Boston Celtics letting Jared Sullinger leave
The Boston Celtics have decided to renounce their qualifying offer to Jared Sullinger, which means that the big man is now an unrestricted free agent in the NBA.
Celtics renounced Jared Sullinger's qualifying offer & exception rights, per NBA transaction wire on July 8. Source confirmed it's accurate.
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) July 10, 2016
When the Celtics signed Al Horford away from the Atlanta Hawks, they handed him a four year contract worth $114 million. That virtually ensured that the 6-foot-10 center was going to be one of the starters in Boston.
Since he is one of the better defenders on the Celtics roster, Jae Crowder has a pretty good hold on the starting small forward position.
The only question on the front line for the Celtics was who the third starter was going to be. Head coach Brad Stevens was more than likely going to be choosing between the underrated Amir Johnson and the potential filled Sullinger.
Boston has apparently chosen Johnson. Over the weekend, they decided to let Sullinger leave and try to find a new home in the NBA.
Rounding out the starting lineup with Crowder, Johnson and Horford should be the back court pair of Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley. The five of them should be able to earn a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs next season.
As an unrestricted free agent, Sullinger should be able to command some interest from other teams. Despite concerns about his weight and conditioning, executives know that the former Ohio State star is a ferocious rebounder.
One of the issues that the Celtics had with Sullinger is the fact that he had fallen in love with his outside shooting. The 24-year-old shot 28 percent from beyond the three point line. Sullinger will either need to improve his shooting or refrain from wandering out that far from the basketball more frequently.
Prior to being made an unrestricted free agent, Sullinger was rumored to be offered a one year contract by Boston. Management was hesitant to give him a long term deal. They were, however, willing to give him another chance to prove that he could be one of the foundation pieces for the Celtics.
Sullinger now gets to write the next chapter of his NBA career in another city.
For more NBA free agency news, please check out our NBA free agency category page.