In the NBA, every franchise has one. A trade, a missed pick, a “what-if” that lingers in the back of the minds of fans and front offices for years. As we get into the Halloween spirit, the ghost of a 2020 draft-night decision is starting to feel particularly spooky for the Boston Celtics.
THE HAUNTING TRADE
Back in 2020, the Boston Celtics held the 30th and final pick of the first round. With it, they selected a strong, promising guard out of TCU: Desmond Bane. But in a move that seemed like minor roster shuffling at the time, the Celtics immediately traded his rights to the Memphis Grizzlies.
The return? A couple of future second-round picks that ultimately didn’t stick with the team. It was a transaction that faded into the background noise of NBA business… until it didn’t.
THE PLAYER BANE BECAME
Fast forward to today, and that “minor” trade has become a nightmare of missed opportunity. Desmond Bane didn’t just become a solid rotation player; he exploded into a cornerstone star.
In Memphis, he blossomed into a lethal three-point sharpshooter, a near-star level scorer, and a tough, willing defender—the exact prototype of a modern two-way wing. His ascension was so dramatic that he earned a $207 million max contract. His value was then proven again when the Grizzlies recently traded him to the Orlando Magic for a massive haul of four first-round picks.
THE CELTICS’ “WHAT IF?” REALITY
The Celtics, of course, have had immense success. They won a championship without him. But as highlighted by Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley, the “ghost” of Bane appears when you look at the team’s current construction.
“The Celtics could find out they don’t have enough two-way support players around their stars,” Buckley wrote. “And that’s a massive bummer since Boston managed to find that exact skill set at the back end of the 2020 draft. The problem was the Celtics didn’t keep the 30th pick… So, while Bane has since emerged… Boston has reaped exactly none of the rewards from his ascension.”
Now, with Jayson Tatum sidelined due to a torn Achilles, the “what-ifs” are louder. Imagine a wing rotation featuring Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and a player of Bane’s two-way caliber. The lineup flexibility, the scoring burden, and the defensive intensity could have been on another level.
Would Bane have been the difference in another title? Would his presence have made the Celtics an unstoppable dynasty? We’ll never know. The Celtics are still a powerhouse, but they’re navigating a path that could have looked radically different. The trade for a few second-round picks four years ago serves as a chilling reminder: in the NBA, sometimes the ones that get away are the ones that haunt you the longest.