Speaking to reporters on Friday about the Celtics‘ deadline-day trade for Derrick White, president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said the team has thought for years that the longtime Spurs guard would fit with Boston’s best players (Twitter link via Keith Smith of Spotrac). Stevens referred to White as a strong defender who also “makes the right play on offense over and over” (Twitter link via Jared Weiss of The Athletic).
Confirming a previous report that the acquisition of Daniel Theis came together quickly right before the deadline, Stevens said the Celtics were happy to get two players who will be under contract for multiple years to come (Twitter link via Weiss). Both White and Theis are under team control through 2025.
“Neither move was a short-term deal,” Stevens said (Twitter link via Smith). “When trading away two really good perimeter players, we had to get perfect fits. We want to maintain the stretch we’re on, but this is about the long-term. We know these guys can be on the floor in a seven-game playoff series.”
The Celtics’ series of trades opened up five spots on their 15-man roster, so Stevens will remain busy after the deadline as he looks to fill those openings.
According to Weiss (Twitter link), Stevens expects to sign a couple players as soon as today, telling reporters that the front office is looking for “skilled” players, with an eye on outside shooting. He later said during an appearance on the Toucher and Rich radio show in Boston that his immediate focus is on frontcourt players (Twitter link via Weiss).
Here are a few more notes on the Celtics:
- The 2028 first-round pick swap the Celtics gave the Spurs in the White deal will be top-one protected, sources tell Brian Robb of MassLive.com (Twitter link). In other words, if Boston gets the No. 1 overall pick in ’28, San Antonio won’t be able to swap first-rounders, but otherwise the Spurs will have that option.
- Asked today about the decision to give up a 2028 pick swap in addition to a lightly-protected 2022 first-round pick for White, Stevens acknowledged that risk, but expressed a belief it was worth it. “That can go either way, right? That’s the one you lose sleep over for a couple of days,” Stevens said (Twitter link via Weiss). “But I think the analysis of that is we’ve got some really good players and we’ve got a person who fits in perfectly with them.”
- In a story for The Athletic, Weiss and Jay King assessed the Celtics’ deadline moves. Weiss doesn’t think the deals made Boston a legit title contender in the East, but says the gap between the C’s and the East’s top teams has gotten smaller.
- In his own breakdown of the Celtics’ trades, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston acknowledges there’s no guarantee the roster changes will make the team better right away, but notes that Stevens has proven he’s certainly not risk-averse in his new front office role.
The Celtics now have 5 open roster spots. How do you think they will get filled?
Theis is fine, but I’m not sold on him. He’s big enough to play 5 against your average Joe, but doesn’t match up well against good bigs. That is why Smart ends up covering Gino.
He is good for some reggie seas wins but won’t be an asset come the playoffs…which is kinda the point of the whole thing last time I checked.
He will be a backup, and do just fine against other backups.
I remember how Theis screened for Tatum giving Tatum easy layups. Now Tatum is even a better driver. Theis fits back in like a glove as he’s played with all our guys & is another good defender, former DPOY in Germany. I liked his three point shooting as well.
But I’m most delighted & interested in Derrick White! He seems exactly what we need, a taller point guard who pushes the pace, yes!, gets assists, yes! & defends, yes! Ans scores 14 ppg! I think he’s a huge upgrade & may come into his own as a semi-star with us although I appreciate what Dennis Schroder did for our Celtics. Go Celtics!
I’m hoping Derrick White will thrive now that he’s going to get a chance. I know he’s started but in limited chances as the lead guard he has shown flashes. On top of that White, Smart, Brown and Tatum will have the perimeter locked down along with the Time Lord starting to blossom down Boston could be on to something.
They needed size, shooting, toughness, playmaking, and defense. White addresses 4/5. Theis is more of a short term solution. I thought the Lakers could’ve made good trade partners. Try to pry guys like Reeves and Nunn.
Pry guys like Reaves and Nunn?? Literally nobody wants those guys. Not sure “pry” is the right word choice here
Yes, Kendrick Nunn who hasn’t played a single game this season would definitely be the answer.
Once again the Celtics refuse to use certain guys they already have, and then have to trade for similar players. Derrick White should theoretically be good for them
San Antonio could really use a guy like Jabari Smith. He would plug right into the starting 4 spot for them & provide much needed shooting/agility/skill in the frontcourt. Overall it’s hard not to love their future even if they don’t get the #1 pick tho. Dejounte is a really versatile, long, active guard. I’m guessing he’ll probably sit out a good number of games after the break as SAS try to maximize their lottery odds. Tre Jones will definitely get a long look for the rest of the season & tho he’s not quite as good as his brother, he’s a dog defensively & could end up being a good backup pg in his own right. The rookie Primo is also gonna get more pt & that should def help them lose games this season but he definitely has potential to eventually be better than DWhite is. Either Lonnie or Vassell should be the starting 2 now. Probably Lonnie since he seems to play better as a starter. Gold medal Keldon & Zach Collins at the forward spots once Zach is fully back in game shape should be a strong duo. Zach Collins projected to be a really good big back when he was in late teens. Now he’s entering his prime & IF his body holds up he could surprise a lot of people. Romeo is again behind a bunch of good young wings but with Lonnie probably being elsewhere next yr & Ro’s ability to play 2-4 pretty much equally on both sides of the court I definitely see him being a part of the Spurs rotation for years to come. They held onto Poeltl which surprised me but having a solid 2way big in his prime that, like much of their core, has been developing in the program for years is definitely a good thing to have, especially for under $10M/yr. Spurs just need a lil more firepower offensively. Shouldn’t be too hard to find that at the top of the draft where they’ll be in a few months & they should have a nice chunk of cap space to work with too
Paragraph breaks bro
Ok but as far as the basketball of it all?..
So what Celtics now look like
White Brown Tatum GWilliams Horford
Pritchard Smart Nesmith Theis and RWilliams
And that cost them multiple first round picks
They also have huge trade exceptions which they didn’t use. Cause they are maxed out at the cap and tax lines
“And that cost them multiple first round picks”
One first-round pick and a pick swap in your mind equal “multiple first round picks.” Either you don’t know what the word means, or you don’t count well.