Western Conference Executive Makes Telling Prediction Over Celtics Chances Of A Trade

With less than a month until the Feb. 5 trade deadline, the Boston Celtics have some tough decisions to make. This season was supposed to be a gap year. Yet, Joe Mazzulla’s coaching has helped the Celtics emerge as genuine contenders in the Eastern Conference, with the team currently holding the second seed.

Brad Stevens will need to choose whether to continue making moves to potentially duck under the luxury tax or whether to double down on the current roster and seek out a difference-maker via trade.

When speaking with Sean Deveney of Heavy on Sports, a Western Conference executive who chose to remain anonymous, predicted that Boston won’t make a sizeable trade before the deadline.

“It is too difficult a needle to thread, sending out a big salary and getting back a good player who makes half as much money,” the Executive said. “They’ll try, but …”

Should the Celtics decide to dip their toes into the trade market, a big man should be atop their shopping list. However, if Anfernee Simons comes up in trade talks, Stevens may need to prioritize a replacement guard.

Whatever the Celtics decide to do, it’s unlikely to have too much of an impact on how things play out during the second half of the regular season. Nevertheless, if the front office and coaching staff believe the team can challenge for the Eastern Conference Finals, they would be wise to see what trade opportunities are out there.

Coming into the season, Boston was expected to continue retooling the roster next summer. And while that’s still likely, it doesn’t mean a deal can’t be struck in the coming weeks, especially if it gives the current roster a greater shot at success.