NBA rumors: Celtics eyeing Jeff Green, Rudy Gay in free agency

According to the latest NBA rumors, the Boston Celtics are eyeing veteran wings Jeff Green and Rudy Gay in 2021 NBA free agency.

Under new management, the Boston Celtics are having a busy summer addressing some of their roster issues as they try to build around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. And who better to do so than former head coach and current president of basketball operations Brad Stevens?

With Kemba Walker out, Al Horford returning and a plethora of questions about what the Celtics will look like in 2021-22, Stevens is already giving indications his regime will aim to ease the two-way burden on their star wings.

According to The Boston Globe‘s Adam Himmelsbach, the Celtics are expected to have interest in veteran wings Jeff Green and Rudy Gay when 2021 NBA free agency begins on Monday.

The Celtics are targeting wing depth in free agency

After trading away Walker to bring in Horford, and then trading for Josh Richardson, the Celtics are doing their best to bolster the wings and bring on players who can defend multiple positions. That will help prevent Tatum and Brown from having to bear such a heavy load on the defensive side of the ball and hold up as leading scorers on the other end.

Green, a 14-year veteran, last played for Boston during the 2014-15 season. He’s an NBA journeyman at this point, playing for 10 different teams in his career, but he had a nice season with the Brooklyn Nets, averaging 11.0 points and 3.9 rebounds per game on .492/.412/.776 shooting splits. He logged minutes on the wing and even as a small-ball 5. Even as he approaches his 35th birthday, he’s still got plenty of athleticism and defensive chops.

As for Gay, he’s a 15-year veteran who’s spent the last four seasons with the San Antonio Spurs. Last year, he averaged 11.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, and although he only shot 42 percent from the field, he made 38.1 percent of his 4.4 long-range attempts per game.

Neither of those aging wings can be depended upon to log heavy minutes in a playoff series, but they could ease the load for Tatum and Brown during the regular season, and targeting multi-positional wings is never a bad thing in this league.