3 centers the Boston Celtics should pursue at the trade deadline
By Seth Quinn
Boston Celtics center trade target No. 2: Naz Reid
Keeping with the theme of young stretch bigs, Naz Reid is another interesting trade target for the Boston Celtics.
Despite being stuck behind Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns in Minnesota, Reid has had a solid season for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He is six-foot-nine, 260 pounds, meaning he has ideal size for a modern center. Similar to P.J., Naz is a solid all-around player who can do a bit of everything that the modern center is tasked with doing. He’s a capable three-point shooter, rebounder, defender, and inside scorer. To top it off, he’s only 23.
Given the Timberwolves center is under contract for only 1.9 million, a trade wouldn’t require much in terms of salary matching. A trade for the young big would likely be similar to what would be required for PJ and Jalen McDaniels, but without Gallinari, unless the Timberwolves were willing to do something like a Kyle Anderson for Gallinari swap.
Essentially, the same downsides to trading for P.J. Washington apply to Naz Reid, but a bit more extreme. The 23-year-old is having a better season than Washington., and is a fully unrestricted free agent, while the Celtics could at least offer Washington a qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent. Reid could ask for way more than the Celtics are willing to pay him, but at the same time, if he provides good production as the third center, trading for him could be well worth it. Another high-risk, high-reward option for the Celtics to potentially trade for.
The third and final trade option the Boston Celtics should pursue is a Massachusetts native that’s way less risky based on potential price.