Celtics notebook

West left with no hard feelings

He sensed trade was inevitable

The Celtics' Kendrick Perkins battles Seattle's Chris Wilcox for possession of the ball. (KEVIN P. CASEY/Associated Press)

Email|Print| Text size – + By Marc J. Spears

Globe Staff / December 28, 2007

SEATTLE - Delonte West has no ill will toward the Celtics for trading him to the SuperSonics in the offseason. In fact, West would have made the deal, too.

West averaged 10.4 points and 3.8 assists in three seasons with the Celtics. The 6-foot-4-inch, 180-pound guard was dealt along with forward Wally Szczerbiak and the draft rights to Jeff Green for seven-time All-Star Ray Allen and the draft rights to Glen Davis on draft day. West said after the Celtics won just 24 games last season, he knew "something was going to happen."

"If I was a guy in the front office and I had an opportunity to get the likes of a Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and [Kevin Garnett] on the same team, I'd try to do anything I can to make that work," said West, who had 19 points in last night's 104-96 loss to the Celtics. "That's just understanding the game and the business side. Right now, I'm worried about getting Sonics basketball to be a legitimate force in the West."

West was in Jamaica when the trade was made and got the news during a phone call from his brother. The Washington, D.C.-area native, who played at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia, said the hardest aspect of the trade was moving across the country for the first time.

"It wasn't about coming to a different team," West said. "It was more so about leaving the East Coast. I always thought Seattle was at the top of the map, by Honolulu somewhere. That was the biggest thing, moving everything far from home."

Garnett is tops

Garnett remained the leader in All-Star balloting after the second returns yesterday. The forward had 1,186,690 votes, while Cleveland's LeBron James was second with 1,005,733 votes. Fans vote for the starters and Garnett, a 10-time All-Star, appears poised to start the 57th NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans Feb. 17. The starters for both conferences will be announced Jan. 24 and the reserves will be announced Jan. 31.

Allen and Pierce will likely have to be voted in as reserves. Allen was fourth in Eastern Conference voting with 464,810 votes behind Miami's Dwyane Wade (777,764), New Jersey's Jason Kidd (559,333), and Vince Carter (468,051). Pierce, a five-time All-Star, was fourth in voting among forwards with 268,926 votes behind Garnett, James, and Toronto's Chris Bosh (313,983).

Seattle finale?

Last night's game was the 55th meeting between the Celtics and Sonics in Seattle, and possibly the last. Although locals are hoping a new arena plan will save the day, the Sonics are expected to move to Oklahoma City under their new ownership with Oklahoma ties.

"We understand the issue of relocation is out there," Sonics first-year general manager Sam Presti said. "But it's not something we can control. Our basketball team is focused on doing our job every day. The players and coaches have done a good job of staying concentrated at the task at hand. That's how we've chosen to go forward."

Allen has said fans, and not just Sonics fans, have told him they hope the Sonics stay in Seattle. He added that he would do anything needed to help the Sonics stay put.

"People have bad feelings about that and don't want to see that happen," Allen said.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers also said it would be a shame for the Sonics to leave because of their storied history and the fact they are located in one of America's best cities.

"A year ago when they started to talk about [moving], I thought it was a joke," he said. "I thought there was no way they were going to leave. I guess the joke is on me, because it doesn't look good. I hope they can work it out because this is a great basketball city."

O'Brien picks Pistons

Although the Celtics have the best record in the East, former Celtics coach Jim O'Brien told the Indianapolis Star yesterday he believes the Pistons will win the conference.

"They're my pick to win the East and they'll have to take care of business against the team in the West," said O'Brien, now coach of the Pacers. "I have a lot of respect for Boston and other good teams in the East, but I like how long this [Detroit] group has been together. I'm a big [Detroit coach] Flip Saunders fan. I think they have all the ingredients to be in the Finals."