What would Kristaps Porzingis' future with Celtics look like beyond 2023-24?
The Boston Celtics reportedly are "closing in" on a three-team trade that would result in them acquiring star center Kristaps Porzingis from the Washington Wizards.
The deal also would, per multiple reports, send Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon to the Los Angeles Clippers and forward Danilo Gallinari to the Wizards.
UPDATE (Thursday, June 22 at 12:50 a.m. ET): The Celtics reportedly are finalizing a three-team trade with the Wizards and Grizzlies. Boston is acquiring Kristaps Porzingis and two first-round picks, while Memphis will land Marcus Smart. Washington is adding Tyus Jones, Mike Muscala, Danilo Gallinari and a 2023 second-round pick. Click here for the full details.
Part of this trade reportedly involves Porzingis opting into the final year of his contract, which carries a $36 million salary cap hit for the 2023-24 campaign. He would be eligible for unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2024 if not extended before then.
Assuming this trade is completed, what are the chances the Celtics actually sign Porzingis to a contract extension?
Longtime NBA reporter Marc Stein provided an update on that scenario with this tweet Wednesday evening:
The three-team deal to send Kristaps Porzingis to Boston is likewise expected to lead to a July contract extension for Porzingis beyond next season's $36 million player option, league sources say.
Today was the deadline to invoke the option.
More NBA: https://t.co/A6ycVmnrjq— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 21, 2023
What kind of extension could Porzingis potentially sign this offseason? ESPN's NBA front office insider Bobby Marks shared the details:
If Porzingis were to opt-in to his contract, he would be eligible to sign a 2 year $77M extension (starting July 6).
That is the maximum allowed in the next 6 months.
There is no restriction if the extension decreases in year 1. https://t.co/k86wCyEFnm— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 21, 2023
The Celtics can afford to pay Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Porzingis next season, but starting in 2024-25 the new CBA really punishes teams with super-high payrolls. It wouldn't be impossible for the Celtics to pay all three of those guys, but it would not be cheap. Remember, if the Celtics sign Brown to a five-year, $295 million supermax contract extension this summer, that deal would begin in the 2024-25 campaign.
Porzingis is a tremendous player when healthy and scored a career-high 23.2 points per game while shooting 38.5 percent from 3-point range last season. But he also hasn't played more than 65 games since his sophomore season with the New York Knicks in 2016-17. He missed 29 games in 2020-21, 31 games in 2021-22 and 17 games last season due to injuries.
Extending Porzingis would carry some risk, but if healthy, that move could pay huge dividends for Boston.