Danny Ainge and the Boston Celtics have just over a month to decide if they're going to use their $28.5 million trade exception before the NBA trade deadline.
From Harrison Barnes of the Sacramento Kings to JJ Redick of the New Orleans Pelicans, a handful of players have been mentioned over the last few weeks as potential Celtics fits. But are they really on Boston's radar? Are the C's positioned to swing a major deal in the next month?
Forsberg: Checking the panic meters on Kemba, late-game defense
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer joined Early Edition on Tuesday to discuss.
"We'll see what opportunities come up over the next month ahead of the deadline. But it was weird, honestly, on Saturday night. Like out of nowhere I had two separate people text me that 'Hey, the Celtics are up to something' and then I check with other people that I trust a lot and everybody was saying it seems that they are up to something, they're on the prowl looking for a player out there," O'Connor said.
"It's still unclear who though. I mean, you look around the league, Danny Ainge himself said recently about looking for a bigger player who can shoot. Maybe a guy like Thaddeus Young could play some small-ball five for you, a P.J. Tucker from the Rockets, a versatile wing. There's good role players to be had out there and for Boston, they have enough assets and enough first-round draft picks where if they decide to if the price is right -- I do think Boston will be able to make a move if the price is right."
The C's haven't exactly been playing their best basketball as of late, and seeding could be a real factor in the Eastern Conference come playoff time. Does this mean we should expect Ainge to make a deal sooner rather than later?
Boston Celtics
Find the latest Boston Celtics news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Boston.
"I think so much of everything is about timing and right now, this is why it was so weird on Saturday night that it came out, same as the timing of the Derrick Rose-to-the-Knicks trade, there's not a lot of conversation right now that seems legitimate or like anything that could turn into something," O'Connor said.
"With Boston, if something does pop up that is worthy of doing now that can help them, I don't see why they would wait. But ultimately, I don't think some of those guys like a P.J. Tucker would become available until closer to the deadline. Because right now, Houston's still in it, they're still competing and same is true for so many teams across the league which is kind of a byproduct of the play-in tournament: the fact there's just more playoff spots, so you have more teams that have more to play for longer."
The 2021 NBA trade deadline is set for March 25 at 3 p.m. ET.