BRIGHTON — Anfernee Simons was bewildered at the lengths the Boston Celtics go to track their performance in the gym.
He sat on a panel alongside Director of Community Engagement Kash Cannon and performance coach Isaiah Covington, the latter of whom explained some of Boston’s tracking technology.
Lining the ceiling of the Auerbach Center are little white boxes that connect to small devices the players put in their pockets during practice. They can track speed, the number of accelerations a player makes, and more.
Simons smiled, staring at the roof: Even he didn't know the specifics of how those metrics were tracked.
The Celtics guard was in the building for the ‘Fit for a Cause’ launch event, where he spoke in front of 50 Boston Scientific employees and 30 youth from the Boys & Girls Club of Boston, Boys & Girls Club of MetroWest, and YMCA of Greater Boston.
On top of his technological bewilderment, Simons spoke about how he trains, what his daily routine looks like, and the most important factors that go into a healthy lifestyle.
“I think early on, when I was younger, I didn't really understand how important it was to take care of your body and eat the right things,” Simons said after the event.
“Just eating a whole bunch of junk food or not taking care of your body properly. So I think, getting [the kids] kind of hip on it early, I think it helps. Whether it's just simple things like stretching, eating the right foods, eating greens, eating your vegetables, and stuff like that, I think it goes a long way.”
Isaiah Covington (left), Anfernee Simons (middle), and Kash Cannon (right)
Since joining the Celtics this past summer, Simons has been engulfed by the city. “The community has been very welcoming of me,” he said.
Simons joined Boston by way of the trade that sent Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers on July 7, 2025.
Despite trade rumors throughout the offseason, Simons donned the green and white on Opening Night, and he’s made some significant on-court improvements from that point to the present day.
Improving his defense, in particular, has been a top priority, and assistant coach Ross McMains has taken the lead in helping him on that journey. “We let it be known early on that that was going to be a focus, and we wanted to improve in that area,” Simons said.
Now, nearly seven months into his Celtics career, Simons feels more at home than ever.
“Everybody's been trying to do their best to make me feel comfortable in this community,” he said. “I've been feeling very comfortable. Like I said before, it feels like I've been here longer than I actually have been here. And so, it's just a family-type organization, and it feels very comforting when you come into a new situation, and everybody's wrapping their arms around you and making you feel welcome.”
Yet those same trade rumors that followed him throughout the summer are still hanging around.
Anfernee Simons making smoothies at the 'Fit for a Cause' launch event
During an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio, just a few hours before Simons’ appearance at the Auerbach Center on Thursday night, Chris Haynes reported that he is on the trade block, and Boston is looking for frontcourt help.
But Simons doesn’t pay attention to outside noise.
“Once you been in the league for eight years, I think the trade rumors become constant,” Simons said. “And so, a lot of them could be true, a lot of them, most of the time, aren't true. You just got to continue to just control what you can control, and continue to go out there and play for the team, and continue to try to go out there and try to get a win.”
The NBA trade deadline is February 5 at 3 p.m. Trading Simons (and his $27.7 million expiring contract) could be an avenue for the Celtics to improve.
But for now, Simons is focusing on where his feet are: In a community that has made him feel at home.
