The Boston Celtics are sitting on a roster that feels heavy, not sharp. Fans watched the team shed payroll to avoid the luxury tax, only to see that strategy fail when the season ended in a first-round exit against Philadelphia. That loss was catastrophic. Now, with the trade deadline looming, the front office cannot afford to stand still. They need to act fast, or the window to win big in the next few years starts to close.
The Guard Problem Is Real
Right now, the backcourt lacks a true two-way threat. The team has invested heavily in young players like Hugo, Walsh, and Scheierman, but they need minutes. Sam Hauser is taking up 25 minutes a game, which is a spot that belongs to a younger, more versatile defender. According to a staff roundtable on CelticsBlog, the smartest play is to move Hauser to get a player who can guard the best in the league.
Grant Burfeind from CelticsBlog laid out the perfect scenario. He suggests sending Hauser to Oklahoma City for Cason Wallace. Among the league’s top young perimeter defenders, Wallace is already established. His shot has improved a lot, too. During the Thunder’s playoff run last year, Wallace made 2.0 threes per game at a 48.4% clip. That is the kind of shooting and defense the Celtics need right now. Envision deploying Derrick White alongside Cason Wallace nightly to guard opponents such as Brunson, Mitchell, and Cade. That is a nightmare for the opposition.
Why The Old Moves Won’t Work
Some fans want the team to wait until the next offseason. They think staying under the tax cap gives them more options later. But waiting is a mistake. The team is already in the second apron purgatory that started the “optionality” moves a year ago. Jeff Clark from CelticsBlog noted that the team is poised to use Paul George’s contract and a handful of picks to grab a star if one hits the market. Waiting for a star to become available is risky. The market moves fast, and the best players get taken off the board quickly.
Others suggest trading for Cameron Johnson or a scoring guard like Trey Murphy. Trevor Hass from CelticsBlog thinks Johnson would fit well stylistically. But scoring without defense is a trap. The Celtics have been burned by that before. They need a player who can lock down the opponent’s best guard while hitting open shots. Wallace fits that bill better than anyone else on the market. He brings the energy and the grit that this roster is missing.
The Next Step Is Clear
The ownership group, led by Bill Chisholm, has deep pockets and a clear goal. They want to win now. To secure the next banner, prior owners executed transactions including the deal with the Brooklyn Nets that brought in Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Those were hard calls, but they worked. This situation is no different. The team needs to make a move that shows they are serious about the title.
Brad Stevens, the president of basketball operations, knows this. He has to find a way to get minutes for the young guys while keeping the team competitive. Trading Hauser for Wallace solves both problems. It clears the minutes for the future and adds a defensive anchor for the present. As Ian Inangelo from CelticsBlog put it, the next move should be adding a guard coming off the bench who can provide scoring and defense. Wallace is that guy.
