The Boston Celtics were close to making a true run into the NBA finals but ended up falling short to the Brooklyn Nets in the first round. The Boston Celtics have a very good foundation to build off of, but are they missing a certain piece to help round-out their team? Absolutely. The Celtics have done very good in the draft throughout the past couple seasons, but are still lacking a player to help push them over the top. The Celtics could’ve rounded out their team but without a first round pick this year, could they be looking into making a big trade?
So if the Celtics are to make a blockbuster move this off-season, what assets would they be looking to give up, and what type of player would they be looking to go after? They just traded away point guard Kemba Walker, and a first-round pick, for former Celtics center Al Horford. That was one move made, but rumors have it as that is just the start of a big offseason for Brad Stevens. However, there are a few names that have been mentioned in trade talks for the Celtics: Myles Turner, Damian Lillard, and Bradley Beal.
Damian Lillard
It was reported prior to Damian Lillard’s press conference, that the Boston Celtics had made an official offer to the Portland Trail Blazers for the superstar guard, but was rejected. The Portland Trail Blazers have two very solid guards with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum but are lacking the depth in the front court. On top of their their personnel problems they have struggled to find a head coach that can help make a winning team. Although the Trail Blazers have proclaimed that Lillard isn’t on the trade block, the Celtics seem determined to make a big move or two before the offseason is over.
Damian Lillard has officially received the recognition that was quite frankly, long overdue. He has been a top tier player in the league for years, and given the fact he has finally received the recognition he deserves, his trade value is going to be high, but would be worth it. The Celtics as I stated above have done well for themselves the past couple seasons as far as building a team that can compete, but have had some moves that have fallen through. With Kemba Walker not there anymore, they could be in the market for a new guard, and Lillard could definitely be an option.
Looking at the team they’d have on the court right now, and predicting who they’d have start, they’d have Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Tristan Thompson. If you find a way to solidify a true point guard who has the ability to take over a game with his elite talent you have to pull the trigger. Obviously looking at the potential starters you notice how weak the PF, C positions are, but if you find a way to obtain Lillard from Portland you could get away with having those guys at those positions.
Myles Turner
The Boston Celtics have been linked to the Indiana Pacers C/PF before, but nothing came about it. Looking at the position the Celtics are currently in, and how their roster has been complied over the course of the year, they could be in a much better spot to make a offer the Pacers can’t refuse.
Myles Turner has battled injuries, but when he played this past season, was a dominant player. Turner was able to play in 47 games while putting up 12.6 points per game, 6.5 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, and 1 assist. Turner is a terrific defender which you can tell by his block numbers, as a force to be reckoned with in the paint, he has the ability to make a huge impact on the Celtics front-court. With Turner having missed multiple games and battled injuries, the price of him may be cheaper to which would benefit the Celtics greatly after trading away their first round pick.
Looking ahead to what he’d offer the Celtics going forward into next season is what excites me the most. Turner has the ability to be a very good player on a Celtics team that has a lot of depth pieces and talent on the court. Looking at the fact that the Celtics could come away from the trade having Smart, Brown, Tatum, Turner, and Thompson as the starting five is considerably better than their current five. Given the Celtics style of play with the ball revolving around Tatum and Brown would allow Turner to be a defensive minded player and Thompson to play the rebounding role in the paint.
Bradley Beal
This move here would possibly be the greatest move in basketball if they can find a way to pull this off. Bradley Beal is coming off, perhaps, the best season he’s had since coming into the league in 2012. Beal was the hope for the Washington Wizards, but at the end of the day was unhappy with his situation in Washington that had left him wanting out. Their has been a lot of interest in him including the Warriors who hold more value, but Beal being able to reunite with St. Louis native, Jayson Tatum, could sway him to the Celtics.
Bradley Beal this season averaged 31.3 points per game, 4.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game. Beal did miss a couple games this season due to injury, but It’s not something I feel teams will read into a whole lot. Looking at the current situation of the Celtics, it’ll be quite difficult to obtain the star from Washington simply looking at assets, but could look to compile some of their young players in the deal. The idea behind acquiring Beal would be to team up him, Tatum, and Brown which would create an incredible three going into next season that could make them one of the best teams in the NBA.