Morning Sports Update
“This is where the rest of the league is watching.”
The potential for additional Celtics trades: The Celtics have already reportedly agreed to trade two pieces of the 2024 NBA championship roster, but the bigger question is if Boston still has another blockbuster deal or two waiting in the wings.
Both Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis have already been traded according to multiple reports, as the Celtics sought to escape the NBA’s “second apron” luxury tax. With the reported terms of the Porzingis deal, Boston appears to now be under the threshold of that specific component of the league’s luxury tax system. Yet as ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst explained in a Wednesday morning “Get Up!” segment, additional moves aren’t out of the question.
“This is one of the things that could define today in the NBA,” said Windhorst when asked if potential moves involving Jaylen Brown or Derrick White were still possible. “Now that they’ve made these deals, they are under the second apron. If that is their goal, congratulations.
“But, they are still listening,” Windhorst added of Boston leadership, insinuating the possibility of additional trades. “This is where the rest of the league is watching. They are listening on Jaylen Brown. They are listening on Derrick White.”
With Jayson Tatum recovering from a recently ruptured Achilles tendon, the Celtics’ prospects in the 2025-2026 season have been seen as diminished, potentially leading to a roster reshape alongside what the team saw as necessary cuts (pertaining to the luxury tax).
Windhorst pointed to an additional factor of timing. The NBA Draft gets underway on Wednesday (June 25), meaning that there could be a unique short-term market for Brown or White.
“I would be surprised at this point if they move them, but today is draft day,” Windhorst said of the Celtics duo. “There are teams in the top-10 [of the draft order] that would very much like to get their hands on one of these players. Is there an opportunity for the Celtics to move in and get a player in the draft that they think could reform their team around when Jayson Tatum comes back?
“My answer is maybe,” he continued, “otherwise they wouldn’t be listening. So I think Jaylen Brown is staying put. I think Derrick White is staying put, but I can’t rule out stuff that might happen by the end of today.”
The NBA Draft gets underway tonight at 8 p.m. The Celtics enter the annual event holding the 28th and 32nd picks.
Trivia: Speaking of Celtics first-round picks, what 2019 Celtics draft pick was part of the 2022 trade for Derrick White?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He was selected 14th overall by Boston out of Indiana.
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox lost to the Angels 3-2 on Tuesday. The two teams play again today at 4:07 p.m. as Boston tries to avoid being swept.
Tonight, the Revolution host Nashville SC at 7:30 p.m.
More from Boston.com:
Zdeno Chara, Hall of Famer: The former Bruins captain was announced as a Hockey Hall of Fame inductee in his first year of eligibility, joining a 2025 class that includes Joe Thornton and Jack Parker.
Kendrick Perkins’s thoughts on the Celtics: The former Boston center thinks additional moves could be in the works, and his line about Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens warrants a watch.
“Brad Stevens is something else. He’s not just a trip, he’s a vacation.”
On this day: In 1999, one of the standout examples of Pedro Martinez’s sense of humor was captured in a spontaneous moment in the Red Sox dugout. During a 6-1 win over the White Sox, Nomar Garciaparra and Mark Portugal taped Martinez to the dugout pole. Luckily — especially in an earlier era of dugout guard rails — Martinez was not struck by a foul ball.
Daily highlight: Cayden Gaskin made the always exhilarating choice of trying to steal home on Tuesday in a game for the St. Cloud Rox (a Minnesota-based collegiate summer team).
Trivia answer: Romeo Langford
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