5 Ripple Effects From the $6.1B Boston Celtics Sale: Free Agency, NBA Expansion + More
On Thursday, news of the long-rumored sale of the Boston Celtics finally broke.
The current (and soon-to-be-former) governor of the franchise, Wyc Grousbeck, got quite the return on his investment.
The Celtics are one of the NBA's marquee franchises. In fact, they may be the marquee franchise, although Los Angeles Lakers fans would surely have something to say about that.
This sale also isn't the first multi-billion-dollar deal in the league over the last several years.
So, it's hard to look at this transaction without thinking about some of the potential implications that might follow. We've highlighted some of those ripple effects here.
Expansion is On the Way
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The NFL already has 32 teams. So does the NHL. The idea of the NBA joining them at that total has been floating around for years.
From a talent perspective, the worldwide talent pool has never been deeper. There are enough NBA-caliber basketball players in the world to sustain two more teams (if not more).
Following this record-smashing sale of the Celtics—the previous high was the $4 billion Mat Ishbia paid for the Phoenix Suns—the economic appetite could for expansion could be on the rise, too.
Prior to Thursday's news, reporting suggested the expansion fee for an incoming team could be in the $4-5 billion range. With the Celtics' new ownership group resetting the market, that estimate might now be conservative.
Most expansion speculation has involved two teams, so it's safe to assume the eventual additions to the league will give each of the current NBA owners hundreds of millions of dollars. That might be enough to calm any fears about having to split the incoming revenue from the new national TV deals with two more teams.
In other words, get ready to hear a lot about the possible return of the Seattle SuperSonics, a new team in Las Vegas and other potential landing spots for the league's 31st and 32nd teams.
New Ownership May Reexamine Boston's Cap Sheet...
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Ponying up $6.1 billion to buy the team suggests that the Celtics' new ownership group is willing to spend big. But when you look at what the current Celtics will cost to keep on the floor relative to the rest of the league, it's kind of alarming.
With 11 players under contract for 2025-26, Boston's payroll and luxury tax already add up to around $445 million. Although the league and player association's split of basketball-related income helps cover players' salaries each year, half of Boston's price tag next season is luxury tax alone.
If the Celtics fall short of repeating as champions this summer, the new ownership group might be tempted to look for ways to lower that obligation prior to 2025-26.
...And That Could Mean Trades
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The Ringer's Bill Simmons has been talking about "new owner syndrome" for years. It typically takes on a form that looks like the Phoenix Suns' transformation after Mat Ishbia purchased the franchise from Robert Sarver.
Assuming they didn't inherit their wealth, billionaires have tons of money for a reason. They've been successful in some other arena. And they often think that the approach they took there will get their new team to its next level.
It's also not unusual for them to want to put their imprint on the team in terms of personnel decisions.
Ishbia purchased a team with a solid, mostly young foundation that had just made a run to the NBA Finals. Instead of fostering that group gradually, he blew it up by unloading most of the team's long-term trade assets and landing Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. In doing so, he turned the Suns into the league's most expensive and perhaps most disappointing team.
The even scarier example is new Dallas Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont greenlighting the disastrous Luka Dončić trade. We won't dive into the details there since the move has been analyzed to death. Frankly, the Celtics fans don't deserve to have to think about such a possibility.
But if Boston comes up short this postseason—especially if that happens prior to the conference finals—it wouldn't be shocking to see another new owner consider some dramatic moves. In the Celtics' case, that might be geared more toward paring down than going all-in.
Jayson Tatum should be off the table, but Jaylen Brown (who's set to make $65 million in 2028-29), Jrue Holiday (who has a $37.2 million player option in 2027-28) and Derrick White (who has his own $34.8 million player option for 2028-29) are all on hefty, long-term contracts that could potentially be moved for multiple players.
Trading any of them (especially Brown) may not be likely, but league history suggests a new owner at least makes deals a bit more possible.
Other Owners Might Explore Selling
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The league's highest-profile sales in recent years were either a bit of a surprise (like Grousbeck selling the Celtics or Mark Cuban selling the Dallas Mavericks) or the result of some serious misconduct (like Donald Sterling selling the Los Angeles Clippers or Sarver selling the Suns).
Either way, all four of them sold franchises with multi-billion-dollar price tags. Even the perpetually lottery-bound Charlotte Hornets recently sold for an approximately $3 billion valuation.
Although the NBA's new 11-year, $76 billion national TV contracts could cause franchise values to just keep going up, seeing what teams are currently selling for could tempt some current owners.
If, like Grousbeck, an owner bought his team for less than a half-billion, he or she could be looking at a 1,000 percent profit by selling now. At the very least, it could be tempting to consider.
We Could Be in for a New Celtics Dynasty
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The Celtics' upcoming luxury-tax payments are daunting. But the new ownership group knew about them before signing on the dotted line.
With that incoming national TV deals set to send the salary cap soaring, additional flexibility is on the way either with or without dramatic trades.
The likeliest outcome here might be an even deeper commitment to title contention and paying whatever it takes to add to Boston's gaudy banner total.
"I bleed green," new governor Bill Chisholm said after news of the sale broke. "I love the Celtics. When opportunity came up, I couldn't pass it up. Wyc has done an incredible job. So why would you mess that up? I've had a couple of sitdowns with Brad and it's been about aligning our goals, and extending the window of this team."
Tatum and Brown are 27 and 28, respectively. Kristaps Porziņģis and Derrick White are still in their primes, too.
Fresh off winning a title and with a young core under long-term contracts, we finally might get a solid example of an incoming ownership group that's immune to "new owner syndrome."
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