Hardwood Houdini
Fansided

Boston Celtics rumors: Eastern rival could have interest in trading for key Cs role player

By Andrew Hughes

Eastern Conference rival Miami Heat have interest in trading for a part-time Boston Celtics starter ahead of the 2023 NBA trade deadline Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Eastern Conference rival Miami Heat have interest in trading for a part-time Boston Celtics starter ahead of the 2023 NBA trade deadline Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Boston Celtics have raced ahead to the best record in the NBA as of this writing, and as a natural result, rival teams have an interest in the perceived gettable players the Cs have on their depth chart.

The Miami Heat, perhaps Boston’s greatest postseason rival in the 2020s, could have an interest in trading for Grant Williams — this at least according to Five Reasons Sports’ Greg Sylvander during an appearance on the Five on the Floor podcast:

"“There’s some games in December that they can get. They could finish the new year all of a sudden in the sixth-seed or something like that. Then you start to look around the league and try to find the right piece. Someone that would fit perfectly. And I have to say, I watched tonight, don’t you guys feel like Grant Williams would be a really good fit on this team?”"

Grant Williams is almost certainly not on the trade block for the Boston Celtics

There isn’t much of a trade fit between the Heat and Boston Celtics for Grant Williams, with Miami being heavy on guard help, low on future draft capital, and having locked down most of their assets to contracts too expensive for the Cs.

A Caleb Martin, Haywood Highsmith, and a bevy of future picks framework makes sense for Williams and the Danilo Gallinari deal, but Pat Riley likely wouldn’t give up the requisite number of draft selections to make it an even exchange — and such a scenario would only exist if Williams makes it clear he isn’t going to sign an extension.

Don’t count on that being the case, and don’t count on Brad Stevens and Pat Riley being chummy enough to make a deal considering their two franchise’s recent postseason history and likelihood of a postseason rematch over the next several seasons.

Expect Williams to stick with the Boston Celtics into the postseason. If the team finds that he isn’t much a fit during the NBA’s second season — which was not the case this past playoffs — then there will be more clarity for Williams’ extension plans.

Home/Celtics News