Isaiah Thomas returning to Boston undoubtedly would be a feel-good story, but it doesn’t appear to be in the cards.
Thomas, who was in the midst of his first season in Washington, D.C., was traded by the Wizards to the Clippers as part of the three-team deal that delivered Marcus Morris to Los Angeles. Thomas was waived by the Clippers two days after the NBA trade deadline and remains on the open market as of Thursday.
The sharpshooting guard was viewed as a potential trade target for the Celtics leading up to the deadline seeing as Boston could benefit from some bench scoring. But even now with the two-time All-Star free to sign anywhere, the C’s probably aren’t going to pursue a reunion, as made clear by president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, who addressed the matter during an appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher and Rich.”
“Danny Ainge … said the team is monitoring the buyout market but ‘Nothing there interests us right now,'” Yahoo Sports! Keith Smith wrote in a tweet.
“Ainge praised Isaiah Thomas, who is a free agent, but said he’s not sure the fit would be right with this current Celtics team.”
Danny Ainge was speaking on @Toucherandrich this morning and said the team is monitoring the buyout market but "Nothing there interests us right now."
Ainge praised Isaiah Thomas, who is a free agent, but said he's not sure the fit would be right with this current Celtics team.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) February 13, 2020
Thomas was averaging 12.2 points over 23.1 minutes per game with the Wizards before being moved. The 31-year-old probably could provide Boston with some level of a boost, but his services wouldn’t meet the Celtics’ most pressing needs. If Ainge changes course and the C’s do tap into the buyout market, one has to imagine it will be for a big man.
Boston will look to head into the All-Star break on a high note Thursday night when it hosts Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers.
