Danny Ainge Came Out Today And Called Marcus Morris On His Bullshit
This whole back for forth with Mook is tough for me. While he was here there's no doubt that his shot selection sent many Celtics fans into a blind rage on numerous occasions but he was also a pretty fucking good Celtic. He was tough as nails, he actually cared, and if you remember he pretty much put this team on his back for the first half of last season. Mook is 100% a guy you want in the foxhole with you and while I was sad to see Avery Bradley go when that trade went down a few years ago, I'd say Mook more than delivered what was expected of him while he was here.
Which is why his comments from when these two teams player a few days ago seemed weird
“I just refuse to watch any Boston Celtics games,” Morris said. “I refuse. I’m in New York now. I thought it was a great possibility of me coming back here. So, by me not even getting that opportunity or getting that chance to have that, I refuse to do anything with Boston.”
Morris said he initially felt convinced he would land back in Boston, especially after Kyrie Irving and Al Horford decided to leave in free agency. Morris believed the team would want to keep him around. When the Celtics declined to show interest, he tentatively agreed to terms with the Spurs before signing with the Knicks. Though New York has had a slow start to the regular season, Morris said he likes the makeup of the roster and appreciates head coach David Fizdale.
Morris does not necessarily hold a grudge against Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, but wishes the organization at least would have contacted him when free agency opened on June 30. Morris thought he deserved at least that much.
“I wouldn’t use the word upset,” Morris said. “Just kind of disappointed. I tried hard to be a leader for this team. During our tough times, I felt like I always was a bright spot for this team. In the two years I was here, I was nothing but professional, I did everything right. As a player, you want to get rewarded for those things. I’ve been fighting hard ever since I’ve been in this league, every single year. And I just felt as though just a phone call would have done me justice. So, it is what it is.”
Alright, so who's lying. If Ainge is telling the truth, and the team really did offer him a 3 year extension before last season after his first year in Boston and Mook declined preferring instead to play out the final year, well that's on him. I'm no cap wizard but I'm pretty sure even with Kyrie and Horford leaving, had they kept Mook that puts them out on Kemba, and as much as I like Mook as a player, that simply makes no goddamn sense you're Danny Ainge. We all know Ainge and the Celts were locked in on Kemba wayyyyy before free agency officially started so my guess if they knew well in advance that they weren't going to be making Mook an offer. Now is Ainge lying when he said he talked to Morris after the season but didn't make an offer if Mook's biggest gripe is that they didn't contact him on July 1? My guess is if that after the season conversation actually took place, Mook had an idea that the Celtics were going in a different direction which would make a call after free agency opened meaningless.
But, as someone who has made it their life's work decoding what Danny Ainge says in radio interviews, I am well aware there is always like 43% bullshit in whatever he says. The Danny Ainge spin is famous and very well known to anyone who follows this team. You have to understand it's his job to make sure the reputation and perception of this team doesn't go south in the eyes of the other players in the league. Even though he called Isaiah and told him when all that shit went down, there's no denying that he and the team took a hit for that trade. So it's probably not the best look to have a guy who also played hard for you to come out and talk about how you couldn't even give him the time of day once free agency hit. For Ainge to drop that 3 year bombshell, something I'm not sure ANYONE reported at the time, is classic Danny Ainge PR 101.
If anything, Marcus Morris should be thankful to the Celtics, Ainge and Brad. They were the ones that allowed him to shoot however much he wanted and he had some of his best years of his career in Boston which ultimately led him to getting $15M this year from the Knicks. That Spurs/Knicks situation is way more fishy than anything Ainge probably did anyway, but Morris is off to a great start as a Knick with 17.9/5.3 averages on 42/47% splits with 2.5 3PM a night. He's doing just fine.
Someone's lying though, and honestly it wouldn't shock me if both sides are stretching the truth just a little bit.