Celtics seeking offseason answers; draft lottery could help that search

https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/05/10/celtics-seeking-offseason-answers-draft-lottery-could-help-that-search/




Celtics seeking offseason answers; draft lottery could help that search




BOSTON, MA – MAY 6: Kyrie Irving #11 of the Boston Celtics pleads with a game official during the third quarter of Game 4 of a second round NBA basketball playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts on May 6, 2019. (Staff Photo By Christopher Evans/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald)




By STEVE BULPETT | stephen.bulpett@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald

May 10, 2019 at 9:30 pm




There are a number of tumblers that have to click into place before the Celtics can unlock the safe that is next season.

At this point, there is no way to tell what will be inside or, as the club learned this year, just how well (or not) what’s there will work together.

What the Celts have now is a set of questions, the answers to which should be revealed over the next month and a half. The most prominent issue would appear to be the hopes and dreams of one Mr. Kyrie Andrew Irving.

Countless NBA sources have been saying all through the season that he’s destined to depart, but nothing either way has yet been communicated by those who count.

The team spoke to each of its players on Thursday, but according to a league source with interest in how this all plays out, the matter of what Irving wants to do once he opts out of the last year of his contract remains unaddressed in any definitive way. No doubt the Celtics and Irving will have that talk at some point, and the result of that conversation will have a major impact on the club’s offseason game plan.

But those fans who are caught up in anger over the way the C’s left the playoffs and are pointing at the point guard should know that if Irving wants to stay, the Celtics will hand him the full five-year maximum.

Assuming, however, that everyone’s still in decompression mode from the season, that talk could be a few days or even longer from taking place.

The Celts still have to find out what Al Horford wants to do. The veteran can opt out of the approximately $29 million he has coming next year, and, according to a league source, Horford would like to stay. The source added that he’d take a more team-friendly number for next season if he can get two more years tacked on.

As of now, however, the Celtics have yet to engage in any talks with Horford or his representation.

In the meantime, a major piece of the Shamrock puzzle will be revealed in Tuesday night’s draft lottery. As it stands, the Celts have the 20th and 22nd picks in the first round. The former is the Clippers’ pick, acquired from Memphis for two second-round picks three years ago. The latter is their own.

The Tuesday intrigue involves the Kings’ and Grizzlies’ picks. The Celtics will get the Sacramento pick as long as it isn’t No. 1, and they will get the Memphis choice unless it falls in the top eight.

So Danny Ainge and Co. could emerge from the ping-pong ball extravaganza with four first round picks. And if the Sacramento pick is in the high lottery range, it will open more possibilities. Do the Celts want to keep it for themselves or deal it?

The second of those options could very well make the pick a significant part of an offer to New Orleans for Anthony Davis. But there is still a lot to be researched here, and some of it ties to Irving’s decision. Will the Celtics be more willing to take the guarantee of just one year with Davis if they can pair him with Kyrie?

And before they get to all that, they have to learn the outcome of new Pelicans general manager David Griffin’s attempts to get Davis to back off his trade request. This could get very interesting, particularly depending on how much Davis’ agent, Rich Paul, and Paul’s client LeBron James are involved in shaping AD’s approach. There was already a failed attempt to get Davis to LeBron’s Lakers at the trade deadline, but will there be another try?

And, as one Western Conference exec told the Herald, “Do you think they advise AD to say he’ll stay in New Orleans so Boston goes in another direction — and then the Lakers take another run at him later in the summer or next season? The top players have so much power now. It’s crazy to think how much different the league could look next season.”

All of that — the draft, the decisions by Irving and Horford, the Davis situation — and more will then have an impact on the potential Celtic futures of Terry Rozier and Marcus Morris. Rozier will be a restricted free agent, but it’s hard to see him wanting to stay if his playing time situation is similar to this year — and hard, too, to see the Celts matching a large offer sheet for him if they know Irving will be back.

Morris is unrestricted, and, while it’s clear the club very much appreciated his grit, financial concerns could get in the way of his return. Morris will be 30 at the start of next season, and he has to be thinking about a Mook-friendly deal.

And once the contractual questions and Davis possibilities are answered, there will still be a lot of work to do on creating a roster that fits better than the 2018-19 crew that was more of a collection than a team.

It will, to put it mildly, be an extremely busy offseason.



bob
MY NOTE:  For me, the most interesting part of this is:

"The Celts still have to find out what Al Horford wants to do. The veteran can opt out of the approximately $29 million he has coming next year, and, according to a league source, Horford would like to stay. The source added that he’d take a more team-friendly number for next season if he can get two more years tacked on".

Depending upon how "team-friendly" a number Al Horford would accept this could be hugely impactful.  He is still very effective, even if he has lost a bit and, if we don't get AND KEEP Davis, we probably could use having Al around to mentor and develop Williams and whomever else Danny brings in.


.

Horford has been overpaid since joining the Celtics, but seems to be the norm for most NBA players who do get a max contract.  He has been a good player, but does not put any fans in the seats. So, having him take a team friendly contract this summer plus (maybe) two years is probably a good thing for the team.

There is no way that Horford gets anywhere near his $29 M he will get from any other team for the 2020 season so he may just decide to play out his contract and look at free agency after next season.  If he opts out this summer the Cs may have to compete with other teams for perhaps a three year deal for him.

I agree with Bob that he certainly has value to the Cs for another 2-3 seasons if he can stay healthy.

It seems that his gamble/decision comes down to taking the 29M this year, hope he has a productive and healthy season and take his free agent chances for the 2021 season or signing now for a couple of additional years for less annual money.

So realistically, Boston picks where; between 9 and 14 at best?

OK, good players available there and beyond.

Horford? Nice if he can stay around another year during what is certain to be a transition to other forwards. Doubt he's got enough gas in the tank to be competitive for more than one more season. He's been a good signing ever since he arrived.