Portland thought they’d dumped Anfernee Simons’ $27 million salary on Boston as a throw-in to get Jrue Holiday done, expecting the Celtics – buried under the second apron – to panic and flip him within weeks for pennies on the dollar.
Turns out the joke’s on the Blazers.
Nearly a quarter into the season, Simons is not only still wearing Celtic green… Boston is perfectly happy to keep him.
According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Celtics had legitimate offseason discussions with Brooklyn about rerouting Simons and even had Milwaukee sniffing around. Multiple frameworks were explored. Nothing ever got close.
Why? Because Boston refuses to pay to get off his contract.
League sources told HoopsHype that the Celtics “haven’t shown a willingness to attach a first-round pick” to move Simons’ expiring deal. Translation: if you want the 26-year-old guard who’s currently averaging 14.4 points on 41.1% from three, you’re going to have to overwhelmingly beat whatever he’s giving the reigning champs right now.
And here’s the part that has to sting in Portland: Boston no longer has any real financial urgency. After flipping Georges Niang to Utah, the Celtics are comfortably under the second apron ($4M over the first, $12M into the tax) and have already budgeted for their current luxury-tax bill. They’re not desperate. They’re not even uncomfortable.
In other words, the cost-cutting favor Portland thought they were forcing on Boston? It never materialized. The Celtics turned a supposed salary dump into a low-risk, high-upside rotation piece who’s getting better by the week.
Simons struggled early while adjusting to a drastically reduced role, but the last few weeks have shown exactly why teams were calling all summer: elite movement shooting, secondary creation flashes, and real defensive improvement. If he keeps trending up – especially as a connector rather than a ball-stopper – he could be the perfect sixth man on a contender.
For the Trail Blazers, that’s the nightmare scenario: the guy they gave away for nothing is thriving in the exact situation they thought would make him disposable.
Boston’s message is crystal clear: Anfernee Simons isn’t going anywhere unless someone makes them an offer they can’t refuse.
Good luck with that.