What was the experience of making a deal with Danny Angie?

As Angie and his deputy Mike Zaren accumulate assets and future draft picks through continuous trading, once a team enters the free market, Boston always appears in the news of its next home. When people like Jimmy Butler, Paul George, Anthony Davis and James Harden enter the market, the Celtics always have some rumors with them. Sometimes, when these players confirm their next home, Angie will personally appear in response to the interview, suggesting that Boston is "close" to completing the transaction. "Close" to complete the transaction has become a stumbling block after Boston's trading rumors in recent years.

In recent years, due to Angie's outstanding performance in transactions, there are voices that he must "win" every transaction. In order to find out whether this kind of voice is true or not, Celtic blog invited 16 members (current or former) of the NBA uniform team to talk about their trading experiences with Anji and Celtic. 16 Respondents (from the final decision maker of the transaction to the assistant level of the uniform group) were asked the following five questions:

What's the experience of dealing with Angie and Celtic? Does Angie like to overcharge in the transaction, as the media said? How far do you think Angie is from closing the deal? Do you think Angie "won" every deal? Do you like the deal with Boston?

As the interview was anonymous, all the interviewees answered the questions very frankly. The following is the positive response from members of the uniform group, who have dealt with Angie and Boston.

What's the experience of dealing with Angie and Celtic?

-general manager of an eastern team: "In my past experience, I have to communicate with the Celtics layer by layer. For us, before we talk about the deal with Angie, we will talk to Mike Zalen first. Mike is tough enough, because your plan must be flawless and correct. Your proposal better meet the salary cap, otherwise Zaren will stop the negotiation. I believe he is a man of his word! Once it's settled with Zaren, Angie is not too difficult to deal with. He may try to make a little change, but I always feel that his request is reasonable. In general, it is only a few minor changes, and we will also fine-tune the trading plan. "

-An assistant to the general manager of the Oriental Team: "First of all, you should understand that our job is to talk about transactions every day." One person sends a text message to another, asking what they think of a plan, or more directly asking if they would like to contact a player. This is almost the norm every day.

For me, I spend a lot of time every day negotiating with other teams and members of my uniform group at the same level, including Mike Zaren. The most important thing I learned from him is that your trading plan must conform to the trading rules. I swear that he has a computer in his head and can quickly know which trading schemes are simply not feasible.

After that, my boss and I will talk to Mike and Angie. Bosses will make some fine-tuning, but they understand the framework of the agreement. In this case, draft picks, protected draft picks or other conditions will be involved, and few other players will participate in the negotiations. "

-members of the western uniform team: "they (Boston) are very difficult. Danny always asks for money, and Zaren knows all the tricks in the salary cap clause. I have to make sure that the whole team is negotiating with them in the office, because I'm afraid I'll miss something. I don't like that they always ask for extra returns when the transaction is about to be completed. Although we finally reached an agreement, they always asked me to do more work to complete the transaction. "

-general manager of an eastern team: "I hate talking with Anji because I always feel that I will lose some assets. Once, he called me to ask a player who didn't rotate on the team at all. The player played almost five games in two months. I immediately felt inexplicable panic and called my uniform players and scouts to ask them if we had missed anything (talent). Why did Boston trade him? This is what you consciously consider when you talk to Anji about trading. "

-Assistant to the general manager of a western team: "It is the easiest thing to talk to them about trading, because they will not mess around. You ask one of their products that is not for sale, and they will immediately tell you not to waste time. When Angie and Mike don't want players on your team, they will stop trading immediately. Once, on draft night, they told us it was best to discuss the draft. They don't want our players. This may sound harsh, but we are all busy on draft night. In such a tight time, I will appreciate this honest answer. "

-An assistant to the general manager of the Oriental Team: "I think it depends on the time. Near draft night, Boston wants to trade, and trade quickly. Every team does this, but at different speeds. I guess it's because they have been trading draft picks on draft night for years.

In the offseason, Boston won't move so fast unless it's a trade deadline or a player signing or other factors. We talked with them about some transactions, and Angie and Mike quickly adjusted and revised the terms, which made it difficult for us to keep up. My boss and I can tell which players are in each team, but Mike can tell you the salary of each player, and the error is only a few dollars. I hope the person in charge of the salary cap in my team can be like Mike, so that we can react quickly and don't need to spend time calibrating the data. I will also let our people use our model to run the transaction, and Zarun will tell me the result of his calculation and the salary structure of our team in the next three years.

Trading is the best in the season, and the pace is not slow. We can exchange some ideas, and it is very good to make a deal with them. Because Boston has rich trading experience, it is very good at attracting trusted third parties to trade, which is also very convenient. "

Does Angie like to overcharge in the transaction, as the media said?

-an assistant to the general manager of the western army: "(laughs) of course! In my experience, yes. I don't think they just want to be the winner in the transaction, but he really wants to get everything he can in the transaction as much as possible. Once, our general manager hung up the phone and said that he felt that Angie just fooled the team into what jersey to wear next season and the exchange rights of every draft pick in the future (laughing again). Talking to Angie about this deal is really nerve-racking. "

-member of the uniform group of the Eastern Team: "Absolutely! We lost several deals with Boston because they were too strong for some extra assets. Sometimes a player, sometimes a draft. It used to be a draft signing right that we didn't think was valuable, but we should stick to the principle. God knows if he will land in the NBA and play an excellent career. Unfortunately, we accepted a lower offer than Anji promised and traded him. "

-member of the uniform group of the western army: "I don't think Anji is better than others. We are all strong, but not without reason. We made a deal before and negotiated for nearly a month. We negotiate, think separately, and then exchange opinions every four or five days. During this period, there was no quarrel or face-slapping. Finally, we gave in a little, and they paid a little more chips and finally reached a deal. This is how most transactions are made. Another time was at the closing date of the transaction, and we tried to reach a deal but failed. This is not because Anji is too strong, but the transaction does not match. "

-member of the uniform group of the eastern team: "I once talked with my buddies in the same city football team about the experience of making a deal with the New England Patriots. When they asked me why, I said it was because it was the same thing in Boston. They will set a point at which the transaction will be stopped and there is no room for bargaining. My buddy said with a smile, patriots are like this. I found that Celtic knew exactly what they wanted and refused to give in, which made people angry and learned something. At least they won't waste your time. "

-general manager of a western team: "Yes. We have made some deals with Boston, but we often bring in third-party teams. I think Angie knows what he wants, and he is very confident that Zaren can legally make the transaction happen under the salary cap. In most cases, they are right. So I won't blame them for doing this, but when you think this is a fair deal, Boston wants more, which is very frustrating. To reach a deal with Boston, you must have the courage to stop negotiations. "

How far do you think Angie is from closing the deal?

-member of the eastern team uniform group: "in the NBA, trading a star or sending a star away is the most difficult transaction." Few people are willing to give up a lot of chips or get little return (trading stars). Because Boston has a lot of draft picks and chips, as well as young players with good contracts, I believe they have many opportunities to complete this transaction. "

-Assistant to the general manager of an eastern team: "It is difficult to define near completion." I won't say the deal is close to completion unless we report it to the team boss. I guess it depends on how to define proximity. I think that sometimes when we say that we are close to completing the transaction, we mean that we have done our best. For example, when Anthony Davis entered the free market, we made an offer. Are we close to closing the deal? No. Have we tried? I tried. It all depends on the definition of proximity. "

Assistant to the general manager of an eastern team: "You know the rules of trading. We put forward a protected top 55 rotation for a player with the best level in the team, and then we can tell the media that we tried to trade him, but failed to reach an agreement. This may be a close deal in Boston. Maybe not so extreme, but you know what I mean. This is the lens of the media, especially when you have been in the league for so many years like Anji. "

-Assistant to the general manager of a western team: "It may not be very close, but it shows that they have tried all the possibilities of trading." It is no exaggeration to say that the deal we talked about was only 1%. I mean making a deal, not asking. The transaction must be legal and completed in fact, accounting for almost only 1%.

You see, this means that we are not always close to closing the deal. So Boston won't be so close to the deal, but if Angie or Zach or others say they are close to closing the deal, it may mean that the two sides have exchanged plans. "

I believe Angie has said it many times, but you must understand that sometimes you have to say something to comfort the media and fans. No one wants the general manager to do nothing every day. Maybe the Spurs can do this because they have been winning, but in other places, fans expect you to be more proactive. And with so many draft picks, I'm sure Angie has been doing some moves under the pressure of fans.

I look at it this way: I'm not sure how far Boston is from completing the deal, but if you don't have players like Tatum or Jaylen Brown, it's not worth paying a lot of players and draft picks to trade Anthony Davis, especially because Thick Eyebrow may not renew his contract, so Angie simply quit the negotiation. I think Angie was right to quit the negotiation without paying too high a price. "

-Assistant to the general manager of a western team: "People always say that the best deals are often those that have not been made. In a sense, it is true. But Boston has so many draft picks, traded some players to get Owen, but wasted so many assets. I think if Angie was willing to give up some draft picks last season, he could trade more substitutes, and they certainly regret not doing so. "

Do you think Angie "won" every deal?

-general manager of an eastern team: "didn't you say that he made almost 60 transactions in 20 years?" If you didn't win most of the deals, you wouldn't have been the general manager for that long (laughs). "

-Assistant to the general manager of a western team: "He got KG and ray allen, won a championship, and now he has two young stars. I know this is only a small part of the deal, but these two big deals are very important. These two transactions are very risky, but he won thoroughly. "

-member of the uniform group of the East Army: "If you don't know how to trade like Anji, you won't last long in the position of general manager. I think his first playoff lineup for Stevens on 20 14 was excellent. They made nearly 12 deals that season. Every transaction is a minor repair, but every transaction is great. "

-general manager of a western team: "I think Angie won a beautiful big deal, but she was a little casual in a small deal. He tried to find backup assistants for KG Pierce and ray allen, but he never found the right answer.

Especially recently, they had the opportunity to exchange some players for draft picks, but they didn't do so. What do they have now? A lot of young players crowded the bench and used some good draft picks to cancel the contract. This may be where Angie miscalculated. "

-Assistant to the general manager of an eastern team: "It is enough for him to win the most crucial big order. Kind of like the Buffalo Bills. They are close to the champion but haven't won the cup yet, but at least they are in the champion echelon every year. This is largely due to the correct transaction and signing made by Anji and Zhalun. "

Do you like the deal with Boston?

-general manager of an eastern team: "Yes. It is easy to negotiate with them. Danny will tell you that he is not interested, then tell you the plan that he is interested in or leave the negotiating table directly. My team likes Mike Zalen because he is not arrogant at all. He may point out that your plan doesn't meet the salary or other terms, but he won't laugh at you for it. And Boston is good at finding third-party teams to join the transaction.

By the way, if they will trade you to their players again, they will tell you in advance. Personally, I don't care about this, because the players are no longer mine, but some general managers are very annoying. I think they may be worried about reaching an agreement, but that's not what I need to worry about, but if Boston considers trading him again, they will say so. "

-member of the uniform group of the Western Army: "No comment (laughs). Frankly speaking, I don't like it very much. It is very difficult to reach an agreement with them, and they always demand an answer very strongly. We prefer to master the trading rhythm ourselves and not rush to reach a deal. We reached an agreement, but I told them to wait until we were satisfied with the plan. This is the practice in Boston, and they force you to make mistakes. "

Assistant to the general manager of a western team: "I like to make deals with them, but it's because of my relationship with Mike. He is a very cooperative person. I think the deal between my boss and Angie is more difficult, but we have reached some deals, which are beyond the trading framework negotiated by Mike and me without exception. "

-member of the uniform group of the Eastern Team: "No! Not at all. I'm afraid they know something I don't, especially on draft night. Maybe I'm just a little anxious, but they have always been honest with me. But I began to worry about what talent potential they saw that I didn't see. "

-general manager of an eastern team: "I enjoyed it very much. I have no complaints about Boston. Their style is to enter the negotiation quickly and leave the negotiating table quickly. There may be a lot of conversations, but it won't waste your time. They are honest with you without mercy. Once I asked him if he was interested in one of our players, and he replied directly that you asked because he couldn't play. Why do I want a player you don't even want? They are right. He just can't play in the NBA.

In most cases, I am grateful to those who are willing to cooperate with you. You need some assets that they don't have? They'll find you a third party. Want to join the transaction as a third party? They are glad to hear your proposal. When they call you, they will tell you what they want quickly. If you tell them that someone is not for sale, they will try again, but they won't bother you too much. They will keep calling back to ask if the situation has changed, but they won't call you occasionally like others. When you refuse them, they also respect you, because they respect people who are equally straightforward.

Look at this year, Charlotte doesn't need to sign before trading Hayward. They didn't get rid of any contract, but also ate a contract with an extension clause in batum. But they did it anyway, because Boston helped them get Rosier by signing first and then changing. This is how Boston establishes a fair and good relationship.

I think Angie has made so many deals with so many teams because he has no bad comments. No one feels that they have been concealed or cheated, which is very important in our business. You must establish credibility. When I make a deal, I trust Boston. "