The Boston Celtics are signing Devin Carter to a two-way contract, per HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. Carter previously played for the franchise on an Exhibit 10 deal.
“The Boston Celtics are converting Devin Carter to a two-way deal, league sources told @hoopshype,” Scotto wrote on X. “Carter averaged 8.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in 18.4 minutes during 38 games for the Sacramento Kings last season.”
Boston now has three players on two-way contracts, with Carter joining rookie Dillon Mitchell and encouraging big man Amari Williams.
The Celtics will likely feel they’ve gotten a steal in Carter. He was a lottery pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. However, injuries derailed his two years with the Sacramento Kings, leading to him being traded to the Atlanta Hawks earlier this summer. Atlanta subsequently waived Carter, paving the way for Boston to swoop in.
In total, Carter has played in 74 regular-season games. He’s averaged 6.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists, shooting 40.1% from the field and 27.4% from deep.
Since joining the Celtics, Carter has played in one preseason game. In that matchup, Carter scored 17 points, along with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Carter had to beat out competition from Milos Uzan and Tucker DeVries, who were both competing for Boston’s final two-way spot throughout training camp.
Celtics Could Convert Carter’s Contract Later
Currently, signing Carter to a full-scale NBA deal would cost the Celtics approximately $2.7 million, which is $700,000 over the $1.7 million headroom Boston has under the luxury tax.
As NBA contracts are prorated, it makes sense for the Celtics to sign Carter to a two-way deal now, with a view to converting his contract down the line, once the value of his deal would keep Boston underneath the first luxury tax apron.
The reason for the Celtics potentially taking this approach is that they’ve spent the past 18 months making moves to cleanse the repeater tax. A franchise must be under the luxury tax for two straight seasons in order to achieve this goal, and Boston is entering its second season.
There Are Questions Over Celtics’ Devin Carter
Speaking on a Sept. 14 episode of Sactown Sports Radio, Carmichael Dave and Jason Ross shared some of the concerning scuttlebutt they’d heard about Carter from his time with the Kings.
“I don’t know why they (the Atlanta Hawks) would waive him,” Carmichael Dave said. “But I do know the issue the Kings had with him. The knock on him here was that he wasn’t exactly adhering to what the coaches wanted him to do.”
They continued.
“They were saying, ‘just go out there, play your ass off, don’t force your offense, and get into the rhythm of the game.’ And Devin had issues with that. He would get out there, he would force things at times, instead of focusing what he was best at, which is defense, high-energy play and getting in passing lanes…I don’t know what the issue was in Atlanta.”
Clearly, the Celtics haven’t seeninny of those concerns during training camp. Brad Stevens has been meticulous is creating a culture, both in Boston and in Maine. He will likely feel confident that Carter fits into that culture moving forward.
The truth is, Boston just landed a former lottery pick for pennies on the dollar. If Carter can make good on his potential, the Celtics would have landed yet another steal. For a franchise that’s in the middle of a retooling process, these high-upside swings continue to make sense.
Celtics Make Devin Carter Contract Decision