We’ve known that this day was coming, and now, it’s here. The Celtics are out of days to legally carry fewer than 14 players on their roster, so we knew that Saturday would yield some roster moves for the team in Boston as their roster gymnastics continue as they attempt to stay just a hair below the luxury tax for the season.
The first domino in this phase of the plan was signing Charles Bassey to a 10-day contract, which was reported by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.
Bassey was a second-round draft pick of the 76ers back in 2021, but spent the bulk of his NBA career in San Antonio before going to Memphis, showing glimpses in each stop, but never fully breaking through. He was making waves as a young center for the Spurs and earned a four-year contract, but saw his 2022-23 season cut short by a patella injury, and tore his ACL in December of 2023.
The injuries largely derailed any momentum Bassey had made in the league, and he has spent most of the past few years bouncing around the G League.
Bassey tore it up for Celtics in Las Vegas Summer League
But Celtics fans may remember Bassey from his standout summer league with the team back in Las Vegas. At the time, the center position was a huge mystery for the Celtics after losing Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet in the offseason.
It seemed like there was a natural fit for Bassey in Boston, and Noa Dalzell had reported that Bassey was drawn to the Celtics and their culture of sustained winning. But the deal was never made as the Cs obviously had great confidence in Neemias Queta, and chose to sign Luka Garza and Chris Boucher.
Bassey’s hot summer league was quickly forgotten as Queta proved to be a solid starting center and Garza a solid backup. They added Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline and have since converted rookie second-round pick Amari Williams’s deal from a two-way.
Bassey has a path to minutes for the Celtics
But Boucher and Xavier Tillman Sr. were dealt away, and now Vooch is out for at least a few more weeks. With the team needing to add players anyway, it made sense to take a look at a veteran big man, and Bassey is the most attractive option on the market.
Since summer league, he has been signed and waived by the Hawks, signed to a 10-day contract by the Grizzlies, signed to a G League deal with the Santa Cruz Warriors, and signed two straight 10-day contracts with the Sixers, but nothing has stuck.
This deal with Boston may prove to be more of the same, but again, the Celtics have a genuine need at center at the moment, and they also need to add players to the roster - even beyond this 10-day. More moves are certainly to come, but it would be great to see Bassey get some run off the Celtics’ bench, and possibly even earn a full-time contract with the team that he represented so admirably in Vegas a few months ago.