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The Boston Celtics have had mixed results in the first half of the 2020-21 NBA season and are barely hanging on in the playoff picture with an underwhelming 20-20 start.
Losers of their last two games and five of their last 10 outings overall, it appears that a major shake-up is in order in Beantown for them to return to the Top 4 of the much-improved Eastern Conference.
With the abundance of assets that they currently have, it’s clear that Boston will be major players come the NBA Trade Deadline next week. Danny Ainge has not been shy about pulling off major deals over the years.
It looks like the Celtics need his brilliant executive decisions the most this season, in order to regain their stature as legitimate contenders.
Boston is already linked to several players reportedly on the trade block. Other contenders in the East have already made moves, as the Brooklyn Nets picked up Blake Griffin from a buy-out, while the Milwaukee Bucks recently re-tooled with the acquisition of another Celtics target in P.J. Tucker.
The Cs must act quickly or risk losing relevancy as they continue to plummet down the standings.
But as bad as they need help at the moment, the Celtics cannot just chase the big names available. They still must make wise decisions or risk further messing up the team’s questionable on-court chemistry right now.
For instance, we’ll be looking at the three worst mistakes that the Celtics should avoid before the trade deadline.
Chasing former All-Stars like Kevin Love or LaMarcus Aldridge
Acquiring either Kevin Love or LaMarcus Aldridge sounds like a wise investment for all 30 NBA teams. Well, five years ago, at least. Now, Father Time has bested the two bigs in their 30s, while injuries have greatly hampered their productivity in recent times.
Love’s name, of course, has been linked to Boston for several years now as most pundits see him as a great fit under head coach Brad Stevens. While fans are hopeful Love could be an Al Horford type who can rebound, set screens, stretch the floor, and make plays for his teammates, Love is still a massive defensive liability. He will only worsen the Celtics’ already problematic interior defense.
The same goes for Aldridge who’s never really been much of a rim protector even in his prime. Plus, the Spurs forward is still a perimeter-oriented player, who will only slow down Boston’s offensive sets with his back-to-the-basket play style.
Sure, both players can hit the long ball, but the Cs can afford to trade for other players who are younger and can do the same without compromising their team defense.
Better options:
An Andre Drummond buy-out with the Cleveland Cavaliers is imminent, so the Celtics can just wait out and try to enter a bidding war for his services. Plus, a traditional dominant center may just be what they need right now.
Hawks’ young forward John Collins is also reportedly on the market and he’ll no doubt be a better fit to the team’s current core of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Going for broke for Victor Oladipo
The Celtics love two-way players who can play multiple positions, so it’s no surprise that they have a heavy interest in Oladipo. The Celtics were reportedly closely monitoring his situation even before he was traded to the Rockets earlier this season.
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As Houston is headed for a lost season, there have been murmurs that Vic will likely get traded for the second time in the 2020-21 campaign. Boston has been rumored to be a potential landing spot, with some suggesting that they even surrender a future first-rounder for his services.
But as intriguing as Oladipo in Celtic green is, this will be an extremely risky move for Boston. For starters, Oladipo seems eager on moving to South Beach to join the Miami Heat once he becomes a free agent by season’s end.
He’ll be a very expensive rental for Boston if that’s going to be the case. Plus, Vic plays a lot like ex-Celtic Gordon Hayward. While Hayward is balling for the Hornets right now, we’ve already seen that he’s not the best fit alongside Tatum and Brown.
Plus, any deal involving Oladipo would likely entail that the Cs have to part ways with Brown. Unless the Rockets would want a package involving Kemba Walker (which is highly unlikely since they already have John Wall), trading for Oladipo poses more problems for Boston.
Better options:
If the Celtics do need another wing guy or a playmaker, they could just trade for low-risk players like veteran George Hill or shooters like Wayne Ellington or JJ Redick.
Using massive trade exemption too soon
The Celtics currently own the largest trade exception in NBA history at an absurd $28.5 million. That amount is sizable enough to sign a veteran impact player right away.
Boston also has the luxury of keeping that exemption even after the season since it won’t expire until then. They have a variety of options to choose from since it can be used in free agency or in a sign-and-trade deal.
Celtics co-owner, Wyc Grousbeck, already claimed that Boston might have to exercise some patience to maximize that significant TPE they got from the Hayward deal.
“We are under a cap situation. We are hard-capped at the moment and literally can’t spend more than ($138 million), which is why that TPE is probably going to be more useful — maybe we can use part of it within the hard cap at the trade deadline and if it’s available to us and we want to do it, we’ll do it if the right deal is there. Otherwise, it’s something we will look more to the offseason for.”
Better option: While it would be tempting to use that TPE in order to lure the big names they want, it might be wise for Cs to wait it out until the offseason. While they probably won’t get home-court advantage come playoff time (which is non-existent this season anyway due to COVID-19), the Cs still have a good shot of making it to the playoffs as a lower seed. There will even be more quality players available on the market in the offseason and Boston does not need to use their exemption right away.
