Boston Celtics: The argument against trading at the deadline

We get it Boston Celtics fans — you’re upset with how the 2020-21 season has been going for your favorite team.

Coming into the campaign, Vegas viewed the Cs as having the fourth-best odds of taking home the Larry O’Brien Trophy by year’s end.

Now, 40 games into this truncated 72 game schedule, this same team finds itself boasting a pedestrian 20-20 record, residing in the seventh seed in the weak Eastern Conference standings, and stuck in the same division as two of the league’s title favorites in the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets.

To say you saw this coming right from day one would be a complete and utter farce.

With all this in mind, a question that is very likely at the forefront of your mind is “what can they do now?”

A popular answer to this question seems to be in the shape of the team’s historically large $28.5 million TPE that Danny Ainge managed to snag in the Gordon Hayward sign-and-trade to Charlotte this past offseason.

With the March 25th trade deadline rapidly approaching, fans have become quite vocal about their desire to see said exception used this season to acquire a big man, a wing, a veteran, or any other type of player that can potentially bring a much-needed spark to this devastatingly underwhelming shamrocks squad.

Though we at the Houdini have talked quite often about players they could theoretically pursue with the TPE at this year’s deadline, recently a new thought has begun to seep into our minds: should the Boston Celtics hold off on making trades altogether till the offseason?

The Boston Celtics should strongly consider holding off on trades till offseason

Now, before you jump to the comments section, here us out for a second.

There’s no denying that this Boston Celtics team needs more firepower in order to legitimately compete with the juggernauts of the league such as the Nets, Lakers, and Clippers.

Having said that, is that aforementioned firepower realistically attainable at this year’s trade deadline? Not just that but, if it was, could the Cs actually afford it?

Of all the players rumored to be on the trade block this season, the most ideal target for this Celtics team would be All-Star center Nikola Vucevic. His skillset would seemingly fit beautifully within Boston’s scheme, while his per-game production (25 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists on 42 percent shooting from deep) would easily bolster the team’s weakest position within the rotation at the pivot.

Obviously from Boston’s perspective, trading for a guy like Vucevic would be a no-brainer scenario. The only problem is, however, would the Orlando Magic be willing to trade him for a return package of Romeo Langford, Aaron Nesmith, and contract fillers or, should the Cs want to acquire him with their TPE, would they be ok with simply bringing on a handful of late first-round picks?

The answer, unequivocally, is NO. Frankly, can you really blame them?

Recently, the rumor that has caught the fanbase’s attention is that the team is interested in pursuing Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes who, by all accounts, fills the desire from Ainge to bring on “shooters with size” this season.

Though to many the thought of bringing on the wing and his 16.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game averages would be a great asset to have for the Cs, there are those who believe such a deal is simply not the best course of action to take, especially if it came at the expense of their $28.5 million TPE.

When recently on the Ringer’s Group Chat Podcast, Jared Weiss of The Athletic stated he would find it both ‘surprising’ and ‘disappointing if Boston actually made a move to bring Barnes to Massachusetts:

"“I would be really surprised if they made the Harrison Barnes deal, which is pretty much sitting there for them”, Weiss said. “If they want to do it, they can throw in Nesmith, a first-rounder, maybe another first-rounder. They can get that done pretty easily.”“If they do it, it’s a safe play and it gets you someone that isn’t as good as Gordon Hayward but is still pretty solid and is in his prime and is on a good deal and he fits the exact position that they are looking to fill, so that wouldn’t be the end of the world. It would just be really disappointing if, after all this potential, you end up with the safe play.”"

In the podcast, Weiss also explained that, according to his sources, it is the belief by the front office of the Boston Celtics that, come the offseason, there will be better and bigger names that could become available through trade which, in their opinion, would be more worth parting with their assets for:

"From everything that I’ve been told, it seems like they’re convinced that there’s players they can trade for this offseason that they can’t trade for now, and it’s not just Bradley Beal.”"

One of the players mentioned outside of Bradley Beal was tantalizing big man Karl-Anthony Towns, who Weiss referred to as “the perfect guy for them” and “the best offensive center out there.”

Look, like we said in the beginning, we get your frustration — we’re frustrated too. That said, will the answer to all their ailments really be found during this year’s trade season?

While Harrison Barnes would be a great complimentary player to have, would trading for him at this year’s deadline really be worth losing the opportunity to pursue an offseason deal for Beal, KAT, or someone else of such magnitude?

At this point, the Boston Celtics are seemingly in desperation mode. Similar to how it’s unwise to go food shopping when hungry, it isn’t necessarily in a team’s best interest to pursue trades when distressed.

While it may be hard to accept, perhaps it’s the wise decision for the front office to hold off on making any trades until the offseason. Perhaps the buyout market is where Danny Ainge should gear his attention towards.