Picks 'n Pops: Giannis in the mix, a Coward, and Jaylen Brown putting pressure on the Celtics

Every week I gather some thoughts about the Celtics, the NBA, and beyond and dump them here. Because I think I've qualifed for a Masters in Economics with all the studying I've done on the new CBA. 

- Brian Windhorst suggested Boston could be a destination for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Assuming the Celtics won’t just swap Jayson Tatum for him, they’d have to get under the second apron first before being able to aggregate salaries. 

I’m assuming Jaylen Brown would have to be involved, which makes things tough. It doesn’t solve any financial issues. It just changes the type of player that would make Boston super-expensive. I'm not counting on this happening, but there's a way to do it.

- Man it would be fun to see how Giannis smooths things over with Al Horford after all their interactions ... or Brown after that fake handshake, "Giannis is a child" stuff. 

- I’m not gonna lie. I wouldn’t mind being able to ask Giannis questions in Greek during scrums so I could get exclusive answers. 

- Dallas and the Clippers have emerged as teams with interest in Jrue Holiday. I think the Clippers are more motivated to make a deal and sending Holiday home to Los Angeles would be a nice gesture by Brad Stevens. I think Bogdan Bogdanovic would be fit in my “minimize the damage” mold from yesterday. I get that he is a defensive issue, but no one Boston gets is perfect. I like him as an offensive player. 

- Congratulations to Tatum on his fourth-straight first-team All-NBA nod. 

- We’ve had a lot of teams lose home games in these playoffs and a lot of teams blow leads. The Celtics are not alone.

- One thing I think these Celtics are being robbed of is the application of the lessons learned these playoffs. It’s obvious that they weren’t fully aware of what it took to defend a championship, despite what people like me said. I wish they had a real chance to show us if they are truly a one-trick pony or the Tim Duncan Spurs. 

- Tony Allen is NOT a fan of Cooper Flagg. “I don’t think Cooper Flagg is going to turn your franchise around like that, and I’m serious,” Allen said on a recent podcast. “I ain’t seeing (Kevin Durant) … I’m seeing Andrei Kirilenko.”

First of all, Kirilenko had a stretch where he was damn good. I will not stand for the AK-47 slander.

Secondly, I strongly disagree. I can’t get that Team USA camp out where Flagg was holding his own against the starters as an 18 year old. Get that kid into NBA spacing with NBA teammates and I think he’ll be special. 

But that's just me. I have the guts to side with the massive consensus. 

- The Celtics got bounced in the second round and I’m already sick of waiting for something to happen. Problem is, we’re probably going to have to wait for bigger names to move first before Boston does anything significant.

- Jaylen Brown is making good on his promise to spend even more time in the Boston community this summer. He spent time this week going to several local schools, spending significant time with the students. 

Two things here: 

1. His commitment to the Boston community is always incredible. He is literally changing lives and he deserves all the credit in the world for his years of commitment to uplifting Boston’s youth and poor communities. 

2. This puts a lot of community pressure on the team to keep Brown around. The business of the NBA is probably going to rip that away and these kids are going to be hurt by it. The Celtics are going to need to follow up on that community presence so these kids don't feel robbed. The LAST thing that can happen is Brown gets traded and then no Celtics visit these schools anymore. 

- This is what happens when you mix a franchise that has bumbled its way through the past quarter century with people starving for attention on social media. 

You guys understand you're down 3-2, right?

- Tyrese Haliburton reached out to Sue Bird for some advice on how to balance scoring and passing. 

That up and down stuff she was talking about showed up last night, where he was a complete no-show. Bird is right about what’s next for Haliburton being the most important thing. If he comes through in Game 6, Game 5 will be just a blip on the radar. 

- Haliburton's dad was allowed to attend home games again, which led to a big social media “free pops” reaction, but Haliburton’s quote on the matter was perfect. 

"I know we're saying free pops and pops was free, but he was not in jail. He happened to be in a very beautiful home sitting very pretty watching NBA basketball. He's just fine."

I’m rooting for Haliburton. He seems genuine, and being voted most overrated by an anonymous survey of NBA players had to sting. I’d love to see the Pacers win and Haliburton get Finals MVP just to see him wear the overrated shirt during the parade.

- The biggest thing I’m taking away from these NBA playoffs is a deep, visceral disdain for Karl-Anthony Towns’ game. He seems like a fine young man who is actually very good at basketball, but the way he plays it hypnotizes me into an irrational blind rage. Everything he does seems to go two or three steps further than it should. Everything just seems 40% more absurd than it should be.

- Fifty players have withdrawn from the NBA draft to go back to college, a direct result of NIL money drawing them back to school versus pushing them into the league. That impacts teams at the middle and bottom of the draft because kids can make more money in school than they can on two-way deals. 

I don’t think this NIL system is going to be sustainable. I know people are trying to legislate it away, but I think there might be some natural resetting as boosters wonder where their money is going. 

- People are rushing to anoint the Thunder as the next generational dynasty, but they are all ignoring the fact that the system is now designed to tear them apart just like everyone else. Once those rookie contracts become max contracts, the Thunder will be ripped to shreds … especially because they are in one of the smallest markets and don’t have the resources to pay taxes like everyone else. Their tear-down will be quicker than other teams. 

I tried to talk through it in this Twitter thread if you’re interested. 

- How is the rush to make Anthony Edwards the face of the league going?

- I don’t know how good Cedric Coward is going to be, but I love the headlines he’s producing. 

“Coward forgoes Duke, to remain in NBA draft” 

- I can’t be the only guy hoping he goes to Philadelphia so we can all yell “shoot a three, you Coward!” 

- I love that Ellie the Elephant has become a sensation for the New York Liberty, but in my head I keep wishing for Ellie’s head to fly off during a performance to reveal the person inside as Vinnie DelVecchio, a retired plumber from Red Hook who danced in college and is just trying to make ends meet for his family. 

And yes, in my head, he looks like one of the Gashouse Gorillas, complete with a half-smoked cigar between his teeth. 

- In lieu of the AI-generated images, I’m going to present this … 

This car show video is completely AI-generated. If you’re not paying close attention, it’s damn near impossible to realize it’s all fake. 

The tell is the British biker dude with the indecipherable name who is part of the “Hels Algels.” There are also some background tells, but it’s all getting so much harder to figure out.

This stuff will be very dangerous in the wrong hands. 

- All the dynasty stuff notwithstanding, OKC is looking like a lock to win the title and they will still own the next two drafts. However the Thunder proceed, they look like a team that's built to figure out the future unlike any other in this weird NBA climate. 

I put that on their GM Sam Presti, who is simply having the Best Week Ever!

- Here’s my latest podcast if you’re bored.