Celtics reportedly working out Thomas Robinson for final roster spot

The Celtics may be in a bit of a stalemate with the Cleveland Cavaliers over the Kyrie Irving trade, but that isn't stopping them from completing other roster business as usual in the wake of the trade.

If and when the blockbuster deal with Cleveland is official, the Celtics will have an open spot on the guaranteed 15-man roster. They will also be very thin in the frontcourt when it comes to true bigs behind Al Horford and Aron Baynes. Boston's front office started looking at some solutions on that front on Monday, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com, who reports that former Lakers big man Thomas Robinson was working out at the team's practice facility this morning in Waltham. He averaged 5.0 ppg and 4.6 rpg for the Lakers last season over 48 games.

BSJ Analysis


The 6-foot-10 Robinson was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft (selected by the Sacramento Kings), but the 25-year-old has bounced already the league since his rookie year, playing for five different teams over the past six seasons. He's got one elite NBA skill (rebounding) that would come in handy at the end of the Boston bench. Among all NBA players that played more than 500 minutes last season, he ranked third in offensive rebounding rate (15.1%) and 17th in defensive rebounding rate (28.1%). Boston's best defensive rebounder last season was Kelly Olynyk (20.1%) so needless to say, Robinson would provide a measurable boost in that area if he signed.

The fact that Robinson is still available on the free agent market in August despite those elite rebounding skills says a lot about the rest of his game. He's a big man with nearly no range, he's an awful free throw shooter (50.5 percent for his career) and he does not have the greatest basketball IQ on either end of the floor. Still, on a veteran's minimum contract as the 15th man on the roster, he's still worth taking a look at to provide some big man and rebounding insurance. Robinson has also played in some tough situations over the past few seasons (LA Lakers, Brooklyn, Philadelphia) that probably didn't help him reach his potential. The former Kansas standout is likely just one of several big man options the Celtics evaluate in the coming days.

One other nuggets that Wojnarowski also dropped in his report is that the Celtics agreed to terms with undrafted rookie L.J. Peak to a contract with a partial guarantee. The Celtics have added a number of undrafted players to their training camp roster already to the point that their 20-man roster was full, prior to the Irving deal being announced. The agreement with Peak is just another indication that the Celtics are proceeding as if the trade with the Cavaliers will go through in the coming days.