The Boston Globe‘s Adam Himmelsbach has some new reporting about the Boston Celtics:
- While they haven’t negotiated a contract extension with Jaylen Brown yet, the Celtics are not trying to trade him or sign him to a sub-supermax contract. The two sides are expected to come to an agreement on a supermax deal, and they’re expected to talk about the parameters of such a deal during summer league in Las Vegas.
- Boston is not pursuing Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard, who wants to be traded to the Miami Heat.
- The Celtics elected not to keep Grant Williams, who is off to the Dallas Mavericks on a four-year, $54 million contract in a sign-and-trade, for two reasons: It would have cost them about $40 million on their luxury-tax bill, and, with Kristaps Porzingis in the fold, it was unclear what Williams’ role would look like.
Brown, 26, is eligible for a five-year extension worth a projected $295 million. That’s the supermax. But all supermaxes are not created equal. Even if they don’t haggle on the starting salary — up to 35% of the salary cap — and every penny is guaranteed, there is room for negotiation. In a perfect world for Brown, he’d get a player option on the final season and the full 15% trade kicker. Boston would surely prefer the deal to include no option and no trade kicker.
The Lillard saga is in an awkward place, and ESPN’s Marc Spears said on “NBA Today” that Jayson Tatum has tried to recruit him to the Celtics. You can build hypothetical trades around Boston’s future picks, but none that Portland would be excited about. And would Boston even be excited about acquiring Lillard’s contract? He is owed approximately $59 million in 2025-26 and $63 million in 2026-27, provided that he picks up his player option. Between that contract, Brown’s forthcoming supermax and Tatum’s eventual supermax — he can sign an extension worth a projected $318 million next summer — the Celtics would be deep in second-apron hell.
Williams and his reps reportedly made it clear that he wanted an opportunity to play, and he’ll get that in Dallas, where he should be the starting power forward right away. But while Porzingis’ presence created a frontcourt logjam, it’s possible the front office will regret letting Williams walk. He’s more switchable than any of Boston’s bigs, and he has proven capable of holding his own against Giannis Antetokounmpo in the playoffs. The Celtics’ defense is going to look different next season, and not just because Marcus Smart is out of the picture.
