Бостон Сэлтикс бүрэлдэхүүнээ шинэчлэх сорилттой тулгарлаа

As the NBA world awaits a Giannis Antetokounmpo resolution, the Boston Celtics are sitting at the beginning of a critical offseason. As much success as they found while winning 56 regular-season games, president of basketball operations, Brad Stevens, left no doubt afterward that his team, which bowed out of the playoffs in the first round, needs significant improvement. He will face franchise-altering decisions this summer as he aims to push the Celtics back into position to win a title.

With the draft one week away, Stevens and his front office have a lot to sift through as they determine the right path forward.

The next big NBA domino to fall could be Antetokounmpo’s situation. Though acquiring the Bucks superstar without giving up Jaylen Brown would be possible in theory, the Celtics, considered one of the threats to land Antetokounmpo, would, in all likelihood, need to move Brown in such a trade. What could determine whether they land Antetokounmpo is how much else they would be willing to part with.

The Celtics would need to include draft capital in an Antetokounmpo deal. But which first-round picks would they put on the table? If they were to land Antetokounmpo, the more valuable Boston first-rounders would be the ones further into the future because Boston would be built with the short-term in mind. So, it’s not just a question of how many picks the Celtics would be willing to surrender, but which ones?

The Boston front office could have some reservations about attaching more players, such as promising 20-year-old Hugo González, to sweeten the deal. As tempting as it would be to acquire a two-time MVP like Antetokounmpo, the reality is that trading for 30-something superstars has proven to come with significant risk.

Unlike some other teams linked to Antetokounmpo, the Celtics wouldn’t need to gut much of their roster depth to pursue him, though Brown wouldn’t be a small loss. It could also empower them to know that Antetokounmpo seems to be intrigued by their situation. The Athletic’s Sam Amick and Eric Nehm have reported that the 10-time All-Star would be willing to sign a four-year, $275 million extension with Boston. Antetokounmpo raised some eyebrows in April when he shared the details of a conversation he had with Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, praising the coach’s mentality.

Given Brown’s importance in Boston, Stevens will need to strike a delicate balance during any negotiations with Milwaukee. Brown has been through trade rumors before. He and the Celtics have always moved past them. Still, it could leave a scar if Brown hears about serious negotiations after they fall apart.

You can bet Stevens will take that relationship into account as he approaches the situation. He has earned a reputation for treating players (and everyone else, really) extremely well. Jrue Holiday expressed appreciation for the way Stevens approached trading him to the Portland Trail Blazers last offseason. Stevens gave Holiday a warning that something could happen in advance. When a trade materialized, Holiday wasn’t caught off guard. Stevens also gave heads-ups to the players the Celtics traded prior to the February trade deadline.

“By the time all those were done, their agents were all aware that was a real possibility,” Stevens said. “And sometimes, that’s an individual conversation depending on who it is. And sometimes, it’s an agent conversation. But the bottom line is you can’t always do this in this world, so I don’t want to say it’s a thing that you always should expect or can do, but if we know that there’s likely to be a move we try to at least communicate it in advance, or at least there’s an attempt to be a move, right? Those are hard phone calls.”

Stevens gives that much consideration to the feelings of end-of-bench players. Regardless of what the Celtics do this offseason, he can be expected to be extremely mindful of Brown’s thoughts. That adds a layer of complexity to any conversations with Milwaukee.

Even after blowing a 3-1 first-round lead, the Celtics don’t necessarily need to do anything drastic. Their core has experienced success together throughout the years. Brown and Jayson Tatum have found ways to win plenty of games and playoff series.

Still, Stevens just lost in the first round for the first time as the president of basketball operations. That alone could prompt him to consider bigger changes. And the Celtics core isn’t necessarily old yet, but isn’t particularly young anymore with Derrick White nearly 32, Brown 29 and Tatum 28 and on the other side of a torn Achilles.

The Celtics wouldn’t take trading Brown lightly, but one other possible path for this summer would be cashing in on his high current value. It would likely take a whole lot to convince Boston to listen to offers for Brown, but there could be a team willing to blow the Celtics away after he averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game while making second team All-NBA.

One year ago, Stevens found himself in a much different place with Tatum facing a long recovery from a torn Achilles tendon and the Celtics needing to strip away key pieces of their roster for financial purposes. Despite the disappointment of their first-round loss, their fortunes have improved since then. Even while operating at 80 to 85 percent, by his estimation, Tatum played well enough to inspire confidence that the injury won’t sap his production much, if at all, moving forward. In the absence of several departed veterans, the Celtics unearthed a group of new contributors that materialized into an impactful bench unit. Some of those players, including González, have plenty of upside to grow into. With Tatum healthy again and the youngsters one year older, the Celtics would have significant room for growth next season, even if they don’t change their roster much.

Stevens could decide a bigger overhaul is wise. He will need to choose which path is best.