At 39-12, the Boston Celtics have the best record in the NBA. Yesterday was the NBA trade deadline and there were not many moves the team needed to make. Boston already has a solid overall roster. However, the team did end up tweaking their roster slightly. The Celtics traded for Xavier Tilman from the Grizzlies and Jaden Springer from the 76ers.
Tilman is in his fourth professional season out of Michigan State. Before the trade, he spent all of his career with Memphis. Springer is in his third season after being a late 1st-round pick by the Sixers in 2022. He played collegiately at Tennessee. Both players are known for being solid defenders and the Celtics loved adding that kind of depth to their bench.
Xavier Tilman and Jaden Springer should fit into Boston’s rotation rather seamlessly
Brad Stevens talks about Xavier Tillman, who Boston acquired on Wednesday pic.twitter.com/CurJOnfHZS
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) February 9, 2024
The Boston Celtics already have a strong core on their roster. However, it never hurts to add depth pieces that can still be impactful players. That is what the team is planning to do after trading for Memphis’ Xavier Tilman. He was a second-round pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and was in his 4th season with the Grizzlies. Tilman appeared in 34 games for Memphis in 2023-24 and made 13 starts. The 25-year-old is averaging (6.0) points, (4.6) rebounds, (1.7) assists, (1.2) steals, and (1.0) assists per game.
Tilman is solid frontcourt depth for the Celtis behind Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford. Additionally, the Celtics traded for Jaden Springer. He was a first-round draft pick by the 76ers in 2022. The 21-year-old struggled to see consistent playing time for the Sixers over his first three seasons with the team. Springer is getting a fresh start with the Celtics and is joining what could be a championship roster at the end of the season.
Brad Stevens says the team had Jaden Springer on its radar at the draft a few years ago and his strides really stood out this past fall when facing Philly in the preseason.
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 9, 2024
In his first two seasons, Springer appeared in just 18 games for Philly. That number increased to 32 games and one start in 2023-24. Springer was not utilized enough in the past. Head coach Nick Nurse saw that and gave him more playing time this season. However, the front office felt they could move on from the 21-year-old and still be ok at guard. It will be interesting to see just where Xavier Tilman and Jaden Springer fit into Boston’s rotation. Both are upgrades to some of the players Boston has been using off the bench this season. Their next game is Friday night at home vs. the Wizards.
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