Report: Celtics Close to Signing David West

by Mike Cole on Fri, Dec 9, 2011 at 11:03PM

The Celtics need to add some frontcourt depth, as they approach the lockout-shortened, condensed season, and they may have taken the first step in doing so Friday night.

The C's are closing in on signing free-agent forward David West, NBA.com's David Aldridge first reported.

According to Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski, the deal will be part of a sign-and-trade. The Celtics will reportedly send Jermaine O'Neal to New Orleans as part of the deal, and West's contract will be worth a reported three years and $27-29 million. The Celtics are also expected to send another player to New Orleans as part of the deal.

The 31-year-old West has been previously considered as one of the game's underrated players, but he is coming off of a knee surgery that cut his season short last year. The 6-foot-9 Xavier product has spent his entire career with the Hornets.

West is also a two-time All-Star who has averaged 16.4 points and seven rebounds per game in his eight-year NBA career. He also started every one of the games he played in with the Hornets from the 2005-06 season on.