In the wake of the departures of both Al Horford and Aron Baynes, the Boston Celtics have reached an agreement with Enes Kanter to become their new Center. Kanter most recently played for the Portland Trail Blazers and averaged 13 points and 9 rebounds per game.
Enes Kanter Inks Deal with the Boston Celtics
The Celtics snagged Kemba Walker at the start of free agency but still had a huge hole to fill at the Center position. With Horford and Baynes out the door and virtually no cap space left, they looked to mid-level exception pieces. The piece they came out with was Kanter.
Kanter has agreed to a two-year deal worth $10 million with a player option on the second year. This deal gives the Celtics a short-term solution inside while Robert Williams continues his development. It’s unclear if Williams is the long-term solution, but this deal at least gives Boston time to iron out the finer details of their future.
The deal was first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic, putting an end to speculation on what direction the Celtics would take in terms of filling out their roster.
Enes Kanter is signing a two-year, $10M deal with the Celtics, with a second-year player option, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2019
Kanter will provide great rebounding skills to a team in need of such, though he won’t help much on the defensive end. Prior to the signing, the Celtics only had one true Center on the roster, raising many red flags. Kanter should fit into Brad Stevens’ system fairly easily, though it will surely take time for the chemistry to form for the new team.
For his career, Kanter averages nearly 12 points and 8 rebounds per game, though he is coming off one of his best statistical seasons to date. The 27-year old put up 14 points and 10 boards per game over the course of the 2018-19 season, despite switching teams at the trade deadline.
The Boston Celtics turned a re-build into a simple re-shuffle and look to be back on track to compete in the Eastern Conference next season.
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