The Boston Celtics are going to be a hot topic this offseason. Not just because they’re going to have to figure out what the 2025-26 season without Jayson Tatum will look like. But also because they’re one of the few teams flirting with the second apron of the luxury tax, which will put tremendous restrictions on their ability to rework this roster and make trades.
As the Celtics look at how they’ll restructure their roster and get below the second apron (and potentially take a year off without their star), there’s one NBA insider that believes that the team can possibly use this period of uncertainty to land a superstar with championship experience.
Giannis Antetokounmpo's name looms over this offseason, as he weighs whether to stick it out with the Milwaukee Bucks or seek greener pastures. He could very well be disappointed in the Bucks’ failed postseason attempts the last few years, as well as Damian Lillard's Achilles injury, and want out.
Brian Windhorst suggests that if Giannis chooses option B, he would want to stay in the East. And the only teams that could realistically make that move work would be the Celtics or the New York Knicks, It’s an intriguing idea.
Why the Boston Celtics' pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo could turn them into an Eastern Conference dynasty
A move for Giannis would be big for a couple of reasons for Boston. For one, they get a player that could immediately fill Tatum's void next season. This upcoming draft class is good enough to be worth tanking for, but championship windows are few and far between. Giannis wants to go somewhere he can win next season. Even with Tatum out, Boston could contend in the East.
But looking past the 2025-26 season, it would be huge because it would open up Tatum’s game a lot more. I think he and Jaylen Brown are just too similar, too ball-dominant, and it’s led to a lot of inconsistencies in their play.
With Giannis and Tatum on the floor together, Antetokounmpo is less of a perimeter player but a massive drive threat, so he could essentially open up things for all the shooters around him. That would probably be his biggest contribution. Outside of that, he doesn’t really fit the Joe Mazzulla mold.
Why trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo could be a massive risk for the Boston Celtics
The Celtics love shooting 3-pointers. Remember back in the first two games of the Knicks series when Boston shot 25-for-100 from beyond the arc in consecutive losses — and Mazzulla didn’t change up the scheme? That’s why acquiring Giannis could be a massive risk.
It’s a big name, sure, and star players at least try to figure out how to play with each other. But Giannis is shooting 28 percent from beyond the 3-point arc in his NBA career. He hasn’t shot better than 34 percent ever, and that was back in his rookie year.
At this point, Giannis isn’t going to make shooting a key piece of his game, which is why he wouldn’t fit with Boston in the long run. Maybe Mazzulla decides to change things up with a massive roster overhaul, but I doubt it. On paper, adding Giannis is a no-brainer. But when you get past the hype, is he really the player that will keep this team atop the Eastern conference?