Feb 19, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett (5) reacts during the first half against the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

There have been a lot of trade rumors involving Kevin Garnett recently which is interesting since he has a no-trade clause in his contract.

The Boston Celtics have been linked to the Los Angeles Clippers involving a Garnett trade but now it looks like that deal may be dead.

The Oklahoma City Thunder is a destination that many would like to see for Garnett.

Garnett in OKC makes almost too much sense on the court. Something tells me Garnett wants to win a title above all else and Boston probably can’t do that for him anymore, not with Rondo out of the picture. Now that the Lakers and Grizzlies have fallen out of the title-contention circle, Perkins doesn’t make sense on the roster. Garnett, as a defensive maestro and leader, does.

Of course, Boston doesn’t even think about this deal unless they’ve committed to rebuild, rebuild, rebuild. That Toronto pick could easily end up in the top seven once Rudy Gay decides to stop making every do-or-die shot at the buzzer. And if healthy, Perry Jones has about as high of a ceiling as any player in the draft (to reiterate: if healthy). Boston probably balks at this deal even with the young, high-upside pieces, but it’s too tantalizing from OKC’s standpoint not to mention.

Via Tom Haberstroh/ESPN

This potential trade would send Garnett, Chris Wilcox and Jason Collins to OKC for Kendrick Perkins, Eric Maynor, Perry Jones and Toronto’s first-round pick.

This would be of course very interesting and overall, pretty unrealistic. The Celtics would have to be committed to rebuilding which they may not be at the moment. They are currently the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference and have a history with this team of believing they can turn it on once the playoffs start.

The Celtics would also probably be more interested in this if they could get a few more draft picks and possibly Jeremy Lamb instead of Jones. Not every team sees Jones for his potential and rather a big risk that probably won’t amount to much in this league.

Garnett in OKC sounds nice but how much better could he even make the Thunder? You have to imagine they get better defensively despite Garnett’s age getting up there.

Garnett could help space the floor a lot better than Perkins too. He has a great midrange game still and would probably be able to take advantage and score in the post a lot in OKC as well.

Garnett said earlier this week that this past All-Star Game would be his last. That might mean the Thunder would only be getting Garnett for one season.

The Thunder aren’t risking too much in this potential deal though. Parting ways with Perkins is something they really should do sometime soon. Maybe they could even get Garnett to play another season.

The trade deadline is tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m. EST. We’ll find out what happens with Garnett then.

Feb 13, 2013; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward/center Kevin Garnett (5) drives against Chicago Bulls small forward Luol Deng (9) during the fourth quarter at TD Banknorth Garden. The Boston Celtics won 71-69. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly discussing a trade involving All-Star Kevin Garnett, according to Yahoo! Sports.

The potential trade would involve the Clippers sending Eric Bledsoe and DeAndre Jordan to Boston for Garnett. Garnett would have to waive his no-trade clause for the deal to go through as well.

Garnett has a home in Malibu and is a close friend to Chauncey Billups, which is believed to make his approval a distinct possibility should a deal be reached.

The Clippers are increasingly confident that they will sign Chris Paul in the offseason, which has increased the odds of dealing Bledsoe.

ESPN reports that Vinny Del Negro is pushing for the trade, but that the Clippers’ front office is against moving Bledsoe and Jordan for Garnett.

Via Yahoo! Sports

There was a rumored trade for Garnett and the Clippers a few weeks ago that would have sent Bledsoe and Caron Butler to Boston for KG. That rumor was shot down shortly after coming out.

This would be a better haul for the Celtics if they can get Jordan instead of Butler in the deal.

The real question is whether the Celtics really want to part ways with Garnett right now. He is in his 18th season in the NBA and will be starting in the NBA All-Star Game tomorrow night.

The Celtics are 28-24 entering the All-Star Break which is good for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. They’ve won eight of their last nine games which have all come since Rajon Rondo was injured and lost for the year.

Garnett said earlier this week that this All-Star Game would be his last. That might mean that he plans to retire after this season and if that is the case, then why would the Clippers consider dealing two of their most promising young players just to rent him?

Adding KG wouldn’t necessarily make the Clippers an immediate NBA title favorite either. They have something good going right now that involves Jordan and Bledsoe quite a bit.

Throw in the fact that Chris Paul is going to be a free agent after this season and if you deal two young players to rent Garnett and it doesn’t work out, maybe Paul will decide to jump ship.

The trade deadline is next Thursday, Feb. 21.

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

The big story yesterday around the league was that the Los Angeles Clippers were pursuing Boston Celtics All-Star forward Kevin Garnett.

The Clippers wanted to put together a package involving Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler to trade for Garnett.

The Los Angeles Times reported later in the day that rumor was not true and the Clippers had not contacted Boston about a trade.

The news about Garnett possibly being on the market is interesting though and there are some destinations for him this season that might make sense for the Celtics.

One place that Garnett could go would be the Oklahoma City Thunder writes ESPN’s Kevin Pelton.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are the most intriguing destination. Upgrading from Kendrick Perkins in the middle would make the Thunder the overwhelming favorite to win the title, and Oklahoma City has enough young assets (including rookies Perry Jones III and Jeremy Lamb and the rights to Toronto’s protected first-round pick) to make a deal like this without overhauling its rotation.

The Thunder definitely do have assets to make a trade this season. Lamb, Jones and the draft picks along with an expiring contract like Kevin Martin mean that the Thunder can do a lot of things if they want to.

Acquiring Garnett and essentially replacing Kendrick Perkins with him would be a definite upgrade for the Thunder. They would surely be thought of as the NBA title favorites if they could pull something like this off.

You have to remember why the Thunder traded James Harden at the beginning of the season. It wasn’t to try and win a title now but to become competitive for the next decade. Getting rid of most of the young assets they have now for a player in his 18th season in the league isn’t exactly parallel with Thunder GM Sam Presti’s vision.

Garnett is without question a much better player than Perkins, both defensively and offensively. He could give the Thunder another option as a midrange spot-up shooter but they already have that in Serge Ibaka. Garnett scores in the post occasionally but it’s unlikely the Thunder would try to feature him too much with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook still getting most of the touches.

Garnett is still an elite defender of the pick-and-roll but how much better is he really than Perkins when it comes to that?

This trade is not going to happen because the Thunder wouldn’t even want to do it even if it technically makes them a little better on paper.

Don’t be surprised if the Celtics come out soon and say that Garnett is not on the market too. It would cripple their team to lose him at this point and it’s not like their season is over. They are 4-0 since Rajon Rondo tore his ACL.

Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly interested in Boston Celtics All-Star forward Kevin Garnett, according to Sporting News.

The Clippers have been in contact with the Celtics about a potential trade. The Clippers put together a package featuring Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler for Garnett.

If the Clippers want to make this move then it means they think they can win a championship this season. Right now they are third in the Western Conference with a 34-12 record.

Bledsoe has had a breakout year for the Clippers this season averaging 9.3 points per game off the bench. He has been a lockdown defender as well and someone that can totally change a game when he comes in.

Bledsoe is just in his third NBA season and the Clippers know they would have to pay him soon if they want to keep him. He won’t demand a max contract by any means but with the Clippers’ plans to lock up Paul along with Blake Griffin, they may want to just capitalize on a high trade value of Bledsoe now.

The Celtics may be looking to blow up their roster to some degree following the torn ACL of Rajon Rondo. The Celtics are currently in the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and have won their last four games without Rondo.

Garnett signed a 3-year, $36 million deal with Boston at the start of this season. He is now 36 years old and in his 18th season in the NBA.

If the Clippers could somehow acquire Garnett this way, they would immediately look like they have a better chance to challenge the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder.

Garnett is still one of the premiere post and pick-and-roll defenders in the league and he would improve the Clippers’ defense, which has been great this season anyway.

Having more size in Garnett and being able to contest the likes of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook better would make it very difficult for the Thunder in a potential playoff matchup. The Thunder already have trouble with the Clippers because of the Paul-Westbrook matchup and this would make it that much more difficult.

This trade is far from happening right now and if the Celtics keep winning, it’s hard to imagine they would trade Garnett even if they could acquire a young stud in Bledsoe for him.

Allen decided to go with the Heat instead of Boston despite the Celtics offering Allen nearly double the salary Miami could.

The defending champion Heat were very much recruiting Allen including LeBron James and Dwyane Wade expressing their desire for him to join the Heat via Twitter.

“We’re not stealing him,” LeBron told Yahoo! Sports. “He’s unrestricted. He isn’t with nobody man. Ray is a huge piece out there. Who wouldn’t want a dead-eye shooter like that, a complete professional and a champion. He has all the qualities for a team to get over the hump or to compete for a championship each and every year.”

LeBron is right. Who wouldn’t want Allen? And Allen clearly chose the place he feels give him the best chance to win a title before his career is over.

Teaming up with other superstars isn’t new for Allen. In 2007, he joined Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce in Boston and they won a title in their first year together and made it to the Finals two years after that and lost.

The rumored deterioration of Allen’s relationship with Boston point guard Rajon Rondo is part of the reason Allen made this decision, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

Allen was also upset by the Celtics’ attempt to trade him at the trade deadline to Memphis this past season. The Celtics were shopping Allen from time to time at some point over the past few seasons.

The Celtics re-signed Garnett to a 3-year, $34 million deal this offseason and also signed free agent Jason Terry who plays the same position as Allen. Allen was not starting in Boston by the end of the season with Avery Bradley assuming the position.

These are all reasons Allen may have considered in deciding on Miami instead of sticking with Boston. It will be weird to see Allen wearing the jersey next season of one of his biggest rivals but that’s sports in 2012.

The Heat are better with Allen for sure. It’s not drastic but these are the kinds of moves that championship teams need to make to be able to repeat.

Allen had conference calls yesterday with the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com. Allen will visit with the Heat and Clippers later this week.

The Boston Celtics have made Allen a 2-year, $12 million offer which is more money than the Heat or Clippers could offer Allen. Miami can only give Allen $3.09 million next year while the Clippers can offer Allen the full mid-level exception of $5 million.

The Heat seemed like the frontrunner last week to get Allen. Now he could make double staying in Boston and the Clippers are looking more and more like title contenders themselves.

The Clippers recently traded for Lamar Odom which gives them another piece they were missing from last season. Playing with Chris Paul also has to be a huge draw for any shooter especially Allen.

The Celtics have also made moves re-signing Kevin Garnett for three years making it clear they want to try and make another run with this core. The draft picks of Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo should also help one of Boston’s problems from this past season by getting bigger.

At the end of the day, going to play for the defending champs in South Beach has to be the place where Allen would feel like he has the best chance to win another title before his career is over.

The Heat showed this season just how much they can featured shooters like Allen too with the performances of Shane Battier and Mike Miller in the NBA Finals. Allen would be a perfect fit next to LeBron and Wade.

It’s going to come down to how much Allen values the potential more money he could make somewhere besides Miami.

Allen has made more 3-pointers than anyone in the history of the NBA so it’s no surprise that teams see him as this valuable despite the fact that he will be 37 years old next season.

The Miami Heat emerged as the early favorites to sign Allen this summer. They can only offer him a little more than $3 million per season but Allen would go there to try and win another ring with the defending champs and LeBron.

The Boston Celtics have now made it clear they are not going to just let Allen walk away.

“We want Ray back, and we’re approaching this as the first thing we have to get done,” Boston GM Danny Ainge told the Boston Herald. “It’s our No. 1 priority.”

The Celtics can offer Allen a contract worth double what the Heat can at $6 million per year. Boston and Miami would most likely offer Allen two-year deals.

The Celtics were rumored to possibly break up after this season but have already re-signed Kevin Garnett to a 3-year, $34 million deal. They will also still have Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo back for next season.

The Celtics are also interested in pursuing free agents O.J. Mayo and Jason Terry. In the draft, they worked on getting bigger drafting Jared Sullinger and Fab Melo in the first round.

Boston may not be going away as quickly as we thought they might. The Heat will still have to worry about them at least a little.

Signing Allen in Miami would be a huge get for them. The Heat don’t have much cap space at all to go after free agents so it looks like getting veterans to come over for a year or two at the end of their career to chase a championship is their best chance of getting better this way.

Allen would be a great fit in Miami just like any shooter is playing alongside LeBron and Wade.

Boston and Miami aren’t the only two teams going after Allen but they are the two frontrunners right now. Dallas, Phoenix and the Clippers have also showed interest in going after Allen.

According to multiple sources, the Heat are hoping to activate Chris Bosh for Tuesday’s Game 5 if he doesn’t suffer a setback in workouts over the next two days. Bosh declined to discuss his status following the Heat’s 93-91 overtime loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday, which tied the series at 2-2.

via ESPN’s Brian Windhorst

After losing their first two games without Bosh to Indiana, Miami went on to win their next five.

LeBron James took his game to another level playing a lot more of the power forward position during that time.

The Heat have looked vulnerable without Bosh in the two games in Boston with Rajon Rondo attacking the paint with ease and Kevin Garnett having big games as well.

The Heat will certainly need a healthy Bosh to win a title this year. We will see what Bosh looks like for Game 5. If he is back to looking 100 percent, people might start talking about the Heat as the team to beat again.

Bosh injured his abdomen in Game 1 of the Heat’s series with the Pacers last round and hasn’t played since. The Heat won five games in a row without Bosh before losing Game 3 in Boston.

Bosh was expected to return in this series at some point. He traveled with the team for the first time for their last game and was seen participating in basketball drills.

The Celtics dominated in the paint in Game 3 scoring 58 points there with Kevin Garnett leading the way with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

LeBron James was really the only bright spot for the Heat in their Game 3 loss scoring 34 points.

The Heat will need a healthy Bosh to compete for a championship but aren’t desperate enough yet to rush him back to the court.

If Boston can even the series tonight and put a little more pressure on the Heat in this series, we could be seeing Bosh back soon. But the Heat do not plan to bring Bosh back before he is absolutely ready.

The NBA Draft Lottery will be held tonight at 8:00 p.m. EST on ESPN.

The Charlotte Bobcats have the best chance of landing the number one pick and Davis who compares his game to Kevin Garnett and Serge Ibaka’s.

He said he mirrors his game after Boston’s Kevin Garnett offensively — “he can shoot mid-range and still score in the post” — and defensively after Oklahoma City’s Serge Ibaka — he “can alter shots and he’s now the best shot blocker in the league.”

Via ESPN’s Andy Katz.

Davis certainly shares similarities to Garnett and Ibaka and if he can become a hybrid of the two then he will surely be worth the first overall pick.

Davis dominated the college game this season leading the Kentucky Wildcats to a national championship, head coach John Calipari’s first.

Davis played center for Kentucky and was the best shot blocker the college game had seen in a long time. Davis also possessed guard skills and was initially recruited by colleges as a guard before having a giant growth spurt at the end of his high school career.

Davis could play some center in the NBA but his truer position might be the power forward slot in the stretch-four fashion.

Davis would definitely thrive alongside a dynamic point guard like John Wall in Washington or he may have trouble really proving his value if the Bobcats land him and have little talent to surround him with.

Davis and his family can only wait until tonight to find out where he will end up and they are very anxious to.

“We’ve been on edge,” Davis Sr. said. “All the guessing will be done (Wednesday) and we’ll know where he’ll go. He’s been focusing on the workout and basketball but we’ll find out which way the (ping pong) balls will drop (Wednesday).”

David Butler II-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (3-game winning streak)
106.1 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.2 Defensive Efficiency (14th)
96.2 Pace (4th)

Celtics (4-game losing streak)
97.9 Offensive Efficiency (23rd)
95.3 Defensive Efficiency (3rd)
91.0 Pace (29th)

The Thunder have been hot of late and the Celtics haven’t. The Celtics have had to deal with a lot of injuries and other reason for players missing games and have lost their last four. Kevin Garnett missed the last two games for personal reasons but is expected to return tonight. Rajon Rondo will also be out tonight serving the second game of a two-game suspension from earlier this week for throwing a ball at a referee. The odds are really stacked against the Celtics and the Thunder should have no problems tonight. James Harden and Nick Collison sat out two nights ago for the Thunder but neither had serious injuries and both could play tonight.

Thunder keys to the game

1. Durant and Westbrook

No duo has been hotter in the NBA than Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and there’s no reason they shouldn’t continue to ride this hot streak right into the All-Star Break. The duo each scored 31 points in the Thunder’s win over New Orleans Monday night and combined for 91 the night before against Denver. In the first meeting against Boston this season when the Thunder won 97-88, Durant scored 28 and Westbrook 26, including a barrage of threes to close out the Celtics late in the fourth quarter. Tonight will be impressive to watch Westbrook as Avery Bradley will likely be assigned the task of guarding him. Bradley is one of the better defenders in the league and an athlete but he will just look like a poor man’s Westbrook tonight.

2. Fast break

The Celtics are one of the older teams in the league and play the second slowest pace. The Thunder are at their bets when they get out and run and without Rondo tonight Boston should really have trouble trying to keep up with the Thunder. Look for the Thunder to run every chance they get even more so than usual tonight.

3. Contesting every shot

It sounds simple but it is really important when playing to Boston to sell out and get a hand up on every shot. The Celtics are the worst team in the league on the offensive glass so it all comes down to stopping that first option on offense when playing them. Without Rondo the Celtics shouldn’t be able to get as many good looks as they normally would. Paul Pierce played his bets game of the season up to that point the first time these teams met and the load will be even heavier for him tonight. Oklahoma City just needs to make everything difficult and they should have no trouble blowing out Boston tonight.

Prediction: Oklahoma City wins 103-79.