With training camp now underway, the Celtics roster is almost completely set. There is still a battle going for the final two-way spot, and they technically have the flexibility to make another move or add a 15th player to the roster, but sitting just a hair under the luxury tax line, it’s safe to say they’re probably, more or less, done.
But that doesn’t mean they don’t still have some important business matters to take care of in the coming weeks. The biggest one that’s getting all of the attention is a new contract extension for Payton Pritchard. Pritchard became eligible on October 1st, with the deadline coming quickly on October 19th for Boston to work out a deal with one of their core players.
That’s a massive decision for both sides, and one that could take some time and effort to figure out. They also have two other contract decisions to make ahead of a deadline, but these ones should be significantly easier, and those are team options for Baylor Scheierman and Hugo Gonzalez.
Both players are still on their rookie deals, with Baylor set to enter his third season and Hugo his second. Scheierman and Gonzalez both broke out in a major way last season and are expected to have even bigger roles this year as chaotic two-way wings who can defend, rebound, create some offense, and knock down shots. These guys do a bit of everything and were crucial to the Celtics’ success a year ago.
That should only continue to be the case with opportunities opening up, and for that reason, it would be fairly shocking if the Celtics don’t exercise both options for next season ahead of the November 2nd deadline.
Scheierman and Gonzalez are on massive value-deals for Celtics
For Scheierman, this would mean opting into the fourth and final season of his rookie deal, just $4.95 million, which would be a massive bargain based on everything we’ve seen so far. In Gonzalez’s case, the option is for just his third year at $3.06 million, with another team option the following season for $5.53 million.
Unless last season was a total fluke, all of these numbers should be no-brainers and basically formalities for the Celtics to pick up. The only reason not to pick up these options prior to November 2nd would be to leave some flexibility, or possibly extend them to longer contracts. We saw them wait with Jordan Walsh and Neemias Queta, picking up their options this summer and extending both, but those were very different circumstances.
Neither of those players had come close to proving themselves to the level that Baylor and Hugo already have, plus the Celtics were in a transition period and pinching pennies to duck the tax. Now, Boston has a clear direction forward, and these young players are a huge part of it. Plus, after this season, they’ll likely have reset the repeater tax and will be free to spend without worrying about major penalties.
Nothing is certain in the NBA, but I think it’s safe to say that Brad Stevens and the Celtics are very high on both Scheierman and Gonzalez, and want them to be around for a long time. Picking up their team options before November 2nd should be one of the easier decisions this front office has to make.
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