AUGUST 12TH, 4:35pm: The pact is indeed for the minimum salary and Randolph will receive a partial guarantee worth $25k, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
JULY 23RD, 10:41am: The Celtics will sign undrafted shooting guard Levi Randolph for training camp after the former University of Alabama standout accepted their offer, a source told Matt Zenitz of AL.com. Multiple overseas teams made offers, too, Zenitz writes, with Italy’s Vuelle Pesaro apparently the latest, as Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia reports. Boston has the flexibility to use cap space, so while it would seem unlikely that the 6’4″ Randolph will sign for more than the minimum salary, it’s possible that his contract will cover as many as four years. It’s unclear if any partially guaranteed money is involved, as is sometimes the case with camp invitees.
Randolph worked out for the Celtics prior to the draft, but he wasn’t a strong candidate to hear his name called on draft night, with Chad Ford of ESPN.com ranking him the 101st-best prospect and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress listing him only as the 48th-best senior in this year’s class. The 22-year-old, who turns 23 in October, split summer league between the Thunder and Jazz, averaging 4.8 points in 20.5 minutes per game with 2 for 15 three-point shooting in 10 total appearances.
The worst-case scenario for Randolph involves him ending up in the D-League, Zenitz’s source said, so it appears he’s willing to go that route rather than play overseas should the Celtics cut him at the end of the preseason. Boston has a one-to-one D-League affiliate, so the C’s can retain his D-League rights should he fail to make the opening-night NBA roster. That seems the most likely scenario, with Boston already poised to carry 16 guaranteed contracts.
Good for Randolph that he’ll get $25K for the camp invite but the D League beckons, considering the amount of guards on the Celtics’ roster.
Plus, with 16 guaranteed contracts, even after the Zoran Dragic waiver, the Celtics aren’t in a position to give a regular season roster spot to Randolph even if he impresses in camp.