DHL Dan CCLIX - Talent Needed

Shank's weekly column longs for the return of Red Auerbach and his renowed trading prowess:

Longing for good old days of Celtics trades for championship-caliber talent, not payroll flexibility, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while cursing the first person who uttered “payroll flexibility” …

Remember way back in June 1983 when Red Auerbach traded lumbering center Rick Robey to the Phoenix Suns for controversial guard Dennis Johnson? That was in the good old days when Red’s cigar was just a cigar and an NBA trade was just a trade — a debatable swap of talents.

I miss those days. Sure, there were often forgettable draft picks tossed into the deals, and occasionally some petty cash changed hands, but for the most part it was talent for talent and fans enjoyed making a case that the Celtics had maybe given up too much or (more likely with Red) won the deal and acquired a better player who’d help win another banner. Hello, DJ.

We loved it. Through the years, the Celtics traded Paul Westphal for Charlie Scott, Cedric Maxwell for Bill Walton, and let’s not forget Red’s Mormon grandson, Danny Ainge, swapping Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair, and two future first-rounders for some guy named Kevin Garnett in 2007. A horse for five ponies and two picks. It was beautiful. It was sports. It was fun.