Let’s start with the good news for Boston – they have about a month and a half to recover from what happened yesterday.

And now to the bad news – what happened yesterday was that the Celtics traded away Kendrick Perkins.

Boston, a clear front runner in the race for the NBA title, sent its defensive anchor packing.  We’ll get to what they got in return in a minute.  But for now, let’s focus on the fact that Perkins is missing from Boston’s lineup.

Perkins is obviously a big man, so he leaves a big hole.  But although his stature isn’t as grand as, say, Shaquille O’Neal, his defensive presence had long eclipsed that of the Big Aristotle.  Perkins knows how to play perfectly within the Celtics’ system, positioning himself for everything from rebounds to blocked shots to charges.  He’s been the ultimate team player.

One only had to look as far as his ex-teammates’ faces during their game last night at Denver.  There was a general sense of bewilderment that could be seen in the players as they took the floor.  Even (Boston head coach) Doc Rivers appeared to be unusually distracted.  Although Perkins is not a consistent offensive contributor, Boston stumbled its way to a meager 75 points against an up-and-down, high tempo Nuggets team who had just traded away its franchise star.  Predictably, the Celtics wound up losing by 14 in a game that they would have otherwise won by 20.

Perkins presence has been so significant that many analysts project that the Celtics would have won the NBA Finals over the Lakers last year had it not been for Perkins’ Game 7 suspension.  As the season has progressed, Boston has been playing great defensive basketball – particularly since Perkins’ return to the lineup.  But the Celtics have lost a big part of their team’s identity, and must figure out how to pick up the pieces before its too late.

Perkins ignited his Boston teammates with his fire and intensity.

Welcome to a team with Finals aspirations, Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic.  Krstic is simply the typical European big man.  He has no back-to-the-basket game, he has a nice stroke from about 15-17 feet, and provides no interior presence defensively.  That’s about it.  The real interesting player (other than Perk) in this deal is Green.

J-Green is one of the guys who comes off as an all-world player in video games.  In fact, a couple of months ago, me and my boys (Tony, R.T., J-Penn) were trying to house the computer on 2K11.  We tried several teams (including the Heat and Spurs), but found ourselves coming up on the short end of the stick as we tried to team up and beat (eh-hem) the Pistons.  We finally gave it a crack with the Thunder before calling it a night (although, it was techincally well into the following morning by now).  My established position was power forward, or the “4 spot,” so I began my 2K11 courtship with Green.  To my surprise, I was actually controlling a player that was able to can a couple of triples, execute a pump fake and drive-by for a dunk, block shots and control the boards on the defensive end. 

Maybe that’s what Danny Ainge and executive management thinks they’ll get from Green.  There’s no doubt that Ainge was a fan of Green, having initially drafted him – and immediately sent him to Seattle as part of a package for Ray Allen.  Boston has acquired a talented player, but at what cost?

Was a shot at the NBA title worth a guy who comes across well on video games?

I didn’t even acknowledge Nate Robinson.  Good bench player.  Great athlete.  But either he’s moving somewhere else or he’s riding the pine because OKC doesn’t have any more backcourt minutes to hand out.

Other NBA Trades:

Portland Snags Gerald Wallace From Charlotte:

The Bobcats get two 1st round draft picks (2011 conditional, 2013 unconditional), and Portland gets a rugged perimeter guy to mesh with Nicolas Batun for the playoff run.  Both teams seem to get what they need most, so what more can you ask for?  Well, if you’re Portland, you can ask for Brandon Roy to stop coming back when everybody knows he’s not ready yet. 

Baron Davis is on the move yet again.

Welcome to the Q, B-Diddy:

Somehow, the Cavs won and lost this trade at the same time (I guess that means the Clippers won and lost it, too).  But, hey, perhaps Cleveland will just have to digest Baron Davis’ penchant to play selfishly for underachieving teams, and be satisfied with the 2011 1st round pick that’s coming their way.  Two young, talented players are just what the doctor ordered for a franchise trying to regroup.  As for the Clippers, they need a conventional point guard and I’m not sure Mo Williams fits.  So then again, maybe they outright lost this one after all. 

Houston Realizes it’s Still Rebuilding:

The Rockets get rid of Aaron Brooks, and get back Goran Dragic and a future first-rounder from the Suns.  Then they deal Shane Battier to Memphis for a package including Hasheem Thabeet and another future first-rounder.  So, Houston gets rid of its best “now” players for some picks.  They basically aided the Grizzlies chances of getting into the postseason by taking Thabeet off their hands.  That’s what you call “addition by subtraction.”

Knicks Gets ‘Melo:

This trade has been beaten to death, so I won’t harp on it.  But let’s agree not to overlook Chauncey Billups’ value to NY.  He, ‘Melo and Amar’e may not truly classify as a “Big Three,” but get Billups in a playoff series and opponents will see how big he really is.

Nets Steal Deron Williams:

The Jazz did their best to jump ahead of a potential fiasco – which seem to be common these days – with Williams dictating his next destination.  They got a good point guard, an athletic, raw power forward, and 2 1st round draft choices.  It’s not like they were going anywhere with D-Will anyway, so they did great.  On the flip side, it’s a gamble for New Jersey, but I have a feeling that the Nets have told Williams their plans and will come through with another major player before the All-Star can bolt.

Carl Landry to Hornets; Marcus Thornton to Kings:

Poor Marcus Thornton…

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