Chad Ford reports:
Some good news/bad news for Celtics fans.
The rumblings this afternoon are that Kevin Garnett might back off his "no trade to Boston" demand if the Timberwolves can't work out a deal with the Suns.
Great. Here we go again. I won't believe it till I see it.
The bad news ... if he doesn't, the clock is ticking on the Paul Pierce time bomb. His agent, Jeff Schwartz, told me that Pierce would love to play with KG and is still hoping that the Celtics find a way to bring in a star. However, if he can't, Schwartz said he thinks Paul will ask for a trade from Danny Ainge, the Celtics executive director of basketball operations.
"Danny's got to make a decision," Schwartz said. "It just won't make sense to keep Paul if the Celtics can't compete for a championship. They should trade him and get young players that can help them rebuild."
There it is, the first shot over the bow. Pierce is gearing up for a demand.
If KG says no and Shawn Marion says no -- who else is out there? The Celtics could revist a Pau Gasol trade. An offer of the No. 5 pick, Delonte West and the expiring contract of Theo Ratliff may be enough to get it done. That way the Celtics keep Al Jefferson and don't give up much of their core.
The Grizzlies might just bite at that. They are having trouble deciding between Joakim Noah and Mike Conley at No. 4. This way they could have both. However, we're hearing that the Grizz are also taking to the Hawks about a deal that would send Gasol to Atlanta for the No. 3 pick. That deal would something like this: Josh Childress, Lorenzen Wright, Anthony Johnson and the No. 3 pick for Gasol.
Sign me up for that deal. Do it Chris Wallace. Do us all a favor and get it done.