According to Danny Ainge, president of basketball operations, the Boston Celtics will have a busy offseason in terms of free agency and trades. The Celtics have been stockpiling draft picks and cheap contracts making them primed to be able to afford some big names which is exactly what Ainge is planning. So who gets priority in Boston this summer?
"I feel like we need to have a busy summer, and we will have a busy summer," Ainge said, via ESPNBoston.com. "Hopefully we can get some things accomplished that we need to. I think we need to upgrade our talent level on our team, and at the same time I'm very excited about a lot of the individuals that we have. Actually, all the individuals, I thought, played the best basketball of their careers in a lot of cases. So I'm excited about the players that we have, and at the same time I feel like we're not at the same level as a team like Cleveland. We found that out."
According to ESPNBoston.com, the Celtics feel they have some strong pieces already on the roster. Sources report that players like Jae Crowder will get re-signed, but Brandon Bass and Jared Sullinger might not be as lucky if the Celtics can get a deal in place. The biggest move the Celtics are hoping to make with the current roster deals with Gerald Wallace who is a $10.1 million hit over the next three seasons. Boston would ideally like to get a trade in place for Wallace in order to open up cap space.
According to CSNNE.com, the Celtics are expected to be major players for Kevin Love in free agency. While the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks will recruit the forward, sources report that Boston is closing in on the other teams citing that Brad Stevens is the perfect coach for the forward. Boston is also being heavily linked to a trade deal for DeMarcus Cousins, but wants to offer draft picks whereas Sacramento wants players.
The Celtics do not need to chase point guards after Marcus Smart and Isaiah Thomas worked out at the end of the year. Instead, players like LaMarcus Aldridge, Draymond Green and Marc Gasol will be targets with big contracts. Those free agents sit at the top of everyone else's lists, so the Celtics will have to get competitive with deals.
