I initially did consider Adams, but to be honest I'm not really thrilled by the idea.
I really like what he offers, and I feel he could be a real difference maker in the right situation with his defense, rebounding and energy/physicality.
My concerns are two-fold:
1. The fact that he's fairly limited offensively
2. The fact that he is making around $24M per year over the next 2years
Assuming Kyrie and Horford both walk, and Hayward has a player option next year, one of the only bright points about the Celtic's current situation is that they have the potential to have a max salary spot a year from now if the cards fall right.
I'm worried that the Celtics don't have enough offense right now to be able to justify locking up $24M a year in a defensive specialist like Adams, and I'm concerned that one or two years from now it could be the type of contract that could hold Boston back from making a game changing signing.
I feel Boston would be better served making a play at somebody on a more friendly contract, such as:
- Clint Capella ($14M/5)
- Jusuf Nurkic ($11M/4)
- Domantas Sabonis ($2.7M/2)
- Derrick Favors ($17/2)
If you are going to go for somebody at/near max money then go hard and try to make a run at Andre Drummond ($25M/3).
Failing those, I'd be hitting the free agent market. Boston could try for an established vet like Vucevic, they could take a chance on the potential of Julius Randle, or they could take a high risk / high gain chance on Demarcus Cousins.
Personally if I were Ainge i'd take a gamble and go all in to try to avoid another rebuild. Take a risk on Demarcus Cousins and try to offer him a short term deal for decent money - say $20M a year over 2 years. Then try to swing a trade for Bradley Beal. Put a bit of faith in Gordon Hayward and hope he recovers well. Match any offers for Rozier to keep him in Boston.
Assuming you need to give up Brown and Smart in order to get Beal, this leaves you with:
PG: Terry Rozier
SG: Bradley Beal
SF: Gordon Hayward
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Demarcus Cousins
It's a risk, but as many teams have learnt lately (Raptors, Lakers) sometimes you need to take a risk in order to have a chance to excel.
Best case scenario, if Hayward and Cousins come back to even 85% of who they were in their prime, that team is an instant contender.
Worst case scenario - if Hayward remains a shadow of himself and Cousins becomes a head case or has more injury issues, then you let both guys walk after two years and you still have a very nice young core of Rozier, Beal and Tatum to build around.
Even in the worst case, things could be a lot worse.