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2021 NBA Offseason In Review: Brooklyn Nets

September 15th, 2021 at 5:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2021 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s offseason moves, examine what still needs to be done before opening night, and look ahead to what the 2021/22 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Brooklyn Nets.

Free agent signings:

Note: Exhibit 10 deals aren’t included here.

  • Patty Mills: Two years, $12.075MM. Second-year player option. Signed using taxpayer mid-level exception.
  • Bruce Brown: One year, $4.736MM. Accepted qualifying offer as restricted free agent.
  • LaMarcus Aldridge: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Blake Griffin: One year, minimum salary. Re-signed using minimum salary exception.
  • James Johnson: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • Paul Millsap: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
  • DeAndre’ Bembry: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception. Partially guaranteed for $750K.

Trades:

  • Acquired Jevon Carter and the draft rights to Day’Ron Sharpe (No. 29 pick) from the Suns in exchange for Landry Shamet.
  • Acquired either the Wizards’ or Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable; from Wizards), the right to swap the Warriors’ 2025 second-round pick for the Wizards’ 2025 second-round pick (from Wizards), and the draft rights to Nikola Milutinov (from Spurs) in a five-team trade in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie (sign-and-trade; to Wizards).
    • Note: The Nets created a $11,454,048 trade exception in the deal.
  • Acquired Sekou Doumbouya and Jahlil Okafor from the Pistons in exchange for DeAndre Jordan, the Nets’ 2022 second-round pick, either the Wizards’ or Grizzlies’ 2024 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable), either the Warriors’ or Wizards’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable), the Nets’ 2027 second-round pick, and cash ($5.78MM).
    • Note: Okafor has since been waived.

Draft picks:

Contract extensions:

  • Kevin Durant: Four years, $192,504,908 (base value). Includes $5,152,000 in incentives and 15% trade kicker. Starts in 2022/23.

Departing players:

Other offseason news:

  • Added David Vanterpool, Brian Keefe, and Kyle Korver to coaching staff; Ime Udoka and Mike D’Antoni departed coaching staff.
  • Added Steve Clifford as coaching consultant.

Salary cap situation:

  • Remained over the cap and above the tax line.
  • Carrying approximately $172.3MM in salary.
  • Used full taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.89MM) to sign Patty Mills.
  • Rest of non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($3,646,000) and bi-annual exception ($3,732,000) are unavailable, since using either would create a $143MM hard cap.
  • Three traded player exceptions available, including one worth $11.5MM and another worth $6.3MM.

Lingering preseason issues:

  • The Nets have 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts, plus DeAndre’ Bembry on a partially guaranteed deal. In order to carry Bembry on the regular season roster, Brooklyn will need to trade or waive a player with a guaranteed salary.
  • The Nets have an open two-way contract slot.
  • The Nets have two unsigned second-round picks.
  • James Harden and Kyrie Irving remain eligible for veteran contract extensions, and the Nets reportedly would like to get deals done.
  • Nicolas Claxton also remains eligible for a veteran contract extension all season.

The Nets’ offseason:

Even with Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving rarely healthy at the same time in 2020/21, the Nets put up some of the best offensive numbers of all time, recording a league-leading 117.3 offensive rating during the regular season. The defense was shaky at times, but tightened up in the playoffs and would’ve been good enough to support a deep postseason run.

Unfortunately for Brooklyn, the injury bug bit the Big Three again in the second round vs. Milwaukee, as both Harden and Irving missed multiple games. Their absences were enough to give the Bucks the edge in a series that went down to the wire, with Milwaukee winning Game 7 in overtime.

Given how close that series with the eventual champions was, it’s hard to argue the Nets weren’t a championship-caliber team in their own right entering the offseason. But since Brooklyn can’t necessarily count on Durant, Harden, and Irving to all be 100% healthy during next year’s postseason run, the front office couldn’t just stand pat this summer — it had to do all it could to upgrade the roster around the edges.

And many of those moves made around the edges were very good ones. With the Nets’ Big Three earning a combined $121MM+ in 2021/22, the club had limited resources to fill out its bench, but did so admirably. Patty Mills, Bruce Brown, and Blake Griffin will count against Brooklyn’s cap for a combined $12.3MM this season, while Paul Millsap, LaMarcus Aldridge, and James Johnson were among the other reliable veterans who signed minimum-salary contracts with the team.

Of course, it’s easier to sign players to team-friendly contracts when you’re a title contender based in New York than when you’re a lottery team based in, say, Cleveland. But general manager Sean Marks still deserves high grades for the work he did on the roster this offseason, including adding a pair of low-cost first-round draftees (Cameron Thomas and Day’Ron Sharpe) to the mix.

Mills should be a clear upgrade over Mike James and Tyler Johnson in the backcourt, while Aldridge and Millsap are more suited to the Nets’ small-ball lineups than a traditional center like DeAndre Jordan, who was jettisoned in a salary-dump deal.

Losing Spencer Dinwiddie is a blow to the Nets on paper, but shouldn’t have a major impact on the court — after all, Dinwiddie only appeared in three games in 2020/21 before tearing his ACL, so the club did just fine without him last season.

The one spot the team’s depth will be tested is on the wing, where Jeff Green, Landry Shamet, and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot are no longer in the picture. Bruce Brown and DeAndre’ Bembry (if he makes the roster) are solid defenders, but aren’t major offensive threats. Thomas was one of the NCAA’s leading scorers last season, but it’s unclear if he’s ready to immediately jump into a regular rotation role on a veteran playoff team. If Brooklyn seeks midseason reinforcements, I’d expect the club to target wing depth.

Of course, as important as those supporting players are, the Nets’ ceiling will ultimately dictated by Durant, Harden, and Irving. All three stars became extension-eligible this offseason and the franchise didn’t waste any time locking up Durant to a new maximum-salary deal.

It will be interesting to see if Harden and Irving also get extensions done before the season begins. They’re essentially the Nets’ second and third options, but they’ll be among the NBA’s very highest-paid players if they receive new max deals. Harden turned 32 this summer; Irving will turn 30 this season. Brooklyn wants to keep them, of course, but it may not just be a matter of simply handing over a blank check, like in the negotiations with Durant.

The Nets’ upcoming season:

The Nets’ 2021/22 regular season may look similar to some of LeBron James‘ later seasons with the Cavaliers. LeBron’s veteran-heavy Cavs teams never pushed all that hard for the top seed in the East, since they knew preserving their legs for a lengthy playoff run was more important than getting an extra home game or two in the postseason.

This Nets team will likely take a similar long view — winning a couple extra games in November and December isn’t all that important if Durant, Harden, and Irving — or even role players like Griffin, Aldridge, and Millsap — are being overextended. Keeping the stars healthy will be Brooklyn’s top priority for most of the year, and if the club still manages to earn the top seed in the East, that’ll be a bonus.

If the three stars are healthy in the postseason, this team looks to me like the favorite to win the 2022 title. That’s a big “if,” but there aren’t many teams around the league that wouldn’t trade positions with the Nets if given the opportunity.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.

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2021/22 NBA Over/Unders: Northwest Division

September 15th, 2021 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

The 2021/22 NBA regular season will get underway next month, so it’s time to start getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and to resume an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a handful of sports betting sites, including Bovada and BetOnline, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2020/21, our voters went 17-13 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’21/22?

As a reminder, the NBA played a 72-game schedule in 2020/21, so a team that won 41 games last year finished with a 41-31 record. This year, a club that wins 41 games would be a .500 team (41-41). For added clarity, we’ve noted the record that each team would have to achieve to finish “over” its projected win total.

We’ll turn today to the Northwest division…

Utah Jazz

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Jazz poll.

Denver Nuggets

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Nuggets poll.

Portland Trail Blazers

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Trail Blazers poll.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Timberwolves poll.

Oklahoma City Thunder

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Thunder poll.

Previous voting results:

Atlantic:

  • Brooklyn Nets (55.5 wins): Over (63.2%)
  • Philadelphia 76ers (51.5 wins): Under (70.0%)
  • Boston Celtics (46.5 wins): Over (58.1%)
  • New York Knicks (42.5 wins): Over (65.1%)
  • Toronto Raptors (36.5 wins): Under (50.6%)
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Ten Notable NBA Free Agents Who Remain Unsigned

September 14th, 2021 at 10:41am CST by Luke Adams

All 50 of the players we identified as 2021’s top NBA free agents prior to the start of the new league year last month have come off the board, many of them within hours of the start of free agency. Nearly all the players we listed in our “honorable mention” have found new homes as well.

However, a few of those honorable mentions remain unsigned, as do a handful of other noteworthy veterans. There are many players worth mentioning, and the full list of current NBA free agents can be found right here, but today we’re singling out 10 vets who fall into three particular categories. Let’s dive in and have a look…

Shooters:

  • J.J. Redick: Redick is one of the best three-point shooters in NBA history, having converted 41.5% of his 4,704 career attempts. However, a heel injury slowed him down in 2020/21, and he has stated he’s in no rush to sign a new contract for ’21/22. When he’s ready, he’ll likely favor a team close to his home in New York, with the Nets and Knicks believed to be atop his wish list.
  • James Ennis: Ennis has been a regular NBA role player for the last several years and is coming off a season in which he converted 43.3% of his three-pointers. He has reportedly drawn interest from the Lakers, Bulls, Trail Blazers, and Magic, among other teams, and seems unlikely to remain unsigned for much longer.
  • Garrison Mathews: Mathews emerged as a rotation player for the Wizards while on a two-way contract during the last two seasons, making 38.9% of his threes in 82 total games (15.4 MPG). His solid play earned him a qualifying offer this summer, but Washington pulled that offer on the table during the first week of free agency, making Mathews an unrestricted free agent.
  • Mike Scott: A veteran stretch four, Scott had a bit of a down year in Philadelphia in 2020/21, but still has a .381 3PT% over the last four seasons, an impressive mark for a player who is also capable of battling big men in the paint. The 76ers signed Georges Niang to replace Scott, but the 33-year-old should catch on somewhere.

Offensive specialists:

  • DeMarcus Cousins: Cousins isn’t the same player who earned four All-Star berths and two All-NBA nods earlier in his career, but he wasn’t bad down the stretch with the Clippers this past season, averaging 7.8 PPG and 4.5 RPG on .537/.421/.682 shooting in 16 games (12.9 MPG). Like the other players in this group, he’s not a plus defender, but he can provide some second-unit scoring punch.
  • Jahlil Okafor: Recently waived by the Nets, who were facing a roster crunch, Okafor has played for four teams since being drafted third overall in 2015 and has seen his minutes steadily decline during that stretch. He’s still a solid inside scorer, but his lack of an outside shot limits his effectiveness on offense, and he’s not the sort of center who’s comfortable switching onto perimeter players on defense.
  • Isaiah Thomas: Like Cousins, Thomas has been limited in recent years by health issues. But he claims he’s back to full strength after being bothered by a long-term hip injury, and has worked out for teams like the Lakers and Mavericks in an effort to prove it. It’d be great to see Thomas get another shot, but his injury history and defensive shortcomings have made teams wary.

Defensive specialists:

  • Avery Bradley: Once a coveted three-and-D wing, Bradley has seen his stock dip in recent years as he has bounced around the NBA. Since being traded from Boston to Detroit in 2017, he has played for six different teams. Still, Bradley’s the sort of solid veteran that should eventually end up on a 15-man NBA roster, especially if and when teams start getting hit by the injury bug.
  • Frank Ntilikina: Defense was never a problem for the former lottery pick, but he hasn’t developed enough of an offensive game to be considered a reliable two-way player. A return to Europe could be a possibility for Ntilikina, who reportedly drew interest from Virtus Bologna before the Italian team signed Ty-Shon Alexander.
  • Rondae Hollis-Jefferson: Hollis-Jefferson had a pretty solid year in Toronto in 2019/20, showing the ability to bring energy off the bench and guard multiple positions. So it was a bit of a surprise that he didn’t get a chance to play in ’20/21 until the Blazers gave him a shot during the season’s last two months. He’s still only 26 years old — a team in need of a hard worker and tough defender could do much worse with its 14th or 15th roster spot.
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2021/22 NBA Over/Unders: Atlantic Division

September 13th, 2021 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2021/22 NBA regular season will get underway next month, so it’s time to start getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and to resume an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a handful of sports betting sites, including Bovada and BetOnline, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2020/21, our voters went 17-13 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’21/22?

As a reminder, the NBA played a 72-game schedule in 2020/21, so a team that won 41 games last year finished with a 41-31 record. This year, a club that wins 41 games would be a .500 team (41-41). For added clarity, we’ve noted the record that each team would have to achieve to finish “over” its projected win total.

We’ll kick things off today with the Atlantic division…

Brooklyn Nets

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Nets poll.

Philadelphia 76ers

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Sixers poll.

Boston Celtics

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Celtics poll.

New York Knicks

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Knicks poll.

Toronto Raptors

Trade Rumors app users, click here for Raptors poll.

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Traded First-Round Picks For 2022 NBA Draft

September 13th, 2021 at 1:28pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2022 NBA draft is still over nine months away, but a number of teams have already traded away their first-round picks for ’22, and more clubs may do so before this season’s trade deadline.

We’ll use the space below to keep tabs on each team’s first round pick for 2022, continually updating it as necessary throughout the year.

We’ve listed all 30 teams here, so even if a team hasn’t traded its first-round pick, that will be noted. We’ll also provide details on the protections for each traded pick, including what happens to the pick in 2023 if it doesn’t change hands in 2022.

Here’s the full breakdown on the status of each 2022 first round pick:

Atlantic

  • Boston Celtics: Traded to Spurs (top-four protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Celtics would owe the Spurs their 2023 first-round pick (top-four protected).
  • Brooklyn Nets: Traded to Rockets or Heat.
    • Houston will receive the two most favorable picks of the Nets’, Heat’s, and Rockets’ first-rounders; Miami will receive the least favorable of the three, unless the Heat’s pick is in the top 14, in which case it would be protected and Houston would receive the Nets’ first-rounder and their own first-rounder.
  • New York Knicks: Own pick.
  • Philadelphia 76ers: Traded to Nets.
    • The Nets have the option to defer this traded pick to 2023.
  • Toronto Raptors: Traded to Spurs (top-14 protected).

Central

  • Chicago Bulls: Own pick.
  • Cleveland Cavaliers: Traded to Pacers (top-14 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Cavaliers would owe the Pacers their 2023 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
  • Detroit Pistons: Traded to Thunder (top-16 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Pistons would owe the Thunder their 2023 first-round pick (top-18 protected).
  • Indiana Pacers: Own pick.
  • Milwaukee Bucks: Own pick.

Southeast

  • Atlanta Hawks: Own pick.
  • Charlotte Hornets: Traded to Hawks (top-18 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Hornets would owe the Hawks their 2023 first-round pick (top-16 protected).
  • Miami Heat: Own pick or Rockets‘ pick or Nets‘ pick.
    • Houston will receive the two most favorable picks of the Nets’, Heat’s, and Rockets’ first-rounders; Miami will receive the least favorable of the three, unless the Heat’s pick is in the top 14, in which case it would be protected and Houston would receive the Nets’ first-rounder and their own first-rounder.
    • If the Heat keep their own first-round pick, they would instead send the Rockets a 2022 second-round pick (Denver’s or Philadelphia’s, whichever is least favorable).
  • Orlando Magic: Own pick.
  • Washington Wizards: Own pick.

Northwest

  • Denver Nuggets: Own pick.
  • Minnesota Timberwolves: Own pick.
  • Oklahoma City Thunder: Traded to Hawks (top-14 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Thunder would instead send their own 2024 and 2025 second-round picks to Atlanta.
  • Portland Trail Blazers: Traded to Bulls (top-14 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Blazers would owe the Bulls their 2023 first-round pick (top-14 protected).
  • Utah Jazz: Traded to Grizzlies (top-6 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Jazz would owe the Grizzlies their 2023 first-round pick (top-3 protected).

Pacific

  • Golden State Warriors: Own pick.
  • Los Angeles Clippers: Traded to Thunder.
  • Los Angeles Lakers: Traded to Pelicans or Grizzlies.
    • New Orleans will receive this pick if it lands in the top 10; Memphis will receive it if it falls between 11-30.
    • If the Pelicans get the pick, they’ll send the Grizzlies two future second-round picks (Cleveland’s 2022 second-rounder and New Orleans’ own 2025 second-rounder). If the Grizzlies get the pick, the Pelicans won’t get anything.
  • Phoenix Suns: Traded to Thunder (top-12 protected).
    • If this pick lands in its protected range, the Suns would owe the Thunder their 2023 first-round pick (top-10 protected).
  • Sacramento Kings: Own pick.

Southwest

  • Dallas Mavericks: Own pick.
  • Houston Rockets: Own pick.
  • Memphis Grizzlies: Own pick.
  • New Orleans Pelicans: Traded to Trail Blazers (top-four protected) or Hornets (top-14 protected).
    • New Orleans will keep this pick if it lands in the top four; Portland will receive it if it falls between 5-14; Charlotte will receive it if it falls between 15-30.
    • If this pick lands in the top four or between 15-30, the Pelicans would owe the Bucks’ 2025 first-round pick (top-four protected) to Portland.
    • If this pick lands in the top 14, the Pelicans would instead send their own 2022 and 2024 second-round picks to Charlotte.
  • San Antonio Spurs: Own pick.

Information from RealGM was used in the creation of this post.

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Community Shootaround: 2022 Most Improved Player

September 12th, 2021 at 7:00pm CST by JD Shaw

When Knicks All-Star Julius Randle won the 2020/21 Most Improved Player award in May, several intriguing names trailed him in voting: Detroit’s Jerami Grant (second place), Denver’s Michael Porter Jr. (third place) and Houston’s Christian Wood (fourth place) being among them.

Randle deserved the award, however, as the 26-year-old averaged 24.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and six assists per game, shooting 46% from the field and 41% from deep. The season before, he held per-game averages of 19.5 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists, shooting 46% from the floor and 28% from deep.

The competition was tough — Grant, Porter and Wood all put forth respectable campaigns — but that tends to be the norm with the league’s awards. Predicting the Most Improved Player before the season starts is an extremely difficult task, however.

This year figures to have much of the same. Players such as Porter (with Jamal Murray injured), Zion Williamson (featured with a new Pelicans lineup) or Deandre Ayton (coming off his first playoff experience) could be good places to start.

What do you think? Will one of the players who received votes last year reign supreme, or will a surprise name win the award? Feel free to voice your predictions in the comments section below!

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Cash Sent, Received In NBA Trades For 2021/22

September 10th, 2021 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

During each NBA league year, teams face limits on the amount of cash they can send out and receive in trades. Once they reach those limits, they’re no longer permitted to include cash in a deal until the following league year.

For the 2021/22 NBA season, the limit is $5,785,000. If a team is including cash in a deal, the minimum amount required is $110,000.

The limits on sending and receiving cash are separate and aren’t dependent on one another, so if a team sends out $5,785,000 in one trade, then receives $5,785,000 in another, they aren’t back to square one — they’ve reached both limits for the season and can’t make another deal that includes cash.

Adding cash to a deal can serve multiple purposes. It can be a sweetener to encourage a team to make a deal in the first place – like when a team acquires a second-round pick in exchange for cash – or it can be a necessity to meet CBA requirements.

For instance, when the Knicks agreed to turn their signing of Evan Fournier into a sign-and-trade deal to allow the Celtics to create a trade exception, New York acquired two extra second-round picks (one was heavily-protected) along with Fournier. Since the Celtics had to receive something in the deal besides just creating their trade exception, the Knicks agreed to send Boston $110K, the minimum amount that can change hands in any trade involving cash.

We’ll use the space below to track each team’s cash sent and received in trades for the 2021/22 season, updating the info as necessary leading up to the 2022 trade deadline and for the first part of the 2022 offseason next June. These totals will reset once the ’22/23 league year begins next July.

Note: Data from Basketball Insiders and various media reports was used in the creation of this post.

Atlanta Hawks

  • Cash available to send: $4,950,411
  • Cash available to receive: $3,785,000

Boston Celtics

  • Cash available to send: $0
    • Sent $2,150,000 to Spurs.
    • Sent $3,635,000 to Magic.
  • Cash available to receive: $5,675,000
    • Received $110,000 from Knicks.

Brooklyn Nets

  • Cash available to send: $0
  • Cash available to receive: $3,675,000
    • Received $110,000 from Rockets.
    • Received $2,000,000 from Sixers. ^

Charlotte Hornets

  • Cash available to send: $5,785,000
  • Cash available to receive: $3,785,000

Chicago Bulls

  • Cash available to send: $4,585,000
  • Cash available to receive: $4,685,000
    • Received $1,100,000 from Rockets.

Cleveland Cavaliers

  • Cash available to send: $4,035,000
    • Sent $1,750,000 to Kings.
  • Cash available to receive: $5,785,000

Dallas Mavericks

  • Cash available to send: $5,785,000
  • Cash available to receive: $5,785,000

Denver Nuggets

  • Cash available to send: $5,585,000
    • Sent $200,000 to Spurs.
  • Cash available to receive: $5,785,000

Detroit Pistons

  • Cash available to send: $5,785,000
  • Cash available to receive: $0
    • Received $5,785,000 from Nets.

Golden State Warriors

  • Cash available to send: $3,785,000
    • Sent $2,000,000 to Hawks.
  • Cash available to receive: $5,785,000

Read more

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2021 NBA Offseason In Review: Boston Celtics

September 10th, 2021 at 8:12am CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2021 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s offseason moves, examine what still needs to be done before opening night, and look ahead to what the 2021/22 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Boston Celtics.

Free Agent Signings:

Note: Exhibit 10 deals aren’t included here.

Trades:

  • Acquired Al Horford, Moses Brown, and either the Thunder’s, Wizards’, Mavericks’, or Heat’s 2023 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable) from the Thunder in exchange for Kemba Walker, the No. 16 pick in the 2021 draft, and either the Celtics’ or Grizzlies’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable).
    • Note: If the Mavericks’ and Heat’s 2023 second-round picks are the two least favorable of the four 2023 second-rounders, the Celtics would acquire the most favorable of those two picks.
  • Acquired Josh Richardson from the Mavericks in exchange for Moses Brown.
  • Acquired Kris Dunn, Bruno Fernando, and the Trail Blazers’ 2023 second-round pick from the Hawks in a three-team trade in exchange for Tristan Thompson (sent to Kings).
  • Acquired cash ($110K) from the Knicks in exchange for Evan Fournier (sign-and-trade), the Hornets’ 2022 second-round pick (top-55 protected), and either the Thunder’s, Wizards’, Heat’s, or Mavericks’ 2023 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable).
    • Note: If the Mavericks’ and Heat’s 2023 second-round picks are the two least favorable of the four 2023 second-rounders, the Knicks would acquire the most favorable of those two picks.
    • Note: The Celtics created a $17,142,857 trade exception in the deal.
  • Acquiring Juan Hernangomez from the Grizzlies in exchange for Kris Dunn, Carsen Edwards, and the right to swap either the Pacers’ or Heat’s 2026 second-round pick (whichever is most favorable) for the Celtics’ 2026 second-round pick.
    • Note: This deal is not yet official.

Draft picks:

Contract extensions:

  • Marcus Smart: Four years, $77,087,995. Includes trade kicker ($1MM or 15%; whichever is lesser). Starts in 2022/23.
  • Robert Williams: Four years, $48,000,000 (base value). Includes $6MM in incentives. Starts in 2022/23.
  • Josh Richardson: One year, $12,196,084. Starts in 2022/23.

Departing players:

Other offseason news:

  • Danny Ainge stepped down as president of basketball operations.
  • Moved head coach Brad Stevens to the front office, naming him president of basketball operations.
  • Hired Ime Udoka as new head coach.
  • Added Will Hardy, Aaron Miles, Damon Stoudamire, Ben Sullivan, and Garrett Jackson to coaching staff; Jamie Young, Jerome Allen, Scott Morrison, and Jay Larranaga departed coaching staff.

Salary cap situation:

  • Remained over the cap and above the tax line.
  • Carrying approximately $143.2MM in salary.
  • Used full taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.89MM) to sign Dennis Schröder.
  • Would need to shed salary to use rest of non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($3,646,000) or bi-annual exception ($3,732,000), since using either would create a $143MM hard cap.
  • Five traded player exceptions available, including one worth $17.1MM and another worth $9.7MM.

Lingering preseason issues:

  • The trade for Juan Hernangomez can be finalized on September 15, when Kris Dunn‘s aggregation restriction lifts.
  • The Celtics will have 14 players on guaranteed contracts, plus Jabari Parker on a small ($100K) partial guarantee. They’ll have to decide whether to carry a 15th man and – if so – whether Parker will be that player. Parker’s salary would become 50% guaranteed if he makes the opening night roster.
  • The Celtics have one open two-way contract slot.
  • Al Horford is eligible for a veteran contract extension until October 18 (extend-and-trade limitations are in place).

The Celtics’ offseason:

Even after an underwhelming showing in 2020/21, it wouldn’t have been a huge surprise if the Celtics favored continuity this summer, attributing last season’s struggles to bad luck with COVID-19 and injuries and betting on a bounce-back year in 2021/22.

Instead, Boston made major changes at nearly every level of the organization. The Celtics will head into the fall with a new president of basketball operations and a new head coach, and without their highest-paid player from the last two seasons.

Entering the 2021 offseason, Brad Stevens was the fifth longest-tenured head coach in the NBA and Danny Ainge was the third longest-tenured head of basketball operations. Coaches and executives who have been around that long often make their own decisions on their futures rather than being forced out the door, and it appears that was the case with Ainge — he stepped down from his role rather than being fired. Stevens wasn’t fired either, as his move from the sidelines to the front office actually represented a promotion, putting him in position to hire his replacement.

That replacement will be Ime Udoka, an established NBA assistant who had been viewed as a future head coach for years due in large part to the time he spent under Gregg Popovich, both in San Antonio and with Team USA. While it’s difficult to predict how a first-time head coach will adapt to his new position, Udoka will be supported from the get-go by many of the Celtics’ top players. He was reportedly endorsed by Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart after working closely with them during the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

Kemba Walker was also a member of that 2019 U.S. team, but by the time Udoka was hired by the Celtics, Walker had already been sent to Oklahoma City, as Stevens wasted no time making the first trade of his executive career.

The deal, which essentially saw the C’s swap Walker and the 16th overall pick for Al Horford, created financial flexibility for the team this year and next, but the jury’s still out on how it will affect the team on the court. Walker battled knee injuries during his time in Boston and Horford was great during his last stint with the franchise, but Horford may not be able to recapture his old form at age 35, and a healthy Walker remains a very dangerous offensive player. Throw in the fact that the No. 16 pick was eventually used on Alperen Sengun, one of the standouts of Summer League, and it’s possible Stevens’ first trade will eventually come back to haunt him.

For now though, the deal makes some sense for the Celtics. With the help of the money saved by swapping Walker for Horford, Boston was able to trade for Josh Richardson to replace departed free agent wing Evan Fournier, and sign Dennis Schröder, who will be handed many of Walker’s minutes at the point.

Richardson and Schröder had up-and-down seasons in 2020/21, but they have the ability to be better going forward. Richardson is an athletic, versatile defender who is comfortable with switching and guarding multiple positions, while Schröder should emerge as Boston’s third-most reliable scorer behind Tatum and Brown.

Floor spacing could be an issue for the Celtics, but there’s intriguing upside if Udoka can figure out how to get Richardson, Schröder, and Juan Hernangomez open, comfortable looks. None of the three connected on more than 33.5% of their three-point attempts in 2020/21, but Richardson’s and Hernangomez’s career rates are much higher, and Schröder made 38.5% of his threes in ’19/20.

Stevens was most active on the trade market this offseason, agreeing to five deals so far, but the work he did with contract extensions shouldn’t be overlooked. Rather than attempting to clear long-term money in the hopes of eventually opening enough cap space to make a run at a third star alongside Tatum and Brown, Stevens doubled down on the current core, signing Smart, Robert Williams, and Richardson to extensions.

Those deals don’t necessarily mean that all three players are part of the Celtics’ long-term future — they might actually be easier to trade on their new contracts. In recent years, the C’s have faced challenges on the trade market due to their lack of mid-level salaries — two years ago, for instance, Smart was the only player besides Tatum and Brown who was earning between $5MM and $32MM. That made it difficult to acquire starter- or rotation-caliber players on the trade market.

Boston’s big Gordon Hayward trade exception helped matters last year, making it possible to acquire Fournier, but taking on significant salary via a trade exception is no longer as practical due to the team’s luxury tax situation. Having movable contracts in the $10-20MM range like Smart’s, Williams’, and Richardson’s will give the Celtics more options in the trade market going forward, even if they end up deciding to keep those players.

The Celtics’ upcoming season:

The Celtics were considered one of the best bets to come out of the Eastern Conference entering the 2020/21 season. They finished with a .500 record and won just a single game in the postseason.

This year’s version of the Celtics seems likely to fall somewhere in between those two extremes. Boston is clearly a tier below the conference’s best teams (Brooklyn and Milwaukee), but there’s no reason to think the team can’t contend for a top-four spot in the East.

Udoka’s ability to get the hang of the head coaching job quickly will be a key factor in determining the Celtics’ upside, as will the ability of Schröder and Smart to handle the point guard job. However, the club’s ceiling could ultimately be decided by whether the young players can take a step forward.

Can Williams stay healthy and take on a bigger role at center? Can Payton Pritchard and Aaron Nesmith establish themselves as reliable rotation regulars? Do Tatum and Brown have another level to reach? If the answer to all of those questions is “yes,” the Celtics will be in line for a nice bounce-back year.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.

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Players Who Can’t Be Traded Until January 15

September 9th, 2021 at 2:06pm CST by Luke Adams

As we detailed in an earlier article, players who signed new contracts as free agents during the 2021/22 league year can’t be traded for three months or until December 15, whichever comes later. That means that nearly every team has at least one player – and generally a handful – who won’t become trade-eligible until mid-December.

There’s also a small subset of free agent signees whose trade ineligibility lasts for an extra month. These players all meet a specific set of criteria: Not only did they re-sign with their previous team this offseason, but they got a raise of at least 20%, their salary is worth more than the minimum, and their team was over the cap, using Bird or Early Bird rights to sign them.

Listed below are the players who meet this criteria and can’t be traded until at least January 15, 2022. Players who have the ability to veto trades in 2021/22 are marked with a caret (^).

We’ll continue to update this page over the next few months, if necessary.

Atlanta Hawks

Brooklyn Nets

Cleveland Cavaliers

Detroit Pistons

Houston Rockets

Indiana Pacers

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Miami Heat

Minnesota Timberwolves

New Orleans Pelicans

New York Knicks

Philadelphia 76ers

Phoenix Suns

Portland Trail Blazers

Sacramento Kings

Toronto Raptors

Information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.

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Players Who Can’t Be Traded Until December 15

September 9th, 2021 at 11:27am CST by Luke Adams

As teams explore the trade market for potential deals to complete their rosters for training camp, there are a number of trade restrictions those clubs must take into account. Most notably, newly-signed free agents can’t be dealt until at least December 15.

The NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement states that a free agent who signs with an NBA team can’t be traded for three months or until December 15, whichever is later. Those rules will be tweaked slightly this year to account for the shortened offseason, but December 15 will still be the earliest date that a player who signs as a free agent this summer can be dealt.

There are also some recently-signed players who meet a few specific criteria and can’t be traded until January 15. Those players are listed here.

The players who aren’t eligible to be traded until December 15 are listed below.

Players whose contracts haven’t been officially finalized aren’t yet listed below. Players who have the ability to veto trades in 2021/22 are marked with a caret (^). Players on non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts are marked with an asterisk (*). However, those on Exhibit 10/training camp deals won’t be listed here unless they make the regular season roster.

We’ll continue to update this page over the next few months as players are signed or waived.

Updated 11-7-21 (6:02am CT)

Atlanta Hawks

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

Charlotte Hornets

Chicago Bulls

Cleveland Cavaliers

Dallas Mavericks

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