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This year’s offseason madness heavily centered on the big-names that changed addresses.
Gordon Hayward and Jimmy Butler were among those that caught plenty of attention from teams, and both found their names involved with the Boston Celtics at different points with Hayward obviously ending up with the team.
From day one, the Celtics were deemed as the favorites to pry away the former Butler Bulldog from the Utah Jazz, and they successfully did so thanks in part to his relationship with Brad Stevens.
Weeks prior to securing Hayward’s commitment, Boston was involved in trade talks with the Chicago Bulls for the services of Jimmy Butler. Danny Ainge and company’s efforts went futile after Butler was sent to the Minnesota Timberwolves for a stash of young players.
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Despite the failure to land the two-way extraordinaire, the Celtics weren’t really placed in a bad spot. If anything, they could have even averted a major headache had they gotten Butler before eventually landing Hayward.
According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, Boston’s brass had reservations in pairing Jimmy Butler alongside Gordon Hayward. The concern was on whether these two ball-dominant swingmen could coexist. There's no doubt that Beantown possessed the pieces that could have easily trumped the Timberwolves' offer, but they stood pat.
With the two stars firmly cemented in their new teams, the Celtics are focusing their energy on ironing out the Kyrie Irving trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Irving may posses worse ball-hogging tendencies than Butler, but the former is a way more capable playmaker than the latter. Most importantly, the ex-Duke Blue Devil doesn’t play the same position as the Celtics’ free agency prize in Gordon Hayward.
