Which player will be the Boston Celtics’ toughest free agency decision this coming 2024 NBA offseason? With a rapidly ballooning payroll thanks to the supermax contract extension of star Boston forward Jaylen Brown and fellow star wing Jayson Tatum’s supermax extension soon to follow (to say nothing about Jrue Holiday’s extension and a potential pending one for Derrick White), things could get out of Boston’s reach financially.
For Bleacher Report’s Andy Hughes, this means that the Celtics might need to find some cheaper solutions for their backup big men. “Luke Kornet, and … Xavier Tillman Sr., could present Boston with an either/or decision, as it may not be worthwhile to retain a pair of centers on a roster that already has Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford.”
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Add in Neemias Queta, “whom the Celtics viewed as valuable enough to convert to a standard contract in April with a $2.2 million team option for 2024-25,” and one of them might have to go as a cap casualty.
If Boston does look to cut some costs next season, this does make sense, given all three have shown promise with different skill sets. We’d expect Kornet to command the biggest raise of the three, so it may end up being him.
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