Breaking Down the Boston Celtics' Best Remaining Trade Bait
The NBA’s trade deadline is less than two weeks away, and the Boston Celtics figure to be one of the league’s most active teams leading right up to its final seconds.
Nobody, save maybe the Cleveland Cavaliers, has made more significant transactions this season. First, the Celtics dealt franchise point guard Rajon Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks in a seismic move that sent ripples throughout the league. Shortly after the dust settled, they flipped Brandan Wright to the Phoenix Suns and Jeff Green to the Memphis Grizzlies.
None of these deals were a total surprise, but they signaled a full-on commitment by Celtics general manager Danny Ainge to renovate his roster and stretch a long-brewing rebuild into the foreseeable future.
Due to the Eastern Conference’s general terribleness, Boston remains a potential playoff team despite its 18-30 record. They’re only a couple games back of the eighth seed, and John Hollinger’s playoff odds give them about a 20 percent chance of qualifying.
The front office is forced into a balancing act between tanking and giving its young core the opportunity to taste the postseason. Ainge is more than aware, and according to CSNNE’s A. Sherrod Blakely, it could impact how he approaches the deadline:
"I would love to see our team in the playoffs, but I don’t want to see us back into the playoffs with a really bad record and not even have a fighting chance. If our team can keep getting better by developing, if we can make some deals at the trade deadline that put us in position to actually get into the playoffs and have a chance to win a playoff series, I think that would be a lot of fun.
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Still, given the trades we’ve seen to date, it only makes sense for Boston to go all-in and exchange its remaining veterans for draft picks, trade exceptions and financial relief (hopefully all of the above).
Here’s a look at who those players are and which ones are most likely to be wearing a different colored jersey on February 20.
Brandon Bass
Boston’s primary asset is Brandon Bass, a 29-year-old power forward whose $6.9 million contract expires at the end of the season. Despite averaging only 9.7 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, Bass is an attractive chip most title contenders would be happy to add.
He has playoff experience, has never complicated his role, is a fantastic teammate and plays within his limitations.
Bass also happens to own one of the most consistent mid-range jump shots in the league. He’s shooting 45.9 percent from 16-23 feet (essentially his career average) this season and over the past two years has also developed a legitimate post game. Bass’ first step is devastating out on the perimeter, especially when he’s matched up against larger, slower bigs who are weary of giving up an open shot.
Defensively he’s no rim protector, but Bass is strong, can move bodies beneath the rim, knows when to rotate from the weak side and has proven himself versatile enough to handle wing scorers away from the basket. For someone so huge, Bass moves his feet very well.
The Celtics have performed on the fringes of a top-10 defense with Bass on the floor and rank as the equivalent of the 24th-best unit when he sits, according to NBA.com. He’s a helpful player.
Marcus Thornton
Most playoff teams could use a scorer of their bench. A ball-handler who comes in, creates his own shot, knocks down threes, gets to the rim and has the potential to completely shift the momentum of a critical game.
Marcus Thornton is (still!) that type of player. Right now he’s averaging 8.4 points in 16 minutes per game, with an effective field-goal percentage of .580 on catch-and-shoot attempts. Thornton costs a pretty penny ($8.57 million), but similar to Bass, his contract expires in July.
He’s only 27 and has a ton of basketball left, and the Celtics would love to squeeze a pair of second-round picks out of somebody for his service.
Tayshaun Prince
Perhaps one of the strangest points of this entire season was Boston’s decision to give Tayshaun Prince real playing time—over, say, James Young—after acquiring him from Memphis in the Green deal.
Prince can’t be dealt in combination with any other players, and his expiring $7.7 million contract is a healthy chunk of dough (presumably) only teams holding trade exceptions can swallow. But Prince has actually been quite good since coming to Boston.
It’s a tiny sample size, but in 153 minutes he’s notched a 16.9 PER and a .667 true shooting percentage, shooting a completely irrational 64.3 percent on mid-range jumpers (his Achilles' heel these past few years).
There’s always the possibility Boston buys Prince out, but if some team suffers a crippling injury in its wing rotation, the Celtics would instantly pick up the phone to make an offer.
Gerald Wallace and Evan Turner
Gerald Wallace is technically a veteran on the Boston Celtics, but A) he's no longer a quality NBA player, and B) no team would dare take on that contract, which extends into 2016 with a gaudy $10.1 million price tag. Wallace isn't going anywhere unless the Celtics are willing to handcuff him to one of their many first-round picks, but that doesn't feel likely.
Evan Turner is another option, but he's guaranteed $3.4 million next year and doesn't possess the type of skill set contending teams would be comfortable adding this late in the season. Dealing him is doubtful, especially when you factor in his age (26) and the fact that he hardly puts a dent into Boston's cap sheet.
Even if they're on the verge of a playoff spot, the Celtics have their sights set down the road. Acquiring future assets should still be the priority, so moves to bring them in will happen. But only if other teams are willing to play ball.
What does all of this mean? Expect Boston's roster to look very different in three weeks from the one that exists today.
All statistics are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com, unless otherwise noted.
Michael Pina is an NBA writer who's been published at Bleacher Report, Sports on Earth, FOX Sports, Grantland and a few other special places. Follow him on Twitter @MichaelVPina.
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