Brad Stevens may have turned the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown move into something even bigger if Paul George keeps this rolling.
Boston’s blowout win over the Philadelphia 76ers in their first real matchup since the Brown trade gave Stevens plenty to smile about. The criticism that came his way after dealing Brown was loud, but George’s arrival already looks like a major reason Boston can feel so good about where it stands. He wasn’t just better than Brown in that game - he has been a steady force for the Celtics all season, even on nights when the shots haven’t fallen.
That’s where the next layer of the story comes in. George has a player option worth $56.6 million, and what happens after this season could shape Boston’s flexibility in a big way. There’s a scenario where he opts out and still winds up with more guaranteed money overall, even if the yearly number changes.
On “The Game Theory Podcast,” Sam Vecenie and Keith Smith laid out a couple of possible paths. Vecenie described a 1-for-1 deal that would pay George $45 million per year, which would trim $11 million from Boston’s cap. He also floated a three-year, $120 million contract that would give the Celtics access to the full mid-level exception and let them go all in.
Either route would be a win for Boston if it happens. George has already shown he has more left than plenty of people expected, in a way that brings to mind the Al Horford return. Keeping him around feels like the obvious move for now, but landing him on a deal that gives the Celtics more room to operate would be a bigger prize.
That said, the Celtics still need a full season before making any grand declarations.
George has been outstanding to open the year, and by any reasonable standard he has delivered an A+ start for both himself and Boston. But the biggest question isn’t whether he can play at a high level.
It’s whether he can keep doing it long enough to answer the durability concerns that have followed him. His skeptics still point to his injury history, and the burden is on him to show he can stay on the floor for most of the season, not just part of it.
If he does that, and if the Celtics end up with a deal that works for everyone, this stretch could end up being more than a strong fit. It could become one of the defining moves of the Stevens era.
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