Boston Celtics not likely to pursue 11-time All-NBA floor general: Report

Chris Paul isn’t likely to end up on the Boston Celtics roster during the 2023-24 season — this, at least, according to MassLive’s Brian Robb, who sees there being too many obstacles that Brad Stevens won’t find worthy of his time to clear.

“Paul will undoubtedly have a number of suitors if he does hit the open market but this is a situation where there are too many obstacles for the Celtics to be a serious contender on that list,” Robb wrote. “With Brad Stevens signaling that smaller tweaks are coming this offseason last week, clearing a path for Paul to Boston does not fit that criteria.”

Paul was linked to the Celtics by FS1’s Colin Cowherd, who put together a laughably bad mock trade proposal that’d involve fan-favorite Marcus Smart. Though that scenario deserves no credence, the idea of signing Paul was interesting until Robb shut it down.

The Nets, not the Boston Celtics, are the best fit for Chris Paul

With Smart, Malcolm Brogdon, and Derrick White all in need of touches, the idea of adding another guard is questionable. Especially with Payton Pritchard once again reiterating his trade demand to find a bigger role elsewhere.

Paul doesn’t belong with the Boston Celtics, but a better fit awaits the point guard in the Eastern Conference’s Atlantic Division: Brooklyn. The Nets could shift Spencer Dinwiddie off-ball or to the second unit and welcome Paul into a lineup that figures to feature multiple former teammates from his Phoenix tenure, Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson. Already, we know that both forwards are at their most efficient playing alongside CP3, so there’s not much of a question of whether or not that lineup would be a good fit with the 38-year-old.

With the Nets not owning their own pick in 2024, Brooklyn isn’t in a position to want to tank. That means that missing out on big swing offseason targets like Damian Lillard could lead to a much more manageable route that requires the loss of no assets in signing Paul, all in an effort to contend for a postseason spot.