Mike Conley on Tuesday officially signed a one-year contract with the Boston Celtics, sending the 38-year-old guard into his 20th NBA season on a veteran-minimum deal.
The signing plugs an obvious hole in Boston’s backcourt depth chart, but it also raises the question of how much Conley has left after a diminished role in Minnesota last season.
ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the Celtics’ agreement to sign Conley a week ago, noting that the 19-year veteran sifted through several offers before his agents informed Celtics brass that he wanted to come to Boston. Conley becomes just the 14th player in NBA history to reach 20 seasons and one of four remaining active players from the 2007 draft class, alongside Kevin Durant, Al Horford and Jeff Green.
Mike Conley’s Path to a 20th NBA Season
GettySAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – MAY 12: Mike Conley #10, then of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks on before Game Five of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center on May 12, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas.
Conley starred at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis alongside future No. 1 pick Greg Oden, then spent one season at Ohio State before the Memphis Grizzlies took him fourth overall in 2007. Twelve seasons in Memphis turned him into the franchise’s all-time leading scorer.
A 2019 trade sent him to Utah, where he made his first All-Star team in 2021. Minnesota acquired him in a three-team deal in February 2023, and he spent three and a half seasons there, mentoring a young core built around Anthony Edwards.
Conley’s role shrank to a career-low 4.5 points and 18.4 minutes per game last season, and he was traded to Chicago at the deadline before being flipped to Charlotte and waived, which allowed him to re-sign with Minnesota, according to ESPN. He still delivered, tallying 12 points and six assists in a Game 1 road win over San Antonio after injuries thinned Minnesota’s backcourt.
Conley posted a farewell message to Timberwolves fans on Instagram after the move became official, thanking the organization for making Minneapolis feel like home. Edwards, for his part, had lobbied publicly for a reunion during Conley’s brief midseason exile, calling him “like an OG to me” in comments quoted by SI.
Why Mike Conley Fits the Celtics’ Roster
“The Celtics just signed a new player, and it’s a brilliant move,” CelticsBlog‘s Noa Dalzell wrote, noting Conley is the third former Timberwolves player Boston has added on a minimum deal over the past two offseasons, joining Luka Garza and Josh Minott.
Conley will provide depth behind Derrick White and Payton Pritchard.
“Conley is the ultimate vibes guy. The ultimate veteran leader,” Celtics insider Chris Forsberg said, pointing to Conley’s four NBA Sportsmanship Awards and a technical-foul-free streak across roughly 37,000 NBA minutes, as quoted by NBC Sports Boston.
Forsberg compared Conley’s fit to Jrue Holiday’s role on Boston’s 2024 title team, minus the elite length but with similar basketball IQ, adding that Conley can still defend at an advanced age. Across 19 seasons, Conley carries career averages of 13.6 points and 5.5 assists, numbers built on efficiency rather than volume.
Conley, like Celtics president Brad Stevens, grew up in Indiana. He’s also the son of Mike Conley Sr., an Olympic triple jump medalist, and one of just 14 players in NBA history to reach a 20th season with a career 38.7 percent mark from three-point range.
Boston came to terms with the veteran the same day it added center Mitchell Robinson on a three-year, $47.4 million deal, filling out all 15 standard roster spots as the Celtics push to stay competitive in the East. After stops in the smaller markets of Memphis, Utah and Minnesota, Conley now joins a contender that could use his stability after an offseason full of roster turnover.
Celtics Officially Sign 19-Year Veteran in Move Called ‘Brilliant’