Celtics Target Could Join Buyout Market After Getting Traded

A day ahead of the trade deadline on Thursday, the Boston Celtics moved quickly to acquire Xavier Tillman from the Memphis Grizzlies. As we’ve shown in our analysis of the six-foot-eight, 245-pound player’s game, the financial aspects of the deal, and our conversation with the team’s president of basketball operations, Brad Stevens, inside The Celtics, the former Michigan State Spartan is in the 99th percentile in defensive estimated plus-minus, according to dunksandthrees.com.

In addition to his skill as a passer and high IQ player, 25-year-old Tillman is expected to contribute more offensively to the squad leading the NBA in points with a 39-12 record following a 125-117 victory against the Atlanta Hawks.

Boston gave priority to signing the three-year veteran in order to improve their depth behind Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, but the Celtics are still free to make additional additions.

They still possess their first-round draft capital from 2024–2027 and four second-round picks from 2024–2026 even after trading for Tillman with the Atlanta Hawks in 2027 and the Dallas Mavericks in 2030 via Lamar Stevens.

They might also determine that it’s preferable to sign a player on the buyout market and wait until after the trade deadline.

On Thursday, a possible choice was moved from the Toronto Raptors to the Utah Jazz. Kelly Olynyk and Otto Porter Jr., two players Boston was rumored to be interested in, were involved in a trade that unexpectedly sent the

The Jazz are 26-26 and tenth in the West, while the Raptors are 18-33 and ranked 12th in the Eastern Conference. Danny Ainge, the latter’s CEO of Basketball Operations, is putting the team’s future first and working to grow it into a title contender. That might result in a buyout deal with Porter.

If the 30-year-old forward pushes for that and the opportunity to join a championship contender, it wouldn’t be shocking.

The third-overall pick in the 2013 Draft helped the Golden State Warriors defeat Boston in the 2022 NBA Finals, despite the fact that he has only played in 23 games since joining Toronto in the summer of 2022 due to injury. If he becomes a free agent, he should have several suitors interested in his services.