With the trade deadline bringing no new faces, the next possibility is the buyout market. Which point guards should the Boston Celtics consider in this pre-March free agent rush?
Danny Ainge once again decided to pull back on the trade reins. Continuing to roll with what he has, Ainge kept the Boston Celtics roster completely in tact. Whether that continues or not is anybody’s guess.
That said, he was very specific in discussing the makeup of his roster. Ainge said to MassLive’s John Karalis: “We probably have, I think, too many really young guys…”
Now, he certainly didn’t make a trade just to make a trade. With a pursuit of Davis Bertans the team’s primary focal point, there was apparently no time to discuss making moves at the end of the bench. The C’s remained the exact same, with unproven youth coupled with limited playoff experience being primary themes for the second unit.
There is still a few weeks for that to change, however. Until the beginning of March, teams can sign players that can ultimately end up on their playoff roster. It’s a mini-free agent frenzy this time every year.
The All-Star break will be a good chance for front offices to give more thought to team makeup. Right now, the Boston Celtics are riding a seven game hot-streak and Ainge hasn’t exactly been given much reason to think any shakeups are necessary.
We’re not looking for shakeups here, though. We’re looking for guys that can step in to fill point guard minutes behind Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart if needed.
Here are 3 backup point guard options on the open market:
Tyler Johnson
The first name here is the recently released Tyler Johnson. Johnson is reportedly drawing interest from several teams. Being that he started off his career shooting better than 37 percent for the first three seasons of his six year career, it isn’t shocking teams are expected to give him a look mid-season.
The Phoenix Suns are a miserable pit stop these last few seasons. They currently rank 13th in the Western Conference. That Johnson was let go is more of a testament to them. While Deandre Ayton goes through growing pains and Devin Booker continues to put up numbers on a losing team, veterans are not going to be kept around to take minutes away from youth.
With the Boston Celtics, the youth will need to take a lesser role. Currently, 30-year-old Brad Wanamaker is the primary backup point guard. Johnson is three years younger and has four years more NBA experience.
Plus, he knows Erik Spoelstra’s system, having spent four and a half seasons under him in South Beach. Johnson has some insight if the C’s drew the Miami Heat in the second round of the playoffs. Sometimes, end of the bench guys serve a very specific purpose. Johnson can serve as an emergency spark plug and sage.
Trey Burke
Another recently released point guard can bring many of the same things to the Boston Celtics. Like Tyler Johnson, Trey Burke finds himself looking for a new home after half a season with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Unlike Johnson, Burke was playing well on a winning team. His 42 percent clip from beyond the arc provided adequate floor spacing for a Philadelphia team that was prone to overcrowding the paint with all of its size. Burke’s ranginess was a refreshing change of pace.
The 76ers locker-room is currently volatile, what with Al Horford recently hinting that there was drama that was going to stay internal. Horford involuntarily made their issues more known, lending fuel to the fire that he is actually a sleeper cell sent to cause the 76ers to implode.
Not that the Sixers were going to be roadblocks in the playoffs anyway.
Regardless, Burke is a seven-year pro who could bring a much different perspective for the C’s second unit. Like Johnson and Miami, Burke was on the inside of the battle lines in Philadelphia. That knowledge could well pay off in a playoff series.
Isaiah Thomas
Isaiah Thomas has long been a Boston Celtics return target this season…at leasy by the Houdini. Back in September, I first raised the idea of a reunion and what it would look like:
"Wherever he goes, the last chapter in his career just feels like Thomas in Boston Celtics green for one last should be written into it. Perhaps if he shines in his role on a rebuilding Wizards team and Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters fail to step up behind Kemba Walker in the point guard rotation, that chapter could be written in 2020."
Thomas did shine in his Wizards role this season, but after being absorbed into the Marcus Morris-Clippers trade, he now finds himself on the free agent block. A return to the team that made him somewhat of a cult legend always seemed like the right thing to happen.
With the C’s, he became an All-Star, an MVP candidate and an inspiration. His playing through his sister’s death took courage. Becoming the league’s top fourth quarter required diligence, focus and a dose of mamba mentality.
The opportunity for a reunion is clear. If Thomas can find his way to the Celtics again, he could join the team for something potentially very special. With his stock falling by the year, this could be his chance to cement his legacy in Beantown fulfilling the role originally expected of him upon his entry to the league: second unit star.