LAS VEGAS — Brad Stevens spoke at Summer League on Wednesday and discussed the little work left to do for the Celtics this offseason. He noted that Boston will likely remain patient with the 15th and final standard roster spot over the coming months, addressing their needs as Kristaps Porziņģis begins a long rehab process. That leaves Oshae Brissett and Svi Mykhailiuk free to explore their options for both money and more playing time available to them. Brissett said on his YouTube channel that he also hopes to hear more news about his future soon after declining his player option earlier this summer and becoming a free agent.
“Oshae had a terrific year, not only when he got the opportunity on the court, but as a teammate and as a person. In his shoes, there might be the desire to play more too,” Stevens told reporters on Wednesday. “I always want to be respectful of that. We loved having Oshae. As far as how we fill out the rest of the roster, we kept 14 most of the year last year, then we added two at the end of the year. We’ll see how the next few months play themselves out with regard to people’s availability. Obviously, Kristaps is going to have a long rehab process ahead of him. Then we have to determine what’s the best need for our team in that 15th spot? Both Oshae and Svi, to me, are good NBA players, that whether here or elsewhere are good fits for any team. They’re just terrific people.”
Stevens also reacted to the first time for Wyc Grousbeck placing his share of the Celtics for sale, saying that it caught him off guard as much as anyone else when it happened days after the team’s 2024 championship one month ago. He doesn’t expect the process to impact his job as team president for now, with the team’s release on the sale noting that the process could take several years where Grousbeck will remain as governor of the team.
“I learned not long before everybody else did that was going to happen,” Stevens said. “I’m obviously very thankful for Wyc and his family and everything they’ve done. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens from here. I don’t want to get too far into the weeds of it all, but how does it affect us? It doesn’t really right now … we’re just head down doing what we think is best for the now of the Celtics and the future … we’re lucky we got a good team.”
Boston did that by extending Jayson Tatum and Derrick White this offseason, while negotiations continue with Sam Hauser about a potential long-term deal. Stevens said that the Celtics are lucky to have both players and that they wanted to remain with Boston long-term. Tatum, White, Brown and Jrue Holiday have all created an environment that values winning and a team dynamic.
Stevens also reacted to comments by Brown expressing his frustration with being left off Team USA. It’s a good opportunity for those who went, like many Celtics have over the years, but believes Brown is just as deserving of that recognition and could get it in the future. Stevens sees him handling himself the same way whether he’s awarded or snubbed.
“Jaylen’s a great player. I don’t think there’s any doubt that Jaylen could be on any team, any Olympic team in any year. But at the end of the day, his approach, he talked about how he called Derrick, he talked about his own feelings,” Stevens said. “Whether he has success, or he gets all the accolades, like Finals MVP or eastern conference finals MVP, or he feels like he got left off the team. He’s going to be motivated and hungry regardless. That’s what I’ve always loved about him. He always goes back to work.”
