Basketball is BACK in Boston

Did the Celtics mortgage their future to get Kevin Garnett in kelly green? Absolutely. Does it matter? Not to me and it shouldn't matter to Boston sports fans either because basketball is a factor in Beantown again.

That's what a superstar caliber player--something the Celtics haven't had since Bird retired--can do. Sure, it hurts to lose a quality player like Al Jefferson but, unlike the SportsGuy, I was never convinced he was a franchise player, somebody you could build a team around. He always felt like a poor man's Elton Brand which is a nice piece but not the keystone that would keep you from getting one of the NBA's all-time greats.

Outside of Big Al the Celtics gave up very little. Gerald Green was a perennial slam dunk champion but he was never going to be an annual all-star, the draft picks don't hurt a ton and Boston fan's should THANK Minnesota for taking Ratliff and Telfair. I will, however, be sad to see Ryan Gomes go because he's precisely the player Ainge will have to go out and find now that the Celtics are short five players. Who will come off the bench? Who will play tough inside and knock down open baseline jumpers? Gomes did those things remarkably well, but Boston has a couple of months to sort those things out.

Even with those question marks, the Celtics are immediately a contender in an Eastern Conference that was won last year by a Cleveland team featuring LeBron James and the four guys who showed up for noon ball. How can you argue with that? Will you watch more Celtics games next year?

I know I will and let's face it, the future was not a luxury Rivers and Ainge had. They had to move now and with this collection of talent they embattled leaders of the Celtics have probably bought themselves two years.

Now the only question is: is it too late to reinstall the elevated train tracks at Haymarket? I have a feeling this team is going to be on TV quite a bit.