Getty Kevin Durant, Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics fans can finally rest easy, as we’ve reached a conclusion in the Kevin Durant trade saga, and it hasn’t resulted in Boston giving up Jaylen Brown and multiple assets.
In fact, there hasn’t been a trade of any kind, instead, Durant has reportedly committed to remaining with the Brooklyn Nets moving forward – a move nobody saw coming. The news broke on Tuesday, August 23, when The Athletic’s Shams Charania tweeted that Durant and Brookyln’s front office had finally buried the hatchet, and would be remaining together for the upcoming season and beyond.
Steve Nash, Joe Tsai and Sean Marks met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles on Monday and have decided to move forward with partnership, Nets say.
“Steve Nash, Joe Tsai, and Sean Marks met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles on Monday and have decided to move forward with the partnership, Nets say,” Charania tweeted.
Durant’s decision puts an end to the most discussed trade scenario of the 2022 NBA off-season and will ensure that a large swath of Celtics fans breathe a sigh of relief, as many were opposed to the notion of adding Durant at the expense of Brown – a homegrown talent.
While the Nets may have found themselves being swept at the hands of the Celtics during the post-season, Durant was still a force throughout 2021-22, averaging 29.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 6.4 assists per game during the regular season.
Boston Needs to Keep Jaylen Brown Happy
A big concern for the Celtics moving forward will be the happiness of Jaylen Brown, after all, Boston’s star wing has had to endure almost a month of his name being floated in trade rumors on a daily basis.
Brown has two years left of his remaining deal before he can opt-out and become an unrestricted free agent – one would hope that Brad Stevens and Ime Udoka can ensure he feels like a vital member of the roster and would be willing to re-sign long-term once the time comes.
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Of course, the best way to ensure your stars are happy is to put them in a winning position and consider the Celtics are seen as potential championship contenders and are currently coming off the back of an NBA Finals run, that seems like an achievable task.
Celtics Can Focus On Rounding Out Bench
With the Durant saga finally at an end, Boston can now turn their attention back to rounding out their current roster – something which Stevens has been attempting to do by giving multiple young veterans an opportunity in training camp.
However, now that we know Durant is off the table, the Celtics may decide to inject some additional veteran leadership into their rotation, and could potentially look towards the free agent market to do so – assuming none of the training camp invitees impress.
Carmelo Anthony, Jeremy Lamb, Dwight Howard, DeMarcus Cousins, and Hassan Whiteside are some of the headlining names that are still without a contract for the coming season.
So, if Stevens and Udoka believe the Celtics need some consistent production from the bench, along with some veteran know-how, they could very well look to some of the available veterans on a minimum deal, rather than trusting the likes of Noah Vonleh or Bruno Caboclo to be bench contributors or back ups.