D’Angelo Russell should be Boston Celtics Top Target in Free Agency

With Kyrie Irving most likely gone from the Boston Celtics, the team’s focus will have to shift to other players on the market. The point guard position for Boston seems to be the weak-point with Irving gone, which is where D’Angelo Russel can step in.

The story of Kyrie Irving over the past two years has been odd to say the least. Demanding a trade while being on the same team as the best player in the world, only to promise his new team (the Boston Celtics) that not only will he re-sign, but have his number hanging in the banners at the end of his career. It now seems Irving is going to leave his new team all together and sign elsewhere, with Brooklyn being the favorite.

As for the Nets, it leaves them in a strange position. Do they re-sign their young all-star point guard who had a breakout season last year? Or do they instead sign the All-NBA point guard in Irving who is older and has a history of dividing a locker room? Or do they do both?

As far as reports go the Nets may not want to do both, according to Ian Bagley of SNY.com.

“If Irving signs with the Nets, SNY sources familiar with the matter say it is highly unlikely that Russell remains with the Nets. Members of the Nets organization have communicated that idea in recent days, per sources.”

If the Nets do sign Irving and renounce Russell’s rights, the assumption would be they will sign another star to a max deal. This would make Russell an unrestricted free agent, allowing teams to produce their best offer without worrying about the Nets matching.

For the Celtics, signing Russell would make the most sense. The first and most obvious reason for that is the fact they would give up nothing besides salary space to get him. With other stars that the Boston Celtics are rumored to be interested in such as Bradley Beal, Clint Capela and Jrue Holiday, Boston would most likely have to give up major assets in a trade. Not only would the Celtics be adding Russell if they do sign him, but they will also be keeping their full young core in-tact by doing so.

The idea of a sign-and-trade for Russell also is irrele vant. It would make no sense for Brooklyn to do a sign-and-trade if they know they are signing Irving. The Nets would also have to deal with Russell’s salary if it was a sign-and-trade, where as straight up releasing him would leave them fully detached from the player. The deal would only help the Boston Celtics, and there would be no reason for Brooklyn to pull the trigger.

While getting a bad wrap in his first year in Los Angeles because of his feud with Nick Young, Russell never really got a fair chance to shine until last season. Granted, it wasn’t a smart thing to do to video a conversation with Young.

Regardless, Russell repeatedly stated he didn’t know how the video got out. It was too late, though. The team isolated him and he was never able to truly shine. It seems like the 2018-19 version of Russell is what he really is, which is fully worth a big contract.

In Brad Stevens system, there has always been an emphasis on the point guard. Whether it was Isaiah Thomas, Terry Rozier or Irving, point guards have thrived in Stevens system. Russell could be the next floor general to succeed in the system, and could be the next matchup nightmare pick & roll combination with Al Horford.

The next obvious reason to sign Russell is the fact he is only 23 years old. Russell, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will all be only two years apart in age, while all having contracts ending in difference years allowing Boston to be flexible with the cap. Even in Kawhi Leonard stays with the Raptors and the 76ers develop as projected, the Boston Celtics could run the east with that core for the next ten years.

Russell being the main priority comes with the belief both Brown and Tatum will turn into great players in the league. For those that believe Brown could be a bust, then Beal may be the best option. However, if Danny Ainge has held onto both players while teams have bombarded Boston with trade offers, there must be a real belief that they will thrive in the NBA.

If the Celtics end up with Russell, they could end up with a new big three, while having them for much longer than the original big three.