The Boston Celtics are in the trade market ahead of the Feb. 5 deadline, and this franchise’s encouraging 2025-26 season has it looking to upgrade this roster. Joe Mazzulla’s team is currently 29-18 and tied for second in the Eastern Conference amid a career season for star wing Jaylen Brown.
With a serious chance to get back to the Finals, the Celtics have been most interested in adding to their big man rotation before the playoffs. That said, the front office is being understandably picky and has already rejected a trade for one of the league’s most offensively skilled centers.
Celtics Passed on Trading for a Two-Time All-Star Center
Anfernee Simons’ first season in Beantown might be coming to an end soon. The 26-year-old has been a reliable bench player for the Celtics, but he’s in the final season of his current four-year, $100 million deal.
Simons’ expiring deal, therefore, is a valuable asset for teams looking to get off long-term deals. While Neemias Queta has been a pleasant surprise as the starting center this season, the Celtics need to either upgrade this position or add to its depth if they are going to realistically come out of the East.
Senior NBA Insider Michael Scotto ultimately revealed the front office’s approach to trade talks involving Simons. These discussions have included the franchise rejecting a trade for a talented veteran and inquiring about one of the elite bigs in the Western Conference.
Scotto said, “Well before Boston surged into second place in the East, the Chicago Bulls inquired on the possibility of trading center Nikola Vucevic for Simons and a Celtics first-round pick, which would have lowered Boston’s tax bill, but the Celtics weren’t interested.
“When the Clippers were struggling with a 6-21 record to begin the season, the Celtics inquired about an exploratory framework around Simons, a first-round pick, and a future first-round pick swap for Ivica Zubac and salary filler, which didn’t gain any traction, league sources told HoopsHype.”
Celtics Should Add a Center Who Fits Their Contending Window
While the Celtics could return to the Finals this season with an upgraded frontcourt, reaching for Nikola Vučević at this stage in his career would not be the wisest option. The 35-year-old is similarly in the last year of his three-year, $60 million contract, but he’s a weak defender at his position, offering little to no rim protection.
Ivica Zubac, on the other hand, is both an excellent defender and rebounder, under contract through the 2027-28 season, and still only 28 years old. The Clippers’ center is exactly the kind of player who would fit ideally around Brown and Jayson Tatum for years to come.
However, for now, it looks like both of those players are out of the picture this trade deadline. Therefore, it’ll be interesting to see whether the Celtics use Simons’ contract in a trade and whether this proud franchise believes Queta is its starting center now and going forward.
