Nikola Vucevic’s impending exit from the Boston Celtics felt like a foregone conclusion even before NBA Insider Marc Stein reported on Sunday that the big man was a “lock” to switch teams this summer. Now that there’s credible reporting on the situation, it feels more than appropriate to take a look at what options are out there for the Celtics as they enter the offseason.
They’ll be able to do so through the draft, free agency, and via trade.
Zuby Ejiofor
There are a few different frontcourt prospects who project to be available within Boston’s range at this month’s draft. None of which are more intriguing than St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor.
The six-foot-nine-inch, 245-pound forward was named Big East Player of the Year and Big East Tournament MVP after a monster senior season at St. Johns. He suited up in 37 games for the Johnnies, where he averaged 16.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.1 blocks, and 1.2 steals per game.
It’s safe to say that Enjiofor does a little bit of everything.
His defense has to be the biggest eye-opener. The 22-year-old has no issue covering both bigs and smaller guards. He moves his feet exceptionally well on the perimeter, so much so that he’s able to rack up blocks on jump shots.
Ejiofor displayed great discipline this past season, too. He doesn’t bite on pumpfakes much and stays out of foul trouble.
There’s some room for growth for Zuby as a scorer, but he still makes an impact on offense. He’s got a great feel for the game and finds his teammates for clean looks pretty regularly. There’s reason to believe that Ejiofor could immediately find a place in the Celtics’ rotation if they were to draft him with pick 27.
Robert Williams III
All of us here in Celtic land are more than addicted to the idea of bringing back former players. As soon as Robert Williams III started suiting up consistently for the Portland Trail Blazers this season, fans in Boston began asking the question, “What if he comes back?”
Williams appeared in 59 games for the Blazers, his most since the 2021-22 season with the Cs. He gave them strong minutes off of the bench with 6.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in just 17.1 minutes per game. Rob’s numbers jumped up in the playoffs, too, where he made an impact in Portland’s first-round loss to the Western Conference Champion San Antonio Spurs.
Advanced metrics loved the big man this season, too. He was in the 98th and 96th percentiles for defensive daily plus minus and daily plus minus, respectively -- numbers that were similar to his final season with the Celtics.
There’s no question that if the Time Lord is on the court, he’s going to help you win games.
Boston could very easily (at least in terms of maintaining their current roster) bring Williams back this summer. They’ll have the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception available to them, worth roughly $15 million, which they could offer to Rob now that he’s a free agent. Now, plenty of teams have the MLE to throw around, so there’s going to be plenty of competition here.
Isaiah Stewart
Detroit Pistons center Isaiah Stewart could be a viable trade option for the Celtics this summer. The 24-year-old center finished seventh in Sixth Man of the Year voting this past season as the Pistons racked up 60 wins.
His 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game gave Detroit a strong backup option behind All-Star center Jalen Duren -- at least in the regular season.
Stewart fell out of J.B. Bickerstaff’s rotation in the playoffs, as Paul Reed began to take on the bulk of the backup minutes. His minutes were nearly cut in half, as were his numbers. Beef Stew posted just 4.0 points and 2.4 rebounds per outing as the Pistons failed to reach the Eastern Conference Finals as the top seed.
If Detroit favors Reed going forward, there could be an opportunity for the Cs to add an enforcer-type big who protects the rim and can shoot the three at a decent clip (career 34.3% rate). Boston could absorb his $15 million salary into the $27 million traded player exception that they created when they traded Anfernee Simons for Vucevic back in February.
Stewart is expected to draw trade interest from teams around the league, according to The Detroit Free Press. So, it could take more than just absorbing his salary. Perhaps Sam Hauser would have to be involved in order to get a deal done.
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