6 Players the Celtics may replace Payton Pritchard with by the trade deadline
The Celtics could try to upgrade Payton Pritchard to these players before the Feb. 8 trade deadline.
The Boston Celtics are all-in on winning the championship. They have the best record in the NBA after creating the best top six in the world. Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday have helped the Celtics reach a new level, but do they have enough depth to win it all?
Boston will need at least eight in their playoff rotation. Sam Hauser has turned into an elite shooter to be their seventh, but do the Celtics trust Payton Pritchard to stick in the postseason? The 6’1 guard played 12.9 minutes per game during Boston’s run to the NBA Finals in 2022 but wasn’t part of the nightly playoff rotation in 2023.
The Celtics have a top-heavy roster and trading won’t be easy. Pritchard is their seventh-highest-paid player and earns just $4.0 million this season. Boston is all-in and will look to upgrade before the trade deadline, but they will have to go for someone making $10 million or less. Even that would mean trading Pritchard, but here are a few replacements Brad Stevens and the Celtics should explore.
6. Cedi Osman
The Celtics have plenty of star power. They need a role player, who is comfortable complementing their current talent. Someone who makes the extra pass, spaces the floor, and defends. Boston could use a bit of size to give them more lineup flexibility.
Osman is a 6’7 forward who figures to be available before the Feb. 8 trade deadline. The Spurs have the second-worst record in the NBA, and Osman is on a $6.7 million expiring contract.
His stats won’t blow fans away, but he averages 7.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 18.1 minutes per game. The 28-year-old is a career 35.3 percent 3-point shooter and played 18.6 minutes per game for the Cavaliers in the playoffs last year.
The combo forward would offer the Celtics some versatility and flexibility. He won’t command the ball and is comfortable playing any role asked of him, which is exactly what the Celtics need to round out their roster.
Former Boston Celtics PG involved in wild eight-player trade proposal
Former Boston Celtics PG involved in wild eight-player trade proposal
By Andrew Hughes
Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey concocted a wild eight-player, two-draft-pick trade proposal that’d send former Boston Celtics point guard Dennis Schroder to the Atlanta Hawks, along with Pascal Siakam, and Max Christie, while returning D’Angelo Russell, De’Andre Hunter, Taurean Prince, a top-10 protected 2029 first-round pick from Los Angeles and a 2029 first-round pick from Atlanta to the Toronto Raptors, and then finally sending Dejounte Murray and Garrett Temple to the Los Angeles Lakers.
“Dennis Schröder gives them a solid backup point guard behind Young,” Bailey said of his proposal before continuing, “Having him instead of Murray makes it easier to plug Bogdan Bogdanović into the starting five too. Max Christie gives the Hawks at least a little upside on the wing.”
Such a deal would continue dramatically reshaping the Raptors after the OG Anunoby trade with the New York Knicks, but even worse, would give the Lakers another triple-double threat in the backcourt in Murray; who could solve a lot of the perimeter defense problems L.A. currently has.
Former Boston Celtics PG Dennis Schroder shifting back to backup role
It was during the 2021-22 season in Boston (and for 15 games with the Houston Rockets) that Dennis Schroder last was a backup before the Anunoby trade brought in a new starting point guard to Toronto in Immanuel Quickley. Now, though, and in Bailey’s proposal, Schroder would reprise that role.
What the Raptors do next isn’t clear, but there’s no reason to think there’s a rebuild coming considering they arguably improved with the additions of Quickley and RJ Barrett. Schroder could be the type of veteran Darko Rajaković deploys off the pine in critical moments, or he could be a salary matching piece in a subsequent transaction.
Either way, he’d bring momentum from one of his best statistical seasons to whatever team he’s on after the February 8 trade deadline.
Recently traded Boston Celtics big man part of blockbuster proposed trade involving 23 PPG scorer
Recently traded Boston Celtics big man part of blockbuster proposed trade involving 23 PPG scorer
By Andrew Hughes
Inside The Jazz’s Jared Koch came up with a blockbuster trade proposal involving former Boston Celtics big man Mike Muscala that packages the former Bucknell star with Kyle Kuzma and sends them to Danny Ainge’s Utah Jazz; with the Washington Wizards landing John Collins, Talen Horton-Tucker, 2025 first-round pick (via MIN), and a 2029 first-round pick (via MIN, prot. 1-5).
While Koch sees Kuzma’s value being a question mark at this point, two first-round picks seems to be the price he sees being necessary for bringing on the 23 PPG scorer. And Muscala as a bit of an afterthought.
“While forfeiting two first-round picks may be a hard pill to swallow for some, these two selections would likely be some of the lesser value of the bunch,” Koch prefaced before saying, “Utah still hangs on to a large majority of their assets while bringing on a 20+ PPG scorer who can help win games now.
“Kuzma’s trade value in 2024 still currently remains a bit foggy, so it’s hard to pinpoint the exact structure of what a realistic package would look like. A deal involving him couldn’t even happen until January 15th at the earliest.”
Mike Muscala seen as Boston Celtics throw-in in Kristaps Porzingis trade
The Houdini means no disrespect referring to Muscala as an afterthought or a throw-in in the Kristaps Porzingis trade. RotoWire (via CBS Sports) quite literally penned a piece entitled “Wizards’ Mike Muscala: Thrown into Porzingis deal.”
“Though Jones and a draft pick were the main acquisitions for Washington, Gallinari and Muscala were both shipped to the Wizards as part of the blockbuster deal,” they wrote.
Muscala played well in limited minutes for the Celtics following the former second-rounder’s arrival at the 2023 trade deadline, but it’s been five years since the Bucknell star has been able to earn starter-quantity minutes. Until he plays a big role again, the afterthought label will be attached.
Makes sense for Boston Celtics to de-prioritize struggling Boston Celtics PG to play Derrick White more: Analyst
Makes sense for Boston Celtics to de-prioritize struggling Boston Celtics PG to play Derrick White more: Analyst
ClutchPoints’ Christopher Smith believes it’d make sense for Derrick White to get more playing time for the Boston Celtics amidst a potentially All-Star-caliber hot streak at the expense of Payton Pritchard.
“Derrick White continues to prove why he is arguably the best role player in the NBA,” Smith prefaced before saying, “His performance on both ends of the floor speaks for itself. As a result, it makes sense to decrease Payton Pritchard’s minutes in favor of White. Nevertheless, there is an elephant in the room that needs to be addressed.”
Smith doesn’t believe that all Celtics point guards should have their playing time slashed by head coach Joe Mazzulla, though. The ClutchPoints writer fees that Jrue Holiday needs to continue seeing big minutes alongside White in what has been a one-two punch of knockout power in the backcourt.
“Having two guards who are elite on defense is a great problem to have,” Smith prefaced before saying, “It should only increase the Celtics’ resistance to opposing offenses. As a result, Holiday needs to continue to get plenty of minutes alongside White to keep Boston at the top of the league in defensive rating.”
Payton Pritchard could be playing his way off the Boston Celtics
Brad Stevens has been given the green-light from Cs owner Wyc Grousbeck to spend whatever it takes to produce a championship team in Boston. Ipso facto, if there’s a player who isn’t contributing to winning a championship, that player could be coupled with picks to bring in someone who will.
He’s overcome a gruesome 3/20 start to the 2023-24 season from beyond the arc to shoot at typical career conversion rates, but Pritchard represents one of the only tradeable pieces outside of the team’s top six players due to his $8 million salary — and for the record, that top six should all be considered untouchable at this point considering the team’s league-best record at the New Year’s benchmark.
Unfortunately, because he hasn’t been perfect, Pritchard may have played his way off the team if Stevens sees one big move left to be made to raise Banner 18.
Boston Celtics only have two surefire All-Stars
A panel of analysts that included in-house Boston Celtics reporter Marc D’Amico and NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg and Abby Chin shared their belief that the Cs only have two surefire All-Stars during an episode from a View From The Rafters Podcast: Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
“The general agreement among the group is that Jayson Tatum is a surefire starter, and that Jaylen Brown is a surefire reserve, at the very least,” D’Amico wrote. “Brown’s challenge to become a starter is that he’s now listed as a forward, so he’d have to beat out the likes of Tatum, Giannis Antetokounmpo or Joel Embiid for a starting nod. As such, his most likely path is making the team as a reserve for the third time in his career. But he’s gonna make the team.”
Of course, perhaps the most popular Celtic among the fanbase during the 2023-24 season, Derrick White, is a notable omission here. Forsberg suggested Brad Stevens hop on the phone and actively campaign for White to make the mid-February classic for the first time in Indianapolis.
“In order to get White to Indianapolis, the Celtics likely will need to keep this campaign going for the next few weeks,” Forsberg wrote. “Indiana native Brad Stevens might need to get on the phone and remind some of his former coaching brethren just how the team feels about White’s impact on winning this season.”
Kristaps Porzingis, not Derrick White, the most likely third Boston Celtics All-Star
The group believes that Kristaps Porzingis’s All-Star case is far more convincing than White’s; mainly because of the Latvian big man’s flashier stat line and previous experience being voted onto the Eastern Conference squad as a New York Knick in 2018.
“White is facing stiff competition in the East when it comes to All-Star spots for guards,” D’Amico prefaced before saying, “Typically six guards and six forwards/centers make the team. In the East, the list of guards putting up All-Star numbers is deep: White, Jrue Holiday, Damian Lillard, Trae Young, Tyrese Haliburton, Donovan Mitchell, Tyrese Maxey, Jalen Brunson. Only six of those guys are going to make the team, barring an injury.
“With that being said, we all agreed that Porzingis probably has an easier path to making the team.”
With a few weeks left to vote until the polls close, White has an outside chance of becoming a first-time All-Star. It’d take perhaps even more Boston dominance than we’ve seen at the New Year’s benchmark — of which the Cs had the best record in the league — and a few massive nights from White to get there.
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