Welcome to Boston, Neemias Queta!!!

[Parliament10]

My uneasiness has now been removed.

Same here. -- Celtics are moving fast.
Signings galor.

[phincsfan]

Lob City - East Coast Version!!!

[31to6]

Great! When do we get details? (I know FA hasn’t actually started yet officially)

[lon3lytoaster]

Phew. Made sense when we made him an RFA but great management by Zarren and Stevens. They’d have only had early bird rights next year and don’t let a team come slap him with a stupid offer.

[phincsfan]

Seems like the Jays really like Queta also.

[chrisab123]

Welcome back Champ

[Gant]

There was no truth ot the Fenerbache rumor.

Read on Twitter

[Gant]

Hollinger ranked Queta the 35th best center free agent in a weak class, between Biyombo and Garza. Tillman was 9th, and Kornet 10th.

I strongly do not agree. Queta is going to have a real career with the Celtics.

paywalled: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5585200/2024/06/28/nba-free-agency-best-available-centers-isaiah-hartenstein-nic-claxton/

9. Xavier Tillman Sr., Boston: $5,092,010

Tillman is a limited offensive player, but his ability to defend should make him an attractive backup center candidate. Boston has full Bird rights on him, but Tillman becomes an expensive luxury at prices much above the minimum given the Celtics’ current tax situation.

Tier V: Minimums
10. Luke Kornet, Boston

Boston has full Bird rights on Kornet if it needs to give him a slight raise on the $2.4 million he made a year ago as a sometimes-rotation center. He may have fans in other front offices willing to pay more, however, and as with Tillman above, the Celtics’ luxury tax situation likely limits how high they can go.

35. Neemias Queta, Boston (team option)

Queta has a $2.2 million team option for next season. Promoted from a two-way late in the year, he was pretty effective in his limited 28-game run in Boston. He would be two-way eligible again if he wants to return, should the team decline his option.

[Celts17Pride]

Hollinger ranked Queta the 35th best center free agent in a weak class, between Biyombo and Garza. Tillman was 9th, and Kornet 10th.

I strongly do not agree. Queta is going to have a real career with the Celtics.

paywalled: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5585200/2024/06/28/nba-free-agency-best-available-centers-isaiah-hartenstein-nic-claxton/

9. Xavier Tillman Sr., Boston: $5,092,010

Tillman is a limited offensive player, but his ability to defend should make him an attractive backup center candidate. Boston has full Bird rights on him, but Tillman becomes an expensive luxury at prices much above the minimum given the Celtics’ current tax situation.

Tier V: Minimums
10. Luke Kornet, Boston

Boston has full Bird rights on Kornet if it needs to give him a slight raise on the $2.4 million he made a year ago as a sometimes-rotation center. He may have fans in other front offices willing to pay more, however, and as with Tillman above, the Celtics’ luxury tax situation likely limits how high they can go.

35. Neemias Queta, Boston (team option)

Queta has a $2.2 million team option for next season. Promoted from a two-way late in the year, he was pretty effective in his limited 28-game run in Boston. He would be two-way eligible again if he wants to return, should the team decline his option.

There is a reason Hollinger got kicked out of Memphis front office

[Gant]

She's spot on. Queta is a disruptive player.

Read on Twitter

[Jammer]

I liked Queta when he was with Utah.

[hugepatsfan]

Love this move. The team is going to be limited in what they can offer players moving forward other than keeping your own guys. It's important to try and keep the guys who are potentially on the upswing with room to grow because pursuing outside improvements will be tough unless there's a good value vet min guy. Otherwise, improvement has to come from scouting in the draft or developmental progress from the guys you already have. Queta is a guy with room to grow. Glad they got it done.

I view Tillman the same way. If that shot shows any improvement that's a legit rotation big man. I hope we can keep him too.

Of the 3 FA centers, Kornet was the lowest priority for me because I think he's tapped out on his potential (feel the same about Brissett and Svi for the non centers). But he had the highest floor and they need some minutes filled while Porzingis is out so I get it.

[165bows]

Boom four of eight center spots filled!!

[31to6]

Boom four of eight center spots filled!!

Gosh is 8 enough though? With KP’s injury and Al’s age you just can’t be too safe, so I hope they’ll carry 11 centers next year, maybe something like:

Holiday/White/Jaylen/Jayson/KP/Al/Luke/Tillman/Queta/Drummond/Bamba/Kessler/Theis/Plumlee/another Plumlee or maybe Tree Rollins, I’m not sure if he’s still alive but he was a good rim protector and last I knew was a player/coach with the Magic in the mid-1990s maybe he has something left?

I’m still a bit nervous about some of these players going down with injuries, or needing load management due to age, and/or possibly no longer being alive, so I’d go C with all three 2-way slots this year, and see if we can announce our 2025 and 2026 NBA draft picks early, like now, and just take whatever centers are listed on nbadraft.net and see if they can join the franchise one or two years early as hardship exemptions.

[165bows]

Boom four of eight center spots filled!!

Gosh is 8 enough though? With KP’s injury and Al’s age you just can’t be too safe, so I hope they’ll carry 11 centers next year, maybe something like:

Holiday/White/Jaylen/Jayson/KP/Al/Luke/Tillman/Queta/Drummond/Bamba/Kessler/Theis/Plumlee/another Plumlee or maybe Tree Rollins, I’m not sure if he’s still alive but he was a good rim protector and last I knew was a player/coach with the Magic in the mid-1990s maybe he has something left?

I’m still a bit nervous about some of these players going down with injuries, or needing load management due to age, and/or possibly no longer being alive, so I’d go C with all three 2-way slots this year, and see if we can announce our 2025 and 2026 NBA draft picks early, like now, and just take whatever centers are listed on nbadraft.net and see if they can join the franchise one or two years early as hardship exemptions.

I’d say Al/KP/Kornet/Tillman/Saric/Queta/Blake/rando young guy (but not that young) we haven’t heard of much.

On a less serious note though what we need is more and better descriptions for big men. We’ve got stretch 5, small ball 5, rim runner shot blocker and that’s about it. We need about 4-5 more descriptions of guys, like what is Tillman eg (small ball 5 that might be able to shoot but can guard all kinds of guys but looks like he might blow a knee attempting a contested lay up?).

In a similar vein kind of want them to sign Fardaws Aimaq out of Cal for the SL squad. Kind of a rich man’s Trevion Williams potentially. Like, what was Williams, he needs his own category of big man that can pass like crazy and score a little bit but not shoot and if he could play defense we’d be real excited?

[Fencer reregistered]

Hollinger ranked Queta the 35th best center free agent in a weak class, between Biyombo and Garza. Tillman was 9th, and Kornet 10th.

I strongly do not agree. Queta is going to have a real career with the Celtics.

paywalled: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5585200/2024/06/28/nba-free-agency-best-available-centers-isaiah-hartenstein-nic-claxton/

9. Xavier Tillman Sr., Boston: $5,092,010

Tillman is a limited offensive player, but his ability to defend should make him an attractive backup center candidate. Boston has full Bird rights on him, but Tillman becomes an expensive luxury at prices much above the minimum given the Celtics’ current tax situation.

Tier V: Minimums
10. Luke Kornet, Boston

Boston has full Bird rights on Kornet if it needs to give him a slight raise on the $2.4 million he made a year ago as a sometimes-rotation center. He may have fans in other front offices willing to pay more, however, and as with Tillman above, the Celtics’ luxury tax situation likely limits how high they can go.

35. Neemias Queta, Boston (team option)

Queta has a $2.2 million team option for next season. Promoted from a two-way late in the year, he was pretty effective in his limited 28-game run in Boston. He would be two-way eligible again if he wants to return, should the team decline his option.

Those rankings are based on some statistical formula, I presume. (BORD$, whatever that is?) Hollinger sometimes indicates in the text whether or not he actually agrees with them.

[31to6]

Boom four of eight center spots filled!!

Gosh is 8 enough though? With KP’s injury and Al’s age you just can’t be too safe, so I hope they’ll carry 11 centers next year, maybe something like:

Holiday/White/Jaylen/Jayson/KP/Al/Luke/Tillman/Queta/Drummond/Bamba/Kessler/Theis/Plumlee/another Plumlee or maybe Tree Rollins, I’m not sure if he’s still alive but he was a good rim protector and last I knew was a player/coach with the Magic in the mid-1990s maybe he has something left?

I’m still a bit nervous about some of these players going down with injuries, or needing load management due to age, and/or possibly no longer being alive, so I’d go C with all three 2-way slots this year, and see if we can announce our 2025 and 2026 NBA draft picks early, like now, and just take whatever centers are listed on nbadraft.net and see if they can join the franchise one or two years early as hardship exemptions.

I’d say Al/KP/Kornet/Tillman/Saric/Queta/Blake/rando young guy (but not that young) we haven’t heard of much.

On a less serious note though what we need is more and better descriptions for big men. We’ve got stretch 5, small ball 5, rim runner shot blocker and that’s about it. We need about 4-5 more descriptions of guys, like what is Tillman eg (small ball 5 that might be able to shoot but can guard all kinds of guys but looks like he might blow a knee attempting a contested lay up?).

In a similar vein kind of want them to sign Fardaws Aimaq out of Cal for the SL squad. Kind of a rich man’s Trevion Williams potentially. Like, what was Williams, he needs his own category of big man that can pass like crazy and score a little bit but not shoot and if he could play defense we’d be real excited?

Trevion was “an Escalade.”
Just a few more years until I declare victory on that bet, you know you aren’t winning this one Shak!

[cloverleaf]

Great Mazzulla quote on Queta from back in January:

“He’s one of those kids that doesn’t know how good he can be, that hasn’t been in the league a long time,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters in January, as transcribed by WEEI’s Justin Turpin. “He’s only played like 300 minutes in the NBA. So he’s starting to see when he plays with a certain presence, we’re a different basketball team.”

https://nesn.com/2024/06/celtics-reportedly-ink-high-upside-center-to-multi-year-deal/

[Devilanche]

Is there any news how much he’s getting paid and for how long is his contract ?

[cloverleaf]

Is there any news how much he’s getting paid and for how long is his contract ?

For all the bellyaching that NBA front offices do about working long hours, they don't seem to often communicate before noon. So since it wasn't leaked last night, I don't think we know yet.