Everyone knows the Boston Celtics need another superstar player to be a legit contender for the NBA championship.
Sure, the Celtics might be able to beat an injured and tired Cleveland Cavaliers team and take the Eastern Conference crown with their current roster, but an upgrade is needed to beat the Golden State Warriors or San Antonio Spurs in a potential NBA Finals matchup.
The real debate is whether the Celtics should consider trading their 2017 first-round pick swap with the Brooklyn Nets — the potential No. 1 pick in a loaded draft — or the Nets’ 2018 first-round pick.
These picks arguably are Boston’s best assets to dangle as the Feb. 23 NBA trade deadline approaches, and the Celtics reportedly aren’t making them untouchable.
“Danny’s let it be known that he’s willing to talk about the Nets’ picks,” one league executive told the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett in an article written Friday. “But you want one of those guys, you have to be willing to give up a star.”
That star could be Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler, who the Celtics have been linked to in trade rumors going back more than a year.
If the Celtics are going to give up the pick with the best chance to win the lottery in a deep, talented draft, it has to be for a player of Butler’s caliber. Basically, one of the top 15 players in the league, and preferably one without an expiring contract.
The Celtics could keep the pick, but the best players in this draft are point guards. Unfortunately for Boston, it doesn’t need any more point guards.
Celtics reportedly interested in Suns forward P.J. Tucker >>
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
