The Boston Celtics Should Go All in for Jimmy Butler
He wont come cheap, but the Boston Celtics should go all in for Jimmy Butler
Despite a discouraging loss to the slumping Knicks on Wednesday night, the Boston Celtics are right where we thought they would be in terms of positioning within the Eastern Conference. Sitting at third in the conference and within striking distance of the Cavaliers for the top seed is a great accomplishment.
The emergence of Isaiah Thomas and Boston’s continued embrace of his incredible talents is one of best stories going in the entire NBA right now. As currently constituted, the Celtics have the talent to make the Eastern Conference Finals, but lack the kind of talent at this juncture to be a championship contender. With their potential cap flexibility and stash of high draft picks from Brooklyn, the Celtics can go in a variety of directions in an effort to become a juggernaut that can compete for championships annually.
Having a top five scorer in Thomas signed through next season at $6.3 million certainly helps the Celtics and gives options in terms of improving the roster as a whole. Given that Thomas is now a bonafide star, it makes sense for the Celtics to explore trading at least one their upcoming Brooklyn picks either for this year or next, in the hopes of acquiring star veteran talent that can help the roster take the next step right away.
With the uncertainty surrounding Chicago’s front office, head coach Fred Hoiberg, and aging stars Wade and Rondo, there is a good chance that Chicago decides to blow up the roster and enter a full rebuild. Jimmy Butler is by far and away their most valuable asset as one of the NBA’s preeminent two way players, who is also locked up for three more years on an old max contract from the previous CBA, making his $18 million or so annual salary rather appealing and flexible under the new salary cap.
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The Celtics could offer Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart, whose contracts expire after next season, along with Jae Crowder whose affordable contract could give the Bulls trade flexibility or depth on the wing. Bradley is still very young at 26 and an attractive player given his improved scoring and elite ability to defend at the guard position, while his modest expiring contract of around $8 million would fetch serious interest if the Bulls decided to move him.
With Smart entering the last year of his rookie deal next season and potentially becoming a restricted free agent, a change in scenery might present an opportunity to display and refine his offensive skillset which has heavily lagged behind his advanced defense. Remember, Smart is not too far removed from being a highly touted draft prospect and will only turn 23 this year; he is still an intriguing prospect. In these three players, Chicago gets immediate help and significant trade and cap flexibility. To headline the deal, Boston could then offer this year’s Brooklyn pick which figures to be in the top three along with their own 2018 first round pick.
This year’s draft is deep at the point guard position, with Washington’s Markelle Fultz coming in at the top of most mock drafts, along with NC State’s Dennis Smith Jr., and UCLA’s Lonzo Ball. It might make sense to part with this year’s pick, as the Celtics already have their point guard and this year’s draft has thus far not shown elite talent that can contribute right away at the wing or in bigs. In a league now dominated by point guards, Chicago has the opportunity to draft their point guard of the future, add another future first rounder, and provide veteran depth on the roster. Boston in turn, gets a premier player in Butler who will add explosive scoring on the wing and lockdown defense, to pair with Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford.
It’s a steep price to pay, but the Celtics would still keep their 2018 Brooklyn pick which still figures to be a top five pick and could get creative with cap space to go after stars in the 2018 class such as Cousins who they have long been linked to or improbably make another run at Durant, only this time offering a star studded roster that could make runs at championships for years to come.
