Boston Celtics: Proposal lands Euro seven-foot stretch big
With the trade deadline approaching in less than a month, the Boston Celtics are experiencing a taste of being forced to rely on depth with a few starters out. Jaylen Brown is dealing with a right adductor strain, Marcus Smart had spotty availability due to knee soreness, and the frontcourt duo of Robert Williams III and Al Horford have each had to sit out games due to maintenance.
While the problems Boston is facing aren’t guaranteed to rear their heads again during the postseason, it wouldn’t hurt the Celtics front office to add some depth on the wing and (especially) the frontcourt.
Heavy’s Adam Taylor recently came up with a trade proposal that would add a big man at a minimal cost relative to who the Boston Celtics are relying on at this point in time to win games. The mock deal would bring back a European stretch big man standing at seven-feet tall:
"Celtics Receive: Isaiah HartensteinKnicks Receive: Danilo Gallinari, Justin Jackson or Luke Kornet, a second-round draft pick"
Why the Boston Celtics do it
Title windows are a real thing when it comes to a specific group winning a championship together in professional sports, and this Boston Celtics core is at risk of jumping the shark and needing major changes if they were to fall short of Banner 18 in 2023. Not reaching the Finals this June, at the very least, would be damning for the Cs and would most certainly lead to talks of replacing the supporting cast around Jayson Tatum.
President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens needs to keep this team as competitive as possible. What does that mean? He needs to fortify the roster to the point where the loss of anyone outside of Tatum and Jaylen Brown can be injured and the team would barely miss a beat.
We saw a solid showing from the Celtics with Robert Williams III on the shelf at the start of the season, with the team thriving on nights both he and Al Horford were absent. Still, few Cs fans would accept relying on Blake Griffin or Luke Kornet for long stretches in the postseason.
Adding Isaiah Hartenstein — who, while struggling with the New York Knicks would be the exact type of player Boston would covet if he returned to his 2021-22 form while with the Los Angeles Clippers — would improve the big man rotation leaps and bounds and could potentially unlock a big capable of thriving offensively in a ball movement-heavy system under Joe Mazzulla.
If Hartenstein didn’t pan out exactly as hoped, he’d be an $8 million expiring in 2023-24 that the front office could use however it could. Given what happened the last time Stevens traded a German big man making around $8 million (Daniel Theis + other assets for Malcolm Brogdon anyone?), you’d have to like the C’s chances in such a scenario.