The roster of the Boston Celtics is designed to win an NBA championship. However, that is not the first time that this franchise—which last enjoyed a successful title in 2008—has been the subject of criticism. Even though the Shamrocks have been a strong team thus far, there’s a good probability that this run will conclude similarly to their previous postseason endeavours. And this team’s roster will probably alter if they are unable to take advantage of this chance. Though we’ll all have to wait and watch what happens with Jrue Holiday, who has a $39.4 million player option for the upcoming season, according to Spotrac, the alterations definitely won’t be spectacular. However, when a team is this close to winning it all, even small changes may have a big effect. Should the
If the Celtics go searching for ways to upgrade their rotation, they could make some things happen on the trade market. We’ll explore some possibilities with a trio of hypothetical offseason swaps, although since payrolls and rosters will look differently by the time these deals could go down, we’ll focus on general trade concepts as opposed to fully realized, salary-matching moves.
Assuming the Celtics don’t sense a need for dramatic change—and barring a premature playoff exit, they shouldn’t—then they’ll probably be shopping the bargain bin this summer.
Much like their deadline deal for Jaden Springer, a trade for AJ Griffin could be a chance to buy low on a young player with untapped potential. And if the Celtics happened to get the best out of Griffin, they’d suddenly have a cost-controlled, three-and-D wing added to the equation.
It’s worth noting, of course, that Griffin isn’t getting any minutes (132 in total) this season on an Atlanta Hawks team headed for the Play-In Tournament. So, the odds of him becoming a regular contributor in Boston can’t be great.
Then again, injuries and personal absences have contributed to his limited floor time, so it isn’t necessarily tied to a lack of ability. Just last season, the 6’6″ swingman carved out a rotation role as a rookie, netting 39 percent of his long-range looks while showing flashes of defensive ability and some off-the-dribble utility. He’s an interesting young player, and given what it would cost to get him (a pair of second-round picks might do it), the potential reward could easily outweigh any
risk.
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