Celtics Forward Grant Williams ‘Top Target’ for Western Conference Contender

This offseason, the Boston Celtics have several players slated to hit free agency with fourth-year forward Grant Williams serving as the headliner of the bunch.

There are bound to be several opposing ball clubs vying for his services on the open market and Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey believes the sharpshooter should be viewed as the “top target” for the Dallas Mavericks.

“If he is indeed available, the Dallas Mavericks should pursue him with the mid-level exception they would have access to in the event Kyrie Irving re-signs and takes them over the salary cap. Dallas already landed a big man who can roll to the rim in Richaun Holmes on draft night (presumably with a trade exception it created earlier by trading Dāvis Bertāns).

“Now, the Mavs could use another big who can space the floor for Kyrie and Luka Dončić’s drives. Over the last three seasons, Williams has averaged 7.0 points and 1.2 threes, while shooting 39.7 percent from deep. And perhaps just as important, he’s shown a solid ability to defend centers and bigger wings,” Bailey wrote.

Bailey would continue on to note that, considering his restricted free-agent label, the Celtics would have the ability to match any offer sheet extended to Grant Williams, thus making a possible pursuit of him in free agency potentially complex.

However, recent rumblings may suggest that Boston might not be as hell-bent on bringing him back as they once may have been.

Kristaps Porzingis Makes Grant Williams Expendable

Just recently, the Boston Celtics made a rather sizeable splash with their decision to trade for former All-Star big man Kristaps Porzingis.

While the blockbuster certainly adds some much-needed depth to their big-man rotation, the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach suggests that it simultaneously seems to spell the end of Grant Williams’ tenure in Beantown.

“According to multiple league sources, the completion of the Porziņģis deal would likely mean that Grant Williams’s time in Boston has come to an end,” Himmelsbach said via Twitter.

Should this prove to be the case, recent reports by Mass Live’s Brian Robb suggest the Celtics could be looking to take part in some sort of sign-and-trade involving the 24-year-old, which, in turn, could subsequently aid in Bailey’s suggestion for the Mavericks to pursue his shooting talents.

“Boston has the ability to address that depth issue if they bring back Grant Williams but that seems to be a long shot at this point barring another big move, per sources. The money and likely role for him is not there with Porzingis signed at $36 million. Instead, look for the Celtics to try to swing a sign-and-trade with him per sources and instead add another player for guard/wing depth or grab a future draft asset or traded player exception,” Robb wrote.

Grant Williams is coming off a 2022-23 campaign where he posted career-best per-game averages in points (8.1), rebounds (4.6), and assists (1.7) while cashing in on 39.5% of his shot attempts from beyond the arc.

Torrey Craig ‘Top Target’ For Celtics

Grant Williams may be seen as the “top target” the Mavericks should consider pursuing this summer, but when it comes to the Celtics, Andy Bailey seems to believe that veteran wing Torrey Craig and his defensive abilities should be atop the wish list for Brad Stevens and company.

“There’s a good chance the Boston Celtics will be a luxury tax-paying team in 2023-24, which makes potential targets in free agency far less glamorous. And that’s fine. Boston already made a huge splash when it acquired Kristaps Porziņģis in a trade. Now, it should be looking to fill out the rotation with wings (presumably on minimum contracts) who can fit into a sometimes positionless scheme with Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. Torrey Craig is a multipositional defender in that salary range who shot 39.5 percent from deep in 2022-23,” Bailey wrote.

The 3&D veteran has been linked as a possible target for the Celtics on more than one occasion, with Masslive’s Brian Robb suggesting back at around this past season’s trade deadline that he would be a quality addition to Joe Mazzulla‘s rotation.

Through 79 games played with the Suns in 2022-23, Torrey Craig went on to post averages of 7.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and just shy of a block while shooting 45.6% from the field and 39.5% from deep.