Boy, that escalated quickly... I mean, that really got out of hand fast. Shoals just
passed on word the deal is 'essentially done.' An extension to keep The Big Ticket in Boston for eternity is also just about done, according to
The Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett.
The softly whispered extension rumor from yesterday (when, I repeat,
a blogger broke this story first) said something like $125 million, five years. That would indicate Garnett opts out of his current deal a la
Paul Pierce next summer to take the bigger, longer one.
You know what else that would mean? Garnett, Pierce and
Ray Allen would earn roughly $60 million in 2008-09, and about $64 million in 2009-10. Yes, the team will be close to the luxury tax for the next three seasons
on just those three salaries. (Meanwhile, San Antonio's Big Three -- Duncan, Parker, and Manu -- will cost about $40 million a year during that stretch.) And if the purported trade scenario comes true -- most good young Celtics prospects and a handful of draft picks are due to Minnesota -- then the well for cheap but productive role players is bone dry. Even funding the midlevel every year would get too pricey with luxury tax considerations.
Unless
Wyc Grousbeck has a U.S. mint in his basement, Boston's going to be relying on three horsemen to capture the ultimate glory. Will it be enough? We'll see.
Glen "Big Baby" Davis won't miss the entire season with his thumb injury, as initially thought possible. But he'll still sit for the six to eight weeks, according to Yahoo!'s Marc Spears, who spoke with Davis on Tuesday after the third-year forward underwent surgery earlier in the day. 
