The NBA trade deadline will close next week ahead of the annual NBA All-Star Event in North Carolina. The trade window has historically closed on the Thursday after the All-Star Game, however, since 2018, the deadline has closed 10 days before the NBA's best players face off in the prestigious game.
Despite immense expectations entering the season, the Boston Celtics have been one of the NBA's biggest disappointments. The Celtics currently face a major battle to secure homecourt advantage for the playoffs, and despite being tipped to top the East standings, Boston have been outshone by the likes of the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors.
Nevertheless, due to the current depth found on the Celtics roster, additions are unlikely over the next few days. Instead, the Celtics will be looking to trim their roster, as Brad Stevens has struggled to find minutes in his rotation for a number of players.
This makes departures likely in the next three days, however, here we will look at three players who are set to stay with the team for the remainder of the season.
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#3 Gordon Hayward
While insiders around the NBA were sceptical of the Boston Celtics' decision to hand Gordon Hayward a four-year, $128 million contract back in 2017, few predicted just how badly things turned out. Hayward suffered a devastating injury during his Celtics debut, which ruled him out of the entire 17/18 season, but since returning, Hayward's performances have been much criticised.
Hayward has surprisingly dropped to the bench, and the 28-year-old is only managing a disappointing 10.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. The former Utah Jazz man has been labelled by opposing players 'as a liability on both ends' and reports have claimed that the Celtics may consider trading the 2017 All-Star away.
Nevertheless, Hayward's contract will be incredibly difficult to move, and the Celtics will want to include him in potential summer trade talks with the Pelicans for Anthony Davis. There is also the possibility that Hayward rediscovers his previous All-Star form, so a trade this week makes little sense.
#2 Aron Baynes
Since signing for the Boston Celtics back in 2017, Aron Baynes has enjoyed one of the best spells of his career. Last season, the 32-year-old established himself as a regular starter for the first time in his NBA career, and Baynes managed to contribute well on the defensive end. Nevertheless, Baynes' performances over the last few months have left a lot of the Celtics fan base frustrated, and Baynes has dropped back to the team's bench.
Baynes continues to be strong on the defensive end, but the Australian offers little to the Celtics offense, and Baynes' field goal percentage has fallen to 36%. With the Celtics targeting Anthony Davis, Baynes' long term future remains in doubt, however, the veteran reportedly has an option to veto any trades for himself this month, and Baynes is unlikely to agree to a move to a struggling team.
Ultimately, Baynes' long term future appears to be elsewhere, although he looks set to stay until at least the summer.
#1 Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown's name has surfaced in trade rumours dating back to the summer of 2018, but it remains extremely unlikely that the Celtics will trade Brown away unless he is part of a huge deal for a superstar such as Anthony Davis. It is also worth noting that the Celtics are unlikely to sanction a trade for Davis this month, as the 'Rose Rule' means that the team would have to give up Kyrie Irving as part of a trade package.
This makes it possible that the 22-year-old could exit the team during the summer, although reports of a trade this month are wide of the mark. Brown's performances haven't reached the same heights as last season, although the shooting guard has still managed to average 12.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, and there is no doubting that Brown is set to play a major role in the Celtics postseason run.
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