Picks 'n Pops: Davison waived, the Jays working out, and voodoo

Every week I gather some thoughts about the Celtics, the NBA, and beyond and dump them here. Because it's such a Leo thing to do, isn't it?

- The Celtics have waived JD Davison. This was an obvious move for a few reasons: 

1. He’s not good enough to contribute on a consistent basis. 
2. There's no need to pay him if he’s not a contributor. 
3. It opens a roster spot for them to bring someone in. 

The Celtics had all 15 roster spots filled and needs in the frontcourt. They can now make an unbalanced trade that sends someone like Anfernee Simons out and brings back two players. They're also back under the second apron. 

I’m really not knocking Davison because you have to be one of the best basketball players in the world to be on the fringes of the NBA. He’s just not in that next class of players. 

And I hear the “he’s the G League MVP” stuff, but that's not a good thing. It means he was in the G League enough to be considered for that award. It’s great to make the most of the situation, and I would have killed to be good enough as a player to be a G League MVP. But that doesn’t make him NBA-worthy. 

Maybe he’ll hook on somewhere and get more of an opportunity, and I hope he does. More likely, he’ll end up overseas, where he’ll live a nice life making a lot of money playing basketball. 

- I know Marcus Smart has been gone for a couple of years now, but the sight of him in Lakers gear is very weird. 

I’m very curious to see the reaction he gets in Boston when the Lakers visit. I’d be in favor of cheers for his first intro and then boos the rest of the way. 

In a weird way, I think boos would show him a level of respect. He’s a Laker now. Celtics fans boo Lakers. Respect the rivalry by treating him like any other Laker. 

- I forget where I said Jaylen Brown would be posting workout videos in a month after his meniscus surgery, but here we are a little more than a month after his surgery.

- Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday had a moment on the floor when Milwaukee faced Boston in 2023 that the NBA clipped and captioned “respect between Jrue and Dame before they battle.” 

Playful banter between friends? A little trash talk between competitors? 

Nah. Lillard was complaining to his landlord about the WiFi. 

I love how we all just assign a meaning to something like this and it just turns out to be the most mundane, normal person thing ever. We never know what these guys are talking about. 

This is like the umbrella man at the JFK assassination. People saw a guy in a suit with an umbrella on a clear day at the site Kennedy was shot and thought he had something to do with it. Turns out he was protesting JFK’s father’s support of Neville Chamberlain by dressing like Chamberlain, who always carried an umbrella. 

- The Celtics reportedly have interest in Ben Simmons …

Joke 1: … which makes me think Brad Stevens might not actually like Joe Mazzulla after all. 

Joke 2: … This is one way to make the Celtics take fewer 3-pointers

Joke 3: … I’ll finally admit that Mazzulla is in love with 3-pointers if he can get Simmons to shoot them. 

- This quote from the story of Jayson Tatum randomly showing up for a surprise workout in Chattanooga is really good. 

“He couldn’t do much,” Robison added. “But what he was doing, the very limited stuff he was doing, he was taking it very seriously and very detailed. All the little small things that we sometimes overlook, he was really good (at them) and did them consistently.”

It’s a little insight into Tatum’s mindset. He’s working every day to do something that gets him back on the court at 100%. 

He’s still in a boot, but it looks like he’s only using it during workouts. He has posted photos on social media without the boot, which means he can probably do some light walking on his own. 

- I think it’s really lame when people casually mention their birthdays just so people can wish them a happy birthday, like in a group of people or in a comments section. 

- Georges Niang is nothing if not self-aware

- I think Kyrie Irving is off his meds again.

- The Clippers did a really good job this offseason, considering their financial situation. 

- After pulling off a head-scratching draft night trade to move up for Derik Queen, he’s now going to miss the start of camp after needing surgery to repair a torn ligament in his wrist. 

I don’t know which witch doctor the Pelicans pissed off, but someone down in NOLA has cursed that team. They need a voodoo priestess to undo whatever spell has been cast on the team in a hurry.  

- No one would have shared the video of the couple at the Coldplay concert if they just rolled with it once they were on camera. The only reason that went viral was because of their reaction. 

It’s the first rule of getting away with something. When something goes wrong, just roll with it and pretend nothing is wrong. Overreacting just raises suspicion. 

- I’m honored to share my birthday with this moment in Boston sports history. 

- I’m also honored to share my birthday with Boston Sports Journal. BSJ is significantly younger than me. 

- The NBA news cycle has slowed way down, so maybe that explains why they ran a big splashy story about Klay Thompson’s new girlfriend. It just happens to be Megan Thee Stallion, one of the most popular recording artists in the world. 

I’m a fan, and this is my column, so I’m saying this news makes it Klay Thompson’s Best Week Ever!

- This week’s AI-generated image … soon to be seen on the streets of Barcelona.

- Here’s my latest podcast, if you’re bored.