Celtics' complete latest part of master plan in move that should come as no surprise

Saturday, the Boston Celtics announced that they signed Max Shulga from a two-way deal to a standard two-year contract. As previously explained, that was an anticipated move. The reason is that it's a part of a masterful and precise series of maneuvers that will allow the franchise to finish this league year below the luxury tax.

Boston had recently gone 14 days with only 12 players on standard contracts. That's the maximum time a team is allowed to do so. The Celtics also went that route immediately after the trade deadline.

Then, after 14 days, they signed John Tonje from a two-way pact to a 10-day deal. The organization also added old friend Dalano Banton on a 10-day agreement.

Now that two weeks are up, Boston must add at least two players on standard contracts. That's why the second seed in the Eastern Conference has signed Max Shulga to a standard, two-year minimum rookie deal and Charles Bassey to a 10-day deal, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

What to know about Max Shulga

The Celtics selected the former Atlantic-10 Player of the Year with the 57th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Shulga is generating 16.4 points per game with the Maine Celtics this season. He's converting on 39.9 percent of the 6.4 threes he is launching. The six-foot-four guard is also distributing 7.1 assists, grabbing 4.5 rebounds, and swiping 1.7 steals per tilt.

The Kyiv, Ukraine, native is a bulldog on defense. At the other end of the floor, he's a knockdown shooter and reliable lead-guard.

Over the summer, Ryan Odom, Shulga's head coach at Utah State and Virginia Commonwealth University [VCU], discussed the Celtics' rookie's development that led to him going from being outside of the rotation with the Aggies to starring for the Rams.

"A lot of young players will get discouraged at times when it's not going exactly as planned, and you're not playing as much as you want. Eventually, that can sometimes get the best of you and hurt you in terms of reaching your potential, and hurt your progress. Cause you get focused on the wrong things. And I think Max never really did that," conveyed Odom.

"He understood that his time was going to come. He invested in himself and in the team and helped the team win [in] whatever role he could. And whatever minutes he was afforded, he tried to make the most of them."

That mindset has enabled Shulga to maximize his opportunities repeatedly. It is fueling his growth during a rookie year mostly spent sharpening his game in the G League, where he is developing into a player who could add to the list of success stories the Celtics' infrastructure has produced.