The Boston Celtics’ President of Basketball Operations, Brad Stevens, has made several trades to transform the team’s roster this season. One of the significant moves was trading Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Anfernee Simons. Despite rumors suggesting Simons might be flipped by the Celtics to save money, writer Sam Amico notes that Simons “could stick, too” as a trade candidate.
Simons has a $27.7 million cap hit for 2025-26 on an expiring deal. Converting Simons’ contract into smaller ones aligns with Stevens’ recent moves to avoid tax penalties and re-tool the roster while Jayson Tatum rehabs. Simons was drafted 24th overall in 2018 and is a 26-year-old guard with averages of 15.0 points and 3.3 assists in 389 career games with Portland. Simons’ scoring has been around 20 points per game over the last three seasons.
For Simons to “stick” with the Celtics, Stevens’ team would likely need to convince him to take less money than he’s projected to demand next offseason. Unforeseen circumstances like injuries or performance could impact this scenario.
