Boston Celtics: B/R shares thoughts on C’s pursuit of Tristan Thompson

The Boston Celtics will likely be utilizing their mid-level exception in free agency this offseason. According to Bleacher Report, however, they should not use it on Tristan Thompson.

The cash-strapped Boston Celtics will still try to be active participants during this upcoming free agency period, as they still have the league’s mid-level exception and veteran minimum contracts at their disposal.

In fact, many familiar with the NBA believe the Cs will be one of the most attractive landing spots for players willing to accept such an offer this offseason.

Due to their need for bolstering at the pivot spot, we here at the Houdini have advocated for Danny Ainge and co. to target specific bigs who could serve as a talent improvement for this championship aspiring squad come 2020-21.

From names like Serge Ibaka to Paul Millsap, there are a bevy of big man ballers who could find themselves within Boston’s price range that they should consider pursuing.

One name that has been found in the mix is Cavaliers veteran center, Tristan Thompson, who will likely be looking for a new home with Andre Drummond now in Cleveland, and will be pursued with a relatively cost-efficient contract offer by interested teams.

Frankly, we here at HH don’t like the idea of the 29-year-old in green and white, as he has a severely capped game and does not provide the skill set needed at the five for the Celtics.

With this, it would appear Bleacher Report has the same mindset about the pairing, as writer Dan Favale recently wrote a piece suggesting Thompson should be an MLE candidate for Boston to avoid.

"Opening up roster spots doesn’t create an invitation for the Celtics to spend the lion’s share of their mini mid-level on a big. And if they do, they should ensure the center they land has pick-and-pop range.Tristan Thompson, along with some other names who will invariably be linked to Boston, doesn’t qualify. He busts out a nifty floater every once in a while, but he’s more of a rim-diver and inside presence. The Celtics have that, albeit in varying doses, with Kanter and Robert Williams. (The same can be said of Jakob Poeltl, a higher-end candidate, but the mini MLE isn’t enough juice to poach most restricted free agents)."

Favale would then go on to suggest other players such as Aron Baynes, Marc Gasol, and Harry Giles would be better suited for Beantown than Cleveland’s ninth-year veteran.

B/R believes Tristan Thompson is a bad match for the Boston Celtics.

Simply put, we couldn’t agree more!