Boston Celtics: 3 Cs who could be cut to facilitate a signing or trade

The Boston Celtics have improved to 5-3 as of this writing, avenging their first loss of the season to the Chicago Bulls on November 4 at the T.D. Garden in a 123-119 nail-biter that Jayson Tatum and Malcolm Brogdon helped seal in the fourth quarter.

Brogdon made a case to be a starter with the showing, with Derrick White taking a backseat again in fewer minutes. While closing lineups are more important than starting ones, it’d be a nice show of commitment for Joe Mazzulla to start him alongside Marcus Smart, while also giving White the chance to recalibrate his offense against opposing second units.

Of course, beyond internal moves, a free agent signing or a trade could be in the best interest of the Celtics’ front office to be better prepared for another matchup or postseason series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, or against the Milwaukee Bucks who prove to be the other biggest obstacle for Boston.

If the team were to do that, these 3 Boston Celtics would be the likeliest to be cut to facilitate such a move

Noah Vonleh

Early on in the 2022-23 season, it seemed as though the Boston Celtics had found their Robert Williams III replacement in Noah Vonleh. Against the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat, Vonleh was an integral defender against their big men (Joel Embiid, Bam Adebayo) and seemed poised to become a rotational fixture.

He followed that up with ineffective minutes against the Chicago Bulls (on October 24) and the Cleveland Cavaliers (on October 28) and played in garbage time minutes against the Washington Wizards. Vonleh didn’t see the floor against the Cavaliers or the Bulls in Boston’s second matchups against those team.

Given his December 15 guarantee date, the Cs can pursue a more proven option should the team struggle to combat frontlines like Cleveland’s in the future.