Boston Celtics: 5 defenders Cs should pursue this offseason
By Chris Conte
Boston Celtics target No. 4) Derrick Jones Jr
The state of the Portland Trail Blazers is an interesting one.
On the one hand, multiple rumors have surfaced suggesting they will blow it up and start their rebuild. However, on the other hand, Damian Lillard is talking about running it back.
Either way, If Derrick Jones Jr. decides to take his talents elsewhere by opting out of his $9 million player option, the Boston Celtics should put themselves in the mix to sign him.
At 24, he’s younger than Stevens might like, but his size and proven ability to defend at a high level might overshadow that.
DJJ can take on some of the East’s more enormous wings while also providing some much-needed help-side rim protection.
He would take that load off of Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart, and seeing as Stevens said he wanted to maximize the Jays, help-side rim protection might be what Stevens wants.
Jones’ price may be the deciding factor for Stevens.
If he opts out of his player option, he may think he can net more than $9 million a season, which the Cs simply just cannot afford to offer him.
It is unlikely Jones takes a minor contract to win a ring at his age, which means Boston’s leverage is slim to none in this scenario. Hopefully, the Celtics can convince DJJ playing beside Tatum and Brown while having a coach like Udoka is worth taking a pay cut.