Hanifan's Offseason Outlook: Evaluating the Boston Celtics' 2025 offseason

For our second annual offseason outlook series, Hot Hot Hoops senior writer Matt Hanifan will provide his take on the offseasons of all 30 teams for the next 30 days! We will proceed in alphabetical order, starting with the Eastern Conference. Today, we will be hitting the Boston Celtics.

Evaluating the Boston Celtics’ 2025 offseason

Additions: Anfernee Simons, Chris Boucher, Josh Minott, Luka Garza, R.J. Luis

Subtractions: Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, Al Horford (free agent), Luke Kornet, Torrey Craig, J.D. Davison, Miles Norris (FA), Drew Peterson

Re-signed: None

Draft: Hugo Gonzalez (No. 28 overall), Amari Williams (No. 46), Max Shulga (No. 57)

Hanifan’s outlook: Similarly to the Hawks, which we did yesterday, the Celtics had an active offseason. However, it was the exact opposite of their East counterpart. Boston was shedding salary to get below the second apron.

Star forward Jayson Tatum ruptured his achilles in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks. There were already breadcrumbs that Boston — under new ownership — would shed salary for fiscal reasons. Tatum’s injury was all it needed to go into full-fledged sell mode.

While the Celtics signed head coach Joe Mazzulla to an extension in early August, they salary-dumped both Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday to the Hawks and Trail Blazers, respectively, shedding roughly $260 million in tax dollars. They also let aging forward Al Horford walk.

Georges Niang, the headliner in the Porzingis, inexplicably got flipped for R.J. Luis, a two-way player. Boston was able to extract polarizing guard Anfernee Simons from Portland in the Holiday trade. Though they’re also reportedly open to moving him, too.

Hanifan’s Offseason Outlook: Evaluating the Atlanta Hawks’ 2025 offseason

It’s been busy, for better or worse. It’s a classic gap year for the Celtics; I understand wanting to avoid long-term second apron penalties, but it came at a steep cost. I don’t hate what they did in the draft either, but this group is going to take a considerable step back without their best player in 2025-26. I do think they’ll be feisty, though.