The Boston Celtics have made significant progress toward getting under the second apron of the luxury tax this offseason, but president of basketball operations Brad Stevens still has work to do.
With $208.5 million currently committed in salary for the 2025-26 season, the Celtics are still over the second apron by less than $1 million. They already cut costs by trading Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, but they would need to make additional noteworthy moves to get under the first apron ($195.9 million) or out of the luxury tax entirely ($187.9 million).
Anfernee Simons, acquired from Portland in the Holiday deal, is set to make $27.7 million in 2025-26 on an expiring contract. Simons, Sam Hauser ($10 million), and Georges Niang ($8.2 million) stand out as potential trade candidates if Stevens looks to shed more salary.
If Stevens is looking for a trade partner, he should give old friends Danny and Austin Ainge a call. The former Celtics executives now run the Utah Jazz, who shed payroll and created a $26.6 million traded player exception (TPE) in Monday’s three-team deal with the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat. A TPE allows a team to acquire a player via trade even if it pushes them over the salary cap.
Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports explored the possibility during Monday’s episode of NBC Sports Boston’s The Off C’season.
“I wonder if Brad Stevens, his savior here getting under the second apron, could be Austin and Danny Ainge,” O’Connor said. “Because they made a three-way deal today which cuts more salary for them, gives them more cap flexibility.
“They can open space if necessary, they have a big traded player exception now. I wonder if maybe Utah could be a team that’s absorbing Anfernee Simons (into the TPE) or absorbing Sam Hauser, giving something back in return.”
Along with their financial situation, the Celtics’ uneven roster suggests more moves are coming. Their frontcourt is thin following the departures of Kristaps Porzingis (trade) and Luke Kornet (free agency). Trading Simons, Hauser, and/or Niang could give the C’s financial flexibility while bringing a much-needed big man into the fold.
The Holiday and Porzingis trades were made official on Monday, as were the Celtics’ free-agent signings of Luka Garza and Josh Minott.
Watch the full episode of The Off C’season featuring O’Connor, Chris Forsberg, and Drew Carter below:
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