In looking at Boston's current roster/salaries as well as its needs a few things become obvious. For starters the Celtics have a ton of money committed already and therefore do not have a lot of money to bring free agents into the fold. In addition to that the Celtics must decide what they will do with their own free agents, most notably James Posey once he exercises his player option. Furthermore, given its financial situation Boston will not be in the running for high profile names. Not only could the Celtics not pay such a player, but they would also have to fit that star in with Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce who have already spoken a great deal about their sacrifices to the team. Another star, more sacrifices. Still it would be nice if Boston acquired a reliable ball handler. Enter Delonte West. As I see it there are several problems with this scenario:

1. West is a restricted free agent. He worked his way into the starting point guard role in Cleveland, showing some promise in the process. One can assume he would be even more comfortable after a full training camp. Meanwhile, I can't imagine the Cavaliers would let him walk to a conference rival unless the offer sheet were too ridiculous to match. And given Boston's aforementioned financial obligations that is unlikely. In fact this point alone probably renders the rest of this post meaningless. And yet I will forge ahead.

2. Why would West go from being a starting point guard, with LeBron James no less, to Rajon Rondo's back up? In fact word on the street is that West wants to return to Cleveland:

"The qualifying offer to West is worth $2.76 million. West also wants to return to the team. His agent, Noah Croom, said the Cavs have indicated to him that they want to re-sign West." - Bob Finnan

3. He hates the Mass. Pike and I don't blame him. The tolls are ridiculous.

4. Boston's owners don't like controversy. Remember how quickly they acted after Sebastian Telfair was arrested? And even though this was not West behaving badly and it was not a major story, it could hurt his cause.

Having said all that I still think it's worth exploring the possibility of West returning. He can handle the ball, is a defensive upgrade over Sam Cassell and Eddie House, blocks shots surprisingly well for his size, is a better than average shooter, and arguably the funniest player in the NBA. Of course that last one does not matter. Regardless, even if the climate around the Celtics has changed dramatically I'd still like to see West pick up where he left off in terms of marketing:

Delonte West Hanger Commercial (via TonyAllen06)