The great Jim Morrison penned the lyrics of the classic Doors song “The End” in 1967. Today, those words eerily relate-able to the state of the Boston Celtics franchise.

This is the end

Beautiful friend

After watching the Green Machine get dismantled by a rejuvenated New York Knicks squad in six games, it doesn’t look like the Celtics can get it done anymore. Their key cogs are in serious decline and most of them are entering the twilight of their careers. Paul Pierce struggled with his shot, Kevin Garnett’s motor seemed to sputter for long stretches of games, and Jason Terry, who was supposed to energetically fill the void left by Ray Allen’s departure, was nowhere to be found for most of the series. Even if Rajon Rondo is able to fully recover from knee surgery and get back to being the dominant force he has been in prior seasons, it still won’t be enough to get a good playoff run out of this roster.

Of our elaborate plans, the end

Of everything that stands, the end

The major mistake, on Danny Ainge’s part, came during last summer, where nostalgia and loyalty took priority over common sense. With a bunch of expiring contracts on hand (including those of Garnett and Brandon Bass, among others), he had the opportunity to remake the face of a franchise that sorely needed to go in a new direction. Instead, Ainge decided to shell out bloated contracts to a host of veteran players, with the downside being that he now has little-to-no wiggle room to try and retool a team that is regressing into oblivion. The mirage of their almost-elimination of the Miami Heat has led Ainge to handcuff himself under the new CBA regulations.

Can you picture what will be

So limitless and free

Desperately in need…of some…stranger’s hand

Should the Celtics tank it and start a fire sale at next season’s trade deadline? A seemingly far-fetched suggestion for such a proud franchise, but it may not be such a bad idea long-term. If they can rid themselves of some of the cumbersome contracts (although, which GM in their right mind would take either Courtney Lee or Jason Terry at a $5 million cap hit? How about Bass at $6 million?), stockpile some younger assets and/or draft picks, the possibility for a quick and somewhat painless turnaround is there. Trading one of the big three of Pierce, Garnett and Rondo probably won’t happen, given that all of their contracts expire within the next two years. That being said, if Rondo doesn’t pick up right where he left off upon his return to game action, I don’t see him as untouchable either.

The west is the best

The west is the best

Get here, and we’ll do the rest

The model for success is out there, most notably in the Western Conference. It entails keeping your contracts manageable and your roster balanced, athletic and deadly from behind the 3-point arc. Balanced also doesn’t mean a roster of freshly-minted college stars either – the Spurs are most an older team, but the right role players who can shoot and run with Parker, Ginobili and Duncan are what have them in the hunt for a title this year. It’s a construct the Celtics should try and mimic come the offseason.

This is the end

Beautiful friend

This is the end

One thing is certain: we are closing in on the end of an era for the Celtics, for real this time. A rebuild and quick turnaround is easier said than done, but not out of the realm of possibility either. For his part, Ainge has done plenty of good work as GM to compensate for some notable missteps in recent years, with Jeff Green for Kendrick Perkins now looking like a steal for the green-and-white. For a team that’s not used to missing out on the chance to chase a championship, it may very well take a few years out of the contender’s circle in order for them to become the unstoppable force they once were.

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