Boston Celtics Trade Rumors: 3 Pivotal elements of Boston's status quo
One of NBA's most storied franchise, the Boston Celtics sure know how to make their way back to the center-stage every time they are snubbed. Even with Irving and Hayward unavailable for the most part of the previous season due to injury, the Celtics were beaten in a Game 7 of the East Finals by LeBron, just one game shy of the biggest stage.
With all their stars in place, they were expected to be on a tear this season. Unfortunately, the underwhelming 25-18(0.581) record down at the 5th spot on the East leaderboard has tempered all expectations so far. Their most recent loss to the Magic down the stretch followed by Kyrie's exasperation towards the team's inexperience to make it in crunch situations was a sneak-peek into the uneasy basketball scenario down in Boston right now.
The mid-season trade deadline ends on February 7th, and common experience speaks of an imminent exchange of playing talent between the Cs and the rest of the teams.
Let's dig deep into the current situation in Boston and the prominent factors that might drive their trade interests in the coming weeks.
#1 Nobody expects Boston to trade away 2019 first-round draft picks.
Teams usually do not drool over the idea of trading future first-round picks, as the draft tends to provide economical and high-quality labor. Danny Ainge and the Celtics are no different!
According to Shaun Deveney of The Sporting News,
"The Celtics are poised to have three first-rounders in next year’s draft, and possibly two lottery picks. But, according to league sources, none of Boston’s picks are expected to be available at the deadline."
With the current roster stuffed with game-winning potential, there is little incentive for Boston to part with future picks. Also, the looming possibility of having as many as four first-round picks(Celtics' own pick, Kings' pick, Grizzlies' pick, and a lottery protected Clippers' pick) adds to the cause. An added motivation being that these future picks help and stabilise the rotation in the wake of a mass free-agency exodus.
The front office can trade them to get a player to win now(which is not likely to happen) or save them and bag roster depth with young picks later, making it a win-win case.