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Victor Oladipo, formerly of the Indiana Pacers, turns to Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat.
This environment was certainly a far cry from the typical early season trials. You could say there has been some movement on the trade front.
After publicly expressing his disdain for his own team the day before, the former James Harden standout finally got his wish, and was given a one-way ticket to Houston. Harden led a four-team blockbuster that sent him to Brooklyn to work with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
With Houston’s drop or Harden and his presence in the rearview mirror once associated with the Boston Celtics, one would think the commercial chatter surrounding the C’s would fade a bit.
Think carefully as they considered a possible target for the Eastern Conference leaders. I might add that the target probably hasn’t even unpacked his suitcase in his new city yet.
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Scalaber: I’ll keep my eyes open Victor Oladipo
James Harden wasn’t the only star on Wednesday. In exchange for firing a disgruntled superstar, they brought in double All-Star Victor Oladipo from Indiana. However, the beloved Brian Scalabrine, champion of Celtics and NBC Sports Boston, believes Oladipo could soon find himself in a contest with a competitor who has made his way to his heart.
One guy I would keep an eye on is Victor Oladipo, who was just traded to Houston, Scalabrine said of the Rockets’ new member. I think Houston wants to blow it this year. I think they want them to have a protected top three, and their pick will go to Oklahoma City if it’s out of that range. Victor Oladipo might be the guy the Celtics can bring in. They could make their trade exception, trade young talented players, and I think because he has a contract that expires, he fits the mold for $20 million that the Celtics could spend right now without giving up a ton.
Boston Trading Exception
The Rockets currently rank second in the Western Conference with a record of 3-6 and have no plans to make any major leaps forward in the near future. With the exclusion of a $28.5 million player in Boston’s back pocket (thanks to Gordon Hayward’s deal), Scalabrine believes Celtics might decide to target a player like Oladipo.
I think if they could do something with the commercial exception, we could move on to the series with the Nets: We love each other more on paper than they do. Right now, the way it’s built, no. But it depends on what they do with this trade exception, he said. I imagine the Celtics are in a position where we want to take the risk.
Oladipo, who is just 28 years old, is averaging 20.0 ppg this season, his highest level since 2017-2018. The former all-defensive first team also had 5.7 assists, 4.2 assists and 1.7 steals per game in nine games this year.
Oladipo would certainly be an interesting addition to a Celtics team looking for a title. The question is whether Houston is willing to tell the world that they are essentially sending it without any legitimate hope of winning the title in just a few months.
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