Celtics lack starpower and nobody is untouchable

The Boston Celtics should be growing tired of playing the part of plucky underdogs.

Under Brad Stevens' tutelage, the Celtics have vastly outperformed expectations as they quickly developed into a playoff team. But getting kicked in the teeth in both their first-round exits under Stevens made one thing abundantly clear.

The Celtics lack star power. Short of fixing that, more playoff miseries are to come.

Diminutive point guard Isaiah Thomas is the closest thing the Celtics have. Having been selected to an All-Star team for the first time in his career, Thomas was blunt in his assessment of the roster after getting bounced in Game 6.

"We ain't got no Michael Jordan here. Anybody can go," Thomas said when asked if he would be part of the core going forward.

Thomas did his absolute best to carry the team. He averaged 24.2 points and five assists per game against the Hawks, and even threw in a 42-point explosion in Game 3. But the Celtics were still a botched play away from a gentleman's sweep.

Thomas can't carry the team on his own, at least not in the postseason. He needs help.

The question then becomes how the Celtics would go about getting a star. General manager Danny Ainge certainly isn't shy, and he's been collecting assets since Paul Pierce left town to ensnare a star when someone becomes available.

This is what Ainge has to show for it: The Celtics could have nearly $60 million in cap room next summer, along with a horde of surplus draft picks, and movable contracts. As far as big game hunting goes, Ainge is working with a full clip.

But making value-add plays is the easy part. The difficult part, as Ainge would certainly admit, is actually getting a star to join the team, or getting a team to trade their star.

The Celtics reportedly chased the likes of Al Horford, Jimmy Butler, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Love, and Jahlil Okafor at the trade deadline. But despite making a million calls and dangling a godly picks package, Ainge found no suitors.

It's akin to last summer, when Ainge tried to move six first-rounders for the chance to draft Justise Winslow. The Charlotte Hornets rebuked the proposal and used their pick on Frank Kaminsky, while Winslow slipped through the cracks to the Miami Heat.

The lesson here is that trading for stars is tough - even when the Celtics are overflowing with trade assets. Ainge caught lightning in a bottle in 2008 when he brought the Big Three together. Can he do it again?

Another route would be to recruit free agents, but when was the last time a major free agent signed in Beantown? Dana Barros in 1995? Ainge will presumably make a run at Kevin Durant like every other team in the league, but it's no guarantee that he can get his hands on top-level talent, especially in a summer when nearly two-thirds of the league has max cap room.

That leaves the development route. There's no obvious superstar on the Celtics' roster, but that pick owed from the Brooklyn Nets could land somewhere near the top of the lottery. Perhaps drafting a Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram could give the Celtics the foundational player they so sorely lack.

But developing talent comes with its own challenges. Re-orienting the team around a 19-year-old takes plenty of patience, and that might not align with the team's immediate chances of winning.

Whatever path they choose, the Celtics know where they need to go. Ainge has done a masterful job of building everything else - the right coach, the right set of cost-controlled role players, a young roster with room to grow - but it's come time for his finishing touches.