2017 Offseason In Review: Boston Celtics
Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2017 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2017/18 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Boston Celtics.
Signings:
- Gordon Hayward: Four years, $127.83MM (30% maximum salary). Fourth-year player option.
- Aron Baynes: One year, $4.328MM.
- Daniel Theis: Two years, minimum salary. Second year not guaranteed.
- Shane Larkin: One year, minimum salary.
- Kadeem Allen: Two-way contract. Two years. $50K guaranteed.
- Jabari Bird: Two-way contract. One year. $50K guaranteed.
Camp invitees:
- Jonathan Holmes: One year, minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10. (Waived)
- Devin Williams: One, year minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10. (Waived)
- Andrew White: One, year minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10. (Waived)
- L.J. Peak: One, year minimum salary. Exhibits nine and 10. (Waived)
- Daniel Dixon: One year, minimum salary. Summer contract. (Waived)
- Daniel Ochefu: One year, minimum salary. Summer contract. (Waived)
Trades:
- Acquired the No. 3 overall pick and the Lakers’ 2018 first-round pick (top-1 protected and 6-30 protected) from the Sixers in exchange for the No. 1 overall pick.
- Note: If Lakers’ 2018 first-round pick doesn’t convey, Celtics will instead acquire more favorable of Kings’ and Sixers’ 2019 first-round picks (top-1 protected).
- Acquired Marcus Morris from the Pistons in exchange for Avery Bradley and the Pistons’ own 2019 second-round pick.
- Acquired Kyrie Irving from the Cavaliers in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, the Nets’ 2018 first-round pick, and the Heat’s 2020 second-round pick.
Draft picks:
- 1-3: Jayson Tatum — Signed to rookie contract
- 2-37: Semi Ojeleye — Signed to four-year, $6.042MM contract. Second year partially guaranteed ($902K). Third year not guaranteed. Fourth-year team option.
- 2-53: Kadeem Allen — Signed to two-way contract
- 2-56: Jabari Bird — Signed to two-way contract
Draft-and-stash signings:
- Guerschon Yabusele (2016; No. 16) — Signed to rookie contract.
- Ante Zizic (2016; No. 23) — Signed to rookie contract.
- Note: Later traded to the Cavaliers.
- Abdel Nader (2016; No. 58) — Signed to four-year, $5.917MM contract. Second year partially guaranteed ($450K). Third year not guaranteed. Fourth-year team option.
Departing players:
- Avery Bradley
- Jae Crowder
- Gerald Green
- Demetrius Jackson (waived)
- Jonas Jerebko
- Amir Johnson
- Jordan Mickey (waived)
- Kelly Olynyk
- Isaiah Thomas
- James Young
- Tyler Zeller (waived)
Other offseason news:
- Paul Pierce signed a one-day contract to officially retire as a Celtic.
- Marcus Morris acquitted on aggravated assault charges.
Salary cap situation:
- Used up cap room. Now operating over the cap, but under the tax line. Carrying approximately $110MM in guaranteed team salary. Only minimum salary exception available.
Check out the Boston Celtics’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
While many considered the Celtics to be a legitimate threat to land Gordon Hayward this summer, especially due to his relationship with Celtics coach Brad Stevens, it’s doubtful anybody suspected the blockbuster trade between the Celtics and the Cavaliers that led to Kyrie Irving donning a Boston uniform this season. In addition to those two acquisitions, the Celtics traded the No. 1 overall draft pick to Philadelphia in exchange for the No. 3 overall pick and an additional future first-rounder that projects to be a strong pick.
Hayward only met with three different teams, the Jazz, Heat, and Celtics, with his decision ultimately coming down to Utah or Boston. After an initial report by ESPN that Hayward had selected the Celtics, Hayward’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, publicly and forcefully denied that a decision had been made, worrying the Celtics that the premature report may cause Hayward to change his mind and return to Utah. Fortunately for the C’s, that was not the case, and Hayward announced later that night that he was leaving Utah for Boston.
Unfortunately for the Celtics, Hayward’s arrival meant the need to rework their roster to ensure they would have enough cap room to make a max-salary offer to Hayward. The Celtics ultimately ended up trading starter Avery Bradley and his $8.8MM salary to Boston in exchange for Marcus Morris and his $5MM cap hit, thereby clearing the necessary room to accommodate Hayward’s first-year salary.
Then, despite a career year in which Isaiah Thomas averaged 28.9 PPG and played through the death of his sister and a torn labrum in his hip, the Celtics traded him to Cleveland, along with fellow starter Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, Brooklyn’s coveted 2018 first-round pick, and a 2020 second-round pick, in exchange for Irving. Read more
Kings Notes: Cousins, Fox, Bogdanovic
Count TNT analyst and former Kings star Chris Webber in as a supporter of former King DeMarcus Cousins, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. Webber, a five time All-Star, says he can relate to the emotions Cousins will likely feel when he steps on the court in Sacramento tomorrow night for the first time since being traded to New Orleans last season.
Webber also blames the Kings for the way they handled Cousins during his time in Sacramento, stating that forcing Cousins to endure six head coaches in his six-plus seasons is “just downright wrong” and an example of what needs fixing with the Kings organization.
There’s more from Sacramento:
- Despite Cousins’ comments that he “should have left (Sacramento) when (he) had the chance,” the Kings still plan on honoring Cousins during Thursday night’s game against New Orleans, tweets Marc J. Spears of ESPN.
- Although they’re playing together for the first time, Kings rookies De’Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic have already begun to click with each other on the court, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Bogdanovic missed the first three games of the season, but scored 12 points in his NBA debut, and given his overseas experience, Fox was not the least bit surprised. “We don’t even look at him as a rookie. He just talks like he’s a vet,” Fox shared. “He hasn’t been in the NBA but he’s been a pro for so long so he knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s kind of like my vet on the court.”
- In an interesting article for Sactown Royalty, Bradley Geiser writes that the Kings deserve to lose to New Orleans “in embarrassing fashion” on Thursday night because of, among other reasons, the timing and secretive method of Cousins’ trade to New Orleans during All-Star festivities last season after the Kings publicly declaring their loyalty to Cousins just a week earlier.
Deadline Nearing For 2018/19 Rookie Scale Option Decisions
Halloween isn’t as important a date on the NBA calendar as it once was, but is still features one important deadline: October 31 is the last day for teams to exercise 2018/19 team options on players’ rookie scale contracts.
The standard NBA rookie contract for first-round picks includes two guaranteed years, followed by third- and fourth-year team options. Rather than waiting until the end of the season to make a call on those options though, teams are required to make their decisions a year early.
If an option for 2018/19 is exercised this month, that player’s salary for next year will become fully guaranteed. If the option is declined, it will ensure that the player becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer, and it’ll limit the club’s ability to re-sign him.
As our tracker shows, many teams have already exercised their rookie scale team options for 2018/19. And of those that haven’t yet been exercised, some are no-brainers — the 76ers haven’t officially picked up Ben Simmons‘ third-year option yet, but it’s not like there’s any debate over whether they’ll eventually do so.
[RELATED: Five Looming Team Option Decisions To Watch]
Still, not every option is a lock to be exercised. The full list of option decisions we’re waiting on can be found below, sorted by cap hits. Teams have until next Tuesday to make their decisions.
Fourth-year options:
- Jahlil Okafor, Sixers ($6,313,832)
- Mario Hezonja, Magic ($5,167,231)
- Willie Cauley-Stein, Kings ($4,696,875)
- Frank Kaminsky, Hornets ($3,627,842)
- Cameron Payne, Bulls ($3,263,294)
- Terry Rozier, Celtics ($3,050,390)
- Rashad Vaughn, Bucks ($2,901,565)
- Sam Dekker, Clippers ($2,760,095)
- Jerian Grant, Bulls ($2,639,314)
- Justin Anderson, Sixers ($2,516,048)
- Bobby Portis, Bulls ($2,494,346)
- Jarell Martin, Grizzlies ($2,416,222)
- Josh Huestis, Thunder ($2,243,326)
- Chris McCullough, Wizards ($2,243,326)
- Kevon Looney, Warriors ($2,227,081)
Third-year options:
- Ben Simmons, Sixers ($6,434,520)
- Jaylen Brown, Celtics ($5,169,960)
- Kris Dunn, Bulls ($4,221,000)
- Buddy Hield, Kings ($3,833,760)
- Thon Maker, Bucks ($2,799,720)
- Dario Saric, Sixers ($2,526,840)
- Georgios Papagiannis, Kings ($2,400,480)
- Denzel Valentine, Bulls ($2,280,600)
- Malachi Richardson, Kings ($1,569,360)
- Brice Johnson, Clippers ($1,544,951)
- Damian Jones, Warriors ($1,544,951)
- Skal Labissiere, Kings ($1,544,951)
- Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Sixers ($1,544,951)
Information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.
Pacific Notes: Jackson, Ball, Clippers, Suns
Suns rookie Josh Jackson was fined $35K for making a “menacing” gesture towards a Los Angeles Clippers fan this past weekend, it was announced yesterday by NBA executive Kiki VanDeWeghe. While it appeared that Jackson was mimicking a gun with his hand gesture toward the fan, he explained that was not the case, but rather that he a“kind of wanted to put up the middle finger to him but … didn’t do that because I felt like I was … being watched, so I kind of halfway did it.” Clearly, the NBA didn’t buy his explanation.
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 10/25/17
Here are Wednesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
5:35pm:
- Bryant’s stint with the South Bay Lakers (noted below) was a brief one. He has already been recalled by the Lakers (Twitter link).
5:17pm:
- As we detailed earlier today, the Spurs have officially assigned Tony Parker to the G League as part of his rehab process. According to the club, Parker practiced with the Austin Spurs today and will do so again on Friday. The veteran point guard is recovering from surgery on his left quadriceps.
- After sending him to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers earlier this week, the Rockets have recalled Troy Williams, the team announced today (Twitter link). Williams may help provide some small forward depth for Houston with Trevor Ariza expected to miss at least the next three games.
- The Lakers have assigned rookie big man Thomas Bryant to the G League, according to the team. Bryant, who will join the South Bay Lakers, has yet to make his regular season NBA debut after being drafted 42nd overall this year.
Community Shootaround: Best Fit For Eric Bledsoe
The NBA offseason featured a parade of trade candidates eventually finding new homes, with Jimmy Butler, Paul George, Kyrie Irving, and Carmelo Anthony among the All-Star players who were dealt. In the wake of Oklahoma City’s acquisition of Anthony, it seemed like the trade market may be quiet for a couple months, but a five-word tweet from Eric Bledsoe (“I don’t wanna be here”) changed all that earlier this week.
In the three days since Bledsoe’s now-infamous tweet, the Suns have sent him home and begun exploring potential trades, though public comments made by general manager Ryan McDonough on the situation aren’t exactly buoying the point guard’s trade value.
While there still seems to be a significant gap between what the Suns are looking for in exchange for Bledsoe and what potential suitors are willing to offer, a number of possible landing spots have emerged. According to various reports, the Nuggets, Bucks, and Knicks are among the clubs with interest in Bledsoe.
Several other teams have also been linked to the point guard, including the Magic, Cavaliers, Trail Blazers, Clippers, Sixers, Pacers, and Spurs. However, most of those potential trade partners for Phoenix appear to be based more on speculation than on anything concrete.
The Suns have some excess cap room and they aren’t in any rush to win now, so they have some flexibility when it comes to finding a deal for Bledsoe and his $14.5MM salary. But it may be tricky to find a package they feel gives them fair value. While Bledsoe put up big numbers last season, averaging 21.1 PPG, 6.3 APG, and 4.8 RPG, he has battled injuries throughout his career, and this season’s saga has raised questions about his ability to handle difficult situations.
What do you think? Which team do you think would be the best fit for Bledsoe, and which club could offer the Suns the best package? What sort of return do you think the Suns should be happy with for Bledsoe?
Jump into our comment section below to share your thoughts!
Notable Players On NBA G League Rosters
We’re a week into the 2017/18 NBA regular season, and a little more than a week away from this year’s G League season getting underway as well. The developmental league, renamed earlier this year to reflect its new partnership with Gatorade, will feature a record-high 26 teams in 2017/18, with only four NBA teams – the Wizards, Nuggets, Pelicans, and Trail Blazers – lacking an affiliate of their own.
With 26 rosters to fill, the G League currently features some interesting names. A handful of NBA veterans are looking to make their way back into the league by proving their worth with G League clubs, and several recent first- or second-round picks in the NBA draft have found themselves in the G League too.
With the help of Mark Porcaro’s player movement database, here are some of the noteworthy players on G League rosters:
Players with extensive NBA experience:
A pair of veteran NBA centers are playing in the G League for the first time in their respective careers this season after failing to earn spots on NBA rosters this fall. Kendrick Perkins will suit up for the Canton Charge (Cavs), while Emeka Okafor has joined the Delaware 87ers (Sixers).
Veteran swingman Shawne Williams, a first-round pick back in 2006, is also among the longtime NBA players looking to get back into the league by impressing teams with his G League play. Williams, who played for the Los Angeles D-Fenders back in 2013/14, has seven years of NBA experience, but hasn’t appeared in the league since 2014/15. He’ll play for the Timberwolves‘ new affiliate, the Iowa Wolves.
Recent NBA draft picks:
A number of players currently on G League rosters were selected in the first round of the NBA draft within the last several years. The most notable player in this group is probably Anthony Bennett, 2013’s first overall pick, who is looking to turn his career around for the Northern Arizona Suns (Suns).
Some of the others on that list include Trey Burke, the ninth overall pick in 2013, who is playing for the Westchester Knicks (Knicks); 2012 first-rounder Tony Wroten, who is suiting up for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Rockets); James Young, 2014’s 17th overall pick, who is a member of the Wisconsin Herd (Bucks); and R.J. Hunter, a 2015 first-round pick who will join Wroten on the Vipers.
There’s also no shortage of recent second-round picks on G League rosters. The 2016 draft class is particularly well-represented, with second-rounders like Diamond Stone, Stephen Zimmerman, Michael Gbinije, and Georges Niang all playing in the G League. Gbinije and Niang are both on the Santa Cruz Warriors’ (Warriors) roster, while Stone is playing for the Windy City Bulls (Bulls) and Zimmerman is on the South Bay Lakers (Lakers).
Two-way players:
These players signed two-way contracts rather than straight G League contracts, which separates them from the rest of the player pool a little, affording them more opportunities. For instance, it already appears as if two-way player Mike James will be a mainstay on the Suns‘ roster this season, likely having his two-way deal converted into an NBA contract at some point.
Still, it’s worth mentioning that there are a number of interesting names among the inaugural group of two-way players. The Rockets‘ two-way players, Briante Weber and Demetrius Jackson, both have NBA experience, as do the Bucks‘ two-way players – Gary Payton II and Joel Bolomboy – and the Trail Blazers‘ duo of Wade Baldwin and C.J. Wilcox.
Adreian Payne, who is a two-way player for the Lakeland Magic (Magic), was the 15th overall pick in 2014. Anthony Brown, who has a two-way contract with the Timberwolves, was also a recent NBA draftee, going 34th overall in 2015.
Unlike standard G League players, two-way players aren’t free to sign a new contract with any NBA team, since their NBA rights are held by their current club.
Juan Hernangomez Will Miss ‘A Couple Of Weeks’
Nuggets forward Juan Hernangomez could be out “a couple of weeks” with mononucleosis, according to Christopher Dempsey of NBA.com.
The second-year player out of Spain had a productive rookie season, averaging 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds in 62 games. However, he has managed just seven minutes in two games this year.
“We were talking as coaches and as a staff that Juancho hadn’t looked like Juancho from last year,” said coach Mike Malone. “The first reaction was: Well, he had a very busy summer. He played summer league with us, then he goes right back to Spain and plays a very long and demanding schedule with the national team. But we were waiting for Juancho to come back – the activity, the energy, and he just wasn’t looking like himself.”
The team did blood work when Hernangomez contracted a cold, and the results showed mononucleosis. He will be held out to give him a chance to recover and to keep the contagious disease away from the rest of the team.
“Hopefully when he is healthy, we’ll see that Juancho that we all came to love last year, who was just boundless energy,” Malone added. “We haven’t seen that guy yet because of this disease and how hard he worked the whole summer.”
Southwest Notes: Cousins, Parker, Leonard, Canaan
Pelicans star DeMarcus Cousins regrets not leaving the Kings sooner, he tells Marc J. Spears in an E:60 interview posted on ESPN. Cousins clams he had an opportunity to go to another team when George Karl was hired as Sacramento’s head coach in February of 2015.
“My representatives told me I shouldn’t have stayed,” Cousins said, “but being stubborn and I guess you could say ‘loyal,’ I wanted to make things work. I should have left when I had the chance and avoided it all because they told me what would happen.”
He had a long and public feud with Karl until the coach was fired at the end of the 2015/16 season. Cousins finally left the Kings during last season’s All-Star break when he was traded to New Orleans. He will return to Sacramento for a game Thursday night.
“I’m excited to play in front of the fans and see their reaction, but as far as it being a revenge game, hey, I’m past it,” Cousins added. “I’m in a good place. I’m happy where I’m at.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Veteran point guard Tony Parker is headed to the G League for a rehab assignment with the Austin Spurs, Spears tweets. The team is holding its training camp in San Antonio, so it’s easy for him to do rehab work there, notes Michael C. Wright of ESPN. (Twitter link). Parker had to give his consent for the G League assignment, adds ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). The last health update from coach Gregg Popovich indicated that Parker might be able to play in December.
- Popovich said Kawhi Leonard could make his season debut during a six-game home stand next month, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. That home stand stretches from November 2 to 11.
- Isaiah Canaan, who agreed to a non-guaranteed deal with the Rockets on Tuesday, could play tonight in Philadelphia, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Canaan played for Houston head coach Mike D’Antoni when he was an assistant with the Sixers and has an understanding of his approach. “I know his game and he knows our offense more or less,” D’Antoni said. “We did a lot of it up here. He just went through a training camp [with the Thunder], which I like. He’s already been playing. We need bodies. I could see him playing.” The Rockets are short on guards with Chris Paul sidelined by knee soreness.
- The Pelicans became the latest team to announce a corporate partnership, teaming up with Zatarain’s, a New Orleans-based food company. The team will begin wearing the Zatarain’s logo on its jerseys.
Suns GM Blames ‘Bad Advice’ For Bledsoe’s Actions
Suns GM Ryan McDonough believes Eric Bledsoe is receiving “bad advice” in his desire to get out of Phoenix, relays Chris Haynes of ESPN.
The remarks were made during an interview Tuesday with Arizona Sports 98.7 and are apparently a swipe at Bledsoe’s agent, Rich Paul, who represents several other high-profile clients, including LeBron James. Bledsoe reportedly had hoped to join James in Cleveland as part of a deal for Kyrie Irving and was “depressed” when that trade fell through.
“I think Eric’s a good person,” McDonough said. “I think he’s unfortunately gotten some bad advice and is listening to the wrong people. I think generally, any time you sign a contract, it doesn’t only work one way. It works both ways, and for a guy with years on his contract to say or intimate he didn’t want to be here anymore, I didn’t find that to be appropriate, and I think if he says he wants to be a leader, that’s the opposite of what a leader does and the opposite of what leadership is.”
Bledsoe, 27, is currently in limbo after being sent home prior to Monday’s game. It seems unlikely that he will ever play for Phoenix again, but the team hasn’t made much progress in trade talks over the past 48 hours, with one source suggesting that the asking price is way too high.
Bledsoe made news Sunday with a tweet that stated, “I Dont wanna be here,” and although he insisted it wasn’t related to the team, there have been other indications he wants out of Phoenix. Haynes notes that Bledsoe met with McDonough and owner Robert Sarver during the preseason, questioning several personnel moves and free agency failures during his four years with the franchise. Sources say Bledsoe was told that the team had underperformed since he became the starting point guard.
McDonough said in the interview that he has received some “pretty intriguing offers,” but feels no urgency to complete a deal because Bledsoe isn’t playing. The Knicks, Nuggets and Bucks are among the teams that have reportedly reached out to Phoenix.
“If you can imagine, my phone was ringing a lot yesterday,” McDonough said. “The ideal time to get a deal done is whenever the best offer presents itself. So we’d be fine doing it sooner rather than later. At the same time, he’s under contract for this year plus next year. We sent him away from the team to eliminate that distraction. So we’re willing to do a deal, we’re open to do a deal whenever the best offer presents itself.”