It’s tough to find many genuine rumors about the Boston Celtics. Shams Charania and Chris Haynes aren’t exactly sprinting to their phones to find out which teams could be willing to take on Jaden Springer’s contract or which small-contract player Boston may be interested in by the time the trade deadline rolls around. They’re more interested in the Jimmy Butler situation and other teams looking to make legitimate big-swing moves.
That said, there are some things around the league that could end up impacting the Celtics outside of their own individual moves. Plus, there are some things that may not be direct rumors but could quickly turn into that.
All that said, here are the latest Boston Celtics rumors.
Walker Kessler idea getting media traction
There have been no legitimate reports indicating that the Celtics are working on a trade for Utah Jazz big man Walker Kessler, but speculation is heating up. He’s by far the most talked about potential Celtics trade target right now.
In addition to Cameron Tabatabaie of Celtics Wire writing a column on why the Celtics should make the move and us at Hardwood Houdini doing the opposite, Twitter user and NBA consultant Cranjis McBasketball made an interesting note.
“I continue hearing Utah is open to moving Kessler,” he wrote. “I wonder if Boston is close on a deal.”
Again, this clearly isn’t any indicator that Boston has shown interest in Kessler this season, but the fact that they were the one team speculated about could mean something. At the very least, keep an eye on Kessler in the trade market.
Bucks not out of Jimmy Butler sweepstakes
Not long ago, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports stated that Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler and his people informed the Milwaukee Bucks not to trade for them. This report came after Chris Haynes stated that he did the same for the Memphis Grizzlies.
However, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, Butler never actually told the Bucks not to trade for him.
"While it remains unclear which teams are truly willing to get into the Butler business, two league sources insisted that the Milwaukee Bucks have not, contrary to reports, been told by Butler’s camp that he doesn’t want to play there," Amick wrote.
This may not seem like much, but the fact that someone within the Bucks organization (or someone close to Butler) wanted to set the record straight could mean something.
The Bucks haven’t been as big of a rival to Boston this year, but when a team has Giannis Antetokounmpo on it, they are always a threat.
More Jaden Springer chatter
At every turn, Springer’s name pops up as the most likely Celtics trade candidate. The latest comes from an article by Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. He wrote, “What Every Team Would Do If the 2025 NBA Trade Deadline Were Today.”
“The Celtics haven't won as consistently over the past month, but the current NBA champs aren't expected to shake things up,” Pincus wrote. “Today, the team would probably love to send Jaden Springer and his expiring $4 million contract out with 1-2 second-rounders.”
Again, it’s not a sourced rumor, but the smoke around a potential Springer trade hasn’t evaporated.