The Boston Celtics could not land a star during the 2021 NBA offseason, but it was nonetheless a busy summer for the franchise. In his first offseason as President of Basketball Operations, former head coach Brad Stevens made multiple trades, hired his own replacement, and signed Schroder to the best value contract of the NBA offseason.
Let’s break the offseason down into four categories: trades, head coaching hire, free agency additions and subtractions, and extensions.
Trades: Return of Big Al, Josh Richardson finds another new home
Stevens began his new job by trading for one of his former players, big man Al Horford. This financially motivated trade sent Kemba Walker’s albatross contract and a first-round pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder bought out Walker, allowing him to sign with the New York Knicks. The move gave Boston more financial flexibility and enhanced their defense.
Horford is still a plus-defender, even if he is not as quick as he once was. He also is a reliable outside shooter and a fine passer.
While Horford is no longer an All-Star, he is a savvy veteran with plenty of playoff experience who can help mentor young center Robert Williams. Given Williams’ extensive injury history, the Celtics needed a proven presence in the middle like Horford.
The Celtics engineered another significant trade, acquiring wing Josh Richardson from the Dallas Mavericks by using the remainder of the trade exception created by the sign-and-trade deal that sent Gordon Hayward to the Charlotte Hornets last offseason. Boston traded Moses Brown—who never played a game for the Celtics after they netted him in the Horford deal—to the Mavericks.
While Richardson has struggled the past two seasons, he will be just 28 at the start of next season. He is still a solid three-and-D player and the Celtics needed a wing off the bench to atone for the departure of Evan Fournier.
This will be Richardson’s fourth team in as many seasons. He averaged 12.1 points on a career-worst 33 percent shooting on 3-pointers in 2020-21. He saw little playing time for Dallas in its first-round defeat to the Los Angeles Clippers last postseason.
The Celtics were underwhelming on defense last year and Richardson’s arrival could change that. Stevens must feel confident in Richardson’s ability, as he signed the guard/forward to a 1-year contract extension that will run through the 2022-23 season.
New Boston Celtics G/F Josh Richardson has agreed to a one-year extension that pays him $24 million over the next two seasons, agent Erik Kabe of @BDA_Sports told @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 23, 2021
The Celtics shipped Tristan Thompson to the Sacramento Kings in a three-team trade with the Atlanta Hawks in a less significant move. The Hawks sent point guard Kris Dunn and center Bruno Fernando to the Celtics. Atlanta also received Delon Wright from the Kings.
Thompson started for the Celtics last year and brought plenty of energy, especially on the glass. However, his struggles defending the pick-and-roll were painfully obvious. From an on-court perspective, the Celtics will not miss Thompson. Meanwhile, Dunn and Fernando are not expected to be a part of Boston’s regular rotation.
Coaching Hire: Ime Udoka becomes 18th coach in franchise history
Stevens hired Ime Udoka to be the club’s new head coach. Unlike Stevens, Udoka is a former NBA player. He also carries NBA coaching experience—albeit as an assistant—something Stevens did not have before taking the Celtics' head coaching gig before the 2013-14 season.
Udoka reportedly had a strong rapport with Boston’s two stars, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, a factor in hiring the 44-year-old to steer the coaching duties. Tatum and Brown endorsed Udoka, who coached the duo, plus Marcus Smart when they were all part of Team USA for the World Cup squad in 2019.
Ime Udoka’s experience coaching Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart a couple years ago in Team USA was significant in his hiring.
“Those guys all liked him and respected him,” one source told me. “He’s an easy guy to connect with.”
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) June 23, 2021
Udoka already has support from three of his core players. Now, he will need to get the rest of his roster to follow his lead.
Free agency additions and subtractions: Boston signs Schroder to bargain deal, lets Fournier walk
The Celtics opted to let Evan Fournier walk in free agency, as the wing signed a massive contract with the Knicks. The Celtics will undoubtedly miss Fournier’s scoring. However, they were able to recoup nicely by trading for Richardson. While Richardson cannot create his own shot like Fournier, he is a far superior defender than the former Celtic.
After plenty of additions and subtractions from the roster, the Celtics saved their best move for last when they signed Dennis Schroder to a 1-year, $5.9 million contract. This is an outstanding dollar-for-dollar deal.
Schroder infamously declined a 4-year, $84 million pact from the Los Angeles Lakers. Now settling for a one-year deal to prove his worth, Schroder could be in store for a big season with the Celtics.
Although Schroder’s spot as the starting point guard has not been established, he is the right choice for the job. Over the past five seasons combined (dating back to 2016-17), Schroder has averaged 17.4 points and 5.3 assists per contest.
The Celtics brought back center Enes Kanter on a veteran’s minimum contract in other free agency happenings. Kanter will be a useful player in the regular season when injuries inevitably arise and he is a sparkplug off the bench for scoring. However, his defensive inadequacies make it unlikely he will be a major factor come playoff time.
Extensions: Celtics re-sign Marcus Smart, Robert Williams to 4-year deals
The Celtics locked up starting shooting guard Marcus Smart to a four-year, $76.5 million extension. His stats do not justify the contract, as he is a career 37.6 percent shooter with per-game marks of 10.2 points and 4.2 assists. However, his top-notch defense and impact on winning make Smart a key piece of the Celtics' long-term puzzle.
Boston has made the playoffs in every season since it drafted Smart in 2014.
After agreeing to terms with Smart, the Celtics re-upped center Robert Williams to a four-year, $54 million ($48 million guaranteed) pact. Williams, 23, excels in blocking shots and defending the paint. The 2018 first-round selection has only started 13 games in his short career, so this deal carries risk. Williams has had troubles staying on the court, so Boston is banking on its young big man reversing his health woes. For that reason, the Celtics did not guarantee the whole contract, putting $6 million in incentives dependent upon Williams' games played.
Robert Williams’ contract extension includes $48 million guaranteed plus $6 million in unlikely incentives, per sources. He will earn extra money if he plays in 69 games in a season, and even more if he does that plus Celtics advance in playoffs. Also has all-defense incentives.
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) August 25, 2021
Last season, Williams produced career highs in per-game marks for points (8), rebounds (6.9), assists (1.8), steals (0.8), blocked shots (1.8) and minutes (18.9) on 72% shooting from the field. He will certainly need more than roughly 19 minutes per night of playing time if the Celtics are ever to justify his contract. However, the Celtics are considering Williams’ enormous upside by inking him to this new deal.
Final offseason grade: B+
After a busy offseason, are the Celtics ready to compete again in the Eastern Conference? After finishing with the No. 7 seed before ultimately losing in five games in the opening round of last year's playoffs, the Celtics needed a shakeup. It certainly looked like Stevens had lost the locker room early on last year.
Acquiring Horford and Richardson in separate deals, coupled with shipping out former starters Kemba Walker and Tristan Thompson, likely does not move the needle one way or another. However, the biggest and most impactful move was bringing in a motivated Dennis Schroder on a bargain-bin deal.
And yet, Boston’s fate will ultimately be determined by the growth of Tatum and Brown. They were both All-Star last year with gaudy stats, but the team did not meet expectations. Boston’s young duo need to prioritize leadership over personal statistics for the Celtics to contend in the Eastern Conference. To Stevens’ credit, he constructed the roster to support the talents of Tatum and Brown. And in the process, he gave the Celtics a far deeper squad. Thus, the Celtics earn a B+ for augmenting their depth.
Follow Us
Subscribe