UPDATE: The Celtics agreed to a two-year deal with Enes Kanter on Monday afternoon. The Celtics will still be in the market for another big or two but will only have the league minimum to use to sign them, which are covered further down on this list.
The Celtics have very limited means to replace Al Horford and Aron Baynes on the free agency market, currently holding just the veteran’s minimum after using the room-level exception on Enes Kanter. They are trying to potentially increase that total to the full mid-level ($9.2 million) if they are able to sign-and-trade Horford or Kyrie Irving but there is no clear resolution looming on that front.
In the meantime, the Celtics are left waiting as other cap space and spent to find out who is willing to take a little bit of a discount for a starting job at center. There is going to be a decent name or two that eventually falls to Boston but some other dominoes (Kawhi Leonard) have to fall in the meantime. What’s less clear is who the best choice for Danny Ainge to target at center. There is only one starting job that can be offered up and it’s very important that the C’s get this signing right with such limited flexibility. Who are the candidates to monitor in the coming days? Let’s break down the possibilities and explore their potential fits, price tag and who will be competing with the Celtics for them.
DeMarcus Cousins
Age: 29
Overview: His market will be fascinating one year after coming off a torn Achilles and quad. After a year of chemistry issues, it’s a fair question whether the front office would hesitate to bring him in. However, if the price is low enough, it’s a rehab project the C’s could consider. He easily has the most potential upside out of anyone on this list. The Warriors won’t be able to re-sign him for decent money after they traded for D’Angelo Russell.
Price: $4.7-9 million
Euro signing?
Vincent Poirier
Age: 25
Overview: The Celtics have been rumored to have interest in the seven-footer who just finished a season with Baskonia. He’s a rim-running seven-footer with good mobility for a big. Fouls a lot but he sticks with guards pretty well for his size. No real jump shot to speak of. C’s could offer a big opportunity to start but unclear if they will have to pay more than veteran’s minimum to lure him overseas.
Willie Cauley-Stein
Age: 25 His free agency status will be unrestricted since the Kings are going to pull his qualifying offer for cap room. His age lines up with the C's core but the fact the Kings were not interested in bringing him back with their young core tells the story. He doesn’t rebound well or block shots well for his size and doesn’t have great defensive awareness. A lack of a reliable jumpshot hurts as well. Unless he comes very cheap, would expect Celtics to pass on this for a stronger defensive anchor.
Price: $4.7-9 million
JaVale McGee
Age: 31
Overview: Nearly signed with the Celtics a couple of years ago and had a pair of solid years with the Warriors and Lakers. He’d provide rim protection and finishing around the rim for Boston, but lack a reliable jump shot and the ability to contest well on the perimeter. A known commodity at this point, but probably a second-tier option out of the names on this list. Unclear if he’ll command much more than the veteran’s minimum.
Price: Veteran’s minimum-$5 million
Nene
Age: 31
Overview: Turned down nearly $4 million with the Rockets to hit the open market. Does he want a chance to start somewhere? A seasoned veteran with no outside shooting range but good defensive instincts. The Celtics can do better with the room-level exception but he would definitely be worth the veteran’s minimum. Not sure why he would have turned down his option for that though.
Price: Veteran’s minimum-$5 million
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
Age: 24
Overview: A versatile defensive weapon who can’t shoot well at all. If Celtics want to play small and use him as a center or power forward off the bench, he could be an intriguing buy-low option after Nets let him walk.
Price: Veteran’s minimum-$5 million
Vonleh: Put up good rebounding numbers on bad teams last year. It’s hard to see them being capable of a starting center spot but perhaps targets as bench bigs if the C’s elect to go small up front. Not worth spending much more than the minimum on either guy.
Price: Veteran’s minimum-$5 million
Overview: A bunch of flawed but competent talent on this list. I wouldn’t mind Noah as an energy guy and potential fill-in starter after a big bounce back year for him in Memphis. He can't shoot but he's defending and rebounding well. Koufos, Chandler, Faried and Marjanovic all provide rebounding but an inability to defend the perimeter or shoot. Udoh is an undersized big who can’t shoot at all but is a terrific mobile defender. Johnson is three years older than when he left and couldn’t get minutes over Greg Monroe in the playoffs.
Restricted
Khem Birch
Ivica Zubac
Maxi Kleber
Jordan Bell
Trey Lyles
Overview: Birch and Kleber are likely to be retained by the Magic and Mavs respectively. Bell could be an interesting option as a young piece but his lack of size is worrisome for a small Celtics team already. Lyles has nice stretch range for a big but couldn’t get big minutes in Denver off the bench in a crowded frontcourt.
Competition with cap room
Hawks: Have about $14 million in cap room and need a starting center after DeWayne Dedmon signed with Kings. Alex Len could take that role but they could throw some decent money at a younger guy on this list that fits their plan.
Lakers ($32 million in cap room): Who wants to play center next to Anthony Davis? Probably the most appealing landing spot on the market for a big. If Kawhi Leonard doesn’t use up their cap room, they will be in the market for 1-2 of these names, potentially with a lot of money to spend.
Clippers ($44 million in cap room): They could easily retain their own guys (Zubac, JaMychal Green) if they miss out on Leonard. Still, they have the room-level ($4.7 million) to sign someone even if they land Leonard but they could decide to spend that money at another position. Would expect them to add at least two names from this list.
Teams with mid-level exception that need a big
Rockets: Clint Capela appears to be staying put for now with Jimmy Butler headed to Miami. However, still plenty of holes to fill for a bench big or two to back him up. They have already been linked to Looney and McGee but won’t have a starting job to offer like Boston if Capela stays.
What happens next?
Right now, it’s going to be a waiting game for the big market to pan out. The next big domino to fall will be Leonard since the Lakers and Clippers are going to keep their cap room open for him until he makes a decision. Once that happens, business should pick up again among the top-tier bigs. One or two may get a decent payday from the Leonard sweepstakes loser but the Celtics will hope there are a couple of appealing names left when the dust settles.
What should the Celtics be rooting for when it comes to landing the best possible big? The question comes down to whether you have the stomach for the Lakers getting Leonard. If so, that leaves them with no cap room to use on the big men on this list beyond the room-level exception ($4.7 million). They may end up using that on a point guard instead of a big, so the Celtics should be more competitive when it comes to offering money and opportunity for the top names on this list (Looney, Kanter, Cousins).
If Lakers do have cap room to spend on bigs, then the Celtics may have to look further down their list. At this point, the Celtics should be confident that they are going to get one guy from the top-6 on this list (Looney, Kanter, Cousins, Cauley-Stein, Noel, Vonleh, McGee). Whether it’s one of their preferred choices is something that will be answered over the next few days.