If the Boston Celtics are going to get under the second apron of the luxury tax, that would require trading an important player or two from this past season’s roster.
One player who the C’s could potentially consider trading is Jrue Holiday. He is a tremendous all-around guard and still one of the best wing defenders in the league. He also brings championship experience and great leadership.
But Holiday is also 35 years old, has three more years left on his contract with an average annual salary of around $34 million, and some of his stats declined this past season. He scored only 11.1 points per game — his lowest single-season scoring average since his 2009-10 rookie campaign. Holiday’s 35.3 3-point percentage was his lowest since 2018-19.
The Celtics also have good depth in the backcourt with Derrick White, Payton Pritchard and Jaylen Brown, among others.
One team that might be interested in a potential Holiday trade this summer is the Sacramento Kings.
“New general manager Scott Perry, remember, immediately highlighted the Kings’ need for improved playmaking during his introductory press conference and sources have duly linked Sacramento to various guards known to be available this summer,” Jake Fischer reported on The Stein Line Substack (via Bleacher Report). “That list includes Holiday in Boston and (Marcus) Smart in Washington… and stretches to more affordable free agent ballhandlers like Malcolm Brogdon.”
The Kings aren’t the only team that could be interested in acquiring Holiday. Marc Stein reported late last month that the Dallas Mavericks are “expected to at least explore whether there are any feasible trade pathways” to a Holiday deal, while adding “complicated as that would likely be given the three years and $104 million still left on Holiday’s contract.”
There are different Celtics-Mavericks trade packages you could come up with that would make some sense for both sides. It’s much harder to conjure up those deals with the Kings. Frankly, the Kings just don’t have a good roster.
A deal where DeMar DeRozan (and another player or two) goes to the Celtics in a Holiday trade would work financially, but the Kings guard isn’t exactly the type of player who would thrive in Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla’s 3-point focused system. DeRozan has scored 20-plus points per game in 12 straight seasons, but he mostly takes mid-range shots and doesn’t attempt many 3-pointers. He’s a career 30 percent shooter from beyond the arc. He also isn’t an amazing playmaker, he doesn’t rebound at a high level and his perimeter defense is average.
DeRozan is also 35 years old, so he wouldn’t be a long-term fit, either.
There are ways to make a league-compliant trade where Holiday goes to the Kings, but the return for the Celtics likely wouldn’t be as strong as it might be from other potential trade partners.
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