Free Agent/Trade/Waiver Thread, 2025-26

[Fierce1]

I wish that we had a 2nd Summer League/Camp. End of August to the middle of Sept.
Bring in the Fringe Players, and have some Vets practice with them.

I think it's related to international competition.

August is usually the time where FIBA plays its games.

Yeah. But, most of the Fringe Players aren't going to be in that.
Some Vets are doing their own Training Camps anyway, separate from the Teams.

Might as well make it Official, like they do in the NFL.
Not sure about some of the other sports?

I think 2 months of no NBA is beneficial to all, including us fans.

At least that's how I see it.

[GoCeltics123]

Jake Fischer said the following on his stream yesterday:

--Celtics and Grizz had trade talks at SL about Niang, and the Simons/KCP stuff was bogus
--Celtics wanted RJ Luis after the draft but he signed with Utah instead
--Celtics preferred signing Boucher to other guys like Ben Simmons
--Simons will likely start the season in Boston

Watch on YouTube

Around 25:30 it starts

[Fierce1]

I never believed that KCP for Simons rumor.

Guess that debate is settled.

Simons likely start the season in Boston?

[Hal14]

I think it's related to international competition.

August is usually the time where FIBA plays its games.

Yeah. But, most of the Fringe Players aren't going to be in that.
Some Vets are doing their own Training Camps anyway, separate from the Teams.

Might as well make it Official, like they do in the NFL.
Not sure about some of the other sports?

I think 2 months of no NBA is beneficial to all, including us fans.

At least that's how I see it.

Yup. We're seeing enough injuries as it is. And much of that is because these players play too much basketball as it is.

If anything, we should trim like 8-10 games from the reg season schedule - not add more games/training camp.

Read on Twitter

[bucknersrevenge]

Jake Fischer said the following on his stream yesterday:

--Celtics and Grizz had trade talks at SL about Niang, and the Simons/KCP stuff was bogus
--Celtics wanted RJ Luis after the draft but he signed with Utah instead
--Celtics preferred signing Boucher to other guys like Ben Simmons
--Simons will likely start the season in Boston

Watch on YouTube

Around 25:30 it starts

This all just makes sense in general. I actually liked Niang and thought he would fit well but swapping him out for Boucher just reinforces the new vision and remodel of this team by Brad. Our 2 biggest issues last year was forcing turnovers and pushing the pace. Boucher is a solid veteran with the length and agility to be switchy on PnRs on D as be a solid help defender weakside on blocks. Slots in nicely next to Queta in the starting lineup better defensively than Niang would have.

With the additions of Simons and Minott they are younger more athletic, while still being long on defense. Brad said he wanted to remain competitive and you don't make a move like this unless you mean it. As for the Simons part, it just doesn't make sense to send out a talent like Simons just to save money IMO so I won't be the least bit surprised when he starts the season on the roster. And if Simons begins the year with us, there are VERY few players that it would make sense to move for him.

And they might as well start him. You don't demote a 20 pt a game career starter, and dynamic offensive guard just to elevate a career bench player who just won the award for actually being the best bench player in the league. Nothing in Brad's history suggests he's comfortable with the idea of 6'2, 190lb Payton Pritchard as the longterm starter of this team. Brad has a type when it comes to ballhandlers.

[Celts17Pride]

In my opinion, you can see pretty much how this is going to play out in the NBA as far as transactions. Most teams have trade restrictions that expire in the first few weeks of September including the Celtics. I think you are going to see all the restricted free agents (Kuminga, Giddey, Grimes, Thomas etc.) resolved by the end of August then you will see a small flurry of trades in mid September when trade restrictions are lifted right before teams get ready for camp. Does this mean more moves from the Celtics? who knows?

My guess is yes.

[djFan71]

I never believed that KCP for Simons rumor.

Guess that debate is settled.

Simons likely start the season in Boston?

I think they would trade him if he had value. Could still happen in September after other stuff is settled, but maybe I need to start to figure out how to type Simons not Simon’s.

[djFan71]

Jake Fischer said the following on his stream yesterday:

--Celtics and Grizz had trade talks at SL about Niang, and the Simons/KCP stuff was bogus
--Celtics wanted RJ Luis after the draft but he signed with Utah instead
--Celtics preferred signing Boucher to other guys like Ben Simmons
--Simons will likely start the season in Boston

Watch on YouTube

Around 25:30 it starts

This all just makes sense in general. I actually liked Niang and thought he would fit well but swapping him out for Boucher just reinforces the new vision and remodel of this team by Brad. Our 2 biggest issues last year was forcing turnovers and pushing the pace. Boucher is a solid veteran with the length and agility to be switchy on PnRs on D as be a solid help defender weakside on blocks. Slots in nicely next to Queta in the starting lineup better defensively than Niang would have.

With the additions of Simons and Minott they are younger more athletic, while still being long on defense. Brad said he wanted to remain competitive and you don't make a move like this unless you mean it. As for the Simons part, it just doesn't make sense to send out a talent like Simons just to save money IMO so I won't be the least bit surprised when he starts the season on the roster. And if Simons begins the year with us, there are VERY few players that it would make sense to move for him.

And they might as well start him. You don't demote a 20 pt a game career starter, and dynamic offensive guard just to elevate a career bench player who just won the award for actually being the best bench player in the league. Nothing in Brad's history suggests he's comfortable with the idea of 6'2, 190lb Payton Pritchard as the longterm starter of this team. Brad has a type when it comes to ballhandlers.

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy. He's obviously got some elite scoring talent, but they see him as basically a lump of cancer removed. Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D. The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve. If he's truly here to start the year, I'll jump on the wagon and root for him to improve in all areas, etc, but I'm fairly skeptical at this point.

[bucknersrevenge]

Jake Fischer said the following on his stream yesterday:

--Celtics and Grizz had trade talks at SL about Niang, and the Simons/KCP stuff was bogus
--Celtics wanted RJ Luis after the draft but he signed with Utah instead
--Celtics preferred signing Boucher to other guys like Ben Simmons
--Simons will likely start the season in Boston

Watch on YouTube

Around 25:30 it starts

This all just makes sense in general. I actually liked Niang and thought he would fit well but swapping him out for Boucher just reinforces the new vision and remodel of this team by Brad. Our 2 biggest issues last year was forcing turnovers and pushing the pace. Boucher is a solid veteran with the length and agility to be switchy on PnRs on D as be a solid help defender weakside on blocks. Slots in nicely next to Queta in the starting lineup better defensively than Niang would have.

With the additions of Simons and Minott they are younger more athletic, while still being long on defense. Brad said he wanted to remain competitive and you don't make a move like this unless you mean it. As for the Simons part, it just doesn't make sense to send out a talent like Simons just to save money IMO so I won't be the least bit surprised when he starts the season on the roster. And if Simons begins the year with us, there are VERY few players that it would make sense to move for him.

And they might as well start him. You don't demote a 20 pt a game career starter, and dynamic offensive guard just to elevate a career bench player who just won the award for actually being the best bench player in the league. Nothing in Brad's history suggests he's comfortable with the idea of 6'2, 190lb Payton Pritchard as the longterm starter of this team. Brad has a type when it comes to ballhandlers.

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy. He's obviously got some elite scoring talent, but they see him as basically a lump of cancer removed. Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D. The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve. If he's truly here to start the year, I'll jump on the wagon and root for him to improve in all areas, etc, but I'm fairly skeptical at this point.

100% fair. He asked for this. Now he has to earn it. I think/hope Joe is the right man for the job at the right time in this kid's career. There's a level of accountability that has been missing in Simons' career that if not addressed, Joe will not tolerate. Nor will the ranking members on this team. The ball is abolutely in his corner. And Simons also knows his next payday will weigh heavility on how he changes his perception.

[djFan71]

This all just makes sense in general. I actually liked Niang and thought he would fit well but swapping him out for Boucher just reinforces the new vision and remodel of this team by Brad. Our 2 biggest issues last year was forcing turnovers and pushing the pace. Boucher is a solid veteran with the length and agility to be switchy on PnRs on D as be a solid help defender weakside on blocks. Slots in nicely next to Queta in the starting lineup better defensively than Niang would have.

With the additions of Simons and Minott they are younger more athletic, while still being long on defense. Brad said he wanted to remain competitive and you don't make a move like this unless you mean it. As for the Simons part, it just doesn't make sense to send out a talent like Simons just to save money IMO so I won't be the least bit surprised when he starts the season on the roster. And if Simons begins the year with us, there are VERY few players that it would make sense to move for him.

And they might as well start him. You don't demote a 20 pt a game career starter, and dynamic offensive guard just to elevate a career bench player who just won the award for actually being the best bench player in the league. Nothing in Brad's history suggests he's comfortable with the idea of 6'2, 190lb Payton Pritchard as the longterm starter of this team. Brad has a type when it comes to ballhandlers.

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy. He's obviously got some elite scoring talent, but they see him as basically a lump of cancer removed. Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D. The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve. If he's truly here to start the year, I'll jump on the wagon and root for him to improve in all areas, etc, but I'm fairly skeptical at this point.

100% fair. He asked for this. Now he has to earn it. I think/hope Joe is the right man for the job at the right time in this kid's career. There's a level of accountability that has been missing in Simons' career that if not addressed, Joe will not tolerate. Nor will the ranking members on this team. The ball is abolutely in his corner. And Simons also knows his next payday will weigh heavility on how he changes his perception.

Yeah, there's definitely reasons to believe and his career path is definitely hinged on how this season goes.
What do you mean on the bold? He didn't request a trade from POR or anything did he?

[bucknersrevenge]

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy. He's obviously got some elite scoring talent, but they see him as basically a lump of cancer removed. Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D. The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve. If he's truly here to start the year, I'll jump on the wagon and root for him to improve in all areas, etc, but I'm fairly skeptical at this point.

100% fair. He asked for this. Now he has to earn it. I think/hope Joe is the right man for the job at the right time in this kid's career. There's a level of accountability that has been missing in Simons' career that if not addressed, Joe will not tolerate. Nor will the ranking members on this team. The ball is abolutely in his corner. And Simons also knows his next payday will weigh heavility on how he changes his perception.

Yeah, there's definitely reasons to believe and his career path is definitely hinged on how this season goes.
What do you mean on the bold? He didn't request a trade from POR or anything did he?

Earlier this year he lamented that he's never been able to play in big games. Portland is never on primetime TV. He loves ball but plays in Portland, a place of relative basketball obscurity basically. I'll see if I can find the real quote but that was the essence. So no, he didn't ask for a trade per se, but he did express a desire to play in games that matter. He got traded to one of the 2 marquee franchises in the NBA but in a twist, this season won't matter as much as they usually do. But Boston is a hotbed. Regardless of whether we look like a title contender, we're on the east coast and there will be WAY more primetime games for us here. Plus, there's no better crowd to play in than in the Garden. So while he didn't envision a trade, he is very much getting his wish.

[djFan71]

100% fair. He asked for this. Now he has to earn it. I think/hope Joe is the right man for the job at the right time in this kid's career. There's a level of accountability that has been missing in Simons' career that if not addressed, Joe will not tolerate. Nor will the ranking members on this team. The ball is abolutely in his corner. And Simons also knows his next payday will weigh heavility on how he changes his perception.

Yeah, there's definitely reasons to believe and his career path is definitely hinged on how this season goes.
What do you mean on the bold? He didn't request a trade from POR or anything did he?

Earlier this year he lamented that he's never been able to play in big games. Portland is never on primetime TV. He loves ball but plays in Portland, a place of relative basketball obscurity basically. I'll see if I can find the real quote but that was the essence. So no, he didn't ask for a trade per se, but he did express a desire to play in games that matter. He got traded to one of the 2 marquee franchises in the NBA but in a twist, this season won't matter as much as they usually do. But Boston is a hotbed. Regardless of whether we look like a title contender, we're on the east coast and there will be WAY more primetime games for us here. Plus, there's no better crowd to play in than in the Garden. So while he didn't envision a trade, he is very much getting his wish.

Gotcha, cool. Don't worry about finding it. I think I've seen similar.

[Hal14]

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy.

Agree to disagree, I guess. But I don't care very much about what some random Blazers fans on the internet think about him. Half the Celtics fanbase has hated JB ever since the moment we drafted him. Most C's fans wanted Udoka fired after his first 30 games..there's a subset of C's fans who want to trade Tatum while others thought Lonnie Walker was the next Michael Jordan

It's also common for fans to bad mouth a player after they leave their team. For example, Bucks fans on Twitter have been nauseating, ever since the Bucks traded Jrue, quick to bash him any chance they got - even though they have won just 1 title since the merger and wouldn't have won it without Jrue.

I try to form my own opinions/player evaluations. And if I am factoring in someone else's input, it's probably going to be someone whose perspective a really respect/trust - such as Ben Taylor, Caitlin Cooper, Sam Vecenie, Tim Legler, that AVC guy on Youtube, etc.

Btw, here's what AVC said about Simons:

Watch on YouTube

Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D.

We don't know what Billups told him so I'd rather not speculate on it.

What we do know is that the Blazers have been bad on defense for a *long* time.

Their league rank in defensive rating over the past 6 seasons which includes years with Billups as coach and others as coach: 22, 23, 27, 30, 29, 28

Portland has been in the bottom half of the league in defensive rating in 12 of the past 14 seasons.

Simons, Scoot, Brogdon, Lillard, McCollum, Gary Trent Jr., etc. Sharpe can also be considered a guard. You go down the list, pretty much every guard who's gotten heavy mins in Portland in recent years has been a subpar defender. I think the environment there has quite a bit to do with it.

The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve.

Everything else as in what, just the defense? So 1 thing he has to work on, and you named 4 areas where you think he'll do great in our system. Seems like it could be a solid pickup.

Let's also remember that it's very common for guards who were high usage and had a high amount of burden to carry their team's scoring to be limited on D. Simons is certainly not the only one - others include Darius Garland, Lamelo Ball, Jordan Poole, Tyler Herro, Damian Lillard, Steph Curry (for the first half of his career), Kemba Walker, Trae Young, De'Aaron Fox, Ja Morant, CJ McCollum, Bradley Beal, John Wall, Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton, Harden, Kyrie, Luka, Jamal Murray, Donovan Mitchell, Tyrese Maxey, etc.

With that being said, it seems like a good chance he'll be traded at some point between now and the trade deadline..seems like if he plays any games for us, it'll just be this season - which is a gap year where we're not even trying to compete for a title so I'm not too worried about him being on the roster for now..

[Dogen]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

[djFan71]

Agree, on the non-Simons part. I just can't get past how happy POR fans are to be rid of the guy.

Agree to disagree, I guess. But I don't care very much about what some random Blazers fans on the internet think about him. Half the Celtics fanbase has hated JB ever since the moment we drafted him. Most C's fans wanted Udoka fired after his first 30 games..there's a subset of C's fans who want to trade Tatum while others thought Lonnie Walker was the next Michael Jordan

It's also common for fans to bad mouth a player after they leave their team. For example, Bucks fans on Twitter have been nauseating, ever since the Bucks traded Jrue, quick to bash him any chance they got - even though they have won just 1 title since the merger and wouldn't have won it without Jrue.

I try to form my own opinions/player evaluations. And if I am factoring in someone else's input, it's probably going to be someone whose perspective a really respect/trust - such as Ben Taylor, Caitlin Cooper, Sam Vecenie, Tim Legler, that AVC guy on Youtube, etc.

Btw, here's what AVC said about Simons:

Watch on YouTube

Obviously, environment matters, etc, but it's not like Chauncey didn't ask the dude to play D.

We don't know what Billups told him so I'd rather not speculate on it.

What we do know is that the Blazers have been bad on defense for a *long* time.

Their league rank in defensive rating over the past 6 seasons which includes years with Billups as coach and others as coach: 22, 23, 27, 30, 29, 28

Portland has been in the bottom half of the league in defensive rating in 12 of the past 14 seasons.

Simons, Scoot, Brogdon, Lillard, McCollum, Gary Trent Jr., etc. Sharpe can also be considered a guard. You go down the list, pretty much every guard who's gotten heavy mins in Portland in recent years has been a subpar defender. I think the environment there has quite a bit to do with it.

The pace, rim touches, shooting and secondary playmaking in our system will be great. It's just everything else needs to improve.

Everything else as in what, just the defense? So 1 thing he has to work on, and you named 4 areas where you think he'll do great in our system. Seems like it could be a solid pickup.

Let's also remember that it's very common for guards who were high usage and had a high amount of burden to carry their team's scoring to be limited on D. Simons is certainly not the only one - others include Darius Garland, Lamelo Ball, Jordan Poole, Tyler Herro, Damian Lillard, Steph Curry (for the first half of his career), Kemba Walker, Trae Young, De'Aaron Fox, Ja Morant, CJ McCollum, Bradley Beal, John Wall, Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton, Harden, Kyrie, Luka, Jamal Murray, Donovan Mitchell, Tyrese Maxey, etc.

With that being said, it seems like a good chance he'll be traded at some point between now and the trade deadline..seems like if he plays any games for us, it'll just be this season - which is a gap year where we're not even trying to compete for a title so I'm not too worried about him being on the roster for now..

I live in OR and don't really follow the Blazers as much as the Cs, but know plenty of knowledgeable fans, so not randos. And obviously that's not the entire basis of my opinion.

Everything else is defense, sure, but also screening, playing without the ball, cutting, moving to open space, etc. I'm sure you can find a few random clips where he does these things effectively a few times, but he doesn't do them consistently well.

I safely assume Billups told him to play D. Usage sure, but it doesn't excuse everything. AVC's offseason spreadsheet has the Blazers overall Defensive normalized EPM at 55.2, and Simons at 12.3. It's not like the team was dragging him down, rather the opposite. If we're arguing his D is bad just cuz the team is bad or he wasn't asked to play D or he was too busy chucking, I don't know what we're doing.

[Celts17Pride]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

Honestly don't think the Celtics are looking for a big man in a Simons trade. I think the Celtics hope for a young unproven player, draft compensation (2nd round pick) and salary cap savings while not taking any long term salary back.

[GoCeltics123]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

Portland ain't taking Simons back sadly lol

[Dogen]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

Portland ain't taking Simons back sadly lol

Yeah, they've moved on.

Unless!!! -- it was all part of Brad's Master Plan! BWAAAHAAAHAAAAA!!!

[playa-hater]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

I am hoping that come trade deadline, that some playoff level team, with an injury to a guard position, sees how well Simons is playing with us, and offers a 1st rder in next years draft. Or even in 2027. I, foolishly believe perhaps, that this is quite possible for us.

[Smart2Nesmith43]

LOL, I've been scouring the teams for a destination for Simons that brings back a decent big and not finding much.

My favorite so far? Simons for Timelord

https://basketball.realgm.com/tradechecker/saved_trade/8874887

Portland ain't taking Simons back sadly lol

They just took back Lillard and Holiday this offseason. Pretty sure it's what they do actually.