Outlining 3 different trade deadline outcomes for the Boston Celtics

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Standing pat

The first option is the simplest. As the old saying goes: ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’

It’s pretty hard to look at the current Boston Celtics roster and say they are broken. The team holds the third best record in the conference and seems primed to end the season with one of the top four spots in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

That could be huge when you consider a first round matchup against either the Indiana Pacers or the Philadelphia 76ers. Both squads have given the C’s matchup problems this year, with Joel Embiid dominating several matchups in the 76ers 3-1 series victory over Boston and Domantas Sabonis grabbing every rebound in sight during the 2019 playoff rematch between the Pacers and Celtics.

As it currently stands, Daniel Theis is the small-ball center that opens up the offense with his spacing and allows his guys to get around via his screens and seals. Enes Kanter is an offensive specialist who is a beast on the boards. Robert Williams possesses both defensive and offensive versatility.

Standing pat could well be what Ainge decides to do if he doesn’t find a deal to his liking.

And that’s okay.

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