Stevens assesses Celtics’ needs, if there are any

They’ll never call Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens “Trader Brad” because of his understated personality that is the antithesis of his predecessor, Danny Ainge.

But Stevens and Ainge share the same aggression to improve their rosters. Ainge was always itching to make a trade, always wondering if his next move would be the best. For Stevens, he ponders adding to an already deep and talented roster.

Stevens added Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, and Derrick White in the past two years, along with developmental players such as Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet. Stevens said this past week that he’s pleased with the roster and the team’s lone need, an athletic wing, could be filled by someone already on it.

But that doesn’t mean Stevens isn’t scanning rosters around the league, perhaps seeking one final piece. Players such as Saddiq Bey or Jalen McDaniels

fit into the team’s $6.2 million trade exception, but the meticulous Stevens asks himself several questions before pondering any move.

Does that player fit into the Celtics’ locker room environment? Will he openly complain about a lack of playing time? Will he adapt to a different role? Stevens does not want to disrupt one of the more harmonious locker rooms he’s experienced since arriving in Boston 10 years ago.

“You try to be smart when you add,” he said. “How does it fit and how does it not take away? The tool to do that is the exception, which is not big. The major trade deadline move for us was Jrue the day before the season started. We just have to be on the lookout for how we can fortify it and we can make it better. And I don’t want to say that person is not in the building because they might be right now and I’ve been very encouraged when our bench has gotten in games that don’t play, how they’ve helped us.”

Stevens looked to upgrade the bench by signing Oshae Brissett, Lamar Stevens, Svi Mykhailiuk, and Neemias Queta, who have all received meaningful minutes at various times. Stevens said that group could boost the roster with increased time as opposed to a roster move. They’ll get their opportunity before the Feb. 8 trade deadline.

“We’re looking at, ‘OK, how do we improve to give ourselves the best chance?’ ” Stevens said. “I think there’s different ways to do it obviously. You can improve from within and we can get better in what we do at both ends of the court, hopefully make strides individually in how we fit together, and we can improve from free agency or trades or whatever. I do think the key to us is going to be the improvement from within. I just think that we’ve done a really good job of that thus far.

“We’ve been good thus far, but we’re 30-some-odd games in and we’ve all lived this. This is a journey and we’re going to have our ups and downs from here on out. But we’re very capable and I think we have shown that.”

Yet Stevens will receive and make calls leading up to the trade deadline. January may determine whether his team needs another addition. The schedule is difficult.

“First of all, we don’t know anything that could happen between now and Feb. 8,” he said. “Knock on wood, you want to be as fully healthy as you possibly can be. You’re looking to fortify yourself as much as possible. If you can do that again and see the growth from within with young players, with guys who aren’t getting as much of a crack in everyday rotations, that’s what you’re looking at. Again, I think there’s two ways, when you add players to your team they can add to your team or take away from your team. I think you’ve just got to be careful. And that’s something to think about when you have as many guys complementing each other as well as ours. We may go on a 10game skid and that’s a different story. I hope not.”

Because the Celtics have the fifthhighest payroll in the NBA, they are above the second apron, which limits their ability to trade and acquire players, especially after this season. That means the Celtics could not add a player bought out of their contract who earns more than the mid-level exception, which is roughly $12 million. Stevens will have to be creative to add to the roster.

“I think it will impact [us] a lot more moving forward, obviously when all of the restrictions kick in,” Stevens said. “Obviously, we’ve made a decision that was well informed from our standpoint with the green light from our ownership to spend and to be over the second apron right now. But those are things that people are going to have to make decisions as the tools get more restricted moving forward.”

There has been a groundswell of support for White making the All-Star team. White is not likely to be voted in by fans, meaning he would have to earn his spot through coaches’ voting for reserves. Stevens said he will push for White, who has been the team’s most valuable player because of his impact on offense and defense.

Stevens said White has flourished because he’s more comfortable and confident after nearly two full seasons in Boston.

“I don’t think I would have put a ceiling on him,” Stevens said. “I think we said this when we got him, it’s going to be a transition for him. He’s a really conscientious person. He’s never been a usage, ‘get out of my way I’m going to make every play’ type of guy or mindset. There was going to be a little transition and one of the reasons we traded for him is he had all those years left on that deal. We knew that he was a good fit then and down the road. I just love being around him. I’m really happy for him. We would have never put a ceiling on anybody like that, but it’s fun to see him recognized for how good he is, and he’s really good. The way he impacts basketball games is really special.”

Stevens also gave a full endorsement to coach Joe Mazzulla, who was named December’s Eastern Conference Coach of the Month and has led the Celtics to the league’s top record. There was a question as to whether Mazzulla would make the necessarily strides after a first season of triumphs and setbacks.

“I think Joe’s done a great job of right out of the gate saying this is how we need to be, this is what we need to do for each other to be the best we can be,” Stevens said. “These are the strengths of your teammates, how can we get those out of them and make that a focal point? People use the word sacrifice a lot, I think it’s the idea of serving your team, being there for the good of your group, and I think he’s done a great job of that all the way through.

“We’re not going to be perfect, but again we’ve got a shot and we’ve got an unbelievable group of people, just all pulling in one direction. My phone doesn’t ring very often; it’s a really good group.”

Porzingis is also making a bid for his first All-Star appearance. He’s sparkled on offense and turned into a reliable rim protector. The acquisition was risky considering his injury history and unhappiness in Dallas and New York. Stevens said Porzingis’s past is a nonissue.

“People get caught up in whatever a guy is from the time he’s 19 to 22 and they keep that as his bio forever. You’ve got to watch how people improve and get better, and you can kind of see that in time over Washington,” Stevens said. “I think he’s improved and even taken a step this year. I think he can still get a lot better. We’re asking him to do a lot of things specifically on the defensive end that he’s not used to and his continued growth and ascension is going to be important for our team. But he’s been great. Obviously, the way he puts you in binds as a defense is pretty special, pretty unique.”

On whether he will push coaches for All-Star votes, Stevens said, “No one is watching more film than those 14 coaches and the video coordinators they’re sitting in there with making those decisions. I got some emails and I got some phone calls and I always kind of felt that was like I watched this my whole life. I think everybody knows our guys are really good.

“When I was voting for All-Star, my tiebreaker was winning. So if our team is playing really well throughout the rest of this month then our tiebreaker may come into play. But I think that ultimately, there’s only seven guys they vote for. What they should do is add to it, take 13 or 14 people instead of 12. I think we have several guys that are candidates.”