The Celtics did their work early this offseason, signing the vast majority of their free agents within the opening week of July. Boston is bringing back three big men in Luke Kornet, Xavier Tillman and Neemias Queta to round out the team’s front court. Rookie Baylor Scheiermann is the only new face on Boston’s roster so far, giving the team 14 players under contract.
“We had some guys turn down more money other places to come back,” Celtics director of player personnel Austin Ainge said last week. “It feels really good that guys we care about a lot to come back and go for another run.”
Brad Stevens and his front office have spent the week in Las Vegas evaluating the team’s own young players and others across the league during Summer League action. Stevens spoke with reporters in Las Vegas about where Boston’s roster stands on Wednesday night, discussing the status of free agent forward Oshae Brissett specifically.
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“We have to be mindful of the last roster spot what our needs might be,” Stevens told reporters in Las Vegas via CLNS Media. “Oshae had a terrific year with us, not only when he got the opportunity on the court as a teammate and as a person and obviously, in his shoes, there might be a desire to play more. I always want to be respectful of that.”
Brissett opted out of his player option with Boston before the open of free agency after a sporadic role with the team during much of the team’s championship run. With free agency movement slowing down around the league, it’s unlikely that Brissett will be looking at more than the veteran’s minimum on a deal elsewhere. However, he could find a chance to compete for more minutes elsewhere than could be available for him in Boston. For that reason, Stevens acknowledged that the team’s remaining open roster spot will be largely dependent on whether more depth is needed amid Kristaps Porzingis’ recovery from offseason leg surgery.
“We kept 14 most of the year last year and then we added at the end of the year,” Stevens said. “We’ll see how the next few months play themselves with regard to people’s availability. Obviously Kristaps is going to have a long rehab process ahead of him and we have to determine what’s the best need for our team in that 15th spot.”
Boston added Queta to a 15-man roster spot last year in April but if another injury strikes, the team could look to fill that roster spot from the onset, particularly if the team’s younger contributors aren’t ready for NBA minutes. Boston has already filled two of its two-way spots with JD Davison and Drew Peterson with second-round pick Anton Watson expected to fill the final two-way spot.
