Shams: Expects Celtics to be active before trade deadline

[droopdog7]

I really don't think I want to see any changes.  Unless there's a great fire sale somewhere, if not, NO thanks.

And then, if say, the sixers make a big move we might be on the outside looking in.  Nope, you can't be complacent when the opportunity to win a title is in play.  We need to be proactive.

[hpantazo]

Brad has been saying since August that we will be looking to add bench help. This should be no surprise to anyone. We are all in this season, and have trade exceptions, picks, and a few non-guaranteed contracts to offer. If there's anything out there that can add to our core 6, I expect the Celtics to go for it.

I don't expect us to make a move just to add someone that will sit on the bench and come in at garbage time, or to react to any moves other contenders may make though. We have the best record in the league and the best roster, we are in the drivers seat.

[ozgod]

Brad has been saying since August that we will be looking to add bench help. This should be no surprise to anyone. We are all in this season, and have trade exceptions, picks, and a few non-guaranteed contracts to offer. If there's anything out there that can add to our core 6, I expect the Celtics to go for it.

I don't expect us to make a move just to add someone that will sit on the bench and come in at garbage time, or to react to any moves other contenders may make though. We have the best record in the league and the best roster, we are in the drivers seat.

Yes it has to be someone and add value more so than who we already have, who will move the needle to justify the cost.

[ozgod]

In any case, the days of old when people like Lacob and Ballmer spent with abandon and to hell with the luxury tax are going to be a thing of the past for the most part...not that frugality will suddenly be in vogue, but the second apron with its roster building penalties will require teams to not necessarily be frugal, but to be very intelligent with their spending. We are already $5m over the second apron as it is, because our top six players alone already cost $165.7m...so we're over the luxury tax just with those six players. The remaining 8 cost us $17.7m, for our total active roster cap of $183.4m. Add the dead money and cap holds for Blake and Kabengele and that puts us as $187.3m, which is $5m over the 2nd apron.

I did a graphic of this to show how much our top six are costing us as a proportion of the total cap.

click to enlarge


Dishing out huge, overvalued contracts to fringe players as insurance to make everyone feel good isn't going to be particularly intelligent if we want to maintain some type of roster flexibility - as a reminder this year everyone gets a pass on going over the second apron but next year they go into effect. As a reminder the penalties for going over both the first and second aprons are:

First apron ($172m)

• Teams cannot acquire a player in a sign-and-trade if that player keeps them above the apron
• Teams cannot sign a player waived during the regular season whose salary was over the $12.2 million midlevel exception
• Salary matching in trades must be within 110 percent, rather than 125 percent for teams not above the apron

Second apron ($182.5m)

• No access to the $5 million taxpayer midlevel exception
• Teams cannot use a trade exception generated by aggregating the salaries of multiple players
• Teams cannot include cash in a trade
• Teams cannot use a trade exception generated in a prior year
• First-round picks seven years out are frozen (unable to be traded)[l/i]
  
  • A team's first-round pick is moved to the end of the first round if they remain in the second apron for three out of five seasons
  
  I'm trying to think of scenarios where it would be worth going over the second apron for multiple years after this year. Maybe if we were in total, absolute win-now mode, we didn't anticipate changing our team, Wyc was prepared to mortgage the future, and we trusted we weren't going to get any injuries that would require us to trade anyone...maybe in those scenarios it would be worth it?

TP, thank you. I officially appoint you the new Saltlover.

Tp back at you 

[SparzWizard]

Please just make a move and acquire Isaiah Stewart. This team needs a presence big to provide support when KP is out. And have Tatum play at his best position, SF.

[ozgod]

Please just make a move and acquire Isaiah Stewart. This team needs a presence big to provide support when KP is out. And have Tatum play at his best position, SF.

Celtics2021 explained why it's very hard to do this, and any move of that magnitude will involve trading someone in our top 6.

Contending teams like Boston, Oklahoma City and Dallas have shown great interest in Isaiah Stewart, league sources tell The Athletic. 1 hour ago – via James L. Edwards III @ The Athletic

I don't think our interest was recent.  It would be hard to make the math work; Stewart's salary counts as $13 million incoming, but only $5 million or so outgoing.

Clearly this writer did not understand this.  DET is over the cap so they can't just take back the excess salary that the Celtics would need to send out to make up the $8M difference in the incoming vs. outgoing salary allocation.  Here is a trade that works (I am not suggesting this, just trying to show everyone an example):

To Boston:
Harris              $19.9M (Exp.)
Burks              $10.4M (Exp.)
Stewart             $5.3M (4 @ $15M after)

To DET:
Holiday            $36.8M
Brissett             $2.1M
Mykhailiuk         $2.0M

What you have to do is dilute the $8M incoming/outgoing differential enough so that both teams are within allowable tolerance for matching.  For example, if you substitute Wiseman ($12.1M) for Harris, it doesn't work for DET; they are taking back too much.  If Boston sends out any less, then the $8M "penalty" isn't diluted enough and they are taking back too much.

It is a very tricky needle to thread to make a trade work.

Shame we can't just switch off the trade restrictions like we can in NBA2k and put it in arcade mode...[dang] league making it hard for us to build our superteam [dang it] 

[Moranis]

Stewart, Livers for Pritchard, Kornet, Brissett, Svi, and Stevens works (at least on Sunday when Stevens can be traded).

Would have to fill out the bench with players using the TPE. Maybe you even can get Sasser and Umude from Detroit.

Boston probably has to give up 2 1st's along with the 5 players for Stewart, Livers,  Sasser, Umude.  I'd probably do that, as I like Stewart a lot and believe Sasser could take Pritchard's role (at a much reduced price for the next 4 years).

[Vermont Green]

Stewart, Livers for Pritchard, Kornet, Brissett, Svi, and Stevens works (at least on Sunday when Stevens can be traded).

Would have to fill out the bench with players using the TPE. Maybe you even can get Sasser and Umude from Detroit.

Boston probably has to give up 2 1st's along with the 5 players for Stewart, Livers,  Sasser, Umude.  I'd probably do that, as I like Stewart a lot and believe Sasser could take Pritchard's role (at a much reduced price for the next 4 years).

OK, so the rule is :  Since the Pistons are not an over apron team, and sending out less then $7,500,000 in salary, they are able to take back 200% of the salary they are sending out, plus $250,000.  So I guess this trade does "work".  We could do it today if it was Banton over Stevens.  Plus the Celtics would need to take Livers in with part of the TPE as with what they are sending out, they can only take back $13.7M (Stewart would count ($13M).  Great work (TP).  It is not easy to find a trade that works.

Not sure I like the trade though (maybe you don't either, but just showing a trade that works).  Whether you like them or not, Pritchard and Kornet are regular rotation players.  Brissett and Stevens probably could be.  I guess the thought is that we replace them with other available players, either FAs or other trades.  Not sure Stewart is that good to warrant giving up all that.  Maybe.  But why does DET do this?  They would also have to waive 3 players as part of the trade as their roster is already at 15.

The trade still works with Sasser I think, not sure he could plug in to replace Pritchard.  It is hard to come in and assume a role on an established team.  Interesting idea though.

[Who]

Not sure I Stewart adds more than Pritchard does.

[Vermont Green]

Not sure I Stewart adds more than Pritchard does.

It comes down to:

Stewart + Sasser

Kornet + Pritchard

That excludes Banton. Mykhailiuk, and Brissett, their impact is small but not nothing.

[Who]

Not sure I Stewart adds more than Pritchard does.

It comes down to:

Stewart + Sasser

Kornet + Pritchard

That excludes Banton. Mykhailiuk, and Brissett, their impact is small but not nothing.

Sasser is a swing factor. I see him as similar to Pritchard.

[Moranis]

Not sure I Stewart adds more than Pritchard does.

It comes down to:

Stewart + Sasser

Kornet + Pritchard

That excludes Banton. Mykhailiuk, and Brissett, their impact is small but not nothing.

Sasser is a swing factor. I see him as similar to Pritchard.

that was my thinking. Sasser is a 1st round rookie (so very good contract for next 4 years) who has shown shooting skills. As a 4th guard, I'd feel fine with him mostly replacing Pritchard this year and improving each year thereafter.   Stewart is better than Kornet and the other players are all kind of blah.  I think we'd have to give up at least 1 1st to make it worth Detroit's while to do, but I'd do it. I'd probably give up 2 1sts if I had to, maybe get back a couple of 2nd's. So give up 2 1st and get a 2nd. 

I just think that trade improves the team in both the short and long term.

[Atzar]

What is Sasser's skillset as an NBA player?  I haven't kept up with him with the Pistons.

I saw him a bit in college and I thought of him as an undersized 2-guard with limited ability as a creator but a bulldog on defense and a good jumpshooter.  Is that more or less still true in the NBA?

[liam]

What is Sasser's skillset as an NBA player?  I haven't kept up with him with the Pistons.

I saw him a bit in college and I thought of him as an undersized 2-guard with limited ability as a creator but a bulldog on defense and a good jumpshooter.  Is that more or less still true in the NBA?

I don't think Sasser is going anywhere.

[radiohead]

Not sure I Stewart adds more than Pritchard does.

Plus do we really want to get rid of PP?