Celtics Trim Roster By Waiving Three Players Ahead Of Season Opener

Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens has plenty of work to do before Boston’s season opener next Tuesday.

The Celtics have to finalize their roster by 5 p.m. ET on Monday and cut three players Thursday to get their squad closer to the 15-player maximum. Boston is allowed to carry 18 player total with three of them on two-way contracts.

The Celtics waived roster long-shots Jay Scrubb, Ron Harper Jr. and Hason Ward, per the NBA’s transaction log. All three are expected to stay with Boston’s organization and play for its G League affiliate in Maine this season.

Ward, who was a standout high school hooper in Massachusetts, signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Celtics just a day before getting waived, but it made it easier for the adept shot blocker to stick with Boston since the organization retained his G League rights.

And it was just last week that Scrubb signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Celtics. The guard starred for Boston during Summer League action in 2023 to land a two-way contract, but then suffered a torn ACL last October. The 24-year-old is fully cleared to play.

Harper, who spent the last two seasons with the Toronto Raptors, played for the Celtics in Summer League this year and the 6-foot-6 forward averaged 6.8 points in four games.

The Celtics also waived Dmytro Skapintsev on Wednesday and their roster currently has 18 players, including three two-way players in JD Davison, Drew Peterson and Anton Watson.

Boston has only one player left on the roster on an Exhibit 10 deal in Lonnie Walker IV. Walker had a strong preseason and the Celtics will have to make a tough decision regarding his roster spot.