4 Celtics trade deadline suggestions to address the center position

Before the trade deadline, Boston Celtics won 130-126 in double overtime against the Brooklyn Nets and lost 114-111 to the Chicago Bulls. Will there be changes? The Celtics’ second-best record — 28-17 — in the Eastern Conference is a testament to a resilient, top-ranked defensive team that has overcome amid mediocre expectations while missing its best player, Jayson Tatum. This year’s 2025-26 team is led by All-Star and MVP candidate Jaylen Brown.

Fans in Boston watched as the Celtics front office parted ways with the building blocks of their 2024 championship, including Kristaps Porzingis, Jurah Holiday and Al Horford. But they have plenty to cheer about as the Celtics have established themselves in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference 45 games into the regular season.

Still, if the Celtics want to make a deep playoff run this season, they’ll need to address their glaring weaknesses on the glass and in the paint, which have led them to be on the wrong end of games that come down to the wire. The Celtics are 9-13 in games this season. Neemias Cueta has done a commendable job as the Celtics’ starting center. But his supporting cast leaves a lot to be desired.

Luca Garza cemented a backup role in Quetta while the others, amid a diminishing return, fell in and out of coach Joe Mazzula’s rotation during the regular season. The Celtics need frontcourt help.

Here are four trade proposals that would address the Celtics’ glaring needs before next week’s NBA trade deadline:

Clippers get:

• Anfernee Simmons
• Sam Hauser
• 2026 first round pick

Celtics get:

• Ivica Zubac
• Bogdan Bogdanovic

Adding Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac to Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzula’s system makes sense for many reasons, but especially rebounding, rim protection and low-end. It’s a tooth ranked third in rebounds per game (11.1). But for the Clippers to part ways with their defensive anchor, the Celtics will have to pay off.

The Clippers wouldn’t mind picking up Zubc’s contract, which has two more years until 2027-2028 and is worth between $19.5 million and $20.9 million. With James Harden and Kawhi Leonard making up more than $92 million of the Clippers’ salary cap space, sending Zubac along with another long-term deal such as Bogdan Bogdanovic for the current offensive scorer in Anferna Simmons, a proven scorer in Sam Hauser and an unprotected 2026 first-round pick.

Zubac isn’t the stretch-5 the Celtics usually target, but he would be a significant upgrade over Neemias Cueto and would address much of the lack of perimeter resistance that Boston hasn’t had this year.

Grizzlies get:

• Anfernee Simmons
• 2027 first round pick

Celtics get:

While an All-Star forward like Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Memphis Grizzlies should be at the top of this list, the likelihood of the Grizzlies trading their best player to the Celtics is not high. However, if they see a score-first point guard like Anfernee Simmons as a viable replacement for Ja Morant, then the Celtics are in business.

Simmons is averaging 13.8 points on 43.3% shooting, including 39.4% from deep as the Celtics’ sixth man. However, as the focal point of the team’s offense, those numbers could return to 22.6 points on 43.4% shooting, as was the case with the Portland Blazers in 2023-24. Pair Simmons with a first-round pick for a team short on draft capital, and the Grizzlies should consider pulling the trigger.

However, Memphis has to go big according to Simmons. Otherwise, the trade proposal makes no sense for the Grizzlies. Jackson Jr., the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year, is averaging 18.9 points on 47.9% shooting, including 36.3% from deep, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 blocks in 41 games this season.

3. Blazers center Robert Williams

Blazers get:

Celtics get:

No team in the NBA embraces a reunion with a former player like the Boston Celtics. From Antoine Walker in the mid-2000s to Al Horford and Daniel Theis in the 2010s, the Celtics have not been shy about bringing back a former player. Heck, even Hall of Famer Gary Payton returned to Boston the same season he was traded at the deadline. Who does that? Robert Williams III should be no exception. If nothing else, the fans will embrace it.

For the first time since starting for the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals, Williams III is relatively healthy. The 61 games played in the 2021-22 season are Robert’s healthiest games during his eight-year career. He played in 31 of 46 games in the 2025-26 season. Williams III underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in 2025. Most of the games he has missed this season are due to treatment of that injury.

However, Timelord’s growth in Portland was never a priority. Blazers sophomore center Donovan Clingan is. He is 21 years old and averaging a double-double. Portland is also developing rookie 7-footer Young Hansen. At the same time, the Blazers have the lowest 3-point shooting percentage in the NBA (33.8%).

Sam Hauser, who shot a career-best 43.2% from three, addresses that concern. He also has a team contract worth no more than $12.4 million per season through 2028-29. Williams III is averaging 6.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 16 minutes per game this season.

4. Nets center Dai’Ron Sharpe

Networks get:

• Sam Hauser
• 2027 second round pick

As the Boston Celtics enter the NBA trade deadline as shoppers in the market for a serviceable center, Day Ron Sharp of the Brooklyn Nets is a name that isn’t jumping off the page, but has been linked to the NBA champions in 2024. Sharp’s energetic style on the team’s contract, and with one year remaining, makes him a viable option for Boston.

This season he is averaging 7.8 points on 60.3% shooting, 6.2 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game. Sharpe can also shoot from the perimeter, and at 24, he’s still a developing center in just his fifth season with the Nets.