The Boston Celtics have been on the hunt for a trade to happen. They want superstars and they want to win, now. There were first reports that they were looking to trade for Kris Middleton, Greg Monroe, and even Jimmy Butler. After those dissipated and Kevin Durant signed with the Warriors, the NBA got turned upside down. With Russell Westbrook’s departure from Oklahoma City imminent, the Celtics have been rumored to be aggressively looking to trade for Westbook.
Reports came out that a deal had already been struck and that the Celtics were just ironing out details but now it seems teams are far a part on a deal. With Oklahoma looking to get as much as they can for the all-star Westbrook, the Celtics will be reluctant to give up a lot for a one-year loan. That’s where both teams aren’t seeing eye to eye, according to Kevin O’Connor of Celtics Blog, the likely hood of a trade happening is slim:
“Russ is in control of the situation. Not any team,” the source said. “He controls his destiny. But if a team is going to get him, they need a long-term commitment.”
If the Thunder happen to find a team that has both the assets and the cap space necessary to complete a deal—and there are few of those that exist in the league—then the final hurdle will be to get Westbrook to agree to renegotiate and extend his contract.
Because of the complexity of the situation, the source said that “nothing’s imminent” and a deal’s “probably not going to happen.”
If the Celtics can’t get a trade for Westbrook, there won’t be a small amount of teams behind them looking for a deal as well. Because the addition of Westbrook would have been an interesting fit for the Celtics, the idea of depleting their assets surely seems worth it for the triple-double machine. With signing Al Horford, the Celtics would become instant contenders but for a 1-year deal, that seems unlikely:
“No team is going to pay a hefty price without getting a commitment from Westbrook,” the source said. “Someone may pay a cheaper price without a commitment, but OKC probably doesn’t do a deal like that.”
Without an agreement from Russ, it appears OKC’s demand is still too high. The source did say it’s likely the Thunder would grant a team permission to talk with Westbrook, but it’s unclear if any teams already have. Still, it is evident that no team has received any indication that Westbrook would sign long-term.
One way to past that issue is for the Thunder to sign Westbrook to an extension and then trade him to another team like the Celtics. With an extension, Westbrook’s value would skyrocket through the roof, making teams throw assets at the Thunder to nab Russell. With something set to happen before the season starts, eyes will be on Sam Presti and staff to see how resilient their efforts are to salvage whatever they have left when their two superstars for over 8 years leave the franchise.
