KG to the Celtics: Championship contenders?

OK, I admit it, the Celtics are going to be fun to watch next year.

Combining the sharpshooting of Ray Allen and Paul Pierce is already good enough, but adding a fantastic rebounder and scorer in Kevin Garnett just make this team look so much better.

In the Eastern Conference, this team will definitely become playoff hopeful, no doubt about that. But why is everyone already proclaiming that they'll be CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDERS?!

Seriously, have you guys even noticed how there's officially, as of right now, only nine guys on the roster?

I mean, I know, the team is going to be good, but who are they going to get as bench? Hell, their point guard and center starters are...well...extremly "lacking" in basketball talent as of right now. I mean, Perkins might develop into a fine center soon in the league, but right now? Do you honestly think he's going to step up in his game over night? He's averaging four points and five rebounds right now...I don't think it's going to get any better, folks. And don't even get me started on the fact that they have NO back-up for their center and point guard positions.

The most obvious source of this comes from the 1987 NBA Finals. I was thinking about that Boston Celtics team of that year, and about what the guys at basketbawful said. They had NO bench. At all. They basically hobbled through two seven game series before meeting the Lakers, and basically lost the title due to fatigue. And they had MORE good starters than Boston has now. DJ, McHale, Parish, Bird, and Ainge all could score and shot the basket very well. The current Boston team now are NOT as good as the 1987 starting line-up was, then.

So what should they do? The obvious thing is to go after some free agents, but still, they're seriously LACKING a bench right now. You know your bench is in trouble when Brian freakin' Scalabrine is one of your best bench players.

I mean, I think they'll make the playoffs and all, but keep in the mind that the fact of the matter is, they have no bench, no starting point guard, and no starting center.

There's not enough free agents that are any GOOD to fill those spots out.

So, where to go to? I've got some ideas:

P.J. Brown: Hell, there was that one playoff game in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals where he led the squad in scoring. I'm sure he could be a great second rebounder besides Garnett. And hey, by the time he retires, maybe a nice Center will be an unrestricted free agent for them to snatch away?

Troy Hudson: Not counting whatever the hell happened to him last season, Hudson has shown that he can be a good piece of energy off the bench.

Darrell Armstrong: The Pacers don't need him. He's a point guard. He's played under Doc Rivers before. You do the math.

Here's to hoping that the Celtics improve.

But 2008 Eastern Conference Champs? Nah.