Stevens searching for green flexibility
Says Walker deal was ‘difficult’ but Horford opens more financial opportunities
To hear Brad Stevens tell it, the process of executing his first NBA trade was conflicting.
He got to bring back Al Horford, a player he cherished and indeed depended on as a coach. On the other hand, he had to send out another player he liked — Kemba Walker.
But personal feelings aside, the former Celtics coach said during a media Zoom call on Monday that now was the time to move Walker, the $73 million due him over the next two years, and the 16th pick in this year’s NBA draft.
It’s all about creating flexibility — Horford will save them about $9 million next season and only has a partial $14.9 million guarantee in 2022-23 — in the near future as well as long term.
The Celtics appear to have had it with draft picks for the time being. As Stevens admitted, it’s time to bring in the kind of veteran talent that can best support his young stars — Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
“I think that is an important thing,” said the Celtics’ president of basketball operations, while also admitting that the Celtics face a balancing act if they are to add veteran talent like Horford to the roster either via a trade or free agency, while also giving the trio of Aaron Nesmith, Romeo Langford and Payton Pritchard time to develop.
“I think we have to be smart about it, but whether in free agency with the (limitations) we have, because we’re up against it in a lot of ways right now, or in extending our own players or in looking for people from the outside with regard to trades, I do think that experience and been-there-donethat is a good thing,” he said. “But again, you have to be smart about it. And we have a lot of promising young players, so there’s a balance there. It’s a balance that we’ve been walking, I think, for a while, and I think that what we need to do is continue to see great growth out of those players and ultimately decide who makes our best players better. And that’s why we wanted kind of an open road ahead.”
Opening that road came at an emotional price for Stevens, though.
“Well, I think that’s part of the job change, right? It is difficult. Because I really liked Kemba, period, end of story,” he said. “He is a super-likable person and, again, I think the deal was made and I’m sure it’s been talked about on the outside and everything else but there are a couple things.
“We had to look at it with the idea of moving that first-round pick this year, it gave us the opportunity to look at a road ahead with a few more options, from the financial flexibility standpoint, with the picks, all of our future first-round picks past this year, which, again, give you more options.
“And then it was the best deal that we thought with regard to returning players, right? The opportunity to add Al, who makes significantly less money but is a really good player who has corporate knowledge of this environment that’s really excited to be back in Boston and has a good feel for not only playing with our guys but also has made them better. I think his ability to pass, his ability to play a couple of positions, but certainly stretch the floor against bigs, and his ability to guard guys that are all very good. But his impact on others and his ability to lift others is one of his great strengths. To have the ability to get that in return and gain financial flexibility moving forward, the cost, right, was a person that you really, really like and one first-round pick.”