Like any championship-level team, the Celtics’ top recruiting chip is indeed its talent.
The Celtics’ 21st century ‘Big 3’ only fully came together when the Celtics acquired Ray Allen, which enticed Kevin Garnett enough to finally agree to a deal to move to Boston, and LeBron James and Chris Bosh deciding to join Dwyane Wade in Miami remains perhaps the greatest recruiting team-up in the history of the league.
And when it comes to assembling the next superteam, it only helps when that talent is also willing to play the part of recruiter, which is exactly what Jayson Tatum when the Blazers’ Damian Lillard hit the trade market earlier this summer, according to a report from ESPN’s Marc Spears.
Talking about the Lillard saga on the “Sports By Northwest” podcast, Spears noted Lillard’s ‘military basketball mentality’ regarding his career, and even dropped a Tatum-related nugget when it came to Lillard’s desire to leave Portland.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – MARCH 08: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers looks on with Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on March 08, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
“I think at 33 years old, [Lillard] looks at the landscape of the West and it’s like ‘Hmmm… I think my chances are better to go out East, and if Miami is able to make the Finals without somebody like myself, what can they do with me?’ So, you don’t make that move unless it’s certainly a calculated risk,” Spears noted. “And I know that Boston, I know Jayson Tatum has called him, try to get in his ear, but his focus is definitely on Miami.”
This latest report is, of course, nothing new. Lillard’s disinterest in everybody but the Heat is well established at one point, and some in-the-know analysts (Chris Haynes) have outright laughed at the idea of Lillard going to a place like Boston despite what felt like obvious interest from (clearly, now) the players on the Boston roster. The Athetic’s Shams Charania, meanwhile, said it was a ‘resounding no’ from Lillard when it came to player for either the Celtics or Los Angeles Clippers, who had also expressed some interest in the seven-time All Star.
It’s clearly Miami or bust for Lillard.
Mar 8, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) drives the ball against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) in the second quarter at TD Garden. (David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports)
And while it’s been a no from Lillard, when Tatum called Lillard — or tried to call and get in Lillard’s ear about potentially joining the Celtics — is interesting. Especially considering the already-busy summer the Celtics have had from a big-money transaction standpoint.
The massive move for the Celtics came with them putting the pen to paper on the forever-inevitable Jaylen Brown supermax extension. That contract, which will pay Brown an NBA-record $304 million over the life of the deal, officially goes on the books in 2024-25. The contract, which will be matched by an inevitable supermax deal for Tatum, will put an undeniable squeeze on the Celtics’ ability to round out the rest of their roster.
The Celtics also added Latvian big man Kristaps Porzingis via a three-team trade with Washington and Memphis, and parted with Marcus Smart to make that deal happen. The Celtics then signed the 7-foot-3 Porzingis to a two-year, $60 million extension that’ll kick in for the 2024-25 season.
How the dollars and cents math would’ve done what it needed to do to add Lillard would’ve been its own exercise, but man oh man, what a superteam the Celtics could’ve built with Lillard added to the mix.
And there’s something to be said for Tatum trying to be the guy to lure other players to Boston. That’s certainly going to be a welcomed addition for the C’s recruiting game, all things considered, as it’s a sign that Tatum is committed to the club and that he’s willing to go the extra mile for them as the face of the franchise.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – MARCH 08: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers dribbles against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on March 08, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
It may even work on non-Lillard talents, too.
It’s not Tatum’s fault that Lillard has been hyper-focused on the Heat, even with the Blazers seemingly uninterested in discussions with Miami due to their unwillingness to move what the Blazers consider to be high-quality pieces. Portland’s disinterest in what the Heat are trying to sell them remains, too, and it’ll be fascinating to see how this thing plays out with the opening of NBA training camps rapidly approaching.
But should a deal happen (these things almost always tend to work out how the player ultimately wants), there’s no doubt that Lillard going to the Heat will have a massive impact on the Celtics’ championship aspirations.
“Come to the Heat.”
— Ball Don’t Lie (@Balldontlie) August 14, 2023
Jayson Tatum: “nah.”
Tatum swerved a fan telling him to come to Miami 🤣
(via shaan_mehta/IG) pic.twitter.com/xIjffV8MmoThe Heat are already the C’s top rival in the Eastern Conference — the sides have met in the Eastern Conference Finals in three of the last four seasons — and Lillard going to Miami will only give the Celtics yet another threat to worry about when it comes to outlasting Miami in a seven-game series.
So now comes seeing who Tatum will call next. The good news? He’s calling at all.
