Reason Boston Celtics didn’t re-sign Isaiah Thomas this season revealed
Another season in the books–from the standpoint of rosters being set in stone for the rest of the year–and another campaign where the planets don’t align for Boston Celtics and Isaiah Thomas to reunite.
But why?
Point guard depth on the current Cs roster. That’s the reason first-year head coach Ime Udoka gave to MassLive’s Brian Robb.
Here’s the full quote:
Ime Udoka on Celtics passing on opportunity to sign Isaiah Thomas: "Point guard was never a position of need."
— Brian Robb (@BrianTRobb) March 8, 2022
That statement is a confidence booster to Marcus Smart’s own ability to man the floor general role in Boston (he’s in the midst of a second straight season of exceeding five assists per game) and Payton Pritchard’s ability to eventually grow into that role on a more full-time basis himself. Dennis Schroder was traded specifically to open up point guard minutes for the second-year former Oregon Duck.
That said, Thomas himself is far from happy about the fact that there still hasn’t been room for a reunion after the manner in which he was dismissed from the Boston Celtics roster back in the summer of 2017 after contributing the most to any team he ever had:
Isaiah Thomas is opening up about his desire to come back to Boston the past few years and the disappointment of it not happening. He wants to stick in Charlotte for the rest of the year. #Celtics #Hornets. pic.twitter.com/vioTxwXc4p
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) March 8, 2022
As a member of the Charlotte Hornets, Thomas will be apart of the host squad on Wednesday night as the Cs look to make it four straight in the win column.
But if he had it his way, he’d find his way back to the franchise he became a local icon on, and Celtics fans by and large agree with that sentiment.