After adding Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward during the 2017 offseason, the Celtics were widely viewed as one of the two favorites to come out of the East, along with the Cavaliers. Those two teams ultimately did meet in the Eastern Conference Finals, despite the fact that Irving and Hayward had long been absent due to injuries. Although Boston couldn’t get past Cleveland and no longer has cap room available, the team remains in great shape going forward, with plenty of extra draft picks in hand and its injured stars set to return in 2018/19.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Celtics financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2018:
Guaranteed Salary
- Gordon Hayward ($31,214,295)
- Al Horford ($28,928,710)
- Kyrie Irving ($20,099,189)
- Jayson Tatum ($6,700,800)
- Marcus Morris ($5,375,000)
- Jaylen Brown ($5,169,960)
- Terry Rozier ($3,050,390)
- Guerschon Yabusele ($2,667,600)
- Semi Ojeleye ($901,965) — Partial guarantee. Non-guaranteed portion noted below.1
- Abdel Nader ($450,000) — Partial guarantee. Non-guaranteed portion noted below.2
- Demetrius Jackson ($92,857) — Waived via stretch provision
- Total: $104,650,766
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Daniel Theis ($1,378,242)3
- Abdel Nader ($928,242) — Partial guarantee. Guaranteed portion noted above.2
- Semi Ojeleye ($476,277) — Partial guarantee. Guaranteed portion noted above.1
- Total: $2,782,761
Restricted Free Agents
- Marcus Smart ($6,053,719 qualifying offer / $13,614,060 cap hold): Bird rights
- Jonathan Gibson ($1,699,698 qualifying offer / $1,699,698 cap hold): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $15,313,758
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Greg Monroe ($6,000,000): Non-Bird rights
- Aron Baynes ($5,193,600): Non-Bird rights
- No. 27 overall pick ($1,640,266)
- Shane Larkin ($1,499,698): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $14,333,564
Projected Salary Cap: $101,000,000
Projected Cap Room: None
- After carrying cap room and vying for the top free agents during the last couple offseasons, the Celtics head into the summer of 2018 over the cap room. Even if they renounce all their free agents, they’d still be over the projected $101MM cap line due to their $104MM+ in guaranteed salaries. With their eight fully guaranteed contracts, plus Theis, Ojeleye, Nader, and the cap hold for their first-round pick, the Celtics’ total team salary increases to $109,073,793.
- If they don’t bring back Smart, the Celtics would have plenty of breathing room below the tax line, clearing the way for the team to use the full mid-level exception and possibly the bi-annual exception too. However, re-signing Smart for a starting salary of $10-12MM would complicate that equation.
Footnotes:
- Ojeleye’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after July 15.
- Nader’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after August 1.
- Theis’ salary becomes fully guaranteed after July 10.
Note: Rookie scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The Celtics are in good shape
Baynes and Smart (for the right price ) should be back to provide toughness and defense. Do they consider moving Horford (and more) in the last year of his deal for Davis?
The Pelicans will not trade Davis, and Boston will not trade the pieces required to acquire Davis. Stop with this Gary Tanquay nonsense. You make Boston fans sound idiotic.
The Hayward signing is the only wrong thing they’ve done, and it’s going to be hard to max the time between Hayward/Brown/Tatum. Odd man out is Smart, and his hustle and defense is hard to let go. Otherwise the Celts are in great position. Ainge and Stevens are the blueprint for success.
Marcus Smart seems like he will be the one this year to get a “Nerlens Noel wake up call” and end up having to sign his offer sheet. After reading the interview with him following game 7, he has an incredibly inflated sense of self and he will ask for the moon. It’s not out of the question that someone signs him a la Tim Hardaway, but the cap room is just not there for enough teams for that to be viable.
Agree and hope this scenario plays out
I didn’t realize that Hayward was in that kind of money, absolutely crazy, he is only been all-star 1 time, is a good player, but in no way a star in the league, how on earth can he be in that sort of money. For example Horford is a better one, at least he is a regular all-star, & very good both ends of the floor, don’t know why Boston fans would rather get rid of Horford, I would of Kyrie & Hayward, that way the young core could grow together & I think it would be best. In my opinion next year Tatum is gotta be starting at SF, so is Hayward gonna be the SG or the PF?
I was thinking the same thing. This cast led you to within one game of a finals appearance. Irving was traded to Boston – didn’t sign as an FA so not sure how much mutual appreciation there is there.
I liked the Irving/Hayward and Horford ‘medium three’, but getting this far without two thirds of that has got to make those paycheques harder to write, and I’d personally trade one or two of those three to move up in the draft and snag a big to develop alongside Rozier/Smart/Brown and Tatum. This approach would also keep momentum for next season. The only reason they are not awaiting the victor of the West in the finals was down to some ill-advised shots; experience-based mistakes.
Starting lineup could easily be Kyrie, Brown, Hayward, Tatum, horford ….
Brad likes to mix and match so Morris, and Theis (and if resigned Baynes and smart) will be rotated in and out of the lineups
That $109mil figure does not include Baynes or Monroe, and they will need somebody at center. Baynes got a lot of PT. So returning Baynes & Smart would make it $121mil, at the tax line.
An upgrade at C is certainly possible instead of Baynes & Smart. Owners are often okay with luxury taxes if it could mean a title. I’m talking JNurkic, not ADavis.
I still feel Ainge will look to use the abundance of Celts picks in a package to get another “significant upgrade” this offseason and I hope the rumors about the Karl-Anthony Towns availability are true because I would definitely consider dealing Brown, Rozier, and the Memphis pick to Minnesota for Towns.