One of the most respected NBA insiders is convinced the Boston Celtics are looking to make a big splash once free agency officially opens Saturday.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported Tuesday that the team is planning to aggressively pursue Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward, while also working on a trade with the Indiana Pacers for small forward Paul George, set to be a free agent after next season. Although the Celtics would have to move a few players to make the salary situation work, a 53-win team would be getting significantly better assuming a core of George, Hayward, Al Horford and Isaiah Thomas.
League sources told Wojnarowski that Boston would be looking to shore up things with Hayward before executing the trade for George. Mike Giardi of CSNNE also reported over the weekend that people in George’s camp think the 27-year-old is a “great fit” for the Celtics.
Wojnarowski’s report aligns with comments Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck made in February on The SportsHub when he said the team was looking to add “two significant players” this offseason.
Rumors swirled on draft night that the Celtics and Pacers were aggressively working on a deal after George told the franchise he plans to leave to play for his hometown Los Angeles Lakers in 2018. Wojnarowski reported Tuesday that “a third-team scenario fell through late in the evening that stalled talks.” He added that the Pacers are still focused on completing a deal with the Celtics, who have plenty of assets in the form of young talented players and future draft picks.
Adam Kaufman, a radio host in Boston, said last week he was told the Celtics were in position to deal for George with a contract extension in place, but that it was contingent on Hayward signing, too. On Tuesday, Kaufman said he was told the offer for George would include two first-round picks and a player like Tyler Zeller or Avery Bradley. Boston has a total of eight first-round picks in the next three drafts.
Although Bradley has been instrumental to Boston’s success since he was drafted in 2010, he’s set to be an unrestricted free agent next offseason. At 26 years old with a pretty extensive injury history, it’s reasonable to assume that Boston could be looking to get something in return for Bradley as opposed to letting him walk for nothing next summer.
Bradley likely won’t be the only big name from last year’s top-seeded team that won’t be back next year. After drafting Duke’s Jayson Tatum and with the encouraging development of Jaylen Brown, it’s likely Jae Crowder won’t be in Boston much longer, especially if George or Hayward are acquired. Crowder is due about $22 million before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2020. Marcus Smart is also due $4.5 million next season before he becomes a restricted free agent in 2018, so he could be someone else the team looks to move to make salary cap space for max contracts.
League sources told Wojnarowski that the team continues to gain confidence when it comes to signing an extension with George, as opposed to using him as a one-year rental. With how much Celtics President Danny Ainge seems to value his assets, it’s hard to imagine him giving up too much without a commitment that George would sign an extension with Boston. He already expressed his intention to go to Los Angeles next offseason, but has said in the past that he would’ve stayed with the Pacers if they were going to contend. The Celtics are clearly closer to contending than either the Lakers or the Pacers.
According to the Indianapolis Star, after being eliminated from the playoffs by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, George said, “What I’ve always been preaching, more so than you see now, is having guys I can win with. Wanting to win, it came from the heart and it’s very sincere on wanting to bring that to Indiana … It’s all about bringing a championship to Indiana.”
His tone changed completely just a few weeks later when he announced his plans to leave the team in free agency. Since then, team president Kevin Pritchard has publicly described George’s announcement as a “gut punch.” He also made it clear that the team plans to deal him before next season and implied the sooner, the better.
George, a four-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA selection, has been one of the most effective two-way players in the league over the last few seasons. He averaged a career-high 23.7 points per game last season to go along with 6.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 steals. He shot 50 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3-point range. George has made the All-NBA Defensive Team three times.
Hayward is coming off a breakout year in Utah, where he led the Jazz to their first playoff appearance since 2011-12 and first series victory since 2009-10. He averaged 21.9 points per game with 5.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and just 1.9 turnovers. The 27-year-old’s numbers weren’t good enough to land him on the All-NBA team for the first time in his career, though.
Rumors have been swirling since last season about Hayward’s connection to Boston, and Coach Brad Stevens in particular.
Hayward grew up about 50 miles from Purdue and both of his parents were Boilermakers. Purdue even offered him a scholarship, according to Sean Deveney of Sporting News. But that didn’t stop Stevens, who was coaching at Butler at the time, from sending handwritten letters to Hayward, asking him to join the Bulldogs instead. On one trip to visit with Hayward, Stevens said he was even wearing a Purdue hat and shorts.
“I was not very happy with him that day,” Stevens told Deveney in 2013.
Hayward eventually committed to Butler and the pair made two trips to the NCAA Tournament – and one appearance in the national championship game – in their two years together.
The obvious connection between Stevens and Hayward has led many to believe that he’ll at least be willing to hear a pitch from Boston once free agency starts.
Hayward’s family had plenty of ties to Purdue, yet he chose Butler so he could play for Stevens. With Wojnarwoski’s most recent report that signing the Jazz forward could lead to trading for George, many Celtics fans likely find themselves daydreaming of Hayward taking another leap of faith to play for Stevens.
(Michelle Berthiaume can be reached at 369-3338,
mberthiaume@cmonitor.com
or on Twitter @MonitorMichelle.)