Amari Williams looking consistently confident is a big deal. Cenac can really rebound, and he hit that huge 3.

The Celtics routinely go into the season with 14 players. Adam Himmelsbach: According to a league source, the Celtics are waiving guard Dalano Banton, who was on a non-guaranteed deal. Celtics' roster dips back to 14 players, and timing allows Banton to seek a new opp now.

Here's a worthwhile article by Jacob Issenberg with a positive take on the trade. The Jaylen trade has set the Celtics up for Banner 19 In Brad we trust...again. www.celticsblog.com/celtics-anal...

Hugo Gonzalez is the second youngest on the Celtics' summer league roster, behind only Cenac.

Another good summary of the shocking deal. They answered all the ?s. Some folks might not like the answers, and others suffer from the modern malady of perpetual skepticism, but answers were given. Brad and Bill are not dumb or evil. The CBA is killer. This was all he was worth. It's painful.

an NBA GM: "It's really hard to tie up that much of your salary cap in one player unless they're truly generational. The league is getting smarter now. And here's the thing: The dumb teams are also the cheap teams, so the Celtics couldn't take advantage of one of them." www.espn.com/nba/story/_/...

Gary Washburn: A few intriguing names remaining on the market are Rui Hachimura and Brandon Williams of the Mavericks. Williams, a speedy guard, could be a Celtics target. The team has long admired his skills, including coach Joe Mazzulla.

Very informative interview with Jay King on the trade. In particular the "Giannis trade details" section, and the "How trade value fell so far" section. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zmcd...

This is a must watch.

Noa Dalzell 🏀 Point of clarification on the Neemias Queta contract: he'll be making $2.7 million next year (team option) and then $56 million over the following 4 seasons. So, really, the contract is 5 years, $59 million total. Great value for the Celtics, life-changing $ for Neemi:

Even if they thought this was the trade value for Jaylen Brown, what was the dire urgency to make the deal now? Couldn't they have revisited his worth in the fall or at the next trade deadline? What was the rush? He's signed for 3 years. There is a big piece of this story that is untold.

For anyone that might need it, here's a little good Celtics news: Hugo Gonzalez played well for Spain in their FIBA match vs Denmark. He ended up with 16 points in 20 minutes on 5-9 shooting, 4-7 from 3, 5 assists, 5 rebs, 2 steals, a block and 0 fouls. He was +22. Spain won easily.

It gets worse. Just in: Free agent guard Anfernee Simons has agreed to a two-year, $12.3 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, with a player option in second season, sources tell ESPN. Simons chose the 76ers over other suitors believing his fit is perfect with the revamped 76ers roster.

One of the things that's really confusing is this does not seem to be about saving money. Paul George makes so much, they're not saving money for two years. So it's something else. After the draft, Brad Stevens looked like he'd been through hell. He must have just learned the reason for this.

That's a baffling return for Jaylen Brown. Paul George makes so much, the Celtics don't get flexibility out of it either. There's an ugly story behind this.

The Celtics still may very well be looking to reset the repeater tax, in which case they're not done. The Brown rumors and the glut at wing leave a lot of possibilities. A Hauser deal is not unrealistic.

This is great. Mitchell Robinson is the only impact free agent center out there who they could have gotten. Also, it does add flexibility if there is a Jaylen Brown trade, because now they don't need a center coming back.

Michael Scotto: Brown has drawn trade interest from various teams across the league, including the Portland Trail Blazers, Toronto Raptors, Denver Nuggets, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, and Los Angeles Clippers, league sources told HoopsHype. 1/2

I don't see a reason to fret about the Jaylen Brown situation. He'll either be traded in a good deal, or he'll be back. He's not going to hold out. He'll probably be a Celtic this season, and he'll use all this as motivation, play angry, and be better than ever. What is there to worry about?

I hope they clear some playing time for him. Remember the game he outplayed Durant in his first start? Or of course the final game toppling of the Magic with Garza and Scheierman when he scored 27.

Bobby Manning Celtics business getting under way with their roster full including Cenac. Their team option deadlines for Jordan Walsh, Amari Williams, Dalano Banton and Max Shulga are on Monday. Walsh is rookie extension eligible. Assume Banton, Shulga go (Shulga can sign a 2 way). 1/2

If Hugo and Dillon Mitchell start for the Celtics summer league team, that could generate some exceptional defense. Plus they'll have big bodies behind them. Potential starters, without knowing who's definitely on the team yet: Shulga Hugo Mitchell Cenac Amari (possible supersized version)

The Celtics' tall summer league team will have a tall coach.

Zarren on Mitchell: "He can be successful even when he's not shooting the ball, but he'll get better at his shot," he stated just before midnight. "We don't have any doubt about that. If you watch enough, you'll see he's got the ability to get better there."

Bobby Manning I’m told González plans to play both FIBA qualifiers for Spain and Summer League for the Celtics next month.

Brett Siegel: "...league sources close to the situation told ClutchPoints that Brown has not approached any member of the front office or team president Brad Stevens to ask for a trade." clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-c...

Judging by who they drafted, it seems like Brad n' Mike got tired of the Celtics being banged around by bigger, more physical teams.

Mike Zarren is so informative. I wish he'd speak with the media more. www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sbz...

Jake @jakeweingarten The Boston Celtics and Houston’s Milos Uzan have agreed on a deal, source told @Stockrisers.

The Celtics summer league roster is barely visible, but it'll be big, like BIG, and athletic. The rumored-to-be supersized Amari Williams, high flying Chris Cenac, and even higher flying Dillon Mitchell. That's a lot of physical presence. Maybe Shulga will play point.

A positive note on Cenac. The Celtics have traded back before. A few other teams traded out of the first round this year to save money or cap space. That was an option for Boston too, but they stayed put, which means they really liked Cenac.

In his post draft press conference, Brad Stevens was as poised as always, but looked as worn out as I've even seen him. This was not the usual upbeat feel we get from him after the draft.

Chris Mannix says that he's heard all the conversations in Boston are focused on big guys as far as potential trades.

Evan Sidery The Celtics are actively listening to Jaylen Brown trade offers from teams less than 30 minutes until the draft begins, per @ShamsCharania. There’s a real chance Brown is moved as Boston has “intent” behind their negotiations.

I'm happy if Jaylen stays, but a little talked about disadvantage the Celtics have is paying two max contracts. If Brown did get moved, it would open up all sorts of roster flexibility, both for now and well into the future.

I just don't worry about speculation that Jaylen maybe is unhappy about being discussed in trade talks. I've heard there are jobs that pay less than $57 million a year that have even worse working conditions. Somehow, he'll make his way through this.

Speculating on a Celtic who could get traded sometime. Sam Hauser. He's got a desirable skill for other teams. His salary could bring back another vet. Mostly, he's blocking the minutes of the young wings. Those guys need playing time. Assuming Jaylen stays, Sam might go out for a C or a pick.

It feels like the Bucks got a lot and are in a terrible position. Miami got a superstar and are in a terrible position. Boston didn't do anything and are still in a very good position.

Here's how highly Hugo Gonzalez is thought of. There's little doubt Hugo was the deal breaker. The Bucks refused to accept a package without him. The Celtics refused to include him. With players the caliber of Giannis and Jaylen on the line, the deal was sunk because of that young guy.

The issue of Jaylen Brown feelings after the trade-that-wasn't is overblown. Giannis is a GREAT player. JB was most of the offered package. That means the Boston front office thinks a ton of him. Jaylen didn't just get insulted. He just got complimented.

This reminds me of the build up before the Garnett trade, where I recall Boston and Golden State (and others) going strong for KG.

Gery Woelfel As I tweeted almost a week ago, the Bucks’ intentions are to consummate an Antetokounmpo trade before — and not after — Tuesday night’s draft.

Next week the Celtics will either have Brown or Giannis- great either way. Otherwise the green cone of silence remains intact. Center play must improve in the 2027 playoffs. Vuc is gone. Bulls fans were right. He's painful to watch. If the $ works, I wonder if A Simons could possibly return.

I wonder if they'll try covering Embiid at times with a smaller man tonight. Queta has been having foul trouble. Garza's too physically overmatched. Vucevic on defense is an exciting adventure.

Last night was the first time all season that the Celtics REALLY missed Al Horford.

Now 9 rebounds in 9 minutes.

5 rebounds and no fouls for Queta in the first 6 minutes.

The Lead @TheLeadSM Lowest opponent FG% allowed in the 2026 Playoffs (min. 50 FGA defended): 35.7 - Jayson Tatum 35.8 - Rudy Gobert 36.2 - Rui Hachimura 37.3- Jaden McDaniels 37.3 - Neemias Queta 38.8 - CJ McCollum 38.9 - Marcus Smart 40.0 - Luke Kornet 40.3 - Derrick White

On the postgame Jaylen Brown said he didn't have his explosion tonight because he's nursing his ankle a little bit.

Tatum and Brown are a combined 4-17. Celtics up 18 at the half.