Paul Pierce. Ray Allen. Kevin Garnett. That’s a pretty fearsome threesome … back in 2003-04. Ray-Ray and KG’s Player Efficiency Ratings were at their highest at around that time, while PP’s second highest PER was in 2003. No doubt their stellar performances led to their appearance in Atari’s Backyard Basketball 2004 (I got my copy from a cereal box a couple years ago), and no doubt Danny Ainge is a big fan of the game, too.

How else to explain why Ainge has put so much stock (and salary) into these three players, leaving little cap room for anyone else of substance? Surely he must intend for Doc Rivers to play the trio and no one else, kind of like Backyard’s 3-on-3 setup. Just look at the dropoff in talent:

• Sophomore lead guard Rajon Rondo
• Center Kendrick Perkins, who’s coming off a disappointing year
• Big man Leon Powe, whom Bill Simmons expects to have a long career – in Europe
• A guy called Big Baby
• Another rookie in Gabe Pruitt
• Yet another rookie in undrafted Brandon Wallace
• Tony “Half-Dunk, Half-Crippled” Allen
• Brian Scalabrine, who’s in the dictionary under “overpaid”
• First-pick-overall flop and free agent Michael Olowokandi
• And a couple of free agent guards – the trigger-happy Eddie House, and Jackie Who?

Not much to work with there, eh, Doc? But Danny’s got the planny. It works great for him in Backyard Basketball.

Hanging in a nice frame in Danny’s office:

“Yeah … 2008 Executive of the Year … Eat your heart out, Colangelo.”

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