NBA execs reportedly monitoring two Celtics starters as possible trade candidates to get under second apron
The Celtics are set to be above the second apron in 2025-26, giving them one of the largest payrolls in sports history and limiting ways to improve their roster.
The Celtics are in the midst of another impressive season as they look to repeat as NBA champions. But once the season ends, they’ll have to make a tough decision to either keep their core together at a hefty price that’ll limit their roster flexibility or move on from at least one key player.
If the Celtics opt for the latter, “league figures are monitoring” Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday as players they could move to help clear salary, The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer reported. Derrick White, meanwhile, wasn’t mentioned as a possible trade candidate for the Celtics to shed salary by league executives, Fischer wrote.
“They’re going to have to trade some guys at some point,” a team’s capologist told The Stein Line.
Boston could pay one of the largest payrolls in sports history in the 2025-26 season. As it has roughly $225 million already committed in salary (per Spotrac), the cost for the roster would be exponentially higher due to the luxury tax. That payroll is north of the $207.8 million second luxury tax apron and the Celtics are repeat luxury tax offenders. ESPN’s Bobby Marks has projected that the Celtics would pay roughly $513 million for their 2025-26 roster if they didn’t make any moves before then.
On top of the exuberant cost, the Celtics would be limited in making any in-season moves with future assets being depreciated if they remain over the second apron. Teams above the second apron aren’t able to aggregate salaries in a trade for a player with a larger salary and can only sign players via the veteran’s minimum. Additionally, teams can’t trade their first-round pick that’s seven years in the future and if a team above the second apron for the third time in five seasons, their upcoming first-round draft pick is automatically moved to the end of the first round.
As the Grousbeck family recently sold the Celtics to Bill Chisholm and his group for $6.1 billion, many have wondered if the new ownership group will be wary of paying the hefty price for the roster. However, departing owner Wyc Grousbeck thinks the roster penalties might be more of a reason why the Celtics shed salary soon.
“It’s not the luxury tax bill, it’s the basketball penalties,” Grousbeck recently told WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show.” “The new CBA was designed by the league to stop teams from going crazy and they decided that it’s not good enough to just go after the wallets because then the fans are like, ‘Hey, find someone who can afford to spend whatever – $500 million per year or whatever it is.’”
So, as the Celtics look to potentially regain some roster flexibility, moving off players with larger salaries who might not be living up to their value might make the most sense. Even though Porzingis has been productive again this season (19.7 points, seven rebounds per game), but he’s also missed nearly half the season due to multiple ailments. Holiday, who turns 35 in June, has had some struggles offensively this season, scoring 10.9 points per game (lowest mark since rookie season) while shooting 44 percent from the field (lowest since 2015-16 season) and 33.5 percent from deep (lowest since 2018-19 season).
Trading either Porzingis or Holiday for little to zero salary would get the Celtics under the second apron, though. Porzingis will be in the final year of his contract when the 2025-26 season arrives, holding a $30.7 million cap hit. As for Holiday, he’ll be entering the second year of a four-year, $134.4 million extension in 2025-26, holding a $32.4 million cap hit next season.
Such a move could cost the Celtics draft capital as teams trading salary traditionally give up picks in those trades. Boston has plenty of draft picks, though, holding its own first-round pick in all but one season for the foreseeable future and five second-round picks.
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