Danny Ainge should not mortgage the future of the Celtics trying to save this season

The NBA negotiation deadline is approaching March 25, and Danny Ainge’s expectation of doing something is palpable. The president of basketball operations for the Celtics has a $ 28.5 million exception for switched players that he can use to improve the Celtics roster which, for a number of reasons, lacks depth of quality.

Although the TPE can be carried over for the summer, there is an expectation that Ainge, the president of the Celtics’ basketball operations, should now exercise it from a vocal element of the fan base, who forgot how to find any satisfaction in seasons that don’t end with a parade.

If he doesn’t use it to make an important move, there will be a lot of fuss on the part of these people and many hours waiting on hold for 20 seconds of glory in the air on his sports radio program of choice. Maybe 30 seconds, if their opinion is especially pessimistic.

I am afraid to hear that if Ainge does not do a remarkable deal. But from the general point of view with the Celtics, I’m pretty sure I’ll be relieved if Ainge fails to make an important move and instead add secondary parts at a low cost.

Here’s why, or in fact, the whys:

– Even with the switch to one of the biggest names potentially available – say, pivot Nikola Vucevic of Magic – the Celtics will not be a true contender for the championship this season. There is no obvious agreement to suggest that this would take the Celtics to the Sixers / Bucks / Nets level at the Eastern Conference. Fans want Ainge to make the switch now that he should have done last year, when Gordon Hayward was still here, and the path in the East was not that scary.

– The mission should be to build around 24-year-old Jaylen Brown and 23-year-old Jayson Tatum, players already legitimately excellent – they combined for 43 points in Sunday’s All-Star Game – who made a constant and generally careful improvement in their careers.

– Making a switch to an established name now that it is an uncertain long-term adjustment would be detrimental, especially if it costs the Celtics certain young players who are able to complement Brown and Tatum in the next great Celtics team.

I doubt he is alone in resisting any suggestion that the Celtics should be willing to give up on Robert Williams III in a deal by a player like Vucevic. Watching Williams’ rise – as a general player, and in the micro sense, when he gets up to kick or end a dead end – has been the most satisfying aspect of this strange season so far. In his third season, Williams is more than a fan favorite. He’s becoming a weapon. It is almost as if he is rewarding patience.

However, I suspect that I am on a sparsely populated island with regard to the desire to retain Romeo Langford and Aaron Nesmith, even if it means losing a constant veteran who would help immediately. The last two number 14 picks in the draft – Langford before last season, Nesmith before this one – have done little as NBA players so far. Langford has played just 32 games – none this year as he is recovering from wrist surgery – in his career, averaging 2.5 points per game and 35% field shots. Nesmith fought in almost every way that a novice can do.

This does not mean that they are busts. And I don’t believe they are. Langford’s injuries are worrisome, but even for a limited time as a rookie, he was a willing defender and a gentle striker. Brad Stevens was prepared to give him a big chance in the Eastern Conference finals against the Heat, bringing him into Game 2 against the Heat with less than five minutes of play. He lasted 81 seconds before breaking an adductor muscle that ended his season. But there are real signs that he may be the right hand to complement Tatum and Brown for years to come.

The same goes for Nesmith. He has difficulties with his shot (39.7 percent) and tends to lose himself in defense, but he tries hard, and as soon as the game gets a little slower for him, he will be a quality 3D player. We saw signs – he had 13 points in 14 minutes recently against the Hawks. He would have benefited greatly from a summer dance and a regular training camp. It makes sense that adjusting to the professional game was easier for Payton Pritchard, a four-year college freshman.

Langford and Nesmith could become major contributors to the Celtics when Brown and Tatum were the heart of their noble in a few years. It takes time with all the young players. Chauncey Billups jumped from Boston to Toronto to Denver to Orlando to Minnesota before becoming Mr. Big Shot with the Pistons.

The 2001 Celtics replaced newcomer Joe Johnson, who showed flashes of excellence on some nights and was imperceptible on others for Suns by Tony Delk and Rodney Rogers. Delk and Rogers helped the Celtics reach the final of the conference. Johnson the 10^º choose in the 2001 Draft, made seven All-Star teams in 17 seasons.

I am not saying that Langford and Nesmith will ever reach that level. But I think that sometimes fans confuse them with the later choices on the list – Grant Williams, Tremont Waters, Carsen Edwards, etc. – when they have a lot more promise and pedigree in basketball.

In fact, it comes down to Ainge’s assessment of them, and whether he is so hopeful about their future when he designed them. I believe the answer is yes. There are names being considered that would help the Celtics in the short term, and maybe even a little more, but at what price and with what reward?

I could be convinced to speak of the versatile and respected Harrison Barnes of Sacramento, as long as Ainge sent the Kings a series of future choices as the main attraction. Larry Nance Jr. of Cleveland would be a good option at a reasonable cost. Thaddeus Young, of Chicago, aged 32, would help the cause for now, but it would be much more attractive if he were four years younger.

But this is not the time for a quick fix that mortgages the future. Not in a season in which a submission would require significant injuries to about half a dozen other teams from the Eastern Conference. This is not the year of the Celtics. It is normal, even encouraged, to be realistic, although I recognize that there are good reasons for optimism. Two reasons, in fact. We saw them at the All-Star Game Sunday.

Ainge should reach that switching deadline with the idea of ​​bringing together the best Celtics team in a year or two, not now. And if he really must have a veteran presence, hey, a guy named Joe Johnson was really good for the American basketball qualifying team in the USA a few weeks ago.