Celtics News: Latest on Gordon Hayward's Contract, Player Option Deadline

The 2019-20 NBA season has a tentative start date of July 30, with the Finals ending no later than Oct. 13. In the current timeline, Gordon Hayward will have four days following the end of the season to make a big decision.

Hayward, along with some of the biggest NBA stars—most notably Anthony Davis—will have a quick turnaround between the end of one season and making decisions about the next.

A small number of players will have to opt in to their 2020-21 contracts immediately following the end of the season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. While Davis will have to decide by Oct. 14, Hayward, DeMar DeRozan, Mike Conley Jr. and Andre Drummond will have until Oct. 17.

If Hayward decides to opt in, he would make $34.2 million in the final year of his current four-year, $128 million contract with the Boston Celtics.

Normally, it makes financial sense for some of the bigger-name players to opt out of their final year options, and instead look for longer-term contracts with more guaranteed money. However, with the country still seeing financial consequences from the coronavirus pandemic, players may want to take the safer route and accept a short-term deal.

We are already in for an exciting 2021 offseason, with some of the biggest names in the sport eligible to become free agents, such as LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard.

This could mean there is even less money to go around this summer, making it safer for players to opt into their contract's final year instead of risking it.

For Hayward specifically, it may be a good idea to opt into his final year regardless of how the pandemic may affect things.

"He can still command a hefty salary in the summer of 2021 if he stays healthy and plays to a high level," NBC Sports Celtics Insider Chris Forsberg wrote in June. "Hayward has dug deep roots in the Boston area, too, and isn't the type that craves the spotlight. His unselfish nature has meshed well alongside Boston's young wings."

While Hayward's gruesome ankle injury five minutes into his debut with the Celtics could point to him opting out to find long-term security, the underwhelming free-agent crop in 2020 may lead him to want to join a more exciting 2021 class. Add in the pandemic has caused revenue loss this year and leaves teams with less money to spend this offseason, and it seems likely Hayward will be playing in Boston next season.