The Maine Red Claws traded for Anthony Bennett ... what does that mean exactly?

The Maine Red Claws, the Celtics' minor-league affiliate, made a little bit of noise on Thursday when the team announced they had traded for former No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett in a deal with the Northern Arizona Suns.

The 24-year-old had played in 14 games for the G-League Suns this year, averaging 11 points and five rebounds per game in those contests.

The 6-foot-8 forward has bounced around to four teams during his four NBA seasons after being selected No. 1 in 2013 and signed a non-guaranteed training camp deal with the Suns back in September. He was cut during the preseason and was filtered down to their G-League squad (Northern Arizona Suns) before Thursday's deal.

So what exactly does this trade mean as far as the Celtics and Bennett are concerned? Let's take a look at the specifics:

Why trade for Bennett if you're the Red Claws?

It's a way for the Celtics to get a closer look at the power forward since the Red Claws are the C's G-League affiliate. The UNLV product spent some time in Phoenix's system over the past few months (during the preseason and in the G-League) and things apparently weren't going anywhere there for the forward. The Celtics may have had some interest in him as a potential addition, so it's possible that Bennett's agent pushed for a trade so the Celtics could get a closer look at him up in their system in Maine. Either that or Phoenix was done with him, so they tried to find a new home for him in the G-League.

Could Bennett be called up by the Celtics at some point? 

No, unless he signs an NBA contract. The Celtics do have an open roster spot available though for the moment. Bennett must be signed to the active roster (or be on a two-way deal) or he's still not eligible to play for the Celtics. With Maine, he's just a G-League player. He can still sign with any NBA team that offers him a deal.

What's the potential plan for Bennett?

The Celtics will take a closer look at him in the next few weeks up in Maine and evaluate him as a potential end-of-the-roster depth piece, if he fits their system. NBA teams can start signing players to 10-day contracts on January 5th, so if Bennett does sign a contract, the guess here is it would be something short-term like that.

How could Bennett potentially help the Celtics?

The most appealing thing about Bennett at an NBA level is probably his rebounding. He's got a career rebounding rate of 20.7 percent on the defensive end, which would be one of the better options on this roster. He's a poor outside shooter (sub 30 percent in his career from 3) and can't score much at all outside of the paint, but he's a good finisher inside of 3 feet. If the Celtics see him as a better potential option at power forward in some matchups over Guerschon Yabusele, they could give him a shot.



How is this going to end?

Probably with nothing. The Celtics can do better than Bennett if they're looking to add a piece or two at the end of their roster. However, I wouldn't rule out a 10-day contract at some point though entirely (although the odds are heavily against it). Bennett's still young at age 24 and Brad Stevens may bring out the untapped potential that made him a No. 1 pick. Keep an eye on how he's doing in Maine.