While the rest of the 2019-20 season is still up in the air, the league’s offseason is still seen as an inevitability. Whenever this period officially commences, the Boston Celtics should consider pursuing these three specific big’s in free agency.
The Boston Celtics were having themselves an unbelievably successful season prior to the league’s COVID-19 induced hiatus on March 11th.
By this point in the schedule the team had accumulated a record of 43-21. They ranked as the third seed in the Eastern Conference, the fifth seed in the entire NBA and, just day before the suspension, clinched their sixth consecutive postseason berth — C’s have the second most playoff appearances since the turn of the century.
As a unit, night in and night out they boasted one of the best core rotations the league had to offer in 2019-20. With perennial All-Star Kemba Walker, arguable All-Star snub Jaylen Brown, first (of many) time All-Star Jayson Tatum, former All-Star Gordon Hayward and First-Team All-Defensive guard Marcus Smart as your sixth man, it’s easy to believe this core often instils fear into the hearts of their opponents.
Though there aren’t many weaknesses found on this team, perhaps their biggest area of concern lies at their center rotation. While current starter Daniel Theis has performed admirably throughout this year’s campaign, he is not exactly what people view as the answer at the pivot, especially when considering the east consists of dominant bigs such as Joel Embiid, Nikola Vučević and Giannis Antetokounmpo, just to name a few.
Behind him are the likes of Enes Kanter, Robert Williams and, in small ball lineups, Grant Williams.
In short: the Boston Celtics could use for an upgrade at the five.
With this in mind, once free agency comes around, the team could be in search of talents who could help bolster the position and, in turn, help shore up the team’s weakest area in the rotation.
In regard to whom the C’s could target, the Houdini’s got you covered. Here are three bigs Boston should pursue in free agency.
Christian Wood
First up on our list is a player we’ve oft suggested should be on the Boston Celtics’ radar. Heck, even this past trade-deadline we heavily suggested that the C’s should look into acquiring Christian Wood for a relatively low cost.
The team, however, opted to stand pat and, leading up to the league’s hiatus, it looked to have been a solid route to take for the team as they went on to clinch their sixth consecutive playoff berth. The idea was they didn’t want to shake up their rotation that was finding much success on the season.
Totally makes sense!
However, with Wood’s impending free agency this offseason, Boston will have the opportunity to add the big man outright without having to sacrifice anyone of relevance from their team.
On the season, the 24 year old saw himself averaging solid averages of 13.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and just under a block per game on 57 percent shooting from the floor and 39 percent shooting from deep.
However, it was after the Detroit Pistons traded away their starting center Andre Drummond when Wood started to truly thrive.
As a starter this season the big posted very impressive averages of 21.9 points, 9.4 rebounds and just shy of a block per game on 56 percent shooting from the floor and 41 percent shooting from beyond the arc. He boasted a 121 offensive rating and a 114 defensive rating, all while proving he can be a prime option to have as a team’s starting big.
He can work his magic in the paint with his solid post moves and stature (6-10, 214 pounds) while also being capable of spacing the floor. Defensively, he’s shown to have an impressive instinct when it comes to swatting shots and possesses the athleticism to stick with his assignment.
Perhaps more pricey than the next two options on this list, but with his skillset coupled with his age, Christian Wood could prove to be a great big to have for this young roster on a long term contract.
Hassan Whiteside
Prior to the start of the 2019-20 season we discussed the idea of the Boston Celtics trading for the 10 year veteran big Hassan Whiteside. To our surprise, it was met with a lot of disdain and disproval.
Frankly, our opinion was barely altered after this and now, after the 61 games he played for the Portland Trailblazers this year, the fact still remains: the C’s could certainly use for someone of Whiteside’s skill set.
Logging 31.3 minutes the center found himself averaging 16.3 points, 14.2 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game on 62 percent shooting from the field. He ranks second in the league in both total rebounds and offensive rebounds per game and is first by a considerable margin in blocks per game.
At 7-0, 235 pounds Whiteside is an intimidating presence to stick in the paint in a starting unit consisting of a plethora of perimeter players. He could be useful on offense when in the post as well as on the glass. Defensively, he would be the unquestionable enforcer this team is missing down low and would be a perfect counter to the likes of Embiid and Antetokounmpo.
Whiteside may need to sign a one-year deal with a franchise, as he pretty much was seen as a short term contract in Portland, filling in for the injured Jusuf Nurkić, and hasn’t proven he can continue on staying this productive and serviceable for a team (3.2 box plus minus rating) for multiple seasons at a time.
This season, Hassan Whiteside has produced quite well while also staying on his best behavior. Likely finding himself yet again in a similar situation next season, he should wind up producing at a similar rate, and with a similar temperament, in search of one last long term deal beginning in 2021-22.
If he can keep this level of play up, he might be exactly what Boston has been looking for at the pivot spot.
DeMarcus Cousins
Being one of the most storied franchises in league history, the Boston Celtics oft find themselves amongst the top stories pertaining to the NBA. One of their most recent subjects: could they be in the running to sign free agent center DeMarcus Cousins?
First brought to light by FanSided’s own Jason Reed of Lake Show Life, the possibility of the C’s signing Boogie seems more realistic than one would have previously thought and, honestly, has the potential to be more impactful as well:
"“With little cap space, the Celtics should be jumping all over signing Cousins to a mid-level exception contract for a season with the potential of him being a true difference-maker. Barring any setbacks, he should be fully healthy for the start of the 2020-2021 NBA season and the potential of him as the team’s stretch five is intriguing, to say the least. If Cousins returned to 80 percent of what he was during his All-NBA seasons then it would undoubtedly give the Celtics the deepest roster in the Eastern Conference and the most dynamic.”"
The past couple of seasons have been tough on the talented big. Tearing his Achilles in 2017 while in the midst of having easily his best season a pro (averaged 25.2 points, 12.9 points, 5.4 assists and 1.6 steals & blocks on 47 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent shooting from deep), Cousins found himself struggling to find a team willing to take a chance on him during that summer’s free agency period.
Winding up accepting a midlevel exception deal with the Golden State Warriors, the center was willing to bet on himself that he could once again produce at a high level while also helping a team win in the process. He played 30 games for the team in the regular season and eight games for them in the postseason, all while showing flashes of what he was prior to injury (averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks on 48 percent shooting from the field).
After that year’s postseason, Cousins inked yet another ‘prove-it’ deal, this time with the Los Angeles Lakers, providing them with a potentially lethal Big-3 of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and himself. Unfortunately, however, this menacing trio never got the chance to take the court together, for Cousins ended up tearing his ACL during a workout just months before the 2019-20 season.
The Lakers would go on to eventually wave the center, but allowed him to train and recover using their facilities.
Now, at 29 years old — 30 once the 2020 season commences — the once menacing DeMarcus Cousins sadly finds himself fighting for his career.
The Boston Celtics should certainly consider helping the 4x All-Star keep his NBA dream alive for three specific reasons:
- As we all know, they need to bolster their center rotation
- They’ll be strapped for cash this summer and DeMarcus Cousins could be had at a minimum deal
- When healthy, he’s arguably the best center in the league
Once could say a Cousins singing is a risk/ reward situation. However, from the Houdini’s perspective, at that cost, the rewards easily outweigh the risks.
A lineup consisting of Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown, Gordon Hayward, Jayson Tatum and a healthy DeMarcus Cousins would easily be the best starting five in the Eastern Conference and could even contend for the best in the entire association as well.
At the very least, we hope Danny Ainge considers the idea of bringing on Boogie.