Carry on my Hayward Son: Gordon to Charlotte for 4 years, $120M

benhogan

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Funny thing is, Kevin Durant did basically exactly what some in this thread are advocating for (taking less money and declining the chance to be a clear-cut alpha dog to play on more of a contender with a number of other great players), and he was raked across the coals for that (and "Decision"-era LeBron before him). Athletes, particularly those that command high salaries, are always going to get criticized no matter what decision they make.
Yep
 

nighthob

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Why do people keep calling Boston a “good situation” for two Midwesterners raising a young family? Culture shock is rarely a good thing when you may not be comfortable with the lifestyle change.
Honestly if I had kids there's no way I'd still be n Boston. And I'm a bloody native.
 

nighthob

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Is it really that difficult for deca-millionaires to raise children in Weston or Brookline?
I'm guessing that as laid back midwesterners it's probable that they really don't want their kids growing up in an environment where they're taught that their choice of breakfast cereals is a political act.
 

Euclis20

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The guy was basically snakebitten with injuries while he was here, and his status on the team went from lead wing and shiny all star to 3rd wing and cautionary tale. Sometimes people just need a fresh start. It's early but both parties seem to be doing well on their own. Maybe Hayward regrets going to a team without a clear title shot at some point, but he can console himself with his tens of millions of extra dollars. Maybe the Celtics regret not having a jack of all trades big wing with experience late in the playoffs, but it's not like they had a healthy or effective Hayward during the playoffs when he was on the roster anyway.

Sometimes things just don't work out. There doesn't need to be judgement or guilty parties, it just is what it is.
 

scottyno

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Maybe Gordo wants to lift up the Charolette market? Build it into something akin to the center of theNBA world that OKC had? Maybe he wants to be the guy to wash the bad executive stink off of MJ?
If he can get them out of the first round they'll be above anything OKC has done recently.
 

DJnVa

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I'm guessing that as laid back midwesterners it's probable that they really don't want their kids growing up in an environment where they're taught that their choice of breakfast cereals is a political act.
So I guess they won' t be enjoying that delicious Chick-Fil-A breakfast biscuit.
 

scottyno

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Exactly. I don’t remember this much analysis of Gordon’s decision when he left a better team in Utah to come to Boston in the first place. It’s a fool’s errand to try to figure out what drives these decisions when we know so little about them personally or what their motivations are.
Maybe because the Celtics were much closer to a title than Utah was at that point.
 

nighthob

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So I guess they won' t be enjoying that delicious Chick-Fil-A breakfast biscuit.
In Charlotte? No one would care. In Boston? Some beefhead would snap a photo with their $999 iPhone, post it on Twitter with calls for their heads. People in this area are insane, and the Hayward kids wouldn't get a lot of privacy.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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I'm guessing that as laid back midwesterners it's probable that they really don't want their kids growing up in an environment where they're taught that their choice of breakfast cereals is a political act.
Wow, $180MM doesn't get you many places to raise your kids these days. Or friends apparently.
 

nighthob

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I mean large swaths of the country are laid back. The northeast isn't one of them.
 

Jimbodandy

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Pretty confident that kids, grand kids, kids' grandkids, grandkids' grandkids, grandparents, dogs, cats, birds, and everyone else is already taken care of.

P.S. Lots of people decline raises to work in unknown situations to stay in good situations. There are a few threads of the sort in the TBLTS every year.
Yeah I did that in May. 8% raise plus 10% bonus boost, but pandemic.

Wasn't millions of dollars difference though.

Edit: reading that back, and it looks like a humblebrag. I just decided that the extra 8% pay and possible bonus wasn't worth leaving my employer's hyper-covid-conservative embrace. We're still full WFH. People aren't always motivated fully by money. A 50% raise, and it may have been a different call though.
 
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HomeRunBaker

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So I guess they won' t be enjoying that delicious Chick-Fil-A breakfast biscuit.
It’s just not like that in the south. The Rock was working out in our gym back when I lived there and he wasn’t looked at any differently than the next guy. It’s just different than say a Boston.
 

DJnVa

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It’s just not like that in the south. The Rock was working out in our gym back when I lived there and he wasn’t looked at any differently than the next guy. It’s just different than say a Boston.
I know it's not. I am in the south. It was tongue in cheek.

Of course, some of us in the south are still judged for eating that sweet, sweet Chick-Fil-A.
 

BigSoxFan

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I know it's not. I am in the south. It was tongue in cheek.

Of course, some of us in the south are still judged for eating that sweet, sweet Chick-Fil-A.
Not by me! I love Chick-Fil-A and was ecstatic when they moved to the northeast.
 

HomeRunBaker

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I know it's not. I am in the south. It was tongue in cheek.

Of course, some of us in the south are still judged for eating that sweet, sweet Chick-Fil-A.
That’s what I get for not reading who the author of the post was at 2am lol.
 

Salem's Lot

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In Charlotte? No one would care. In Boston? Some beefhead would snap a photo with their $999 iPhone, post it on Twitter with calls for their heads. People in this area are insane, and the Hayward kids wouldn't get a lot of privacy.
+1

I don’t think people get how much of a fishbowl that certain markets are. Privacy not only varies from market to market but also sport to sport.

There is no way that I'd want to play for the Red Sox, Patriots, or Celtics if I had kids. You literally can’t go anywhere without people recognizing you, photographing you and your family. Every move you make is all over talk radio. It sucks. And I’m a local as well.

It’s the same way with NHL players in Canadian markets. IMO a big reason why no Canadian team has won a cup since the lockout. If given the option, and the money was basically the same, where would you rather live? Montreal where it’s insane for your family, or Tampa where no one really cares?

IMO it’s the reason why Betts didn’t want to sign a contract here unless it was for money that he couldn’t refuse.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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TripleOT

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I watched most of the Hornets-Raptors game. Down two with 29 seconds left, Hayward shied away from the possession, which wasn’t successful and resulted in the loss.

Hayward looked like he did when healthy in Boston: efficient offense for himself, along with smartly setting up others. However, on that young Charlotte team, he needs to be the man in crunch time, by initiating and scoring, or dishing to capable shooters like Rozier, and he didn’t do that last night.
 

Euclis20

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Hayward's per game numbers this year vs his last year in UT are nearly identical.

Minutes: 34.9 v 34.5
Points: 21.5 v 21.9
Rebounds: 5.4 v 5.4
Assists: 3.7 v 3.5
Steals: 1.2 v 1.0
Blocks: .4 v .3
Turnovers: 2.0 v 1.9
FG%: .485 v .471
3P%: .421 v .398
FT%: .860 v .844
3P attempts: 5.1 v 5.1
FT attempts: 4.3 v 5.9

It really is quite remarkable. His 3P% has ticked up a bit and his FT rate is down, but other than that the two seasons are (statistically) indistinguishable. It also feels a bit odd that he was a deserving all star in a tougher conference back in Utah, but this year not only did he not make the team, it never even seemed like a possibility (I don't see any place listing him as a snub or near miss).
 

NomarsFool

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I think it is more challenging to make the All-Star team from a poor team. Granted, Charlotte is no worse than Boston this season - but I think the perception this year is still that they will be a lottery team by the end of it.
 

HomeRunBaker

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I think it is more challenging to make the All-Star team from a poor team. Granted, Charlotte is no worse than Boston this season - but I think the perception this year is still that they will be a lottery team by the end of it.
It’s really hard right now to make an All-Star team especially for a wing as the guard/wing depth in the game today is better than ever. One of the Jays would have had to get bumped for Hayward to make it this year.
 

NomarsFool

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Jaylen is listed as a guard. So, Hayward would have had to beat out Tatum or Durant or Sabonis or Randle which ain’t happening. Probably the most questionable could be Ben Simmons, who has fairly pedestrian offensive stats. But, he is so often discussed as one of the best defensive players in the league and Philly is having a great year.
 
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HomeRunBaker

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Jaylen is listed as a guard. So, Hayward would have had to beat out Tatum or Durant or Sabonis or Randle which ain’t happening. Probably the most questionable could be Ben Simmons, who has fairly pedestrian offensive stats. But, he is so often discussed as one of the best defensive players in the league and Philly is having a great year.
Simmons has been sensational offensively as well over the past month. So hard to call players being snubbed when there simply isn’t a roster spot for them.
 

NomarsFool

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I hate it when media talk about "snubs". If someone wants to make a comment about someone who should be an All-Star, they should combine it with at least one example of who that person would replace. For example, Scal felt that Sabonis should have made the AS list instead of Vucevic (Sabonis was eventually added because of Durant's absence).
 

Kliq

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I hate it when media talk about "snubs". If someone wants to make a comment about someone who should be an All-Star, they should combine it with at least one example of who that person would replace. For example, Scal felt that Sabonis should have made the AS list instead of Vucevic (Sabonis was eventually added because of Durant's absence).
Yup, LeBron said Booker was the most disrespected player in the league for not getting named originally to the ASG, but failed to mention which player he thought Booker should replace.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Yup, LeBron said Booker was the most disrespected player in the league for not getting named originally to the ASG, but failed to mention which player he thought Booker should replace.
It wasn’t going to be Lillard or Mitchell. It “could” have been Paul.....but it shouldn’t have been. Like we are saying.....someone will always be on the outside looking in.
 

DJnVa

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So, at the end of the day, Hayward moved on because he wanted to be more involved, more of a focal point.

In Charlotte, he played 44 of 72 games, and based on his per36 numbers, he took 1.3 more shots, slightly fewer threes, grabbed fewer rebounds, had the same number of assists, and averaged 2 more points per game, with most of that increase coming because he took more FTAs.

His usage bumped from 21.1 to 23.9. So, I mean, I guess he got what he wanted.
 

Jimbodandy

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So, at the end of the day, Hayward moved on because he wanted to be more involved, more of a focal point.

In Charlotte, he played 44 of 72 games, and based on his per36 numbers, he took 1.3 more shots, slightly fewer threes, grabbed fewer rebounds, had the same number of assists, and averaged 2 more points per game, with most of that increase coming because he took more FTAs.

His usage bumped from 21.1 to 23.9. So, I mean, I guess he got what he wanted.
Yes, he did.

https://hoopshype.com/player/gordon-hayward/salary/
 

mcpickl

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So, at the end of the day, Hayward moved on because he wanted to be more involved, more of a focal point.

In Charlotte, he played 44 of 72 games, and based on his per36 numbers, he took 1.3 more shots, slightly fewer threes, grabbed fewer rebounds, had the same number of assists, and averaged 2 more points per game, with most of that increase coming because he took more FTAs.

His usage bumped from 21.1 to 23.9. So, I mean, I guess he got what he wanted.
And he was.

Last year he averaged 35 front court touches a game, this year he averaged 42. A 20% bump.

He was 39th in the league in that category last year, 9th this year.

He was much more involved than he was here.
 

DJnVa

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And he was.

Last year he averaged 35 front court touches a game, this year he averaged 42. A 20% bump.

He was 39th in the league in that category last year, 9th this year.

He was much more involved than he was here.
Yes. I said he got what he wanted. But in the end, despite more front court touches, it really doesn't look all that different.

Wonder what would have ended up happening had he stayed--roster wise this offseason.
 

Jimbodandy

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Yes. I said he got what he wanted. But in the end, despite more front court touches, it really doesn't look all that different.

Wonder what would have ended up happening had he stayed--roster wise this offseason.
There's definitely something to what you're saying. He would have gotten his hands on the ball plenty here.

I think that the move was less about a demotion than the optics of a demotion in place. Sometimes it's easier to take the same crappy job somewhere else.
 

the moops

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There's definitely something to what you're saying. He would have gotten his hands on the ball plenty here.

I think that the move was less about a demotion than the optics of a demotion in place. Sometimes it's easier to take the same crappy job somewhere else.
And the same crappy job that paid him quite a bit more
 

nighthob

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Yes. I said he got what he wanted. But in the end, despite more front court touches, it really doesn't look all that different.

Wonder what would have ended up happening had he stayed--roster wise this offseason.
I said this after the fact, but the mistake was in signing Kemba (kudos to Ben Hogan for realizing this before the rest of us). Boston should have just let Gordo take over that role and focused on replacing Horford in the clubhouse and bringing back Rozier to be the fourth option.

Walker looked great until the All Star game, yes. But the clubhouse probably wan’t a cheery place with Hayward and Brown jockeying for position in the pecking order. And Hayward losing out due to all the injuries.
 

Imbricus

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Boston should have just let Gordo take over that role and focused on replacing Horford in the clubhouse and bringing back Rozier to be the fourth option.
In the best of all possible worlds, sure. But as I recall, Rozier seemed like he had already soured on the Celtics his final year; remember how we used to dread him coming into the game, because there were times Rozier appeared to be just playing for Rozier. I think it all started going south when Kyrie showed up, and he had to play second fiddle when he was already envisioning himself as a starter. My guess is the relationship might have been beyond repair, though keeping Rozier at a reasonable salary would have been a much better option, agreed.
 

Cesar Crespo

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In the best of all possible worlds, sure. But as I recall, Rozier seemed like he had already soured on the Celtics his final year; remember how we used to dread him coming into the game, because there were times Rozier appeared to be just playing for Rozier. I think it all started going south when Kyrie showed up, and he had to play second fiddle when he was already envisioning himself as a starter. My guess is the relationship might have been beyond repair, though keeping Rozier at a reasonable salary would have been a much better option, agreed.
Ainge and Rozier were buddy buddy.
 

Imbricus

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Ainge and Rozier were buddy buddy.
Well, Rozier definitely wasn't happy about his role, and I wonder if, when he spoke so publicly about that, Ainge might have held it against him, even if they did have a good relationship before. This was a good article where Rozer laid out his feelings:
Things was all good before we actually started. I still had the positive mindset that we was going to make it work, but ever since that day that Kyrie announced in front of the fans that, if we would like to have him back, he would come back, things I feel like shifted left for me.
 

TripleOT

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So Boston was spared another Hayward injury plagued season where he was not available for the playoffs.
T
With Melo Ball figuring to have the ball in his hands all the time, GH will have to get many of his touches with the second unit. At least the climate is better in Charlotte.

Charlotte could have better used that $32 million per on a big, since they don’t have any playable guys over 6’7”ish.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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I said this after the fact, but the mistake was in signing Kemba (kudos to Ben Hogan for realizing this before the rest of us). Boston should have just let Gordo take over that role and focused on replacing Horford in the clubhouse and bringing back Rozier to be the fourth option.

Walker looked great until the All Star game, yes. But the clubhouse probably wan’t a cheery place with Hayward and Brown jockeying for position in the pecking order. And Hayward losing out due to all the injuries.
They were trying to save the salary slot. For better or for worse.
 

HomeRunBaker

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In the best of all possible worlds, sure. But as I recall, Rozier seemed like he had already soured on the Celtics his final year; remember how we used to dread him coming into the game, because there were times Rozier appeared to be just playing for Rozier. I think it all started going south when Kyrie showed up, and he had to play second fiddle when he was already envisioning himself as a starter. My guess is the relationship might have been beyond repair, though keeping Rozier at a reasonable salary would have been a much better option, agreed.
Rozier was entering his free agent year and should 100% have been all about Rozier. Imagine knowing that you are a 30+ mpg starter and buried on the bench while playing your sparse minutes out of position in a contract year? He had every right to be bitter.
 

Jimbodandy

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Rozier was entering his free agent year and should 100% have been all about Rozier. Imagine knowing that you are a 30+ mpg starter and buried on the bench while playing your sparse minutes out of position in a contract year? He had every right to be bitter.
I hope that Terry gives you as big of a cut from his deal as Tristan gives reggie.