Celtics increasingly tied to Kings’ Barnes, per SI’s Mannix, Athletic’s Amick

The Boston Celtics have been tied to Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes previously this season, and it seems Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix has been hearing from sources that the former Team USA teammate of Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown is among their preferred targets.

Writing about Boston’s $28.5 million traded player exception (TPE), and who the Celtics might be targeting with it, Mannix related the team is “high on … Barnes,” adding that “the Kings forward who could be moved by Sacramento,” a team which has lost eight of its last 10 games heading into the break.

This seems to gibe with what The Athletic’s Sam Amick is hearing about Boston around the league. He notes a deal for Barnes is one “so many front office folks around the league believe could be coming.”

Mannix also notes the team continues to have interest in trading for Detroit Pistons forward Jerami Grant, but "the Pistons have not shown any urgency in offloading the 26-year-old Grant, who is having a career season." And while the SI analyst notes the team can always wait until the offseason to make a deal should no suitable target emerge, that move comes with risks regarding a thinner pool of contracts to choose from as much as a larger deal now may complicate the team's books in the mid-term. Too much salary added during this season brings the league's dreaded repeater tax into play sooner with unofficial team captain Marcus Smart due for a new contract at the end of next season and burgeoning big man Robert Williams III due to come off his rookie deal at the same time. [mm-video type=video id=01f09x3t5vb729s807 playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f09x3t5vb729s807/01f09x3t5vb729s807-fe6752354f619f6e67739a520df6ef90.jpg]

Conversely, an overabundance of caution could see the Celtics swing and miss on their last big team-building tool of their current contention window, putting Danny Ainge and the front office on something of a tightrope for the next several months. With ESPN's Zach Lowe reporting a young player and a first may be the asking price for Barnes going forward, a path to possible serious contention (and tax hell) seems to be on the table -- but could a deal be forged to walk the narrow path between extreme outcomes? Only time and Ainge's acumen as a dealmaker will tell. [lawrence-related id=47628,47615,47594,47587] [listicle id=47590]

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