Stevens Does the Business
With the mid-level exception on the table and a boat load of trade expectations at his disposal, Brad Stevens continued his mission of assembling a title-winning team. Despite being quiet for the first few hours of free agency, the Celtics made it known to the entire league that they are definitely not getting complacent after just one Finals appearance. According to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, Danilo Gallinari moved to Boston on a two-year, $13 million contract with a player option on the second season.
About an hour later, according to ESPN, Stevens put together a package that included Daniel Theis, Aaron Nesmith, and a first-round pick to send to the rebuilding Indiana Pacers for playmaking guard Malcolm Brogdon. With questions about the Celtics' depth late in the playoffs, especially in the Finals, Boston adds two players that can create their own shots and knock down shots behind the arc at a high clip. In addition, Stevens acquired two career over-15-point scorers, adding depth to a bench that already includes an evolving Grant Williams, Payton Pritchard, and the sturdiness of Derrick White.
C/O: Getty Images
Before free agency started, Stevens did exactly what he intended to. In his end-of-the-season interview, he stated, "I think we need a little bit more playmaking. I think that's real. I think we need more playmaking, but I don't think we can be stagnant. We have to make sure that we continue to play with pace...And to change significant pieces in the group doesn’t mean that that might not take your identity and shift it in a direction that’s not as successful. And so it’s quite a fine line. If you ask me right now what we need, I’d like to have a little bit more scoring – consistent scoring – off the bench."
In the first move of a hectic second day of free agency, Stevens used the taxpayer mid-level exception on a former first-round pick back in 2008. Gallinari spent the last two seasons with the Atlanta Hawks before getting traded in the Dejounte Murray deal and then released by the San Antonio Spurs. The Bulls were also in the running for the Italian forward, but with the need for some more wing depth off the bench, the Celtics acquired a versatile wing who can play several positions and provide far more spacing than Boston possessed last season due to his size. He also shot the third-best three-point percentage of any of the Boston players that played 65 or more contests. And despite Gallinari not being the greatest of defenders, his offensive game will help create an even more dangerous bench that already possesses White, Williams, and Pritchard. We're not even a month removed from the NBA Finals, and Stevens has already assembled a team that the Eastern Conference will start having nightmares about.
While Gallinari is a quality addition, the acquisition of Brogdon is the move that is making fans around the NBA do a double-take. The key to the deal is Boston not giving up Williams, a player who has been linked with the Pacers for quite some time. Not one core piece to the success of the Celtics last season will be shipped to Indiana in exchange for the 2017 Rookie of the Year. $22,600,000 in cap is incoming, while $18,260,991 will be moving to the Pacers in a trade that sends five former Celtics players to a team that now looks like a long way from succeeding. Boston's owners are not messing around when it comes to spending cash on a winning team this time around. After the trade was announced, Brogdon expressed his excitement about being a Celtic, stating, "This Boston team is experienced and hungry to win a championship. I’m excited to be a part of the Boston family and compete for that championship."
Wyc Grousbeck and Stephen Pagliuca, without a doubt, told Stevens that this offseason is the time, and with his mindset that late draft picks don't matter, he went all in to snatch up a player that this franchise has been high on since his college days. Boston has not been a team that spends well into the luxury tax in the past, but with how successful the team did last season and how close it was to winning the title, the owners are making it clear that money does not matter. With the Warriors spending $33,218,047 in taxes last season and winning the championship, the Celtics feel they can do the same by adding the depth that will not fizzle out last in the postseason.
Udoka now has a nine to even 10-man rotation for the regular season with players that can help give Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown some rest for the postseason. Given his size, Brogdon can play 1-3 and guard multiple positions. Gallinari may not be useful during the postseason, but his willingness to attack mismatches and present another quality shooting option keeps the opposition in check. The Italian was top-10 for most points per game scored in the post last season, more than one point than Tatum could produce. Over 18 percent of Galinari's offense during the 2021-22 season came via his post-up game, and when teams start switching on Boston during the regular season, the former Hawk will be able to take full advantage.
The only options that Stevens has left to use are veteran minimum contracts and the $17,142,857 traded-player exception expiring on July 18 that they received in the deal for Evan Fournier. There is legitimately just one hole on the entire team right now, a backup center that can supplement Al Horford and Robert Williams III when injuries become a problem and rest becomes more of a priority. Luke Kornet could even be a viable option in the rotation if he continues to develop under some veterans' guidance. Stevens' ability to steal Horford, White, and now Brogdon for none of the team's core pieces is truly remarkable and demonstrates that while he may have been a solid coach, he is on a whole different planet in the front office.
C/O: Getty Images
Despite the Celtics' silence during the first few hours of free agency, Boston was the talk of the NBA on the second day, quickly elevating itself as the title favorite. However, playing with a target on their backs is something that these Celtics will have to get used to. Last season, not many people saw this core of players leading a team as deep as it did in the postseason, but with Stevens and the front office going all-in with an astounding trade, the rest of the league will be trying to play catch up with a team that is as deep as any in the NBA.
Banner No. 18 has been looming over this organization for over 14 years, and now that the city of Boston and the Celtics know how close they truly are to capturing it, the pressure of succeeding is sky-high. Stevens' new strategy of not hoarding draft picks for the future could pay dividends for a team where a rookie would find no room to fit into the rotation. Udoka will be presented with problems that every coach around the league wishes they had, such as how to handle a roster with 10 serviceable NBA players. Brogdon and Gallinari add versatility in both the starting lineup and the rotation. Each adds a different skill set that Boston desperately needed against the Warriors in the NBA Finals.
On the same day that Danny Ainge stole the entire future of the Minnesota Timberwolves for a player that was a liability in the postseason, the Celtics sent a signal to the league that next season, they are not going to be messing around. Options, depth, and pressure will be what the 2022-23 season is going to be all about for Udoka and Boston, but if last season did not tell the world anything, it is that Udoka can coach with the best of the best, and these Celtics' stars are only getting started.
