NBA Rumors: Boston Celtics Nervous About Trading For Los Angeles Clippers Star Blake Griffin

While NBA fans are quick to approve of trades involving superstar players, general managers have to look a bit deeper before they make such a big commitment for their team. According to the Boston Herald, the Boston Celtics are a bit nervous about trading for Blake Griffin, one of the three franchise players for the Los Angeles Clippers.

Last season, Blake Griffin missed a good amount of the NBA regular season because of a partially torn left quad tendon. Though he was able to make a return to the basketball court, Griffin saw his season end when he injured the quad tendon again during the NBA Playoffs.

There are those in the NBA that are concerned that the quad tendon has not yet fully healed. That is said to be the reason why Blake Griffin has decided to sit out of the Olympics this summer. The 6-foot-10 power forward needs to be ready for whatever team he is playing for next season.

According to CBS Sports, the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers, and Sacramento Kings have been in discussion on a major blockbuster trade that would involve Blake Griffin. The 27-year-old big man would be sent to the Celtics and paired up with former Atlanta Hawks center Al Horford to form one of the best front courts in the NBA.

One of the reasons why Los Angeles Clippers president Doc Rivers is considering the move is because he feels that the roster needs to be more balanced if they want to truly become a threat to the Golden State Warriors, a historically dominant team that just added Kevin Durant to an already stacked roster.

Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge has quickly rebuilt the roster. Since they made the NBA Playoffs sooner than anyone expected, Ainge wanted to speed things up even more by acquiring big name free agents. Al Horford was considered quite the prize for Ainge.

Danny Ainge is one of the more meticulous and patient executives in the NBA. If he feels that Blake Griffin is not a long-term solution for the Boston Celtics, then he is not going to handicap the team and their future by making a trade just for the sake of doing it.

The Boston Celtics have already proven that they are not afraid of letting players leave if they do not feel that they are long-term solutions. Jared Sullinger played pretty well for the franchise last season, but his conditioning was a concern. After being released, Sullinger signed with the Toronto Raptors, as reported by ESPN.

Another concern for the Boston Celtics is whether or not Blake Griffin would actually wanted to remain with the team on a long-term basis. Griffin has an option in his contract that will enable him to become a free agent next summer, when the salary cap in the NBA is expected to rise yet again.

With Kevin Durant leaving for the Golden State Warriors, the Oklahoma City Thunder are now facing the very real possibility that star point guard Russell Westbrook could leave via free agency next summer. Danny Ainge has been keeping a very close eye on that situation because signing Westbrook would be quite the coup for him.

Then again, Danny Ainge could shock the NBA by figuring out how to clear enough salary cap space and build himself a new powerhouse trio. With the combined superstar power of Russell Westbrook, Blake Griffin and Al Horford, the Boston Celtics could become legitimate competition for LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

For now, though, the Boston Celtics are trying to figure out if Blake Griffin is worth the risk.

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