Free Agent, Trade, Buyout, Extension & Conversion Thread, 2025 con't

[hugepatsfan]

Trade #1

BOS gives: Jrue ($32.4M)
BOS gets: Patrick Williams ($18.0M)
*savings $14.4M

DET gives: Tobias Harris
DET gets: PJ Washington, Klay

DAL gives: PJ Washington, Klay, Naji Marshall or Caleb Martin
DAL gets: Jrue

CHI gives: Patrick Williams
CHI gets: Tobias Harris

SAC gives: fake 2nd
SAC gets: Caleb Martin or Naji Marshall (into TPE/MLE)



Trade #2

Send Hauser into some team's TPE or MLE. Save $10.0M



Trade #3

BOS gives: Porzinigs
BOS gets: Nurkic
*savings $11.4M

CHA give: Nurkic, Okogie, 2nd(s)
CHA gets: Porzingis



Next, waive and stretch Nurkic's expiring deal. This saves $12.9M on the 25-26 cap sheet.

Backfill by signing 2 vet min players.

Assuming we draft and sign at #28 and #32, we'd be $198,106 below the luxury tax with 14 players signed. Comfortably below it next year.

White / Pritchard / Davison
Brown
Schierman / Walsh
Patrick Williams
Queta / Tillman

+ Tatum on IR, 2 vet min signings and whoever we take at #28/#32

Spend a year really trying to develop Schierman, Walsh, #28 pick, #32 pick, Queta and Walsh. Try to tap into some 3&D potential with Williams. Likely get a mid to high 1st to add to the mix next year with Tatum back. Cap sheet in order. Still have a strong big 3 w/ Brown and White. Pritchard as a great bench piece. Between the youngsters and Pat Williams you should have some role players too.

[djFan71]

^^^ That’s more like I’m talking about. Keep the picks, reduce salary, maybe even get a young asset. Williams contract isn’t great,but it helps this year and he could be moved further this or next. And, honestly, even this is on the extreme side of asset liquidation that I think Brad would do.

Do we need the waive and stretch to duck the apron with 14 players? How close is it? Would be really nice to not clog future years. I’m traveling and only have a phone so the math is too much work, lol.

[GoCeltics123]

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

[ddb]

AJ Dybantsa sitting at the top of the 2026 draft. Local kid. The nuclear option would be trade Jrue & KP in separate deals to the highest bidders and bring back expirings/picks/young players.

Tell JT to take his time. The longevity of his career being most important thing VS rushing back. Have JB get that knee fixed and keep him out half the year too.

Dream scenario is getting top pick and landing AJ. 2026 season you have a big 4 of JT/JB/AJ/DW. By the way. AJ Dybantsa looks generational. Cam Boozer a solid consolation prize. Or, having a top 5 pick Brad can make a trade and bring in an established stud.

[yeleven11]

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

“Rival executives” are always funny sources lol. Ofc they think that, that would be beneficial for them! FWIW, in the anything is poddable podcast, Jay King said pretty adamantly that based on his conversations, he thinks jrue will have legitimate positive value.

[phincsfan]

A couple of draft day trades but in this order:

C's, Bulls, Heat, Clips

C's get Vucevic, Dunn, Batum

Bulls get Herro

Heat get Bogdanovic, Carter (little side note, Heat favorite Dragic once called Bogdanovic the NBA's most underrated Euro player)

Clips get Jrue #28

Bulls 25/26 starting 5 - Collins-Williams-Buzelis-Herro-White

Heat 25/26 starting 5 - Ware-Bam-Wiggins-Bogdanovic-Mitchell

Clips 25/26 starting 5 - Zubac-Kawhi-Powell-Jrue-Harden

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

C's, Nets, Pistons, Grizz

C's get Aldama, Simone, Whitehead

Nets get Morant future 1st's from Pistons

Pistons get Cam Johnson, Clowney

Grizz get Porzingis, Stewart, Keon Johnson, #8

Pistons 25/26 starting 5 - Duren-Harris-Cam-Ausar-Cade

Grizz 25/26 starting 5 - Edey-KP-JJJ-Bane-Pippen Jr

----------------------------------------

Trade Tillman and payroll is down to 207mil for 25/26 season

The payroll in 26/27 minus Jrue is down to 164mil. Dunn and Whiteheads contracts are team options so turn them down. Sign Aldama to a contract to fill the PF/C spot for the next few years. IMO, he's a safer bet then the 28th pick.


C's roster for 25/26


Vucevic-Aldama-JB-White-Pritchard
Neems-Batum-Sam-Rico-Dunn
Whitehead-Fontecchio-Peterson-Norris

2way the 32nd pick

Go into 26/27 season with JT-JB-White-Sam-PP-Aldama-Rico-Neems-Peterson and they still have all their picks for the 26' draft.

Just saying....

Get under the apron, White and JB stay, lots of room in 26/27, get Aldama who is young and has been productive and keep #32 (maybe Broome to fill in the frontcourt)

all that for

#28 and a season with Vucevic, Batum, Dunn and Fontecchio (who are all expiring or team options)

I think all the teams involved make out pretty well

[djFan71]

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

Still feels doable to trade him without picks, but it’ll be something equally ugly coming back, but shorter and slightly less money (hello Terry) or lesser but longer.

Guys like Patrick Williams, Terrance Mann, Beef Stew. Multi year contracts in that $15-18M range help this year, and then KP expires for the rest. Thats why I’m just not 100% sure we absolutely have to duck the 2nd apron this year. If we’re not consumed by that idea, you can make moves that get you partially there without selling the farm.

[redslastlaugh]

The front office just refused to make choices. They said we're gonna extend everyone, blow the budget and then count on other teams to bail us out once we're over the barrel and without leverage and the ONLY way out requires another team helping us out.

Of course, in a league full of sharks, the other teams smell blood in the water and now will apply the pressure and try to take us for everything they can get. Predictable.

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

[djFan71]

The front office just refused to make choices. They said we're gonna extend everyone, blow the budget and then count on other teams to bail us out once we're over the barrel and without leverage and the ONLY way out requires another team helping us out.

Of course, in a league full of sharks, the other teams smell blood in the water and now will apply the pressure and try to take us for everything they can get. Predictable.

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

“ might have to be attached to Holiday's contract by the Celtics to convince someone to absorb the $104 million remaining”

Might and absorb. Those are the key words to me.
If we’re don’t expect someone to take it without dumping some of their own bad money, we should be fine.

[brackdan70]

I posted it yesterday, still feel like it is a dope as hell trade....

Kristaps to LAL
Maxi Klebr and a 2nd to Charlotte

Rui Hachimura, Dalton Knect and Mark Williams to Celtics



Then trade Jrue to Houston (Houston cuts FVV which saves them tons of money and puts them 25 million below cap) for Tari Eason (saves Boston ~25 million - putting them below 2nd apron)

White/Pritchard/???
Brown/Schierman
Knect/Hauser/Walsh
Hachimura/????/Craig
Williams/Kornet/Queta

Would need to grab a backup PF and depth PG from somewhere (Vet mins maybe?)

It would be dope, but KP won’t bring back that kind of value, and Jrue for Eason is going to need some incentive to Houston.

I think KP does, cause LAL HAS to do a trade like this. Can switch out Hachimura for Vanderbilt for all I care. I feel like Vanderbilt is more important to the lakers for his rebounding and defense.

IMO the prize is Knect.

I think it’s delusional to think you can get Knect.
LAL has other options to find a big.

[redslastlaugh]

Ultimately, Brad needed to make a choice. If you want to extend Jrue, you have to move off another player, KP, White, whoever ... or you have to have an agreement with a friendly team for an escape hatch plan.

You just need to make choices with foresight because if you don't you run into the huge problem of the owners just saying, "get off this money, that's an order, whatever the cost," and as the GM, you can't box yourself in like that because you're already out 2028 swap and 2029 unprotected 1st and have only 2 seconds over the next 6 yrs too.

You need ur draft capital to retool for JT's second half of career. You can't get stuck. It'd have been better to let Jrue leave like James Posey than resign him to a market negative contract and then have to pay more assets to get off him.

I hope Zarren and Austin are like listen, "Danny will do Jrue 28/32 for John Collins if it comes to that." because that may be a best case outcome for what we're looking at.

[djFan71]

Ultimately, Brad needed to make a choice. If you want to extend Jrue, you have to move off another player, KP, White, whoever ... or you have to have an agreement with a friendly team for an escape hatch plan.

You just need to make choices with foresight because if you don't you run into the huge problem of the owners just saying, "get off this money, that's an order, whatever the cost," and as the GM, you can't box yourself in like that because you're already out 2028 swap and 2029 unprotected 1st and have only 2 seconds over the next 6 yrs too.

You need ur draft capital to retool for JT's second half of career. You can't get stuck. It'd have been better to let Jrue leave like James Posey than resign him to a market negative contract and then have to pay more assets to get off him.

I hope Zarren and Austin are like listen, "Danny will do Jrue 28/32 for John Collins if it comes to that." because that may be a best case outcome for what we're looking at.

I think the choice was a 3 year contending window. Last, this, and next year. Injuries killed it, but it was a good shot.

Jrue could have been extended for less, imo. He turned down an option year and signed this one at basically the same money and ascending. If nothing else it could have been descending. I was hoping for 3yr and $75-80M instead of $100M. But Brad loves the guy and traded for him and wanted to keep him around for that window. And we got a banner.

KP expiring next year (only a 2 yr extension) is that choice you mentioned,imo. Thats his out and still can be. We’re only talking Jrue trades this summer because of injuries to basically everyone this year, and of course JT for next.

Healthy we would have ridden this group (sans Hauser) to a possible 3peat, taxes be damned. Moving Hauser and saving that $ would have made the taxes much more palatable if we were contending.

[ddb]

What about Jaylen Brown/#28 to Jazz for Lauri and #5. Draft Tre Johnson.

Jrue/White/Johnson/Lauri/KP
PP/Hauser/Baylor/Horford
**Tatum

Shooting EVERYWHERE. If Tatum can return close to full strength and Tre is the real deal, this team could take off for another window.

P.S. I felt so dirty typing this trade idea that I'm not even sure I remotely like. lol

[yeleven11]

What about Jaylen Brown/#28 to Jazz for Lauri and #5. Draft Tre Johnson.

Jrue/White/Johnson/Lauri/KP
PP/Hauser/Baylor/Horford
**Tatum

Shooting EVERYWHERE. If Tatum can return close to full strength and Tre is the real deal, this team could take off for another window.

P.S. I felt so dirty typing this trade idea that I'm not even sure I remotely like. lol

I’m curious whether jaylen actually has more value than lauri given their contracts. I feel like the answer is no.

[hugepatsfan]

Good news everyone, I figured it out!!! I'll send this to Brad/Zarren and we can all be on our merry way.

Spoiler:

Trade #1:

BOS gives: Jrue
BOS gets: Patrick Williams, 2 future CHI 2nd rounders

CHI gives: Patrick Williams, 3 future 2nds
CHI gets: Tobias Harris

DAL gives: PJ Washington, Klay Thompson, Dwight Powell
DAL gets: Jrue Holiday

DET gives: Tobias Harris, 2026 1st
DET gets: PJ Washington, Klay Thompson

Random team gives: nothing
Random team gets: future CHI 2nd rounder, Dwight Powell

Trade #2

BOS gives: Kristaps Porzingis
BOS gets: Josef Nurkic

CHA gives: Josef Nurkic, Josh Okogie, 2nd rounder(s)
CHA gets: Kristaps Porzingis

Random team gives: nothing
Random team gets: future CHA 2nd rounder(s), Josh Okogie

Trade #3

BOS gives: Josef Nurkic, 2 future 2nds they got from CHI, 4 of their own future 2nds
BOS gets: nothing

UT gives: Jordan Clarkson
UT gets: Josef Nurkic, 2 future BOS or CHI 2nds

MIA gives: Kyle Anderson
MIA gets: Jordan Clarkson, 2 future BOS or CHI 2nds

Random team gives: nothing
Random team gets: Kyle Anderson, 2 future BOS or CHI 2nds (requires them having a MLE/TPE to use)

After these series of moves, assuming we also draft and sign #28 and #32, we will have the following 13 players signed:

Derrick White / Payton Pritchard / JD Davison
Jaylen Brown / Baylor Scheierman
Sam Hauser/ Jordan Walsh
Patrick Williams
Neemias Queta / Xavier Tillman

+ Tatum on the injured list, and the #28 and #32 picks whoever they are

Our team salary will be $186,743,734. That is $1,153,266 below the tax with one roster spot to fill. That's tight. They might need to find someone to take Tillman and backfill with someone like Jrue Peterson that is a bit cheaper. Maybe do the same with JD Davison. Will be very, very tight, but they can probably make it work.

Push comes to shove, they could free up an extra ~$800K by keeping Kyle Anderson and sending Hauser into someone's TPE instead, which I think probably saves them the draft capital. But I wanted to keep SOME continuity with our guys.

[ddb]

What about Jaylen Brown/#28 to Jazz for Lauri and #5. Draft Tre Johnson.

Jrue/White/Johnson/Lauri/KP
PP/Hauser/Baylor/Horford
**Tatum

Shooting EVERYWHERE. If Tatum can return close to full strength and Tre is the real deal, this team could take off for another window.

P.S. I felt so dirty typing this trade idea that I'm not even sure I remotely like. lol

I’m curious whether jaylen actually has more value than lauri given their contracts. I feel like the answer is no.

I think Jaylen clearly has more value and it's not even close. But with that said, my guess is Ainge tanks another year away and hopes the lottery balls work out in his favor next summer when AJ Dybantsa is there at the top. If the league is as fixed as we think, the BYU star to Utah makes a lot of sense

[Curmudgeon]

I think the simplest deal is Brown to the Nets for #8. The Nets will have 70 mil in cap space. That puts the Celtics under the cap right away, and there's no need to shop anyone else. Meanwhile, you have the full MLE, etc. to add players. I don't want anything but picks back for Brown.

So you tank next year and develop your young talent (#8, #28, #32). You move Porzingis at the deadline, and you still have the league's best backcourt + Tatum to contend in 2026.

[Gant]

There's not anything new here, but this article has a clear summary of the situation facing the Celtics, and some options for the offseason:

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2025/05/brad-stevens-should-opt-for-this-bold-maneuver-in-celtics-offseason-brian-robb.html

[165bows]

Read on Twitter

Ugh I really don’t want to give up a pick to get rid of Jrue. If we have to do that, we should just dump him to the nets and take no salary back

“Rival executives” are always funny sources lol. Ofc they think that, that would be beneficial for them! FWIW, in the anything is poddable podcast, Jay King said pretty adamantly that based on his conversations, he thinks jrue will have legitimate positive value.

Draft compensation without being spelled out means second round pick.

[CelticFaninLBC]

Can see them stretching Porzingis and trading Hauser into a TPE. I believe that saves over $30 million in 2025-2026...