Boston Celtics: 2 free agents Cs must pounce on immediately

Free-agent #1 that the Boston Celtics must pounce on: Isaiah Thomas

The king of the fourth should always feel welcome in Beantown. Isaiah Thomas was one of the NBA’s greatest stories when he was donning Boston Celtics green and white from 2015-17.

IT was originally signed to a four-year, $32 million deal by the Phoenix Suns to be the third backup on a team gunning for the #8 seed in the west. To be fair, the Western Conference was pretty stacked in 2014-15, and Thomas was seen as a potential piece that could get Phoenix over the top.

Halfway through the season, though, something funny happened. Thomas was dealt from Phoenix to Boston, and no longer serving as the third wheel to Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe created an MVP candidate making role player money.

Of course, the end of Thomas’ tenure with the Cs was far from ideal from a player standpoint, as Thomas ended up flaming out in 2017-18 on the Cavaliers and Lakers and no longer led a #1 seed that clicked on all cylinders.

From a player-franchise relationship standpoint, Boston’s image was tarnished after such a disastrous PR decision by Ainge. It would probably be looked at more fondly had Kyrie Irving not had such a tenuous run in green and white himself.

Either way, there’s a chance for redemption. Thomas has returned to competitive play, representing Team USA in the 2022 FIBA Americup qualifiers. He was fairly effective in his first game back, too, despite six turnovers in his first international rules contest:

"Isaiah Thomas knocked down three quick 3-pointers, showing that his shot is still there. Knocking off 12 months of rust wasn’t quite as easy. Thomas scored 19 points in his first competitive game in more than a year, helping the U.S. to a 93-77 victory over the Bahamas on Friday in a FIBA AmeriCup qualifying game."

Thomas’ return to Boston would be an incredible boost from an emotional standpoint, but he may have more to give on the offensive end than Jeff Teague at this point.

Here’s hoping bygones will be bygones, and IT can return home where he belongs.