(Photo courtesy of the Celtics) “Photograph of the Boston Celtics facing off against the Washington Wizards.”
James Guiry
Connector Staff
The Boston Celtics open the preseason on October 8th against the Memphis Grizzlies. The regular season opens with a game two weeks later, at home, against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Cs will be hitting the court with a fresh look to start the season in 2025. All-Star forward Jayson Tatum is out with a torn Achilles that he suffered in the fourth quarter of a semi final playoff game against the New York Knicks. Tatum’s earliest expected return isn’t until March so Celtics fans can expect to go through at least the entire regular season without Big Deuce.
The Celtics made some big moves to try and get under the second luxury tax apron this season.
By getting under the second apron the Celtics avoid big penalties to trades and draft picks. By doing this, they avoid losing the ability to aggregate trades, or trade multiple players in one deal. They also gain the ability to trade first round picks they own seven years down the line (2033), along with avoiding more penalties. The team is expected to start the season above the first apron.
The Celtics traded Jrue Holiday in a blockbuster trade sending him to the Portland Trailblazers in exchange for Anfernee Simons. The Celtics were initially supposed to receive two second round picks as well, however, there were problems with Holiday’s physical, and they lost the picks. Simons is a 26-year-old shooting guard. He averaged 19.3 points while shooting 42.6% from the field, 2.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game during the 2024-2025 season according to ESPN. He was never really the #1 option in Portland which should work out well with Jaylen Brown and Derrick White on the court acting as Boston’s primary scorers. Simons should play a good complimentary role to those two this year.
The Celtics also traded fan favorite, Kristaps Porzingis. Porzingis along with a 2026 second round pick were sent to the Atlanta Hawks. The Celtics received Georges Niang and a 2031 second round pick that originally belonged to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Along with those moves, Terrance Mann and Atlanta’s first round pick in 2025 (Drake Powell) were sent to the Brooklyn Nets. Niang, along with “two future second-round picks” were then sent to the Utah Jazz in exchange for R.J. Luis Jr. Luis Jr. is a 22-year-old rookie who went undrafted in the 2025 draft on a two-way contract with the Boston Celtics and Maine Celtics. Luis Jr. averaged 18.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game during the 2024-2025 season at St. John’s through 32 starts, earning him consensus 2nd team all American.
The Celtics also signed 22-year-old forward Josh Minott (2 years, $5 million), 26-year-old Center Luka Garza (2 years, $5.5 million) and 32-year-old forward Chris Boucher (1 year, $3.3 million). Minott averaged 2.6 points on 48.9% shooting, 1.0 rebound and 0.4 assists per game while averaging 6.0 minutes in 46 appearances with the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2024-2025 season.
Garza averaged 3.5 points on 49.5% shooting, 1.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. He averaged 5.6 minutes per game through 39 appearances in 2024-2025, also with the Timberwolves. Boucher averaged 10.0 points on 49.2% shooting, 4.5 rebounds and 0.7 assists through 50 games with the Toronto Raptors averaging 17.2 minutes per game.
None of these players are meant to be starters, however they are good depth pieces especially if the Celtics are trying to avoid salary cap penalties.
The Celtics lost centers Luke Kornet and Al Horford to free agency this offseason. Horford has not signed with another team, though he has indicated he will not be coming back to Boston, as most reports claim he will be joining the Golden State Warriors this fall.
In less attractive news, the Celtics lost guard J.D. Davison (Rockets) through free agency. The 22-year-old won the 2024-2025 season’s G-league MVP award. The team decided to waive him because of their established back court and to shed his salary ($2.3 million). The Celtics also selected Hugo Gonzalez with their first-round pick (#28). Gonzalez is a Spanish guard, he averaged 3.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game through 3 seasons with Real Madrid.
Overall, the Celtics are sending out a good team. One that is good enough to crack a playoff spot if they can get the center situation sorted out. If they make the playoffs and Tatum comes back, who knows what can happen?
