The Boston Celtics have made some intriguing trades during the offseason, moving Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers for Anfernee Simons.
It was initially reported that the Celtics would get two second-round picks in return, but that was later rescinded. It was a straight-up swap for the Celtics, but they were still able to get off Holiday’s long-term money, and that was the plan heading into the offseason.
Some have wondered whether the Celtics could move on from Simons over the next few months before the start of the season. According to Jake Fischer on a Bleacher Report live stream, the Celtics are active on the trade market, looking to move the former Blazers guard, per Hoops Rumors.
“The Celtics remain active on the trade market as they try to get their roster younger and cheaper, Fischer adds. He states that Boston had discussions with the Grizzlies recently, but doesn’t provide any other details. He states that rival teams believe the Celtics are trying to unload both Anfernee Simons and Georges Niang,” they wrote.
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Simons is a decent player, but it's tough to say that he fits exactly what the Celtics want to do, and that's because of his defensive tendencies. On offense, Simons is an above-average player and could be used while the Celtics are without Jayson Tatum.
The only issue with that is that the Celtics understand they need to defend at the highest level to win at the highest level.
They could give Simons the next year to show if he can improve defensively, but if they could move him and shed more salary, that seems to be what they want to do.