The Celtics added another low-risk swing to their offseason mix on Wednesday, bringing back Hayden Gray on a training camp deal.
Gray is not a new name in Boston’s orbit. He spent last season with the Maine Celtics before the Jazz signed him to a standard deal in April to round out their roster. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard also brings a clear skill: he hit more than 40% of his threes as a senior at UC San Diego.
For Boston, the move fits a simple strategy that has become increasingly valuable around the league. With only 15 roster spots and three two-way contracts available, teams are leaning harder on Exhibit 10 and camp deals to stock their buildings with more players, more competition and more chances to uncover a useful piece.
Most of the time, nothing major comes from it. But there’s no real downside, and every once in a while a team finds something.
That’s the lane the Celtics are working in now. Gray joins Milos Uzan, Tucker DeVries and Devin Carter among the players Boston has brought in on training camp deals. Only one of those names will land a two-way contract, while the rest could end up in Maine and maybe work their way into the picture later.
At minimum, it gives the Celtics another player to evaluate and another body for their G League team. At best, it’s the kind of margin move that can pay off in a big way if one of those lottery tickets hits.
In Other News...
ESPNs Celtics Rankings Just Fueled A New Jayson Tatum Debate
ESPNs latest top-100 ranking for the 2026-27 NBA season gave the Celtics a familiar kind of national attention, and not all of it was flattering. Boston landed four players on the list, with Derrick White coming in at 47th, Paul George at 67th and Payton Pritchard at 70th, while Jayson Tatum was slotted ninth in a survey compiled by seven experts. For a team that expects to stay in the leagues upper tier, the numbers were enough to spark the usual round of debates about where Bostons key pieces belong.
The Tatum placement is the one that will draw the most scrutiny, because once a ranking pushes him outside the games very top group, every comparison becomes part of the argument. The Celtics also have reason to feel there were a few noteworthy omissions and underratings elsewhere on the board, which only adds to the sense that ESPNs list is as much about stirring discussion as settling it. For Boston fans, its another reminder that even a strong showing in the rankings can leave plenty of room for disagreement. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Fans Have A New Reason To Watch Maine Closely
The Maine Celtics are shaping up as one of the more interesting watchpoints in the organization heading into the new season. Between the possibility of players on Exhibit 10 deals joining the mix and the addition of recent draft picks like Chris Cenac Jr. and Dillon Mitchell, the roster could end up looking deeper than a typical G League group. For Boston fans, that makes Maine worth tracking not just as a development stop, but as a legitimate extension of the system.
Phil Presseys first season as a head coach only added to the intrigue. He guided Maine to 18 wins and a playoff berth last year, and the sense around the program is that his stock is rising along with the teams profile. With players like Amari Williams and Devin Carter also expected to play meaningful roles, Maine has the feel of a group that could produce both wins and useful answers for Boston, even if the biggest payoff still sits just out of view. [Read more 🡒]
Paul George Just Got The Perfect Celtics Bulletin Board Material
ESPNs early look at the 2026-27 NBA landscape put Paul George all the way down at No. 67, a placement that feels like the kind of thing a veteran star notices and files away. For the Celtics, it is the sort of outside noise that matters in a very specific way, because George has spent enough time around the league to know when a ranking reads more like skepticism than evaluation.
The case against the number is straightforward enough: George has shown in the playoffs that he still has the skill set and the shot-making to tilt a series, and the argument is that he remains capable of playing at an All-Star level. Whether that becomes motivation or just another talking point is the unresolved part, but for Boston and everyone else in the East, a player of Georges caliber being treated like a mid-tier name is the kind of bulletin-board material that tends to travel well. [Read more 🡒]