Celtics F Kevin Garnett has been a top target of other teams as tomorrow's NBA trade deadline approaches, but any decisions by the Celtics regarding Garnett or F Paul Pierce “will transcend hoops strategy and take into account all the tickets, jerseys, and sponsorships they sell,” according to Callum Borchers of the BOSTON GLOBE. It is “impossible to fully quantify the business impact of a trade, but several economic indicators show just how lucrative the Pierce-Garnett pairing has been for the Celtics.” The current owners bought the team in ‘02 for $360M and by the ‘06-07 season, the team was “worth about” $367M. In the six years “since Garnett’s arrival, the Celtics have almost doubled in value” to $730M. In the six seasons “before Garnett started playing at the Garden, average attendance there was 16,554.” In the six seasons “since, it has been 18,541, a 12 percent increase.” The Celtics’ “popularity surge has enabled the club to command higher ticket prices.” The windfall “brought on largely by Garnett and Pierce only complicates the already knotty prospect of trading either one.” There is “no guarantee new players replacing Garnett, Pierce -- or both -- would deliver comparable financial rewards” for the Celtics ownership group. Clemson Univ. sports marketing professor Tom Baker said, “When you’ve got players who have been there as long as Pierce and, to some extent, Garnett, there’s certainly a negative impact from trading them” (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/20).
