Welcome to Trade Deadline Day or if you’re so inclined, “What Are The Celtics Going To Do About Dennis Schroder” Day.
With Marcus Smart back from a stint in the league’s health and safety protocols, Boston has won eight of their last nine games and by most accounts, it seems unlikely that President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens would break up a fivesome that has registered an impressive 29.6 net rating (117.5 offensive, 87.9 defensive) unless something franchise-altering came across his desk.
For now, Dennis Schroder seems to be the bellwether of what the Celtics want to do before today’s trade deadline with two questions hanging in the balance: 1) will Boston be buyers or sellers and 2) does Stevens (and Celtics ownership) consider this team to be a contender, fringe or as the fourth best percentage to raise the Larry O’Brien per FiveThirtyEight, enough to go into the luxury tax?