Celtics' looming roster changes shouldn't distract from Banner 19 quest
Celtics' looming roster changes shouldn't distract from Banner 19 quest originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Can we all just enjoy the ride?
The Boston Celtics are fast approaching a roster reckoning that we all knew was coming. But for the next seven weeks, our entire focus should be on the quest for a second title, and not the second apron.
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Change was inevitable. The Celtics' roster is prohibitively expensive and the punitive measures placed on big spenders under a new collective bargaining agreement will soon force Boston to trim costs in order to remain competitive long term.
But there is no sense worrying about those changes now. We couldn't help feeling like Ferris Bueller after consternation about Boston's future cropped up on Thursday with the Celtics still in the afterglow of a Round 1 victory over the Magic.
The NBA moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
Things almost will certainly look different in July — although we'd quietly remind you that if Boston keeps winning titles, we suspect every effort will be made to keep as much of this core in place (even if Bill Chisholm and his new ownership group will be forced to spend big money in the short term to do such). Getting below the second apron will be a priority sooner than later, and key pieces of this roster invariably will be moved to keep the Celtics in position to compete long term.
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But the roster looks the same right now. A Boston team that steamrolled the competition en route to Banner 18 last spring remains well positioned to make a run at being the first Celtics team in more than a half century to win consecutive titles.
The focus right now should be on a Round 2 matchup with the Knicks. And not the nickels and dimes of the 2025-26 roster.
From the moment the Celtics traded for Jrue Holiday, we knew there would be a narrow window with this core. Brad Stevens handed out $1 billion in extensions in little more than a year's span to secure all of Boston's assets, but everyone knew the team eventually would have to make tough decisions on which pieces would comprise its long-term core.
Jayson Tatum's maximum-salary contract extensions kicks in next summer and the Celtics have $228 million worth of salaries on the books before addressing the futures of free-agents-to-be Al Horford and Luke Kornet. Boston is already $20 million above next year's projected second apron.
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Derrick White would be Boston's cheapest member of the projected starting five next season, earning $28.1 million. Tatum and Jaylen Brown will combine to earn $107.2 million in a league with a projected salary cap at $154.6 million next season. It's fair to question if Boston can carry championship luxuries like Holiday long-term when he'll earn $32.4 million in the second season of a four-year, $134.4 million extension.
Sam Hauser's four-year, $45 million extension kicks in next season, too. Can the Celtics afford that splurge, or would it make more sense to throw the keys of that role to a rookie-contract player like Baylor Scheierman? Payton Pritchard's $7.2 million salary for next season is one of the best values in the NBA; could he elevate to a starter role if the team elects to move on from a member of its starting five?
The Celtics have multiple pathways to get below the tax. They must examine all options and identify the deals that can help both shed salary and bring back players who will take some of the sting away from losing core pieces.
But there will be ample time to examine the team's options in late June/early July. Invariably, it's going to sting to see the Celtics move pieces from this title core. That doesn't mean Boston won't still be in the title mix; it's just going to look a little different.
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But we'll say it again: It's not different now. This Celtics team, with only minor tweaks from a season ago, has a chance to be the first NBA squad in nearly a decade to repeat as champs.
Joe Mazzulla routinely implores his players to stay in the moment. We ought to do the same. Savor this playoff journey rather than fret what comes after it.
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