The Boston Celtics’ rocky midseason stretch continued on Monday with a last-second loss to the Houston Rockets, who got 10 3-pointers from Dillon Brooks and a game-winner from Amen Thompson. With that latest defeat, the Celtics are 10-9 since their dominant 22-6 start, and their lead over the New York Knicks for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference has shrunk to one game.
While the Celtics are still adamant that everything will be fine, this is now more than a blip. They’ve been playing .500 ball for over a month, and have often looked out of sync on both sides of the ball. There’s a good chance that they reset after the All-Star break and look like themselves again down the stretch, or simply flip the switch come playoff time.
There will be plenty of time to talk about the Celtics’ title chances, but for now, it’s best to discuss this poor run of form in regards to the upcoming trade deadline on Feb. 6. Could this spell change the Celtics’ plans? And what sort of moves might even be possible? Let’s take a closer look.
What can the Celtics actually do?
As one of the four teams above the second apron of the luxury tax — the Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves are the others — there are restrictions on what the Celtics can do in the trade market:
- The Celtics cannot aggregate salaries to make a trade.
- The Celtics can only take back 100% or less of the salary they send out in a trade.
- The Celtics cannot send out cash in a trade.
Due to those constraints, the Celtics are fairly limited, especially considering that it’s highly unlikely that they will trade anyone in their rotation. The rest of the team is making $4 million or less this year, and finding a one-for-one trade at that salary range which will actually improve their title chances is going to be difficult.
How will their tax situation affect their approach?
The Celtics’ luxury-tax situation makes their roster extremely costly, and every dollar counts, especially in light of the upcoming sale, which is expected to happen at some point in the next few months. Their status as a second-apron team not only sets limits on what type of trades they can make, but could affect their whole approach.
Will the Celtics view the deadline as a chance to improve the roster at all costs? Or as an opportunity to shed a bit of salary with an eye on potential tax savings. Each dollar over the luxury tax costs the team about four dollars in tax payments, which means someone like Jaden Springer, whose salary is just over $4 million, actually costs about $16 million.
While Springer has gotten more of an opportunity lately, he’s rarely played outside of garbage time this season and won’t be in the playoff rotation. Given his salary, age and defensive potential, he is the team’s best trade chip at the end of the bench and could be their only path to acquiring some legitimate help.
But will Brad Stevens look to trade him for another player, preferably one with more experience? Or simply try to dump his contract and save the team nearly $20 million in tax payments? Their exact thinking on this front remains unclear, and could depend on what deals are available.
What do the Celtics need?
The biggest needs for the Celtics are good health and for their main guys to return to form. If they were still playing like they were last season and early in this campaign, there wouldn’t even be any discussion about the deadline. And if they’re able to get back on track, their roster is good enough as is to win it all again.
That being said, their roster isn’t perfect. Here’s a look at a few areas of need.
Wing depth
The Celtics’ wing options behind Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are limited. Sam Hauser, a 3-point specialist, hasn’t been as effective as he was last season, in part due to a back injury, while recent draft picks Jordan Walsh and Baylor Scheierman aren’t ready to be regular contributors and Drew Peterson is a two-way player.
If the Celtics can find a veteran wing who can give them some reliable minutes in the second half of the season, that would help shore things up. Of course, every team in the league is looking for wing depth, so that won’t be easy.
Bench scoring
There were a lot of questions about the Celtics’ depth last season, but they ultimately had enough to win the title. They essentially have the same roster in place this season, but even though Payton Pritchard has taken a leap to establish himself as the Sixth Man of the Year favorite, many of those same concerns remain.
The Celtics’ bench ranks 26th in the league in scoring at 29.7 points per game. There are nights, particularly those where Pritchard doesn’t have it, where the bench essentially gives them nothing. Adding another bench player who can create their own shot could be valuable.
Emergency frontcourt depth
Now that Kristaps Porzingis is back, the Celtics’ frontcourt is in a good place. Al Horford remains a reliable presence on both ends, while the trio of Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta and Xavier Tillman are all serviceable bigs that Joe Mazzulla can mix and match.
But given Porzingis’ injury history and Horford’s age (he’ll turn 39 in June, potentially during the Finals), there’s a world where the Celtics go into the playoffs with Kornet, Queta and Tillman as their only true big men. Given that possibility, would they look at adding someone else in the case of emergency?
Who could the Celtics target?
Wing depth is the primary need for the Celtics, with a bench scorer and an emergency backup big trailing behind. Here’s a look at a few potential names they could target if they want to trade Springer for another player, rather than dumping his salary.
Javonte Green — G/F, Pelicans
Green began his career with the Celtics and is currently with the New Orleans Pelicans, whose season was destroyed by injuries. With Green set to be a free agent this summer, the Pelicans could certainly be open to moving him, especially if the Celtics attach some draft capital — say a second-round pick — to Springer. Green has turned himself into a solid 3-point shooter, albeit on low volume, and would add some athleticism and energy to the Celtics’ bench.
Torrey Craig — F, Bulls
Craig has been limited to just nine games this season, and is currently sidelined with a right ankle sprain and leg contusion. Neither are season-ending injuries, though, and the Bulls are open for business. While Craig may not be the most exciting option available, he’s an experienced forward and another who has improved his outside shooting in recent seasons. At the very least, he would be more reliable than Walsh and Scheierman at this time.
Seth Curry — G, Hornets
Curry is once again shooting the lights out, making 46.2% of his 3-point attempts for the lowly Hornets, who are on track to miss the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season. He would certainly give the Celtics’ 3-point attack, which has been struggling this season, a boost, but the team may not be looking for another small guard. Plus, Curry has an implicit no-trade clause because he re-signed with the Hornets on a one-year deal, so he would have to approve any deal.
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