Free Agent/Trade/Waiver Thread, 2025-26, pt 3 – (Trade Deadline = Thurs, Feb. 5, 3pm, ET)

[GoCeltics123]

Sabonis at $50 mil a year would cost Brad his job. If we're going for a big at that price, it should be JJJ (we're probably not going for a big at that price)

[Celts17Pride]

Sabonis at $50 mil a year would cost Brad his job. If we're going for a big at that price, it should be JJJ (we're probably not going for a big that price)

Especially with moving both Simons and Hauser, the Celtics two shooters off the bench.

[hugepatsfan]

The only thing that I like about a JJJ trade to the Celtics is the Cs can end up keeping Hauser.

Just Simons, Baylor, Tillman, and Boucher then add 1st round picks.
That's enough for salaries to match.

The question will be is how much Memphis values 1st round picks.

I think they can keep Hauser for this year, but I don't think it's viable beyond that when JJJ's extension kicks in. Not unless they're willing to incur 2nd apron repeater penalties (basketball, not financial). We have to be under the 2nd apron 3 of the next 4 years to reset the pick freezes and other penalties.

25-26 (this year): If we traded Simons/Hauser for JJJ and backfilled with a vet min for AWilliams we'd be basically same salary spot. Above 1st apron but that's ok because we aren't making any moves that prohibit that.

26-27: With JJJ taking Hauser's place, we still have 11 players signed like we do now. We'd be at $218.8M in salary for those 11 guys, which is only $3.6M below the 2nd apron. Not enough to fill 3 roster spots right away, but they can get under with midseason moves.

27-28: With JJ in Hauser's place again, they're at $223.2M but now just for 7 players. That leaves them $21.4M below the 2nd apron. The 4 players who dropped off to take us from 11 to 7 are Queta/Walsh/Garza/Minott. We can probably sign one of Queta/Walsh but have to let the other go to stay under the 2nd apron. Then fill the rest of the roster with minimums and still needing to do some midyear math to duck the 2nd apron.

28-29: We'd be at $224.4M with only Tatum/Brown/JJJ/White/Hugo signed. That's $32.4M below the 2nd apron. I guess add in whichever of Queta/Walsh we kept per my 28-28 notes. Key here though is that Pritchard is a FA, so re-signing or replacing him isn't included. You get the idea... incredibly thin roster.



All of this is WITHOUT us keeping Hauser and you can see we have to make some painful roster decisions and thinning out our depth to avoid repeater penalties. Add Hauser back in and now you can't realistically expect to reset those 2nd apron basketball penalties (pick freezes, trade restrictions, etc). Doesn't seem Brad has any willingness to incur those.

Personally, I think the financials are too tight here to trade for JJJ even with Simons/Hauser both in the deal. Again, that's assuming they won't take on 2nd apron repeater penalties. I think trading for JJJ like this leaves the future rosters too thin to do if they have to reset those.

If we do trade for JJJ, I think the feasible way to do it is to trade White + filler (some combo of Tillman/Boucher/Scheierman/Garza/Minott). Keep both Simons and Hauser. Re-sign Simons at a reasonable cost in the offseason.

Pritchard / Simons
Brown / Hugo
Tatum / Hauser
JJJ / Walsh
Queta / AWilliams

That's the team they'd probably be moving forward with for the next few years once Tatum is back. Scheierman/Garza/Minott can also factor in, but some/all of them will be needed as the filler to match salaries. But this would be a team that can stay under the 2nd apron long enough to reset penalties.

[brackdan70]

Should we trade non all star players for an all star who plays a position of need? Ya. Seems like a no brainer

I think there is a potential logic trap here though. You have to look at what will happen rather than than whit has happened. Just generally speaking, trading guys with high potential for a guy who has been an all star potential in the past may not be a good thing.
Making an all star team does not always correlate with playing winning basketball.

When Fox and Sabonis played a full season together the Kings were pretty good winning 46 and 48 games. One of those seasons they finished 3rd in the west, the other season 9th. I see Sabonis as a winning player. You don't want him as your best player but if he's your third best player then the team is going to be very, very good.

Important distinction ~ Sabonis didn't have all star potential, he was an all star in 3 different years.

Jaren Jackson has made two all star teams, win DPOY, been first team all defense twice and second team all defense once.

It's not potential with these two players. They are elite among their peers and both still in their primes. In JJJ's case he's just entering his prime.

Walsh and Hugo have potential. So do 100 other guys in the league. Sometimes trading potential for the established player is a bad move but more often than not it benefits the team receiving the established player.

I think Sabonis best is in the past. He has made 3 all star teams…I don’t think he makes another and I don’t think he is worth his Salary. For these reasons I wouldn’t pay high potential guys ) Walsh or Hugo for him.
With JJJ, I feel a bit different. He still has all NBA type seasons ahead of him. It would be worth trading Walsh or Hugo for him. Problem with him is the salary is so high that him, Tatum and Brown on the same team is not sustainable financially.

[celticgreenie]

I like Day'ron Sharpe's game but if the Celtics traded for him, I would be concerned he might be a bit undersized against some of the playoff teams we might face down the road...

[hugepatsfan]

Sabonis at $50 mil a year would cost Brad his job. If we're going for a big at that price, it should be JJJ (we're probably not going for a big at that price)

Just pointing out that Sabonis seems like he'll be much more available to us than JJJ. SAC seems more committed to a full tear down than MEM does. Sabonis is a floor raiser more than JJJ so for a team trying to rebuild he's more of a "drain" on your pick value. Sabonis' game is clunkier to fit in on teams than JJJ so he likely has less suitors and less aggressive offers for us to match. Sabonis is older than JJJ too.

You can't really just say to get JJJ instead of Sabonis because they're probably different tiers of value/availability.

[CelticFaninLBC]

Claxton seems like the highest dollar big they'll go after.

[robdog_5]

What about a guy like Jake Landale? He's not a clear huge difference maker. But he could be a solid fit off the bench.

[Celts17Pride]

What about a guy like Jake Landale? He's not a clear huge difference maker. But he could be a solid fit off the bench.

Good to me but I doubt Memphis will move him.

[Deivork]

TLDR: How confident are you in the Cs ring chances this year? How comfortable you'd be with a quiet deadline knowing East teams will improve?

Hi guys. I've been thinking: this might feel a bit less likely with his calf injury from last night but it is still a very real possibilty that the Knicks could basically trade KAT+ for Giannis in the next 10 days (likely with a 3rd team, more players involved, etc. ok). He wants to play in New York, the Bucks have been losing and he seems checked-out lately. It screams of a silent trade demand.

If the Knicks get Giannis they'd become instant favourites in the East, right? The Celtics used to have Giannis "stoppers" in Grant Williams, Al Horford... but now? Do we? How well has Queta done against him? I genuinely ignore it but I don't think he's quite that.

Are you comfortable having a quiet deadline if that were the case? If Brad is serious about winning this year, he should really consider that possibility, right? With a Tatum at 70% we have a fair chance against Detroit, but I don't think we'd have it facing a Giannis-led Knicks team. It might get overlooked because of familiarity, but he remains an absolute two-way beast when engaged.

My opinion is we won't have real championship chances this year unless we'd swing for the fences (trade for JJJ or similar). As of now we are contenders to get to the Finals if the East stays put. Then if we got to the Finals I don't think we'd have a real chance against Denver or OKC. We don't quite have the defensive personnel and scoring will only get harder in the Play-offs with teams focusing and game-planning against Jaylen. Sorry if I'm a downer, I'm trying to be realistic here and not a homer.

All that is if things just stay as currently are in the East. However, there's a fair chance an East team makes a strong push in the second half of the season (Orlando, Cleveland, Philly, even Toronto or Miami...) and / or make a win-now trade before the deadline. We could well go down an echelon in that process.

A big win-now Celtics trade could prove too risky nevertheless and jeopardize our ability to make moves and contend for the next few seasons with a hopefully fully-healthy Tatum. Or maybe, just maybe, it is exactly what we need. Who knows.

My take is Brad is not fully believing we have a real chance for the ring this season. It was supposed to be a gap year after all and we've only "overperformed" and he will act with that awareness in mind. In other words, I don't think he'll get too crazy.

With my heart I wanna say we could actually fight for the chip and of course I will believe it and root for it once in the heat of the play-offs. Though with a cool head I say now, barring a revolution or a miracle, we don't have a realistic chance.

What do you think?

[robdog_5]

What about a guy like Jake Landale? He's not a clear huge difference maker. But he could be a solid fit off the bench.

Good to me but I doubt Memphis will move him.

I guess they have a shot at the playoffs. But he's on an cheap expiring and is gonna be due a raise based on this season. Why not get some value unless at 30 he's in your future plans?

[hoopsfan777]

Zion
4
Simons
Hauser
Boucher
26 1st rd pick

[fallguy]

We're not trading Sam.

[redslastlaugh]

After that Nets game, I really can't justify trading for Dayron Sharpe if the cost if Anfernee Simons and a 1st plus we have to take back bad money (Zaire Williams) for next season as has been rumored in media reports.

Sharpe is a fine player, but trading a first for a backup center will establish precedent and become a "comp" for future trades. If Brad gives a first for Dayron Sharpe, every trade partner for years will reference this trade and use it to argue for a BOS 1st rounder too.

[reload141]

What about a guy like Jake Landale? He's not a clear huge difference maker. But he could be a solid fit off the bench.

Good to me but I doubt Memphis will move him.

Plus he’s Australian

[redslastlaugh]

TLDR: How confident are you in the Cs ring chances this year? How comfortable you'd be with a quiet deadline knowing East teams will improve?

My take is Brad is not fully believing we have a real chance for the ring this season. It was supposed to be a gap year after all and we've only "overperformed" and he will act with that awareness in mind. In other words, I don't think he'll get too crazy.

With my heart I wanna say we could actually fight for the chip and of course I will believe it and root for it once in the heat of the play-offs. Though with a cool head I say now, barring a revolution or a miracle, we don't have a realistic chance.

What do you think?

I think Brad won't make a major move for this playoffs, because of Tatum's injury. We don't know how JT is going to look and JT won't be back before the trade deadline on 2/5, so I think Brad will wait until the offseason unless a big, too good to pass up, opportunity presents itself (which is not gonna happen).

We could still win the title, assuming JT comes back better than anyone expects and the frontcourt (Queta, Garza, Hugo, Walsh, Minott) performs well in the playoffs. But winning the title under these circumstances, would be "catching lightening in a bottle" and not Brad going ALL IN at the trade deadline.

Gotta see Tatum back playing ball and see what JT is playing like: 50% JT, 75% JT, 90% Tatum or what ??? Does he look like 100% good as ever? Front office just needs to see it first, imo

[fallguy]

Zion
4
Simons
Hauser
Boucher
26 1st rd pick

I'm familiar with Mr. Williamson's work and will have to respectfully decline.

[Deivork]

https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/283578/Celtics-Aggressively-Pursuing-High-Level-Starting-Center

Via RealGM Wiretap.

On a recent appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania said the Boston Celtics are looking to make an impact move ahead of the February 5 trade deadline. Charania describe Boston as "aggressive" in trying to get a deal done.

"They’ve been in the marketplace, trying to go get a big-time starting center potentially," Charania said about Boston's approach to the trade deadline. "They’re going to be aggressive in moving the needle. They’ve got assets. They’ve got contracts to play with."

The Celtics have been linked to players like Ivica Zubac of the LA Clippers and Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Memphis Grizzlies. Boston has Anfernee Simons' expiring $27.7 million contract to offer in trade, as well as a $22.5 million traded player exception at their disposal. Boston also owns most of their own future first-round draftpicks, although their 2032 pick is frozen from being a second-apron team last season.

Boston worked hard to shed salary this past offseason to get under the second apron, in part to avoid further draft-pick restrictions down the line. The Celtics currently stand $7.8 million under the second apron and are highly unlikely to go back over that market this season.