How Gordon Hayward's decision impacts the Celtics' trade possibilities at the draft

Hot stove NBA is here and it's about to get very busy this week and the same goes for the Celtics after the league finalized terms of the revised CBA over the weekend which included salary cap estimates for the next three seasons to help teams with planning.

While Boston’s front office is weighing plenty of scenarios now after the NBA trade freeze was officially lifted on Monday afternoon, some clarity was also received from the league this weekend about when the Celtics will know what kind of roster they will be heading into free agency with on Friday.

Gordon Hayward ($34.1 million) and Enes Kanter ($5 million) both will have until Thursday at 5 p.m. to declare their intentions for their respective player options for the 2020-21 regular season. (UPDATE: Mark Murphy now is reporting that the deadline is 5 p.m. Tuesday for Hayward, which goes against previous reports of Thursday. This would give the Celtics far more information heading into draft night and flexibility in trade options) This timing falls in line with what their original contracts called for, allowing them until after the NBA Draft to make a choice about their futures. A host of players have already been picking up or declining their player options in the past 48 hours, but the vast majority of the league has contracts that allowed them to make the decision after the draft ends and before free agency begins. With that in mind, let’s answer a few key questions pertaining to both players and the Celtics’ draft week.

Will we need to wait until Thursday to find out their decisions?

Potentially but it’s not guaranteed. Players can exercise their options at any time (although there is little incentive for them to do so unless it leads to another move). The odds are both guys will wait to let the Celtics know their intentions unless they agree to some kind of a prearranged draft move.

What does this deadline mean for potential Boston deals on draft night?

A big one is going to be tough to pull off for Danny Ainge without the cooperation of Hayward or Kanter. In order to put together a trade bigger name (such as Jrue Holiday), the Celtics are likely going to have to put together a prearranged trade in which they draft player(s) for the Pelicans with their first-round picks. However, in order to make the money work in a trade for a star, the Celtics would also need to use Hayward’s salary (or someone else in their core) as part of the deal. This is where things get tricky though since Hayward isn’t obligated to let the Celtics know his future intentions until the deadline. Until Hayward officially opts in, he isn’t allowed to be traded anywhere and the same goes for Kanter, which would put the structure of any trade involving them in question.

How could the Celtics get around this issue on draft night?

The key would be working together with either player’s camp to find a destination where both would be happy to play for next season. From a financial standpoint, it shouldn’t be tough to convince Hayward or Kanter to opt-in early to facilitate a trade since their open market values this fall will be below those numbers. Both players are at a point in their career now where a potential role matters just as much as the money. If Hayward signals he wants to go elsewhere, the Celtics could explore three or four-team trade scenarios that puts Hayward in a destination that he approves of, which could green light him agreeing to exercise his player option or even a prearranged extension.

The same principle remains in place for Kanter’s situation although any trade involving him will be far less complicated due to the smaller salary involved. The Celtics probably won’t mind if he opts out entirely and take his $5 million off the books entirely but if not, Kanter would be useful for salary matching purposes (when combined with a draft pick) to land perhaps a veteran piece to bring off the bench on draft night. Once again, finding a place Kanter would be okay going to would allow this type of trade to happen on draft night. Otherwise, he could just decide to opt-out and blow up any prearranged trade.

What happens if Hayward or Kanter don’t want to be traded on draft night? Can the Celtics still do anything major?

They could do a minor move but nothing major unless they want to move another core piece on the roster.

A creative way for the Celtics to put together some movable salary for a veteran without losing other young players would be to sign their draft picks in a prearranged trade before trading them away. The No. 14, 26 and 30 picks will earn a combined $6.7 million in salary for the 2020-21 season once they are signed and the Celtics can technically trade them 30 days after they sign their contracts. This type of maneuver is rarely done but it has been pulled off before (see: Andrew Wiggins for Kevin Love trade in 2014) when money needed for salary purposes.

Otherwise, here are the other players that are already under contract for next season and could be moved on draft night outside Boston’s core.

Daniel Theis ($5 million – non-guaranteed)
Romeo Langford ($3.6 million)
Vincent Poirier ($2.6 million)
Grant Williams ($2.5 million)
Robert Williams ($2.0 million)
Semi Ojeleye ($1.8 million - non-guaranteed)
Carsen Edwards ($1.5 million)
Javonte Green ($1.5 million non-guaranteed)

Given the limited roster spots most teams have open, it’s going to be tough to pull off anything more than 3-for-1 or 4-for-1 swap so the Celtics will likely be limited to targeting a player in the $10-15 million range if they can’t use Kanter’s money for matching purposes.

The bottom line? Unless Hayward or Kanter are facilitating, don’t expect a big deal on draft night for Boston involving a veteran.

Analyzing Other NBA News

Chris Paul to the Suns

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com was first to report that the Thunder deconstruction has continued on Monday. Just one day after Thunder GM Sam Presti agreed to send Dennis Schroder to the Lakers for Danny Green and a first round pick, he elected to move his All-Star point guard. Chris Paul and Abdel Nader are heading to the Suns for Kelly Oubre, Ricky Rubio, Ty Jerome, Jalen Lecque and a 2022 protected first-round pick.

So what does mean for the Celtics?

To start, it keeps an elite point guard in Paul in the Western Conference, despite rumors that the Bucks and Knicks had an interest in landing the aging playmaker. The bigger shift though comes with the free agent market. The Suns were one of six teams that could have created serious cap room and that has diminished a bit by acquiring Paul and his $44 million salary. Now, they can create about $18 million in salary cap room if they would like, if they renounce a couple of their free agents (Aron Baynes, Dario Saric).

Phoenix was never directly linked as a potential suitor for Hayward in the past few weeks but this diminished cap space certainly takes them out of the running as a playoff team capable of offering a big deal with their cap room. Hayward isn’t going to opt out of $34 million to sign for about half of that elsewhere so this helps lower the Celtics’ risk of losing him for nothing.

Additionally, Baynes and Saric now look like more attainable players on the free agent market if Phoenix elects to go after a bigger mid-level name (Davis Bertans, Jerami Grant, Danilo Gallinari) with their remaining cap room. Keep an eye on Baynes if the C’s end up moving on from Kanter.