Why did Andrew Bogut pick Lakers over Celtics? Plus, which free agent bigs are still available?

Andrew Bogut watch officially came to a close on Monday night as the agent for the seven-foot Australian confirmed on Twitter the center would be signing a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum with the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Celtics have now pursued the big man twice in the past few months and come up empty on both occasions. Last March,  Bogut was one of the top prizes on the buyout market, and he chose the Cavs over the Celtics (among other teams) before suffering a season-ending broken leg during his first game in Cleveland. Boston’s interest in the big man appeared to continue this fall after the 32-year-old was given a clean bill of health from that leg injury, and a spot in Boston’s frontcourt opened up (after Ante Zizic was traded to Cleveland).

David Aldridge of NBA.com reported Monday night the Cavs, Celtics and Wolves were all still in the mix for the center’s services before he settled on the Lakers. Shams Charmia of the Vertical reported the presence of former Warriors coach Luke Walton was a major factor in the choice.

Despite that, Bogut’s decision to sign with the Lakers is a very curious one for me for a couple reasons. To start, it’s fair to say that the Lakers will have plenty of trouble even dreaming of playoff possibilities during 2017-18 season, so winning clearly wasn’t a huge priority for the veteran big man. Playing time also may be hard to come by in Los Angeles as well, since the frontcourt is pretty well stocked already at center (Brook Lopez, Ivica Zubac) and at power forward (Julius Randle, Larry Nance Jr.).

That’s not to say there was a clear path for playing time in Boston either. If the Celtics elect to start Al Horford at the 5, Bogut would have had to beat out Aron Baynes for reserve minutes at the 5, and former Cav would have be an underdog in that battle. The Lakers may have promised him minutes over Zubac, and that could have been enough to seal the deal for him in LA. That’s obviously something that wasn’t happening in Boston

Either way, the list of available big man options for the Celtics on the free agent market continues to dwindle as Boris Diaw and Tyler Zeller also signed with new teams last week. There are still a few intriguing fits out there (Lavoy Allen, Spencer Hawes, Thomas Robinson). But with training camp just one week away, the odds are increasing that the Celtics will just go into the season with 14 players on the guaranteed roster, leaving themselves some flexibility.

I broke down the vast majority of the remaining big man options a couple weeks back, so here’s a reminder of who is still out there (including two bigger profiles on Allen and Robinson):

Lavoy Allen
6-foot-9, 260 lbs
Age: 28
Experience: 6 years
2016-17 stats: 2.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg
Former team: Pacers

Overview: Celtics fans may remember Allen from an impressive showing during the 2012 Eastern Conference Semifinals when he held his own as a rookie for the Sixers against Kevin Garnett for extended minutes. Unfortunately, Allen’s NBA career has not progressed much since that postseason. The Temple product has split time in his career between the Sixers and Pacers, mostly as a reserve big man, before the Pacers declined his $4.3 million option for next season.

What could Allen do for Celtics? Allen’s positives as a player start with his defense. He has the strength to keep true bigs at bay down low and is a decent rim protector for his size at 6-foot-9. The former Pacer remains a terrific offensive rebounder (13.9% offensive rebounding rate would have led Celtics last year), but his work on the defensive glass took a strong dip last year (14.5%) from his career averages (18.2%). Seeing that defensive rebounding is one of Boston’s biggest liabilities, Allen probably wouldn’t be a fit unless the Celtics felt that number was an anomaly. Offensively, Allen is pretty close to a non-factor (7.3 points per 36 minutes) with his limited range and subpar mid-range jumper. Still, as insurance big man depth, the Celtics could do much worse here.

Thomas Robinson
6-foot-10, 237 lbs
Age: 25
Experience: 5 years
2016-17 stats: 5.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg
Former team: Lakers

Overview: Few top-5 picks have become journeymen faster than Robinson in their NBA careers. He’s suited up for six different teams already over five seasons. The big man put up some encouraging numbers last year with the Lakers (career-high 53% FG, terrific rebounding rate on both ends of the floor, but the addition of some younger blood (Kyle Kuzma, Stephen Zimmerman) left no spot for Robinson at the end of the bench for next season.

What could Robinson do for the Celtics? As I wrote last week, Robinson is elite on the glass. 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 problem lies with the rest of his game. He doesn’t finish well in traffic, is a horrific free throw shooter (50 percent) and is not considered a high IQ player on either end of the floor. Will his rebounding skillset justify a roster spot over those limitations? We’ll likely find out in the coming days. The fact the Celtics haven’t signed him yet after a workout last Monday isn’t exactly encouraging for his cause.

Dante Cunningham — The Wolves and Pelicans are reportedly fighting for his services. Not sure Celtics have money or playing time needed to try to woo him.

Festus Ezeli — Hasn’t played a game in more than a year after several knee surgeries. Intriguing player, but too much of a health risk here.

Spencer Hawes — A last minute addition to the open market after the Bucks stretched him last week. He’s a strong rebounder and stretches the floor well for a seven-footer, which means the Celtics should look at him. However, his foot speed and defense are both question marks. He’s one of the better options on this leftover list, but Celtics shouldn’t jumping to sign him.

Roy Hibbert — The Georgetown product has gone from being an All-Star in 2013-14 to potentially being out of the league this year. Someone will grab him for big man depth, but his offensive limitations and lack of mobility make him unappealing to most teams. He also can’t rebound much so that wouldn’t help Celtics with that problem.

Jordan Hill — Only played seven(!) games last year for Minnesota after seeing big minutes for the Pacers from 2014-16. He’s 30 so he’s not done quite yet but he’s always been a net negative on the defensive end. He can rebound well for his size (6-foot-10) but his lack of 3-point range make him an afterthought to teams at this point.

Kris Humphries — Been there, done that. The addition of a 3-point shot to his game over the last couple years (35 percent last year) makes him a little appealing though. Keep an eye on where he lands. He left here on good terms, but not sure Boston would have the kind of minutes to offer that Humphries is seeking.

David Lee — Been there, done that. Also suffered season-ending injury to end his year with Spurs so unclear when he’ll be healthy again. Don’t think Celtics would be up for a reunion after he admitted he was out of shape for his few months here.

Tiago Splitter — Injuries remain the problem for the 32-year-old. Played just 44 games in the last two seasons combined.

Derrick Williams — More of small forward/power forward so don’t see him being intrigued with the chance to play in Boston behind guys like Jayson Tatum and Marcus Morris. He actually put up decent numbers in Cleveland though in final two months of last year so he’ll get a chance somewhere.