Now that the bizarre Dillon Mitchell saga has ended with him signing a two-way contract with the Celtics, most of their offseason business is over. They have 14 players on the roster and sit $1.7 million below the luxury tax line. They could add a 15th player, but at this point, even a veteran minimum contract would put them into the tax, which must be avoided to reset the repeater tax and the massive penalties that come along with it.
For that reason, I’d be very surprised if they enter the season with more than 14 players, and if anything, they could add someone later in the season on a prorated deal for $1.7 million or lower.
However, they do have one more two-way spot available, with only Mitchell and Amari Williams currently signed. John Tonje looked like the obvious choice for the third and final spot, but he signed with the Trail Blazers on a guaranteed two-year two-way deal, eliminating that option for Boston.
Milos Uzan and Tucker DeVries lead battle for final two-way spot
The most likely candidates for the final spot are two of the standouts from summer league, Tucker DeVries and Milos Uzan. Both players went undrafted and joined the team in Las Vegas, earning Exhibit-10 contracts, which are essentially training camp deals that can be converted to two-ways or waived before the season.
Uzan is a point guard who showed steady ball-handling and shooting with solid defense and size for a guard at 6’4”. The Celtics could surely use a true floor general type of guy off the bench, and that’s what they’d be getting with Uzan if they can develop him into an NBA-caliber player after four years in college, with two at Oklahoma followed by two at Houston.
DeVries is a 6’7” wing known for his marksmanship. He was one of the best shooters to come out of college this year, and while he has a lot to work on, he at least has one elite skill that should easily translate to the NBA. It’s not hard to imagine him having a Sam Hauser-like developmental path from Maine to the Celtics someday, perhaps even eventually taking over Hauser’s role in Boston.
The Celtics will still get all of training camp and the preseason to get an extended look at these guys and any other prospects, both internally and around the league, before making a final decision, but other than that, they’re likely done for the summer. They’ve accomplished all their goals for this offseason, and while we can debate whether or not it’s a championship roster, they’ve established a clear direction and created the optionality they so desperately desired.
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