The Boston Celtics currently boast a fantastic 55-19 record and possess the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed, as their goal of coming away with a second consecutive NBA championship victory remains intact.
Unfortunately, the league’s recent CBA adjustments have put the storied franchise into a tricky situation as a second tax apron team that will owe $562,728,476 in guaranteed salary to the tandem of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown alone through 2028-29.
Due to their previous commitments, recent reports have indicated that the team’s general manager Brad Stevens will likely scour the trade market this offseason for the opportunity to ship their 2-time NBA champion and 6-time All-Defensive Team selection Jrue Holiday out to forge a path towards financial stability.
“They’re going to have to trade some guys at some point,’ one team capologist told The Stein Line,” The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer wrote Friday.
“The two major salaries that league figures are monitoring in possible future trades: Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday.”
In fact, it’s plausible to believe that the Celtics could approach the Portland Trail Blazers with the idea of swapping Holiday for their microwave scorer Anfernee Simons and sophomore forward Kris Murray this summer.
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At just 25 years old, Simons has proven to be a capable volume scorer at the shooting guard position, though his role with the Trail Blazers has begun to diminish as second-year point guard Scoot Henderson continues to rise through their depth chart.
Though his efficiency has dropped somewhat, the 6-foot-3 offensive threat has averaged 19.3 points and 4.8 assists while shooting 36.6% from three-point range and knocking down 90.5% of his chances from the charity stripe in 69 appearances this season.
In a world where the Trail Blazers are looking for a mentor for Henderson or their incredible defensive forward Toumani Camara, their front office could figure that Holiday would fill that role to a tee as one of the best perimeter defenders in recent league history.
As a prospective member of the Celtics, Simons could likely slot in without issue as a savvy ball-handler and flamethrower who has never been shy about letting it fly from distance. For Murray, it may take some time for the inexperienced forward to find an immediate role within the team’s contending lineup.
Boston’s defense would surely take a hit in this scenario, but they might be able to afford a defense-for-offense trade with Tatum, Brown, Derrick White and Kristaps Porzingis remaining to support Simons on that end of the court.
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