The Boston Celtics have stayed quiet this free agency, other than re-signing big man Aaron Baynes the Celtics had not really made a big splash, which given their already stacked roster, there really is not a need to make a big splash just yet or at all.
After the signing of Baynes, the Celtics turned their attention to restricted free agent, Marcus Smart. Smart averaged around 10 Points, three rebounds and four assists per game. During the season the Celtics offered Smart a contract which he would turn down. It was thought that Smart wanted in the range of 11-12 Million/year. Since then talks have gone cold between the two parties. That was until earlier this past week when Yahoo Sports journalist Shams Charania and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski stated that talks between the two parties started to gain momentum. Ainge wanted to get a deal done, and Smart wanted to stay in Boston, he even stated that he “is determined to help bring another championship to the best fans in the world.” Well, that deal got done early Thursday morning when the two parties finally struck a deal. Smart will stay in Boston on a 4 year/52 Million Dollar contract which roughly is 13 million per season.
The signing for the Celtics is huge for the team, Smart was a huge defensive presence prior to his late season injury and especially in his return during the playoffs, a big piece to a team who was one game away from an appearance in the NBA Finals.
As for what is next for the Celtics this offseason, expect them to stay pretty quiet throughout the rest of free agency and leading into the season, possibly signing a center or even bench depth may be in their eyesight, but do not be surprised if they stay pat as their team is quite deep already.
