I try to be a voice of reason in the blogging game. The type not prone to ridiculous writings that cause some in the traditional press to point the finger and call it reactionary or ill informed.

But after watching a third straight defeat Sunday afternoon, it has become obvious that the time for action is drawing short. A trading deadline in late February is fast approaching and the players on this Celtics roster refuse to get younger, despite my repeated calls to do so. I like Kevin Garnett. I like Ray Allen. And, I love Paul Pierce.  These guys brought a championship here in 2008 and turned around over two decades of bad blood with a pulse pounding 82 game plus playoff performance, but that, my friends, is history. Two years later, Pierce and Garnett are recovering from significant knee injuries and Allen is, well, seemingly showing the sides of old age. Now I'm only a few years younger than Ray, and I don't feel old in the slightest bit, but when I watch Ray Allen play "youth" isn't in the first 5000 words that come to mind.

The numbers, which I usually leave to Jack Jemsek, don't bear out that Ray Allen is having one of his better years offensively, and defensively I think all Celtics fans have seen enough of opposing shooting guards getting into the lane or simply shooting over the top of the future Hall of Famer. At times, Ray can still fill the hoop with the best of them (see the first half performance against Orlando last Thursday), but then there are times like Friday night when Ray Allen is getting victimized by above average to great shooting guards. Joe Johnson and Kobe Bryant were simply the latest in a long line to see success facing "Jesus," while the Celtics, as a team, have struggled to rebound effectively or compete against younger, more athletic teams. Ray Allen being the least of those qualities places a target on his back, and deservedly so, in my opinion.

So rumor has it that from CSNNE.com's Sherrod Blakely that the Golden State Warriors may be interested in a Ray Allen for Monta Ellis swap to which I say, "yes, please." Ray Allen's nearly $19 million contract expires this summer after which time it has been suggested that Allen could re-sign with the Celtics for a significant decrease, and while a more than $10 million savings between this contract and a new deal with the Celtics would be helpful to the C's bottom line, it doesn't add talent. Theoretically the team could use those savings to sign another Mid Level Exception player for an average of $5 million per year, but the Celtics could do the very same thing with a 24 year old shooting guard making a few million more per year than a re-signed 35 year old Ray Allen. Heck, Ray Allen could be that Mid Level Player in that scenario, as my CSL co-host Justin Poulin often points out.

The point is this Celtics team is having a very tough time doing the things it has made its bones on... defense and rebounding. Neither have been strengths of Ray Allen, nor has Monta Ellis ever been confused for Bruce Bowen, but it says here that no matter how much better Kevin Garnett gets as he returns from injury, he can't make up for the drop off Ray Allen's athleticism has taken over the past two years. If the Celtics want to compete for a title in 2010, they need to upgrade at the shooting guard position. Marquise Daniels return from injury will help, as will the resurgence of Tony Allen, but the window is getting short in the Celtics' ability to parlay this expiring contract into something that can help the Celtics win beyond the Big Three Era. Moving Ray Allen might be their best chance to do just that.