The Boston Celtics are going to be a very interesting team to watch in the coming weeks. As the NBA trade deadline rapidly approaches, they don’t have a ton of room to make moves, but they will likely still be active. Even if they don’t make a huge move (which they probably won’t), they could look to clear up some salary.
Drumping Jaden Springer’s contract could be the only move Boston looks to make, but there are some other areas of need they may consider. But since the only way they can make a trade is by flipping a contract for someone who makes less money, they are very restricted in who they can trade for.
And Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler is a name that has been brought up in a few different places.
Walker Kessler has been mentioned as a Celtics trade target, but it doesn't make sense
Cameron Tabatabaie of Celtics Wire recently wrote an article detailing why he believes the Celtics should trade for Kessler. On top of that, Cranjis McBasketball, a popular NBA Twitter user, former coach, and current team and agent consultant, mentioned the connection, too.
According to that tweet, Kessler could be on the move sooner rather than later, especially since he was just held out for "rest" purposes at 23 years old.
Kessler missed 6 games with a hip injury earlier this season, but otherwise hasn't missed a game this season.
— Cranjis McBasketball (@Tim_NBA) January 12, 2025
He certainly hasn't been held out to rest in one.
I continue hearing Utah is open to moving Kessler. I wonder if Boston is close on a deal. https://t.co/IFC3u4J1XF
At first glance, it could make some sense for the Celtics to add Kessler. He’s having a phenomenal season in Utah this year, averaging 10.8 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game. But a deeper look reveals that it doesn’t actually make much sense.
Kessler’s name has been floating around the trade rumor mill for the better part of the last two years. Plenty of teams around the league will undoubtedly be interested in trading for him. The Celtics just shouldn’t be one of them.
If Kessler were to join Boston, he would immediately be their third-string center, usurping Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta, and Xavier Tillman in the rotation. But that’s not what they would be trading for.
See, right now, Kessler is playing almost 30 minutes per game for the Jazz. He’s their full-time starter. That means they will want a starter-value return for him. And at just 23 years old (and still being on his rookie contract), that probably means at least one first-round pick, and likely more.
Boston would have to give up a starter-value return for a guy who would be their third-string. And when you consider how solid Kornet has been this year, that exchange doesn’t make sense.
On top of that, the Celtics are a second-apron team, so trading future assets in any deal is dangerous, considering how financially restricted they are regarding the moves they can make.
Plus, after next season, the Celtics would have to worry about extending Kessler. And based on his production, it’s more than likely that he’ll be looking to get somewhere around $20 million per season (if not more).
Handing out that much money with the guys they already have on their books would be crazy for the Celtics.
Kessler is a great rotation big man. He’s a rebounding machine who doubles as one of the better rim protectors in the NBA. But a deal just doesn’t make sense for the Celtics right now.