Birdman Cometh?

Could a man that is referred to as "The Birdman" be the answer that the Boston Celtics are looking for to backup Kendrick Perkins at the Center position?

Chris Andersen is 6'11'' and 228 pounds. Andersen plays power forward and center but is generally seen as a power forward. In 253 career games (including 8 starts), Andersen averaged 5.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.36 blocks in 16.6 minutes per game. Andersen is known for his athleticism and drug problems of the past. In 2006, he was temporarily (2 years) dismissed from the NBA for testing positive for a banned substance. This is what most casual fans know him for. But don't let this fool you, he is no criminal and he is actually an extremely likable person. In 2004/2005 he had a career year averaging 7.7 points and 6.6 rebounds in 21 minutes per game. That is pretty effective and he wouldn't even be asked to do that with Boston.

After being re-instated he played his first game since the dismissal with New Orleans in March of 2008. Andersen played five games in this short lived return but he is apparently better than ever and still 29 or 30 years old.

According to Marc Spears, who appeared on Comcast Sports Net's "Sports Tonight." Chris Andersen is currently in Boston and could very well sign a small deal with the Boston Celtics. There appears to be strong interest from both sides, especially Andersen. This could be a solid signing and a nice safety blanket for Perkins and his potential injury/foul problems. If he could just come in for 10-15 minutes a game and bang that would be great. I am sure he would accept that role as well, like he did with New Orleans.

He's long, he's athletic and he just wants to play basketball again full time. I say give this guy a chance and if it doesn't work out, look at bringing P.J. Brown back again for around 30-35 games after the all-star break similar to what we did in 2007/2008. His agent has said that he doesn't think he's ready for the long haul of 82 games. But does that rule out a possible mid-season return that has been done once before? He's going to be 39, but he seemed to get better as the season went on last year. I say give it a try, what could it hurt?

That's also the way I feel about Anderson. Just give him a chance. Birdman Cometh?