Former Boston Celtics lottery pick finds new NBA home

Former Boston Celtics forward Romeo Langford has found a new NBA home, according to The Athletic’s Tony Jones. Jones reported Wednesday afternoon that Langford had agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract to join the Utah Jazz.

“The Utah Jazz are signing Romeo Langford to an Exhibit 10 deal, league sources tell myself and Shams Charania,” Jones said in a tweet. “Langford is a former first-round pick from the Boston Celtics.”

Langford will reunite with the man who drafted him, Danny Ainge. Ainge has been acting as Utah’s CEO, in the past few seasons since leaving Boston himself.

Did the Boston Celtics give up on Romeo Langford too soon?

Probably not, right?

Langford was traded by the Celtics as part of the deal that netted them Derrick White from the San Antonio Spurs back at the 2022 NBA Trade Deadline.

The Indiana native found a bit of a niche in San Antonio, but never quite stuck. He averaged a career-high 6.9 points per game last year under Gregg Popovic. Unfortunately, his health hindered him a bit as he appeared in just 42 games for the Spurs.

At just 23 years old, Langford could still pan out in the NBA, but it seems like a bit of a long shot, especially considering his history with injuries.

He’s played in just 141 games over the course of four seasons as a pro.

But, Utah could serve as a great proving ground for the former Celtics lottery pick. Their roster is sneaky competitive (maybe not earning them a playoff spot, but they won’t be the worst team in the conference!). Langford will likely see a solid number of minutes off of the bench, with little pressure to contribute to a team with championship hopes — not that he had to deal with that in San Antonio.

Had he stayed in Boston, he likely wouldn’t have broken into the rotation and the Celtics wouldn’t have gotten the luxury of adding White, who has been fantastic.