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If you haven’t noticed, the Celtics are in a state of minor disarray right now. On the court, they’re just 8-11 since Christmas, Paul Pierce(notes) is out with a foot injury, Ray Allen(notes) can’t find a consistent shooting stroke, Kevin Garnett(notes) doesn’t look fully recovered from his knee problems, and Rasheed Wallace(notes) has been a disappointment. Off the court, Allen is the subject of copious trade rumors, Rajon Rondo(notes) is talking about locker room issues, and Garnett is saying that stuff should be kept in-house. The situation can be rectified before the playoffs, but things are clearly heading in the wrong direction in Boston.

Yet the important thing to note is that a sharp downturn was always an expected aspect of the Three-Leaf Clover project. Bringing together three aging stars who were already past their time was a short-term plan all along, the sort of team that could win a championship early and see diminishing returns each year thereafter. Perhaps things weren’t supposed to get this ugly, but things were bound to fall apart at some point.

The first and most obvious reason is that Pierce, Garnett, and Allen already were entering the late stages of their careers when they met up with the Celtics. Allen was 32 and had played in only 55 games the previous year, Pierce was 30 by the start of the season and coming off a 47-game season, and Garnett was 31 with no significant missed time in a 12-year career based on ludicrously high-intensity play. Granted, Pierce and Allen might have played in more games the previous season if their teams hadn’t been in full-on Oden/Durant tank mode, but the indications were clear that all three players were not in their primes anymore (or with Pierce, at least had started the slip from superstar status). If they wanted to win a championship, they’d have to do it quickly, before everyone’s wheels started falling off.

Before their championship in 2008, most expected the Celtics to contend for a few years and fall off swiftly. The team was even constructed with this in mind—veterans like Sam Cassell(notes) and Eddie House(notes) were expected to make solid contributions while the Boston Three Party ravaged the countryside, and youngsters like Rajon Rondo and Glen "Big Tween" Davis were meant to become progressively more important parts of the unit. If all went according to plan, the Big Three would fade into the distance, and Rondo and Co. would be solid enough to turn the rebuilding years into something better than atrocious.

Somewhere along the way, though, Rondo turned into one of the best young point guards in the league and a bona fide star, the best player on the Celtics this season. This has obviously been a positive development for the team: everyone gets easier shots, he was an X-factor in several playoff series they might not have won without him, and the future looks a little brighter. Rondo isn’t just a fourth star to add to the group—he’s one that improves the play of everyone around him.

But as Rondo gets more attention, the Celtics change from "the Big Three" to "the Celtics, and boy that Rondo kid is really good." Pierce, Garnett, and Allen are still major components of the team, but it’s not all about them anymore. In other words, the rationale for constructing this team in the first place has given way to a new order that no one seems totally sure of, which leads to the sort of squabbling we’ve seen from Boston in recent weeks. Putting three stars on the same team always had the potential to turn into a clash of egos, but ubuntu worked because everyone from the Garnett down to the Scalabrine knew his exact role. Now things are a little less clear.

Then again, if the Garnett, Pierce, Allen team-up always had a relatively short shelf-life, then maybe it’s best that things get messy. For one thing, it’ll make obvious who should stay and who should go. Allen can be moved for reinforcements before he becomes untradable. That would also clear the way for Rondo to take on a bigger role without anyone having their feelings hurt. Garnett can remain as spiritual leader and defensive lynchpin. Paul Pierce will be a scorer for as long as he can manage and a Celtic for life.

Plus, in the long run, this is Rondo’s team. Boston may have one more championship run left in them, but the evidence isn’t in their favor right now. It might take a little time to get things how they need it, but the pieces are there to keep them respectable in the East for years to come. But that can’t happen until a new paradigm forms and Rondo is recognize as the new head man in charge.
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