Boston Celtics Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Notes: Hill, DeRozan, LaVine, Noel, White

February 12th, 2023 at 7:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pacers gave George Hill the option of being waived after acquiring him from the Bucks, so that he could hook onto a contender. Hill declined the offer and hopes he can stay with the franchise he played for from 2011-16 beyond this season, according to Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. Hill will be a free agent this summer.

“I’ve thought long and hard and I think that’s the biggest reason why I chose to stay here and not try to get out and go somewhere else. I felt like I still have a lot left to offer, either on the floor or to pick the brain and being a vet,” Hill said of becoming a mentor for the Pacers’ younger players. “Definitely don’t want it to be kind of like a rental opportunity. And would love to stay here for some years and grow with these young guys.”

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

After a Bulls loss to Cleveland on Saturday, DeMar DeRozan said that he and Zach LaVine must establish a better rhythm during crunch time, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times writes. “We’ve just got to do a better job of understanding possessions in a game,’’ DeRozan said. “I wouldn’t put it on teams having us figured out. I’d say 85% of it is picking and choosing on understanding the possession and not feeling so rushed into trying to hit a home run every possession. … It’s about us playing the game the right way, understanding what needs to be done, how we can play off one another, how we can use each other to help everyone else on the team to be in better position to make plays for us as well. It’s on us more than anything.’’
If Nerlens Noel chooses the buyout route with the Pistons, the Sixers would be interested in him as a backup to Joel Embiid, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey has been a fan of Noel’s playing style for some time, Pompey writes, noting that the big man could serve as the sort of rim protector Philadelphia is lacking on its second unit.
Derrick White has been a solid and steady contributor since the Celtics acquired him from San Antonio last season, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston writes. White hasn’t missed a game since the trade and has the best plus/minus rating on any player on the team except for Robert Williams, who has missed a chunk of the season. White is signed through the 2024/25 season.

Danny Green Agrees To Buyout, Waived By Rockets

February 12th, 2023 at 6:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

6:27pm: Green has officially been waived, according to the NBA transactions log. He has reached an agreement to sign with the Cavaliers upon clearing waivers.

10:51am: Danny Green will become a free agent after reaching a buyout agreement with the Rockets, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Cavaliers and Celtics are considered the frontrunners to sign Green, with the Lakers and Suns involved as well, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Green must clear waivers before he can join another team.

Cleveland, Boston, L.A. and Phoenix are all in need of wing depth, and Green will bring a strong playoff pedigree to whomever is able to land him. The 35-year-old has three championship rings and was part of L.A.’s title-winning team in 2020.

Green was sent from Memphis to Houston on Thursday as a salary-matching piece in a three-team trade that also involved the Clippers. He is making $10MM this season on an expiring contract.

Green spent most of the season recovering from an ACL tear and didn’t play at all until February 1. He averaged 14.3 minutes in three games with the Grizzlies and hasn’t suited up for the Rockets since the trade.

Atlantic Notes: Pritchard, D. Green, Ross, Harden, Raptors

February 11th, 2023 at 9:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

Payton Pritchard was a little surprised and disappointed to still be with the Celtics when the trade deadline passed Thursday afternoon, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. The third-year guard has proven he can contribute when he gets the opportunity, but he’s only averaging 12.6 minutes per game this season, the lowest figure of his career.

“I definitely was expecting and hoping (for a trade),” Pritchard said. “But you know, I (have to) look at the good things. We’re the best team in the NBA right now and we have a great team with really great players, so for me it’s an opportunity to learn and to keep growing.”

The Celtics were open to trading Pritchard and reportedly explored the market to see what they could get in return for him and Danilo Gallinari. One report said Pritchard was part of Boston’s offer to the Spurs for Jakob Poeltl, but San Antonio opted to send Poeltl to the Raptors.

Pritchard, a four-year college player, is already 25 and is hoping to find a situation soon that offers consistent playing time. The Celtics already picked up his option for next season, so there’s little he can do about his situation until the summer of 2024.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Danny Green and Terrence Ross are probably the most realistic targets for the Celtics in the buyout market, Brian Robb of MassLive states in a mailbag column. He points out that the $3.2MM disabled player exception that Boston received for Gallinari puts the team in position to outbid most competitors.
James Harden played his first game in Brooklyn tonight since being traded to the Sixers at last year’s deadline. Harden offered his thoughts about what went wrong for the Nets‘ Big Three and said he was glad to get out when he did, tweets Nick Friedell of ESPN. “I don’t look like the crazy one,” Harden said. “I don’t look like the guy or the quitter or whatever the media want to call me. I knew what was going on and I just decided to … hey, I’m not built for this. I don’t want to deal with that. I want to play basketball and have fun.”
The Raptors had to renounce their rights to six former players to complete the Poeltl trade, tweets Spotrac contributor Keith Smith. They are Isaac Bonga, Jeremy Lin, Jodie Meeks, Lucas Nogueira, Jason Thompson, and longtime restricted free agent Nando De Colo.

Southeast Notes: Bey, R. Jackson, Mykhailiuk, Bamba

February 11th, 2023 at 7:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks believe they improved their rotation at the deadline, assuming one of their deals goes through, writes Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The team is still waiting to find out if it will add Saddiq Bey, who was acquired from the Pistons in a four-team trade that’s still pending after Gary Payton II failed his physical with the Warriors. Golden State has until Sunday night to make a final decision.

Atlanta, which also added Bruno Fernando and Garrison Mathews in a separate trade with Houston, believes Bey can be part of its long-term future. The 23-year-old can play either forward spot and would add another dimension to the offense with his outside shooting.

“He was a starter for Detroit a couple years ago and this season, and some of last season he started to come off the bench,” Atlanta coach Nate McMillan said. “But he’s a guy who can put the ball in the basket, who can help spread the floor for you.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Reggie Jackson and the Hornets have reached an agreement that he doesn’t have to report to the team, tweets Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Boone adds that buyout talks are ongoing with Jackson, who was acquired from the Clippers on Thursday. The Suns and Nuggets are believed to be among the teams with the greatest interest in Jackson once he hits the open market.
Svi Mykhailiuk, whom the Hornets landed from the Knicks in a four-team trade, told reporters before Saturday’s game that he originally believed he was heading to the Trail Blazers in the deal, Boone relays (via Twitter). Mykhailiuk’s agent informed him about an hour before the deadline that he was going to Charlotte.
The Magic have more roster and salary cap flexibility after sending center Mohamed Bamba to the Lakers on Thursday, notes Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando selected Bamba with the sixth pick in the 2018 draft, but he fell out of the rotation and didn’t appear to have a future with the team. Bamba began the season as the primary backup to Wendell Carter Jr., but Moritz Wagner has taken over that role. The Magic wanted to ship Bamba to a team where he’s likely to play more often and were happy to get a future second-round pick in return, according to Price, who hears from league sources that the Clippers, Raptors and Celtics also expressed interest.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

February 11th, 2023 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of Thursday’s trade deadline, several rosters around the NBA remain in flux. Some players will be waived or bought out in the coming days, while others will sign with new teams as free agents, either on 10-day contracts or rest-of-season deals.

With that in mind, we’re doing a Saturday afternoon check-in on open roster spots across the league. Given how much action we expect on the transaction wire in the coming days, it may not take long for this list to become outdated, but this is a snapshot of where things stand as of 1:00 pm Central time on February 11.

With the help of our roster counts page, which will continue to be updated for the rest of the season to account for each new transaction, here are the teams that currently have open roster spots:

Teams with two open roster spots:

Milwaukee Bucks
New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns

These three teams all sent out more players than they received in trade-deadline deals and are carrying just 13 players apiece on standard contracts.

Technically, NBA teams are required to carry a minimum of 14 players on standard contracts, but they’re allowed to dip to 13 for up to two weeks at a time, so these clubs will have until February 23 to fill at least one of their two openings.

Teams with one open roster spot:

Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
- Note: The Hornets are reportedly likely to buy out Reggie Jackson, which would open up a second roster spot.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Denver Nuggets
Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
- Note: The Heat’s 14th roster spot is occupied by Jamaree Bouyea, who is on a 10-day contract, so they’ll open up a second roster spot when his deal expires during the All-Star break.
Oklahoma City Thunder
- Note: The Thunder have a full 15-man roster, but one of their two-way contract slots is open.
Philadelphia 76ers
Utah Jazz

We’re still waiting to see which players are officially bought out, but more roster spots will open when those moves are completed. For instance, the Magic currently have a full 15-man roster, but would create two openings if they finalize buyouts for both Terrence Ross and Patrick Beverley — they’re said to be in talks with both players.

The Jazz would open up a second spot on their 15-man roster if they buy out Russell Westbrook.

The Rockets and Pacers currently have full 15-man rosters, but will create openings by officially waiving John Wall and Serge Ibaka, respectively. However, the expectation is that they’ll re-sign Boban Marjanovic and James Johnson, respectively, to fill those newly opened spots.

The Wizards are in a similar situation — they’re reportedly working on a buyout with Will Barton, but the expectation is that they’d use their 15th roster spot in that scenario to promote Jordan Goodwin from his two-way deal. That would create a two-way opening for the team.

Finally, while the Mavericks and Pistons technically have full rosters at this time, each team’s 15th man (Chris Silva for Dallas, Stanley Umude for Detroit) is in a 10-day contract, so they’re both in good position to open up a spot if they need it.

Scotto’s Latest: McDaniels, Hornets, G. Williams, Nuggets

February 11th, 2023 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels drew significant trade interest around the NBA ahead of Thursday’s deadline, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who reports that about half of the league’s teams reached out to express interest in the 22-year-old.

However, after keeping him out of the Rudy Gobert blockbuster last summer, the Timberwolves continued to turn away inquiries on McDaniels. The front office views the third-year forward, who becomes extension-eligible during the coming offseason, as a member of the team’s core, Scotto writes.

McDaniels’ brother Jalen McDaniels was on the move this week, as the Hornets sent him to the Sixers in a four-team deal that also involved New York and Portland. According to Scotto, Charlotte was anticipating a strong free agent market for Jalen this offseason and was concerned about being outbid for the 25-year-old, who will be an unrestricted free agent.

After trading for him at the deadline, the Sixers are hoping to use their Bird rights on the older McDaniels brother to retain him, but they’ll face competition. League sources tell HoopsHype that the Jazz, Pacers, and Spurs are among the clubs expected to show interest in McDaniels in the summer.

Here’s more from Scotto:

With McDaniels no longer on the roster, the Hornets are prioritizing re-signing P.J. Washington this summer, as well as potentially negotiating a new deal with Miles Bridges, says Scotto.
The Celtics turned away multiple teams who expressed interest in trading for forward Grant Williams, Scotto reports. Clubs were interested in acquiring Williams ahead of his restricted free agency to secure his Bird rights, Scotto writes, adding that some executives around the NBA believe Boston will be hesitant to match an offer sheet exceeding $15MM+ per year for the forward this summer. The C’s never offered more than $50MM in guaranteed money over four years last fall when the two sides discussed an extension, Scotto notes.
Before sending him to the Clippers, the Nuggets discussed possible deals involving Bones Hyland with the Hornets (Jalen McDaniels), Timberwolves (Taurean Prince), and Knicks (Cam Reddish), according to Scotto.
In case you missed it, Scotto’s latest story for HoopsHype also included an interesting item on the Grizzlies’ offer for Mikal Bridges and some info on potential suitors for veteran wing Terrence Ross.

Celtics Went Quiet After Acquiring Muscala

February 10th, 2023 at 10:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said he wasn’t close to making another deal after acquiring Mike Muscala from the Thunder, implying that they weren’t really interested in making another move, Jared Weiss of The Athletic tweets.

Jaylen Brown Sidelined Due To Facial Fracture

February 10th, 2023 at 3:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

FEBRUARY 10: Brown has been diagnosed with a maxillary facial fracture, the Celtics announced in a press release. According to the team, he’ll be reevaluated next week.

FEBRUARY 8: Celtics star Jaylen Brown is expected to miss several games after suffering a facial fracture in tonight’s contest against Philadelphia, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Brown will be examined by specialists on Thursday, but initial expectations are that he may not return until after the All-Star break.

Brown suffered the injury on a collision with teammate Jayson Tatum during the first half (video link from NBC Sports Boston). Both players were chasing an offensive rebound when Tatum’s elbow struck Brown on the left side of his head. He remained on the floor for a while before getting up, and he was immediately taken to the locker room.

Before the second half began, the Celtics announced that Brown had a facial contusion and was done for the night.

Brown, who was named as an Eastern Conference reserve for the All-Star Game last week, is in the midst of a career-best season, averaging 27.0 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists through 47 games. The Celtics defeated the Sixers to solidify their hold on the top spot in the East, but it could be tough to stay there if Brown is lost for an extended stretch.

Buyout Rumors: Green, Westbrook, Bulls, Beverley, Ibaka, Heat, Sixers, Grizzlies

February 10th, 2023 at 3:23pm CST by Luke Adams

After Rockets general manager Rafael Stone confirmed in a Friday press conference that Houston will simply waive John Wall, with no buyout required, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN said during an appearance on NBA Today (YouTube link) that Danny Green would welcome a similar arrangement.

Both Wall and Green were acquired by Houston as salary-matching chips in the team’s Eric Gordon trade on Thursday. It’s unclear if Green would be willing to give up money as part of a buyout agreement.

If Green does become a free agent, teams like the Celtics and Cavaliers would be among those with interest, according to Wojnarowski. Woj also mentions “Los Angeles” as a potential Green suitor, though it’s unclear if he means the Lakers, the Clippers, or both — they each have an open spot on their 15-man roster.

Here’s more on the NBA’s buyout market:

Jazz general manager Justin Zanik told reporters on Friday that no decisions have been made yet on Russell Westbrook‘s future and that the veteran guard is open to the idea of playing for Utah to finish the season, tweets Tony Jones of The Athletic. Westbrook is considered a strong candidate to be bought out.
Wojnarowski said today on NBA Today (YouTube link) that if Westbrook does become available, the Bulls are a team to watch as a potential frontrunner. Head of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said today that the team plans to “look at” the buyout market, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. The Clippers have also been linked to Westbrook, but Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times says the Clips aren’t expected to be overly active in the buyout market, adding that insiders around the league are skeptical about Westbrook landing with L.A.
The Magic and Patrick Beverley are working on a contract buyout, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). The Magic said on Thursday that they weren’t requiring Beverley to report to the team, so that news comes as no surprise.
Big man Serge Ibaka, who will be waived by Indiana, has some interest in joining the Heat, but it’s unclear if that interest is mutual, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
The Sixers and Grizzlies will take decidedly different approaches to the buyout market. Sixers executive Daryl Morey said today that moving under the tax line at the trade deadline sets up the team to potentially pursue “multiple” targets on the buyout market, per Kyle Neuback of PhillyVoice.com. Grizzlies head of basketball operations Zach Kleiman, on the other hand, said he doesn’t envision his team looking at the buyout market, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal.

Thunder Trade Mike Muscala To Celtics

February 9th, 2023 at 9:54pm CST by Arthur Hill

9:54pm: The trade sending Muscala to Boston for Jackson and two second-round picks is official, according to a press release from the Thunder.

2:21pm: The Thunder will receive the Celtics’ 2029 second-round pick and the least favorable of Boston’s two 2023 second-round picks, tweets Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.

The terms dictating which ’23 second-rounder OKC will acquire are complex, but the pick will almost certainly belong to either Dallas, Miami, or Portland.

10:55am: The Celtics will acquire big man Mike Muscala from the Thunder in exchange for Justin Jackson and two second-round picks, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Muscala, 31, has spent the last several seasons in Oklahoma City, playing a relatively consistent role as a solid floor-spacing frontcourt reserve as the team shifted from playoff contention into rebuilding mode.

Since joining the Thunder in 2019, Muscala has averaged 7.0 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 168 total games (14.5 MPG), making 1.5 threes per game at a 39.2% clip. Those numbers are very similar to the ones he has put up in 43 games (14.5 MPG) so far this season — 6.2 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and a .394 3PT%.

While Muscala isn’t exactly an impact player, he’s a good fit for a Celtics team that had been on the hunt for frontcourt insurance behind Robert Williams and Al Horford. The terms of Muscala’s contract give him the ability to veto a trade, but it’s hard to imagine he’d turn down the opportunity to join a legitimate title contender.

Since Jackson is on a minimum-salary contract, his $1.84MM cap hit isn’t enough to match Muscala’s incoming $3.5MM salary, so the Celtics will have to use a trade exception left over from last year’s trade deadline to acquire the big man. The Thunder will take on Jackson using the minimum salary exception, generating a new trade exception equivalent to Muscala’s $3.5MM salary.

Jackson is expected to be waived by the Thunder once the deal is complete, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the deal projects to increase the Celtics’ luxury tax bill from about $58.9MM to $65.3MM.