The NBA Trade Deadline arrives at 3 p.m. on Thursday and projects to become a quiet one across the league and for the Boston Celtics in particular. After massive, franchise-altering trades over the summer and an NBA-best first half marked by good health, Brad Stevens’ expectation of a limited scope of players being available or coveted by Boston appears only further cemented. The Celtics have been connected to few players in reporting, with interest in several of them seemingly long-running rumblings that might’ve expired.
Boston enters this week with interest in adding to the team, according to various reports, but doesn’t carry enormous amounts of assets or matching salaries to fill minor holes. Stevens called a big wing the team’s central interest while acknowledging that someone could fill that role internally. Oshae Brissett began playing more often in the aftermath of those comments, appearing in 15 of the last 17 games, averaging 11.4 minutes, 4.9 points and 3.3 rebounds per game, but has only converted 23.8% of his 21 three-point attempts.
“He’s continuing to earn trust. He’s played really well in moments,” Joe Mazzulla said last week. “It started in the Miami game, (second) game of the year, he came in and changed the energy of the game. He’s been doing that, he’s picking up our defensive system much better and I trust him completely. Every guy we put in the game we have a level of trust in. Neemias (Queta) is in that boat too. We went to him … with two bigs being out.”
When fully healthy in the playoffs, the Celtics will lean on their starters, Al Horford and perhaps one or two more players in a tightened rotation. Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard have stood out in their nightly roles this season. Hauser largely didn’t take part in last postseason while Pritchard played a limited role in 2022. More granular than Stevens’ broad description of needed front court help, the Celtics could explore depth big options in case of injuries and versatile forwards who can shoot and defend centers. Currently, Jrue Holiday fills that role with the starters, fronting bigs before Horford slides into double-big alignments to fit the role Grant Williams once did. Injury insurance always helps. It’d also be next to impossible to replace any long-term ailments to the team’s top six.
With Derrick White and Isaiah Thomas-sized splashes almost certainly out of the question, it’s worth wondering if even a deal similar to the Mike Muscala addition last year is in the cards. Boston dealt a pair of second-rounders for a player who mostly didn’t play. He then became a $3-million matching salary in the Kristaps Porziņģis trade, some solace, though that trade led in part to the team’s series of trades back in the 2023 draft to recoup seconds that proved increasingly valuable capital last deadline.
Before getting into names that could supplement that group and the merits, here are some things to consider for Boston:
Stay tuned to CLNS Media throughout the week for more trade ideas, reaction to any moves that happen and reporting on Boston’s deadline activity and rumors.
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