Brad Stevens and the Celtics have already done the hard part.
A year ago, Boston spent the season grinding its way toward the luxury tax line, slicing up expensive contracts and piecing together a roster that could stay just under the threshold. It started with moving Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday, then continued through smaller, cheaper transactions all the way to the February deadline. By the end, the Celtics had trimmed themselves to 12 players, leaned on 10-day deals and all kinds of salary-cap maneuvering, and finally got their second-round rookies onto standard contracts at the last possible moment.
That mission was barely completed. This year looks different.
As things stand, the Celtics are already under the luxury tax with 14 players on the roster and total salaries of $198.72 million. The tax line sits at $200.43 million, which means Boston could keep this exact group together and stay safely below it all season. They could also sign second-round rookie Dillon Mitchell to a standard contract, or wait to add a prorated free agent or buyout candidate for roughly $1.7 million.
So the path is much cleaner now. If Boston wants to stay under the tax, it does not need a long chain of financial contortions to get there.
Any trade or addition would just require sending out nearly equal money to keep the payroll in range. For once, the math is simple.
Of course, things change if Stevens decides the roster needs a move.
The Celtics can still take on more salary if they want to operate up to the first apron, which would let them add about $9 million before the hard cap kicks in from the Mitchell Robinson signing. But that would come with a bigger tax bill and would keep the repeater tax from being reset.
That may not be the plan, but it would still leave Boston staring at a much heavier financial burden down the road. If there’s a deal too good to ignore, the Celtics should make it. Even then, it could still make sense to clear salary afterward and get back under the tax before the deadline.
The big difference from last season is obvious: Brad Stevens is no longer trying to solve the same impossible puzzle. The Celtics are already in position, the cap situation is manageable, and for now they can wait and see how the season unfolds.
In Other News...
Brad Stevens May Have Just Pulled His Most Belichick Move Yet
Brad Stevens has never been shy about making a move that forces a second look, and this one fits that pattern. The Celtics president of basketball operations has built a reputation for taking calculated swings since moving from the sideline to the front office, and the latest decision only adds to the sense that he is willing to trust his own read even when it runs against the public reaction.
The comparison to Bill Belichick is hard to miss for Boston fans who remember how often the Patriots coach leaned into unpopular choices before the results caught up. Stevens has already shown a similar appetite for risk with past deals involving Marcus Smart and Al Horford, and now the question is whether this latest bet will age like one of those bold calls or become the kind of move that lingers over the franchise. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Deadline Decision May Have Changed LeBrons Entire Free Agency
The ripple effect of Bostons roster decisions has a way of showing up far beyond the parquet, and this latest one reached all the way into LeBron James free agency. Golden State spent part of that chase trying to position itself as a serious landing spot, but the bigger swing came from Philadelphia, which changed the conversation by bringing in Jaylen Brown and altering the balance of power around James decision.
For the Celtics, the interesting part is how close Brown came to being part of a different kind of domino chain. Golden State had a chance to get him earlier in the season, but the price in future draft capital was too steep for the Warriors, and that choice now looks more consequential in hindsight. Brown remains a centerpiece in Boston, on a massive long-term deal, while the rest of the league is left to wonder how differently this all might have played out if one deadline conversation had gone another way. [Read more 🡒]