Despite still finding themselves in the top-5 out in the Eastern Conference standings, the Boston Celtics are by no means playing like a good team.
Boasting a .500 record of 14-14, they now find themselves just three wins removed from the 12th seeded Orlando Magic and, over their last 12 outings, have managed to drop eight of them.
Usually, when a team’s not playing well, one can generally look to their top players and see that they must step things up in order to get them back on track.
However, what makes this situation all the more troubling is the fact that the team’s two best talents in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are actually having themselves fantastic campaigns, and have even been listed as the best wing duo in the NBA this season.
Because of this, the rumor mill has begun to spin rapidly, having various publications and fans chime in on what the Celtics could possibly do to save their season that began with such promise.
The Boston Celtics mustn’t make any rash decisions out of panic
Of course, we here at the Houdini have been churning out our opinions on what we believe Danny Ainge and co. could do to put this team back on track and, ultimately, the answer is simple: make smart decisions.
That said, in times of hardship, teams have been known to make panic moves in an effort to get back to an upward trajectory.
While we have faith that the Boston Celtics have the smarts to not do anything too extreme without thorough evaluation, just as a precaution we present 3 panic trade targets we hope they avoid at all costs:
Boston Celtics trade target to avoid No. 1) Andre Drummond
So, in the past, I personally have advocated for the Boston Celtics to pursue the likes of Andre Drummond via trade.
Being that the team could seriously use for an upgrade at the five, a guy like Drummond would easily be an upgrade over everyone they currently have rolling out at the position in the lineup, as he is in the midst of another fine season averaging 17.5 points, 13.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game.
While this stance of him being a better talent than what the Cs have still remains, the idea of dealing for him is a bit extreme, for it would cost the team a boatload of assets just to make the money work.
Yes, the 27-year-old is in the final year of his deal and, by all accounts, is viewed as a contract the Cleveland Cavaliers are dying to part ways with. With this, typically speaking, one would be under the assumption that you could buy the big man on the cheaper side.
The problem with Drummond, however, is that there is nothing cheap about him.
While he’s on an expiring deal, this season alone the center will be making $28.7 million.
Had it been around $200K less, Boston would have been able to acquire him using their $28.5 million TPE and, with that, it would have been a move worthy of far more consideration.
However, with the fact that it would have to include the likes of key players like Marcus Smart, Daniel Theis, and a bevy of others moving just to get the needle moving, trading for Drummond just doesn’t seem worth it, not matter how badly the franchise needs a center upgrade.