The Boston Celtics didn't just stabilize their center rotation by acquiring Nikola Vucevic, who met with the local media on Friday, in the days leading up to the trade deadline. They also masterfully maneuvered to dip below the luxury tax line.
The franchise has saved $325 million since starting roster reconstruction after its second-round playoff elimination at the hands of the New York Knicks. In the process, they gained the ability to receive more salary than they send out in a trade, shed certain spending restrictions, and can sign anyone on the buyout market. Regarding that last bit of flexibility they unlocked, don't expect them to utilize it to go back over the luxury tax threshold.
What the Celtics also did was put themselves in a position to reset the repeater tax. They can do so by staying below the luxury tax line again next season. That would make it easier for them to make a significant roster addition.
Brad Stevens addresses the repeater tax
Boston must now backfill its roster to meet the requirement of carrying at least 14 players on standard contracts. They have 14 days from the finalization of their deadline-day transactions to do this. That process began with converting Amari Williams from a two-way deal. The franchise will likely do so with Ron Harper Jr. as well.
From there, the Celtics could go ahead and do so with second-round pick Max Shulga or the newly acquired John Tonje. The latter arrived in the trade that sent Chris Boucher to the Utah Jazz. Like Shulga, Tonje is on a two-way deal.
However, if there's a player on the buyout market that Boston likes and can remain below the luxury tax while bringing on board, that candidate is probably the favorite for the team's 14th roster spot.
If the Celtics can stay below that threshold for the rest of the campaign, a likely prospect, then the chance to reset the repeater tax next season could influence how they build their 2026-27 roster.
It's a topic Brad Stevens addressed early at his media availability a day after the trade deadline.
"I think what we did, like the directive at this deadline, you know, obviously, this summer we had to get under the second apron. That was every basketball reason in the world for that. And was the right thing to do," said Stevens.
"The directive at this trade deadline was, let's see if we can, again, find some size that we could give ourselves, you know, a little bit more depth there, and make sure that we are more prepared for some of the physicality that's coming down the road, if we're able to, ultimately, be in the playoffs, and however long you're in the playoffs, right? You have to have that. There's just a physical toll that can be taken on a team."
Stevens also reiterated a message that the Celtics have voiced whenever they get asked about the role aprons and the luxury tax will play in their roster-making decisions.
"The directive was always just see what we can do with the team," stated the team's president of basketball operations. "After the Vuc trade, then, you know, we saw that as an opportunity. But next year, if there's something that we look at and we say, we gotta take advantage of it right now, then we're going to try to take advantage of it; Bill's been really clear with that. I think we saw, again, the tax, for me, was just, there was an opportunity with two days left before the trade deadline that we didn't necessarily think would be there."