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The Boston Celtics were widely expected to be one of the busiest teams in the NBA this offseason, and sure enough, they have lived up to that billing right out of the gate. The C's started things off with a pair of big trades involving two key pieces of their 2024 championship team, Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis. They followed that up by making three picks in the 2025 NBA Draft and then made another pair of signings in free agency.
Despite all that, there's still a lot of work for this team to do this offseason. There are several players on their roster whose names keep popping up in trade rumors, and after losing Luke Kornet to the San Antonio Spurs in free agency, Al Horford's upcoming decision looms larger than ever. In an offseason full of question marks, it feels like Boston's plan is as mysterious as it's ever been.
Where the Celtics go from here remains to be seen, but first, it's important to fully digest what they have already managed to do. So with that being said, let's take a quick look at what Boston has already accomplished this offseason and dish out some leftover thoughts as the team prepares to continue exploring the trade market over the coming days.
Celtics set to lean on draft picks right out of the gate
The C's entered the 2025 draft with the No. 28 and No. 32 overall picks. After using their first rounder to select Spanish combo guard Hugo Gonzalez, they traded down from the No. 32 pick, acquiring the No. 46 and No. 57 picks, which were used on center Amari Williams and sharpshooting guard Max Shulga. Considering Boston's need for young, cost-controlled talent, making three selections seems like good business.
Given the state of the team's roster as is, it looks like these three guys, particularly Williams, could have opportunities to contribute right out of the gate. With Porzingis getting traded, Kornet bolting in free agency, and Horford seemingly trending towards leaving as well, the Celtics' depth chart at the center position is perilously thin, which means the team could lean on Williams, who played five years of college basketball, from the get-go.
Gonzalez is still a very raw prospect at the moment, but he has been playing professionally with Real Madrid in Spain since 2022, which could help him make the jump to the pros. And Shulga, who hit 39.2% of his threes during his five seasons in college, could find playing time if he proves he can hit threes in the NBA early on.
Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis trades hurt, but it had to be done
Even before Boston crashed out of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, it was known that there was a chance Holiday and Porzingis could be traded this offseason. Managing to get back Anfernee Simons, Georges Niang, and three second-round picks, while only attaching one second-rounder of their own to Porzingis as part of their three-team deal with the Hawks and Brooklyn Nets, is good business from a salary cap perspective (more on that in a minute).
There's no doubt that the Celtics are worse off without Holiday and Porzingis at their disposal. While Holiday's offensive game has begun to show signs of decline, he was a perfect fit in the locker room on this team, and he remains one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. Porzingis added elements to Boston's game on both ends of the floor that made them nearly unstoppable when he was fully healthy.
Both guys were luxuries for a team that needs to be stripped to the bones, though. With Holiday gone, Simons can slide into his starting spot if he stays in town, and even if he doesn't, reigning Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard has proven to be more than capable of becoming a starter. The Celtics still need help at center with Porzingis gone, but they largely played their previous two playoff runs without him, so it made no sense to keep paying him with the various health issues that have unfortunately continued to plague him.
Celtics must look to become fully cap-compliant
The main goal of the Celtics' offseason has been to get under the second apron of the salary cap, which they accomplished when they traded Porzingis to the Hawks. After signing Luka Garza and Josh Minott in free agency, though, Boston is back over the second apron, indicating that more moves are coming, which shouldn't be much of a surprise.
Rather than toeing the line of trying to compete while also reducing costs, it's becoming more and more evident that the best path forward for the C's is to become fully cap-compliant for the 2025-26 season. The chances of them winning a title with Jayson Tatum, who is expected to miss the entire season with a ruptured Achilles, are very slim. As a result, the season should be viewed as a reset year, and in order to fully maximize that reset year, they need to get under the cap entirely.
Moving newcomers like Simons and Niang can help accomplish that, and according to recent reports, it sounds like that's what they are looking to accomplish right now. But it also means moving on from Horford, who seems likely to leave anyway. The goal has to be to build as good of a team around Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Derrick White once they are all back on the court together, and that ultimately could mean laboring through the upcoming year in order to make life easier for the 2026-27 season and beyond.
