Boston Celtics Free Agency & NBA Draft News

According to an unnamed Western Conference GM that spoke with Sam Amico of FoxSports, the Boston Celtics are considering making one more run with the core group of players that helped the franchise come within one victory of playing in their third NBA Finals in five years.

While the anonymous GM said he believes Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers will try to keep most of the core group together, it seems as though one member of Boston's "Big Four" might be finding a new home during the offseason.

“I think they’ll re-sign Garnett, but let Allen walk,” said one Western Conference executive. “Then they’ll spend some money in free agency. They’re a respected franchise. They’ll draw some interest from the available bigger names, but the key will be to keep Garnett first.”

If the Celtics do indeed decide to allow Ray Allen to walk in free agency, they would be free to target one of the marquee names on this summer's free agent market such as Deron Williams, Steve Nash, or Eric Gordon.

Since the Celtics only have Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Avery Bradley, and JaJuan Johnson locked in under contract for next season (Brandon Bass has a player option for $4 million that he will likely exercise), they only have $34.5 million on their books in salary.

As long as they can convince Garnett to return at a moderate discount to chase one more ring and retire a Celtic, the team should have enough money to pursue someone that will be commanding something close to a maximum deal or several mid-level talents to restock around the core group.

Amico quoted the anonymous GM as saying he thought the Celtics might have interest in the following unrestricted free agents: Jason Terry (Dallas Mavericks), Andre Miller (Denver Nuggets), Carlos Delfino (Milwaukee Bucks), Shannon Brown (Phoenix Suns) and Nick Young (Los Angeles Clippers).

The GM also mentioned restricted free agents O.J. Mayo (Memphis Grizzlies) and Eric Gordon (New Orleans Hornets) as potential targets for Boston.

Brook Lopez is another player to keep an eye on, in my opinion, as I can't imagine him resigning with the Brooklyn Nets after they have spent two solid seasons trying to move him in exchange for Dwight Howard.

Lopez would give Boston a solid scoring threat in their front court to go along with Bass and Garnett (assuming both players return to the Celtics) and is now the best center on the market after Howard signed his one-year extension with the Orlando Magic.

Also, according to Amico, the Celtics are considering packaging the #21 and #22 picks they own in an attempt to move up "five or six spots" in this month's NBA Draft.

The Philadelphia 76ers (#15) and Houston Rockets (#16) are reportedly interested in trading their selections in return for a proven veteran, however, they might be enticed to make a deal with Boston if they feel they have a better chance of acquiring someone with two picks as opposed to one.

Definitely keep an eye out for a Boston-Houston trade, as the Rockets own the 14th pick as well as the 16th and I'd be very surprised if Houston doesn't trade at least one of the selections.

Although it's highly unlikely, if Boston does manage to trade up in the draft, they may find themselves in the awkward position of having Austin Rivers, son of head coach Doc Rivers, still available on the board when they pick.

Since both Austin and Doc have said in interviews that they would rather not end up with the same franchise, it's extremely unlikely to happen even if he is on the board when their pick comes up, however, there's always a chance things could change if the Celtics find themselves with a realistic chance of landing the young guard who played last season with Duke.

The only thing that is certain for the Boston Celtics this summer is that Danny Ainge will have his hands full as he tries to decide what direction the franchise wants to move into as they depart from the "Big Three" era and into a new, much more uncertain one.

Which free agents do you think would be the best fit for the Celtics? Should they try to trade up in the draft or grab two players in what many to consider to be a deep draft? Share what you think Ainge should do this summer below in the comments section.