teams in the league having been a part of at least four trades. Even teams that weren’t prolific traders had an impact, with the Heat acquiring Goran Dragic, who was probably the best player dealt at last month’s deadline, in their lone deal of 2014/15.

The number of trades in the 2014/15 season will no doubt swell at draft time, when teams usually execute a flurry of pick swaps, but from now until the end of the regular season, this is where it will stand. We’ve ranked every team by the number of trades they made. You can find details on all of the trades since the start of the regular season here, and details on trades during the 2014 offseason here. Note that the 2014 offseason trades include swaps that took place before July that are technically part of the 2013/14 season. Those deals aren’t reflected in the totals below.

  1. Celtics: 11
  2. Sixers: 11
  3. Cavaliers: 9
  4. Suns: 7
  5. Pelicans: 6
  6. Rockets: 6
  7. Thunder: 5
  8. Timberwolves: 5
  9. Kings: 4
  10. Knicks 4
  11. Nets: 4
  12. Nuggets: 4
  13. Pistons: 4
  14. Wizards: 4
  15. Clippers: 3
  16. Hornets: 3
  17. Jazz: 3
  18. Mavericks: 3
  19. Bucks: 2
  20. Bulls: 2
  21. Hawks: 2
  22. Grizzlies: 1
  23. Heat: 1
  24. Lakers: 1
  25. Magic: 1
  26. Raptors: 1
  27. Trail Blazers: 1
  28. Pacers: None
  29. Spurs: None
  30. Warriors: None
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Rookie Scale Contracts Traded In 2014/15

March 9th, 2015 at 5:38pm CST by Chuck Myron

First-round picks have become highly coveted commodities around the NBA, and while they moved with more frequency during this season’s trades than in years past, the same could be said for just about every sort of asset in a wild few months of player movement. One of the primary reasons why those picks are so highly valued is the cost-efficiency of the rookie scale contract. First-round picks who pan out, and lottery picks in particular, come at a steep discount for their first four seasons in the league. There isn’t a team in the league that wound blink an eye at forking over the roughly $5.607MM that Anthony Davis makes this season, and the same is true of his nearly $7.071MM salary next season.

Most rookie scale contracts are even less expensive than that, and even when first-rounders don’t fulfill their promise, rookie scale contracts aren’t too burdensome. Only the first two seasons involve guaranteed salary. Still, just as with future first-round picks, teams are occasionally enticed into giving up rookie scale contracts.

The prospect of the sort of raise a player would command on his next contract no doubt spurs some of this movement, and indeed, five of the 13 rookie scale contracts to have been traded since the start of the season are in their fourth and final seasons. Still, that isn’t a particularly large share, especially considering that Austin Rivers, a third-year player, was traded twice. Of course, Rivers is on an expiring deal, since the Pelicans declined his fourth-year team option before the deadline to do so this past October. The same is true of Thomas Robinson, whom the Blazers shipped to the Nuggets and whom Denver subsequently waived only to see the Sixers pick the rest of his rookie scale contract off waivers.

Still, an ending contract wasn’t the factor for nearly half of the players on the list below, including rookies Adreian Payne and Tyler Ennis, whom the Hawks and Suns, respectively, dealt without having kept their 2014 first-round picks around for even one full season. Still, the Suns were more active than any other team in this market, relinquishing the rookie scale contracts of Ennis and Miles Plumlee and taking back Reggie Bullock and Brandon Knight on their rookie deals.

Here’s the complete list of players on rookie scale contracts who were involved in trades between opening night and the trade deadline:

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Players Claimed Off Waivers Since Opening Night

March 9th, 2015 at 2:54pm CST by Chuck Myron

Waiver claims are usually rare in the NBA, but since the trade deadline less than three weeks ago, five players have been claimed. Teams claimed two others off waivers earlier this season, and put together, they have many similarities. Six of the seven make the minimum salary, which stands to reason, since that’s the only sort of player that every team can claim. Any other salary requires the use of cap space or an exception of some kind, and several teams don’t have that sort of flexibility.

Three of the seven players claimed off waivers went to the Sixers, who used their ample cap space on the lone waiver claim who’s not making the minimum. A trio of claimed players were placed on waivers by the Pelicans, including Ish Smith, who went from New Orleans to Philadelphia. Four of the seven claimed players were involved in trades shortly before their releases.

Here’s a look at each waiver claim this season:

  • A.J. Price: Pacers to Cavaliers — The veteran point guard began the regular season with the Cavs, but Cleveland dropped him in favor of Will Cherry less than a week into the season. Price’s run as an injury fill-in for the Pacers apparently inspired Cleveland to think twice about that decision, claiming Price off waivers and letting go of Cherry shortly after the Pacers released Price. Still, Price failed to stick with Cleveland, as the team cut him once more in January rather than guarantee his entire salary for the season.
  • Tarik Black: Rockets to Lakers — Houston reluctantly waived Black when the team needed a roster spot for Josh Smith and couldn’t find a trade partner for another of its reserves, and the Lakers foiled Charlotte’s plan to claim Black by submitting a claim of their own. L.A. had priority because of its inferior record, and the Lakers have made frequent use of their find, giving the rookie seven starts in 18 appearances.
  • Ish Smith: Pelicans to Sixers — Like Price, he became a team’s 16th player this season thanks to the hardship provision, inking a deal with the Thunder when they were decimated by injuries. The Thunder kept him when the provision expired and waived Sebastian Telfair instead. Smith finally became a roster casualty when the Thunder took on more players than they gave up in the Reggie Jackson/Enes Kanter trade, with Oklahoma City conveying him to the Pelicans in a separate deal. New Orleans, content with the second-round pick, cash, and draft-and-stash player it also acquired in the deal, waived Smith right away, and the Sixers pounced, giving him a key reserve role that’s encompassed 22.0 minutes per game.
  • Thomas Robinson: Nuggets to Sixers — The Robinson claim was perhaps the most controversial in the league so far this season, with the Nets having already set up a deal to sign Robinson once he passed through waivers. Philadelphia stymied those plans and also likely cost the Nuggets some cash in the transaction, too, as I explained. Denver briefly held the former No. 5 overall pick following a deadline-day trade with the Blazers. He’s still on his rookie-scale contract, making him the only player who’s earning more than the minimum salary this year to have been claimed off waivers.
  • Shawne Williams: Pelicans to Pistons — The Williams claim happened the same day that the Sixers derailed Brooklyn’s plans of signing Robinson, and though Detroit’s move received less fanfare, Williams has played a more expansive role this season. He started 22 games for the Heat, who shipped him to New Orleans in the three-team Goran Dragic trade. The Pelicans quickly let him go, but while the Pistons seemed anxious to bring him on board, they’ve given him only 9.6 minutes per game so far, less than half of what he saw in Miami.
  • Justin Hamilton: Pelicans to Timberwolves — Another player who went from Miami to New Orleans in that trade ended up on waivers, and Minnesota wound up with a player it had apparently wanted to trade for prior to the deadline.
  • Glenn Robinson III: Timberwolves to Sixers — The Wolves let go of Robinson when they brought Hamilton aboard, and once more the Sixers caused some angst among the Nuggets, who were reportedly interested in Robinson before Philly jumped in.
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2015 Free Agent Power Rankings

March 9th, 2015 at 12:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

Most among the top tier of soon-to-be free agents have faltered since we last checked on them in late January, though there have been a few exceptions, most notably at the top, where LeBron James is back to dominance. The general sluggish play through the season’s dog days has resulted in little movement in the latest edition Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, but a few names have nonetheless risen and fallen. The trade deadline is weeks in the past and free agency is becoming a greater focus around the league, so here’s how the top of the market stands:

  1. LeBron James (player option): James is reportedly headed for another two-year max deal with a player option on the second season, giving him the greatest possible income and leverage once more. There have been hints that it’s not a 100% certainty he’ll sign that deal with the Cavs, but it’s still probably a 99.9% chance. Last ranking: No. 1
  2. Kevin Love (player option): Love is also likely to remain with Cleveland and has said he plans to opt in. The Celtics are nonetheless seemingly making it their top priority to test his resolve about that. Love’s numbers continue to drop, as he averaged only 15.9 points and 9.7 rebounds in February, but the Cavs are winning and he’s still only 26. Last ranking: No. 2
  3. Marc Gasol: He’s notched just 16.0 PPG since a 20.2 PPG December, but Big Spain’s greatest contributions have long been on the defensive end, and he remains the fulcrum of a Grizzlies team that’s second in the Western Conference. Were he not already 30 years old he’d probably be a rung higher than Love. Last ranking: No. 3
  4. LaMarcus Aldridge: Executives surely admire Aldridge’s willingness to play through a torn thumb ligament, assuming they don’t fear that there will be long-term damage. Speaking of fear, the Blazers are reportedly “very, very scared” he’ll leave, but despite his willingness to play along with New York media asking him about the Knicks at the All-Star Game, Aldridge pledged last summer to remain in Portland. Last ranking: No. 5
  5. Jimmy Butler (restricted): There will be no playing through a left elbow injury that’s liable to cost the emerging star as much as six weeks, but even before that, there were signs the league’s leader in minutes per game was breaking down. He averaged 21.7 PPG before New Year’s Day and 18.3 since, knocking him back a peg in our rankings. Still, it seems likely he’ll still receive that max offer the Bulls have apparently been planning. Last ranking: No. 4
  6. Greg Monroe: The big man has bucked the trend of marquee soon-to-be free agents tailing off, having averaged 16.6 PPG and 11.9 RPG a game since the Pistons let go of Josh Smith, compared to just 14.7 and 8.8 RPG prior. Agent David Falk downplays the idea that Monroe’s thinking in regard to free agency has changed much during the season, but the big man will “absolutely” consider re-signing with the Pistons, Falk contends, a prospect that’s long seemed remote. Stan Van Gundy hopes it’ll happen, but the Celtics and Sixers appear to be among the teams who’ll try to ensure it doesn’t. Last ranking: No. 7
  7. Kawhi Leonard (restricted): February was Leonard’s worst month for PPG and RPG as he put up 13.5 PPG and 6.1 RPG, not exactly intriguing numbers, perhaps in part because of a torn ligament in his right hand, and there appears a decent chance it’ll require surgery at season’s end. Meanwhile, the Spurs have languished in seventh place in the Western Conference. Still, San Antonio probably won’t be dissuaded from paying him the max or a comparable salary. Last ranking: No. 6
  8. Goran Dragic (player option): The past month and change has been a whirlwind for the Third Team All-NBA guard from last season, as he had a contentious parting with the Suns and is reportedly still high on the Lakers even though he’s expressed fondness for his new home in Miami. It looks like Miami is the front-runner to re-sign him on a five-year max offer, but the situation remains fluid. Last ranking: No. 10
  9. DeAndre Jordan: The Clippers have sorely needed Jordan as a top-flight inside presence since Blake Griffin went out with a staph infection in his elbow a month ago, and he’s responded with a whopping 18.8 RPG in the time that Griffn has missed. Perhaps most importantly for his value, he’s averaged 14.2 PPG, which would be a career-high, on just 7.3 field goal attempts per contest in Griffin’s absence. Last ranking: No. 9
  10. Rajon Rondo: Perhaps no other marquee free agent’s stock has taken as much of a hit as Rondo’s has in the past month or so as he’s continued to struggle to fit in with the Mavs. Doubt is creeping in about his worthiness as a maximum-salary player, and while he downplayed his public tiff with coach Rick Carlisle and remains open to re-signing in Dallas, the market for him seems tough to predict. Last ranking: No. 7

Al Jefferson continues to top the honorable mentions whom I ran down last time, but Draymond Green‘s rise continues, and he’ll certainly be among the top 20, if not top 15, most sought-after free agents this summer. Check out how the rankings have ebbed and flowed since the beginning of the season right here.

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Hoops Rumors Originals

March 8th, 2015 at 5:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a look at the original analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week..

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Will Kevin Love Stay In Cleveland?

March 8th, 2015 at 11:59am CST by ChrisCrouse

In a clash of Eastern Conference powers, the Hawks beat the Cavs on Friday night by a score of 106-97. Kevin Love, who took 11 shots from behind the arc in the loss but only amassed 14 points, seems to be uneasy about his role on the team, as he tells Chris Hayes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group.  “I heard some people calling me that but I know I’m not a stretch-four,” Love said. “I’m a post player who can shoot. Right now I’m just doing what I’m called to do. For good, bad or indifferent, I’m playing my role and doing what’s asked of me.”

Hayes’ article prompted Grantland’s Bill Simmons to ask where Kevin Love is going to live in Boston next season and suggest rental properties in the area (Twitter links). While Simmons, who is a well-known Celtics fan, was obviously being frivolous and a bit partial, he points a spotlight on Love’s situation. The 26-year old is experiencing one of his worst seasons as a pro. Love has been playing a good chuck of his minutes away from the basket, causing his rebounding numbers to drop to 10.2 per game, his worst mark since his rookie year. He isn’t getting many post up opportunities and it has hurt his offense. He is only scoring 16.9 points per game, the lowest amount since the 2009/10 season.

Although the Celtics are planning to target Love in the offseason, along with other marquee free agents, it doesn’t mean the power forward will be heading to Boston if he does decide to leave town. There will be no shortage of suitors for the UCLA product. Los Angeles and New York are both projected to have cap room for at least one maximum level salary contract and they both would likely get meetings with Love should he hit the open market. The Suns could potentially be another team to enter the Love sweepstakes. After clearing nearly $12.4MM from next season’s payroll with the trades at this year’s deadline, Phoenix will only have about $41MM in commitments for 2015/16 against a projected $68MM salary cap, which as Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors notes, is more than enough to dangle a maximum salary contract offer at a free agent.

Love’s first season as a Cavalier has been a roller coaster ride. When he was traded to the Cleveland for a package of players, including No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins, he undoubtedly knew the team’s philosophy would be centered around LeBron James and even incumbent star Kyrie Irving. Yet, Love probably didn’t believe he would be relegated to such a complementary role that he is currently playing.

None of this means he will leave Cleveland. Love has a player option worth slightly more than $16.744MM next season and it was reported about two months ago that he plans to opt in. However, a lot can change between January and the end of the league year, and how successful the Cavs are this season will likely have an impact on his decision. Winning cures many ails. If Cleveland takes home the Larry O’Brien trophy, I’d speculate that Love stays put and embraces his role on a championship team. Anything less will certainly probe more questions about Love’s future and how much he is willing to sacrifice for a team that’s not playing in June.

Do you believe Kevin Love will be a Cavalier next season?

Will Kevin Love Stay In Cleveland Next Season?
No 53.91% (759 votes)
Yes 46.09% (649 votes)
Total Votes: 1,408
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2015/16 Player Options

March 7th, 2015 at 4:10pm CST by Eddie Scarito

JaVale McGee almost became a member of the Celtics this week, but Boston wanted the deal to include a team option for the 2015/16 season while McGee’s camp was pushing for a player option instead. For McGee, having the player option would have given the big man a level of financial security for next season, but the Celtics apparently wanted to see how McGee blended in with the team before committing to him for longer than the remainder of the 2014/15 campaign.

There are a total of 31 players who hold player options for next season. This includes marquee players like Goran Dragic, who reportedly intends to decline his option in order to ink a long-term deal, and LeBron James, who has maintained that he doesn’t intend to leave Cleveland, but wants to have the ability to ink a much more lucrative deal when the NBA’s new television deal begins in 2016. There are also players like Chase Budinger and Eric Gordon on this list who will likely exercise their options because their market value has dropped since inking their last pact.

Listed below in alphabetical order are those possessing player options for the 2015/16 season and the respective cap hit for each:

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

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Hoops Rumors Weekly Mailbag 3/1/15-3/7/15

March 7th, 2015 at 10:28am CST by Eddie Scarito

In addition to our weekly chat, which Chuck Myron facilitates every Wednesday, we have added a second opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap, or the NBA draft? Drop me a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com or @EddieScarito on Twitter. Now for this week’s inquiries:

“Now that JaVale McGee isn’t going to be a member of the Celtics, where does he end up playing this season?” — Andrew R.

The pairing that makes the most sense for both sides is for McGee to sign with the Warriors. With Golden State a serious title contender this season, and given the injury histories of Andrew Bogut and David Lee, adding a big with McGee’s ability would be a very wise move from an on-the-court perspective. It’s in the locker room where McGee becomes a risk, with Warriors coach Steve Kerr even making it a point to comment that he doesn’t want to risk upsetting the team’s excellent chemistry. I’m not sure if he was referring to McGee specifically, but probably so. I do think McGee would behave himself for the remainder of the season in Oakland. With him being in need of employment next year, McGee has far too much to lose.

From McGee’s perspective, joining the Warriors would be a wise career move for the big man. Not only would he have the chance to chase a ring with this extremely talented team. But if McGee behaves like a professional and answers the bell when he is on the court for the remainder of the season, then his next contract will get a healthy boost as a result. I should note that Golden State currently has the league maximum 15 players on its roster, so someone would need to be waived in order to add McGee.

“Do you think Brian Shaw will get another shot at being a head coach?” — Curtis

Shaw had a tough situation in Denver, and his old school personality was not a great fit with the group of players currently on the team’s roster. I put a lot of the blame on the players for Shaw getting the boot, but NBA coaches also need to be able to overcome obstacles of this nature. But this was Shaw’s first head coaching gig and I’m sure he learned quite a bit that will help him out in the future. There are a number of coaches who failed at their first job only to turn things around when given a second opportunity. Shaw isn’t a bad coach, he just needs more seasoning in how to manage players.

I do see Shaw getting another shot, seeing how the league loves to recycle. But he’ll most likely need to go the assistant coach route for at least a season or two before he’ll be seriously considered to take over another team. Look for Shaw to possibly end up as an assistant with the Knicks, a move which has already been speculated about by Marc Berman of The New York Post. If Fisher can’t turn things around next season, who knows, maybe Shaw slides into his spot on the bench. It’s the Knicks, so anything is possible…

“Who’s the next head coach you see getting his walking papers?” — Tyreese J.

The answer to this question depends on whether or not you want to include interim coaches to the list. If so, then the Magic’s James Borrego is the coach most likely to be let go of first. But if we are talking about a non-interim coach, then I would have to say that the Hornets’ Steve Clifford would be my pick, with OKC’s Scott Brooks a close second.

Clifford had a great start to his career, guiding Charlotte to a 43-39 record and a surprise playoff berth last season. An accomplishment that is somewhat diluted when realizing Charlotte plays in the Eastern Conference. But his encore isn’t going so well, with the team sitting at a disappointing 27-33. Clifford may get one more season, but his seat is definitely one that could get hot rather quickly. As for Brooks, unless the Thunder make it to the conference finals, I believe the team will bring in a new face and voice to coach the team. Someone who will likely require future free agent Kevin Durant‘s seal of approval to get the job, since OKC won’t do anything to jeopardize its shot at re-signing the forward in the summer of 2016.

“In order, who are the five best point guards in the 2015 NBA draft?” — Jimmy P.

It’s not necessarily a banner year for drafting at the one-spot, seeing as there are only about eight point guards in this year’s NBA draft who are likely to stick in the league. But that doesn’t mean a few teams won’t be able to snag a useful player at the position. As requested, here are my top five…

  1. Emmanuel Mudiay (China)
  2. D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State)
  3. Tyus Jones (Duke)
  4. Jerian Grant (Notre Dame)
  5. Delon Wright (Utah)

Out of this group only Mudiay and Russell have star potential, with Mudiay possibly being the best player in the entire draft. It’s hard to tell given Mudiay’s limited body of work, but this player can be something special. The remaining three players on my list will all need some development time, but each could turn out to be an extremely solid pro. I should note that Russell is playing shooting guard in college, but he is projected as a point guard in the NBA.

“How do you rate the strength of the 2015 draft against the way too overhyped class of 2014?” — Kev

While I do think that in a few season’s time the 2014 draft class will prove themselves worthy of the attention they received, the 2015 crop of players is possibly the deeper of the two. The top four players in this year’s draft (Mudiay, Russell, Jahlil Okafor, and Karl-Anthony Towns) all have star potential, and their ceilings could actually be higher than last year’s group of draftees. After the big four is a scrum of about 10-15 players who are relatively interchangeable right now as far as draft position goes. This level of depth is a big reason why I am sweating doing my mock draft this year. Once individual pre-draft workouts begin that will hopefully change a bit, but the second tier in the 2015 draft is quite intriguing, and could end up being superior to last year’s. There should be a number of late first round value picks made this June, which should make for an exciting draft.

Well folks, that’s all the space I have for this week. Keep sending in your questions and I’ll see you back here next Saturday.

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Hoops Rumors On Social Media/RSS

March 5th, 2015 at 6:11pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Now that the NBA trade deadline has passed the focus for many franchises around the league will turn to tweaking rosters in preparation for the playoffs. For the less fortunate teams who will be sitting at home watching the playoffs on television like the rest of us, the remainder of the season will be spent evaluating players for the future. Despite not being able to swap players for the remainder of the season, teams will still be able to add free agents to their rosters. There are a handful of ways you can follow us to keep tabs on the latest news and rumors as these stories and transactions unfold.

Hoops Rumors has opened a Google Plus account that you can follow for headlines and links to all of our posts. You can also Like us on Facebook and see our content through your account there. Follow us on Twitter to have all our posts and updates sent directly to your Twitter feed. Our RSS feed is located here if you’d like to follow us using your reader of choice.

If you prefer to receive updates only on roster moves such as signings, cuts, and trades, you can follow our transactions-only feeds via RSS and Twitter.

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Poll: Will The Celtics Make The Playoffs?

March 5th, 2015 at 2:50pm CST by Zachary Links

JaVale McGee and the Celtics were on the verge of a deal that would have taken the big man not only through this season, but through next season as well.  With averages of 8.4 PPG and 5.5 RPG across seven seasons, McGee obviously hasn’t reached his potential, but team president Danny Ainge was confident that the 7-footer can do just that in Boston.

“JaVale is a long, athletic guy and we don’t have the type of player, an above-the-rim offensive and defensive player,” Ainge said in an interview on 98.5 The Sports Hub, according to ESPN.com’s Chris Forsberg (on Twitter).  “He’s been paid a lot of money in our league, had some injuries, hasn’t lived up to his potential yet and we’re hoping that he can under [Brad Stevens‘] tutelage.  I think he’s in a good place, emotionally and mentally, and he really wants to get his career on the right path.”

Well, so much for that.  The Celtics were offering McGee’s a team option on the 2015/16 season but his camp was pushing for a player option instead, so the marriage has been called off.  Whether McGee can eventually blossom into the kind of difference maker that Ainge was hoping for is debatable, but adding a hyper-athletic big like him would have given the C’s a serious push as they fight to make the cut in the Eastern Conference.  Now, barring something unforeseen, they’ll forge ahead without him (While McGee won’t be in the big man rotation, Kelly Olynyk is back in the mix to help support Brandon Bass, Tyler Zeller, and newcomer Jonas Jerebko in the frontcourt.)

The C’s missed out on that splashy addition, but Ainge has been hard at work remaking Boston’s roster, including the deadline deal that brought them guard Isaiah Thomas from the Suns.  In his seven games with Boston, Thomas has averaged 20.1 PPG and 5.4 APG, numbers that improved from his first half of the year in Phoenix.  His PER in this short sample size has picked up as well and his 21.7 rating is higher than any posting he’s had in a full season.

As of today, Boston sits 2.0 games back of the Hornets for the No. 8 seed with the Pacers and Nets standing in between them.  According to John Hollinger’s playoff odds (at ESPN.com), the numbers aren’t in the C’s favor as they have a 13.5% chance of making the postseason.  But, the Celtics have found ways to win challenging games, like Wednesday night’s 85-84 victory over the Jazz sealed by Zeller’s buzzer-beating reverse layup.  Guided by the inventive Stevens, do you see the Celtics finding their way into the playoffs this season?

Will The Celtics Make The Playoffs?
No 58.20% (472 votes)
Yes 41.80% (339 votes)
Total Votes: 811
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