Getty Matt Ryan and Malik Fitts of the Boston Celtics.
Dennis Schroder won’t be the only former Boston Celtics player who will be joining the Los Angeles Lakers for their upcoming training camp. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Matt Ryan, who was on a two-contract with the Celtics last season, will be joining the Lakers on a nonguaranteed deal.
Sources: The Lakers plan to sign G/F Matt Ryan on a non-guaranteed deal. Four-year NBA veteran Dwayne Bacon is also working toward training camp deal with the Lakers. Ryan was with the Celtics on a two-way last season.
Ryan appeared in one game for the Celtics during the 2022-23 season, which their regular season finale against the Memphis Grizzlies. Ryan notched a three-pointer to help the Celtics secure the blowout win over the Grizzlies.
First NBA Game and First NBA Points for our Two-Way Player @Matt_Ryan04 ☘️ t.co/ZEHlzI4mxx
While Ryan may have only appeared in one game for the Celtics, he went on to play 14 games with their G-League affiliate, the Maine Celtics. In the 14 games he played for them, Ryan averaged 20.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.9 assists while shooting 50.7 percent from the field and 44.2 percent from three, according to NBA.com.
Because Ryan was on a two-way contract, he was ineligible to play in the 2022 playoffs.
Ryan’s Summer League Stats
While Ryan may not have played much for the Celtics, he left a good enough impression that they added him to their 2022 Summer League roster.
In the two games Ryan played for the Celtics during the 2022 Las Vegas Summer League, Ryan averaged 19 points while shooting 55 percent from the field and 52.6 percent from three in 22.9 minutes a game, according to NBA.com. The highlight of Ryan’s Summer League performance came when he hit a buzzer beater against the Milwaukee Bucks.
After the game, Ryan was emotional when remembering how far he had come before making it into the NBA.
“It’s pretty emotional,” Ryan said after the win. “It’s been a crazy couple of months. I was home for a year-and-a-half. To be here, to be a part of the Boston Celtics, it’s special. I’m just happy.”
Before Ryan signed with the Lakers, Brian Robb of MassLive reported on August 16 that the Celtics were not planning to bring back Ryan because of a roster crunch.
“A league source tells MassLive that Ryan is expected to resume his career elsewhere next season amid a roster crunch in Boston. He’s not expected to be back for the 2022-23 campaign.”
Celtics Fill Out Their Training Camp Roster
After waiving former first-round pick Bruno Caboclo on September 20, the Celtics had two open roster spots left for training camp. Many speculated that, following Robert Williams III’s arthroscopic surgery, the Celtics would fill one of those spots with a veteran center still available on the free agent market like LaMarcus Aldridge or Dwight Howard.
They ultimately decided not to go that route. The day after they waived Caboclo, they filled his roster spot with Luka Samanic, the 19th overall pick from the 2019 NBA Draft, who had previously been affiliated with the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks.
In the 36 games he’s played in the NBA, Samanic has averaged 3.8 points and 2.2 rebounds while shooting 43 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from three.
The Celtics then filled their last spot by re-signing Brodric Thomas, who had been with the team last year on a two-way contract.
In the 12 games Thomas played for the Celtics last season, he averaged 1.8 points, 0.9 assists, and 0.8 rebounds while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from three.
With those two signed on, the Celtics have a full training camp roster with 20 players, though Williams and Danilo Gallinari will not be participating due to injuries.