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The Boston Celtics made quite the free agency splash with Danilo Gallinari. Gallinari has been a double-digit scorer since his second year in the NBA and should bring the Celtics some well-needed three-point shooting to the team. However, Gallinari has an extensive history of injuries throughout his NBA career, which is why an Eastern Conference executive voiced his concerns surrounding Gallinari’s current physical stamina as a player.
“He injured that ACL (his left, in 2013), and it’s been an issue ever since,” the executive said. “He has had trouble staying healthy, and he has all the things you watch out for after an injury like that—ankle trouble, Achilles, glutes, back. Remember, he had a surgery and then had a whole other surgery a different way, the traditional ACL surgery, after that, so he has just never been really right, physically, since then.”
Gallinari hasn’t played 70 games or more since the 2012-13 season, but he has played 60 or more games in three of the last four seasons. The executive went on to say that, as long as the Celtics handle him with care, he can be a valuable scorer for them when he’s on the floor, given his size.
“He can give you 60 games, 65 games, and when he is right, he is still an excellent scorer, especially at that size (6-foot-10). You have got to rest him. Keep him ready if you make a long playoff run. But the health thing is going to be baked in with him at this point. He is going to need time off.”
Gallinari will also be 34 years old on August 8, 2022. Players at his age with his injury history are usually handled delicately regarding how many minutes they play. The Celtics will be taking this approach with 36-year-old Al Horford when the 2022-23 season begins.
Gallinari Took Less Money to Sign with Boston
According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic, Gallinari turned down more money from the Chicago Bulls to play for the Celtics. Because Gallinari’s made plenty of money during his NBA career, it sounded like the money on the table didn’t factor much in his decision.
As Gallinari looked for a new home after the Hawks traded him to the Spurs and he agreed to a buyout, coming to Boston felt like a golden opportunity. He turned down more money in Chicago to take the Celtics’ $13.3 million offer over the next two seasons, which isn’t too hard a choice considering the 33-year-old will still hit $200 million in career earnings when his deal expires in 2024.
On July 8, Bobby Marks of ESPN reported that, before Gallinari was waived by the Spurs, the partial guarantee on his contract was amended from $5 million to $13 million.
Combining what he’ll be paid by the Spurs and Celtics, Gallinari will make more than $19 million during the 2022-23 season.
Gallinari’s Voiced His Excitement About Joining Boston
Since being introduced as a Celtic on July 12, Gallinari has not held anything back regarding how excited he is to join the team he grew up rooting for.
On July 13, Gallinari relayed that choosing Boston was the easiest choice and that it’s time to make the upcoming NBA season special for him.
Since then, Gallinari has posted a picture of him posing in front of the franchise’s banners while saying he’ll do his best to be a part of Celtics history.
He then posted a picture of himself in front of the Celtics logo.
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