The Celtics are remaining patient with their open 15th roster spot and that trend should continue after a surprising announcement from one roster candidate Monday night. Just hours after being released by the Utah Jazz, Otto Porter Jr. announced his retirement from the NBA.
“For the past 11 years, I had the chance to live my lifelong dream of playing in the NBA,” Porter said in a statement. “That dream was capped by winning an NBA Championship! Unfortunately, my body is not allowing me to play at the level that I expect of myself, and I have therefore decided to retire.”
The 30-year-old Porter Jr. was traded to the Jazz from the Toronto Raptors last month in a deal that saw Kelly Olynyk and Ochai Agbaji head to the Raptors. There was plenty of speculation that Porter Jr. would receive a buyout and potentially hit the free agent market but that had faded in recent days after Porter Jr. remained on the Jazz roster past March 1st, making him ineligible for the postseason with a new team.
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However, Utah elected to release Porter Jr. on Monday, freeing up a roster spot as they signed two new deals (Darius Bazely, Kenneth Lofton Jr.). Porter Jr. had not appeared in an NBA game since December, sign perhaps his body was keeping him from being a meaningful NBA contributor despite his young age. He only played in more than 28 games in one of his final five seasons, back with the Warriors in the 2021-22 season when he helped them win an NBA title.
Porter Jr. played 11 NBA seasons in his career with five teams after the Wizards selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. The small forward averaged 10.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in 527 regular season games but never lived up to his billing as a top-tier draft pick even after signing a max rookie extension with the Wizards back in 2016.
With the Celtics roster remaining at close to full health with no major injuries, the team could wait several more weeks before deciding what to do with their final roster spot ahead of the postseason.
