Given recent positive developments in the health department for Isaiah Thomas, the Boston Celtics could be a free agent destination this offseason for the former MVP candidate.
So, Boston Celtics fans, the Houdini wants to lead this piece off by saying that Isaiah Thomas did not in fact say that he loves the city of Boston and misses being a C. He told us so himself:
That’s not real
— Isaiah Thomas (@isaiahthomas) October 8, 2020
Alas, the idea of a reunion with the former MVP candidate has never been more attractive than it is at this very moment. Thomas has recently revealed that he has fully recovered from the hip ailment that caused his career to spiral following a glorious run in green and white:
"“It’s like night and day for me,” Thomas told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. “There’s no more pain. I’ve got my full range of motion. For three years, I was trying to play the best players in the world on one leg. I needed help from my kids to put my socks on in the morning."
It has been a hellish past few years for Thomas, who famously lost his sister in the midst of the most important playoff run of his career. That things seem to be turning the corner for the former All-NBA point guard–and it certainly looked that way during his time with the Washington Wizards this past season–is a genuinely exciting prospect for fans of IT (aka any Celtics fan that witnessed his 2017 playoff run).
Could a reunion be in the cards between the Cs and one of their recent greats? The Houdini takes a look at the pros and cons:
Pros of an Isaiah Thomas reunion
The most obvious pro of an Isaiah Thomas reunion would be the thunderous ovation he’d receive at the TD Garden when he first checked into the game. If that happened to be the very first game fans would be allowed into, the roof would be blown off and shot into the Boston sky.
The fan-favorite is sorely missed by his former fanbase, and there is a need for bench scoring. While Brad Wanamaker played well in the postseason, he very well could land a more lucrative contract elsewhere given his play.
As HoopsHabit’s Dalton Sell put it, a re-marriage makes a lot of sense:
"Simply put, the Celtics desperately need to add some offensive firepower off the bench this offseason, and Isaiah Thomas could provide just that. He might not be the 30 point per game scorer that he was in his first stint with the team, but there is no doubt he could contribute a scoring punch as a reserve. While Thomas seems persistent in getting another shot in the NBA for any franchise, it is no secret that Boston holds a special place in his heart. Whether the Boston Celtics decided to pursue a reunion with Isaiah Thomas or not, bringing the guard back to TD Garden would be far more than just a feel-good story."
Good to see fellow Fansider Dalton Sell living up to his last name…the Houdini is all but sold on the idea of an IT reunion.
Cons of an Isaiah Thomas reunion
The main problem with the Boston Celtics running it back with the 2x All-Star is figuring out what to do with all of the other undersized point guards on the roster. It seems incredibly redundant to roster three guards under six-feet tall, especially when one of them would directly preclude the other two from developing in the rotation.
Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters are under contract, with Edwards having three years left on his deal. Signing Thomas would be a sign that the Cs are giving up on the G-League All-Star Waters, and would banish Edwards to the end of the bench…assuming he doesn’t make a meteoric leap in his second year in spite of Thomas’ presence.
Quite honestly, the Cs could solve those issues rather easily. At worst, they can extract value out of either guard in a trade, and at best the duo can glean wisdom off of the greatest player to ever stand five-foot-nine or smaller.
Boston should be making win-now moves, and having a healthy Thomas would give them their best shot at a bargain difference-maker in free agency. His chemistry with the likes of Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown is already there, and Kemba Walker proved in Charlotte that he can thrive alongside another point guard in Jeremy Lin.
If he is willing to have us back, we would love to make things right and bring home banner #18 together.