I haven’t been the only one to connect some dots with the Nuggets looking to salary dump a starter and the Celtics conveniently holding a trade exception worth almost $27.7 million from their Anfernee Simons trade. Denver needs to save money to sign Peyton Watson, and the easiest way for them to do that is by trading the veteran wing man Cam Johnson.
Johnson is set to make $23.06 million next season on the last year of his deal, so the Celtics could absorb his contract without sending anything back to Denver, which would be massive for them. Johnson is also a solid NBA starter and a great shooter who would fit in very well in Joe Mazzulla’s system.
This idea became more than dot-connecting on Sunday as Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype reported that the Celtics, along with the Lakers, Magic, Heat, and Clippers, have shown interest in trading for Johnson.
Celtics have major advantage in Johnson trade
Johnson is obviously a good player, and the only reason the Nuggets want to move him is to save money. In that sense, the Celtics should have a great advantage over the field, as they could take in Johnson’s salary with their TPE, which would save Denver as much money as possible.
Being financially motivated, that would likely be more appealing to the Nuggets than taking back a slightly smaller salary or multiple smaller ones, as they’d just have to turn around and flip those players to save more money. The Boston deal would be the cleanest and could likely help Denver solve all of their issues in one fell swoop.
Johnson an ideal pivot if Celtics can’t get Murphy
We keep hearing about the Celtics’ desire to add Trey Murphy III, another sharp-shooting wing who would fit perfectly into the TPE, but the Pelicans are asking for two or three first-round picks, and there seems to be a pretty competitive market. There’s a real chance the Cs get priced out, and another team makes New Orleans an offer they can’t refuse.
Johnson may not be as good as Murphy. He’s a few years older, and his contract is expiring. But he’s a pretty comparable player overall and plays a similar role. He may not be a core building block type of piece like Murphy would, but the cost to acquire seems much more realistic.
The Celtics should definitely still kick the tires on Murphy and see if they can get him to Boston, but if that proves to be too rich for their blood, Johnson makes for a natural Plan B.
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