Boston Celtics: Former Hornets lottery pick floated for C’s TPE
The Boston Celtics look well equipped to weather the early season storm they’re expected to face with the absence of both Robert Williams III and Luke Kornet. ‘The Timelord’ will likely miss 8-12 weeks due to arthroscopic knee surgery, while Kornet could miss the rest of the preseason.
Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens has signed Blake Griffin to bolster the frontcourt rotation through what should be a difficult first few months of roster management for first-year interim head coach Joe Mazzulla. Several of the team’s training camp signings — including Noah Vonleh, Luka Šamanić, and two-way contract holder Mfiondu Kabengele — should help in that regard as well.
Still, there’s no guarantee that a team with championship aspirations will be satisfied with putting a player past his prime or not yet near it in a pivotal role during the first half of a make-or-break campaign.
If the Cs were to pursue a serious frontcourt upgrade without giving up any win-now assets, BSS’ Dan Greenberg floated out a former 2019 lottery pick from a team Boston is growing accustomed to beating soundly, the Charlotte Hornets. That big man in question is PJ Washington, who Greenberg sees as an ideal pursuit if Charlotte decides to enter the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes:
PJ Washington into the Dennis TPE if the Hornets end up entering the Wembanyama sweepstakes?? pic.twitter.com/H8BRMNqC25
— Dan Greenberg (@StoolGreenie) October 8, 2022
What the Boston Celtics would offer for PJ Washington
With the idea that the Boston Celtics wouldn’t be looking to give up a Payton Pritchard or Sam Hauser, any PJ Washington offer from Brad Stevens and co. would need to be heavy on future draft picks.
Which, if the Hornets are looking to add Victor Wembanyama, would make sense for multiple reasons — either they’d be adding future prospects to a core with LaMelo Ball and Wembanyama, or they’d be adding potential trade chips to target perfect-fitting pieces next to Wembanyama in the future.
Since they traded their 2023 first-round pick, any deal that happens before next year’s draft cannot include Boston’s 2024 selection, but a 2025 first plus future second round picks could help pluck Washington out of Charlotte.