Since when do we hear about teams offering up draft picks to acquire a head coach?
Strangely, that’s what has been happening with Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who has been all over the rumor mill as of late due to his tenuous situation with the team. At first, he was rumored to be a part of the deal that would send Kevin Garnett to the Los Angeles Clippers for DeAndre Jordan and other moving parts. Then the proposed offer broke down when the Clippers played hard ball. A day later, Chris Paul intervened in hopes of strengthening the team he probably wants to stay with beyond this season. Unfortunately for him, what the two teams have done is not within the league’s rules. Ken Berger of CBSSports has details on the matter:
“Remember that one about Doc Rivers getting traded to the Clippers in a deal involving Kevin Garnett? Never mind.
The Celtics and Clippers were informed days ago that such an arrangement is not permitted under league trade rules, even if the deals were separated into two distinct transactions, a league source told CBSSports.com on Thursday.
In a radio tour in the hours before Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, commissioner David Stern appeared on several programs and put this saga out of its misery. His strongest comments came on ESPN Radio in New York, where Stern said, “The teams are aware that the collective bargaining agreement doesn’t authorize trades involving coaches’ contracts.” The only incentives other than player contracts that are permitted in NBA trades, Stern said, are draft picks and cash. “The teams know that,” Stern said. “It has been confirmed to them. … It can’t be gotten around by breaking it up into two transactions.”
So it sounds like all of it may have been just a pipe dream. It is rather strange that the plans were leaked all over the media, when all sides working on the deal should have known that what they wanted to do wasn’t actually legal. However, as Sam Amick of USA Today notes, they may just have to tweak a few things to get a deal done. If they are successful, it might even net them Paul Pierce in the process:
“The deal could still get done, but one of two adjustments may need to be made: The Celtics may need to offer more in the deal than just Garnett, with draft picks the most logical possibility; the Clippers, who have been attempting to give up just one first-round draft pick, may be allowed to give up less in the trade. The real trade value of the 37-year-old is at the center of this discussion, as the idea that Boston could net two first-round draft picks and a respectable replacement in Jordan who is 13 years younger clearly doesn’t calculate for league officials.
If this trade is completed, it’s expected that Pierce would be bought out by Boston this summer and sign with the Clippers as a free agent. Pierce, a Los Angeles native, is only guaranteed $5 million of his $15.3 million earnings for next season if he’s cut before June 30.”
If all of this goes down, the Celtics will clearly look to start mostly from scratch, the way it was before they acquired Garnett in the blockbuster trade from 6 seasons ago. The Clippers? The thought of the amount of talent on that roster next season is simply frightening – aging players and all.
So whose bright idea was it to involve a coach into a trade deal anyway? As it turns out, the Denver Nuggets were the first team to pitch such a plan to the Celtics, from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports:
Shortly after firing George Karl, the Denver Nuggets offered the Boston Celtics a first-round draft pick as compensation to pry coach Doc Rivers out of his contract, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
Nuggets CEO Josh Kroenke made a bid forRivers approximately 10 days ago, informing general manager Danny Ainge of his willingness to part with a pick if the Nuggets were able to procure Rivers.
Nevertheless, Boston wasn’t prepared to start the process of letting Rivers leave, and discussions never went beyond one brief conversation between Kroenke and Ainge, league sources said.
Again, if the Clippers find a way to sign Rivers to a deal, this may open up a whole new way for teams to deal with coaches that perhaps wish to be on the move.
Onto other news from around the league: