Entering the Unforeseen

After being eliminated from the playoffs Wednesday night in Miami, Celtics GM Danny Ainge now must re-tool his aging basketball team before their window of opportunity to win a championship expires for good. 

And just like that, the Boston Celtics' season, and quite possibly their recent four-year reign of dominance, is over.

Self-inflicted victims of countless turnovers coupled with an epic fourth quarter meltdown, the championship-or-bust Celtics saw their pursuit of Banner 18 go up in a cloud of Miami smoke Wednesday night in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. In losing to the younger, faster and stronger Heat, 97-87, the aging Celtics not only drop the series to Miami, 4-1, but, more importantly, they find themselves at a troubling crossroads plagued with more questions than answers.

The first question being: is their window of opportunity to win another championship now closed?

To answer in one word: yes.

If the second round series against the Heat proved anything to Boston fans, it's that our beloved Big Three, despite their unrivaled experience and unparalleled credentials, are flat out too old to get it done by themselves anymore. As good as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen still are, they cannot shoulder the lion's share of the championship-chasing burden anymore. In a dog-eat-dog NBA where fresh legs rule over all, Boston's Big Three simply has too many miles on the basketball odometer to continue at the pace we've been accustomed to seeing from them.

However, as painful and depressing as this all may sound, it still doesn't mean the Celtics can't win a championship next season. All it means is that the Celtics roster, as it currently stands with the Big Three as the centerpiece, cannot do it on their own.

As a result, the Celtics future now falls directly in the hands of GM Danny Ainge. The mad scientist that restored pride in Boston by landing KG and Allen in the summer of 2007 now has no choice but to pull a few more tricks out of his sleeve in order to ensure one final run at a championship in the Big Three Era.

On the bright side, Ainge does have options. After signing a multi-year extension last offseason, Pierce has three years remaining on his deal and, as a result, any tinkering of the roster will be made with the Captain in mind. However, Allen and Garnett find themselves in the final year of their deals. And, while it pains Celtics fans to admit, with Allen on the books for $10 million and KG $21 million next season, their expiring contracts would be greatly appealing to a team looking to unload salary in a trade, especially if it came later in the season around the deadline.

Beyond trading Allen or KG, Ainge could also hang onto them and add a piece like unrestricted free agent Nene Hilario to the puzzle. Not only would the Denver big man finally fill the void left by the mid-season departure of Kendrick Perkins, but Hilario is also just 28-years-old and could be a major chip in the rebuilding process centered around Rajon Rondo and Jeff Green.

Or, Ainge could sacrifice next season, hang onto Allen and KG and then let them walk after season's end. This strategy would erase $31 million off the books while also making the Celtics a legitimate contender to land one of 2012's prized free agents: Dwight Howard, Deron Williams or Chris Paul.

In the end, the possibilities are almost too much to fathom at such a dark period in time.

Sure, we can play scenarios in our mind all day about trading KG or signing Nene in an attempt to continue the dynasty, but all that many Boston fans can do right now is sit and wallow in the utter sadness and disappointment of watching our beloved Celts fall to the hated-Heat.

Of blowing an 87-81 point lead with less than five minutes remaining.

Of being outscored 16-0 in the final 4:29.

Of watching our beloved Big Three go down without a fight.

It's going to take a long time to recover from Wednesday night's Game 5 loss. Not because of the loss itself, but because of its ramifications.

Get to work, Danny.

The window's still open, but just barely. The Big Three need some help. And the responsibility falls on the Celtics GM to find a way to get them one more championship before it's too late.