Particle.news
Download on the App Store
67 ARTICLES
·
yesterday

Celtics Trade Holiday and Porzingis to Clear Cap Space Under Second Luxury Tax Apron

Brad Stevens’s front office moved key veterans to cut payroll under the NBA’s stringent second luxury tax apron

Image
rue Holiday #4 of the Boston Celtics dribbles against the Orlando Magic in Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at TD Garden on April 20, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Image
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – MAY 07: Jrue Holiday #4 of the Boston Celtics celebrates during the third quarter against the New York Knicks in Game Two of the Eastern Conference Second Round NBA Playoffs at TD Garden on May 07, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Overview

  • On June 23, Boston sent guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Anfernee Simons’s expiring $27.7 million contract and two second-round draft picks.
  • A day later, the Celtics dealt center Kristaps Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team swap that brought veteran forward Georges Niang and another future second-round pick to Boston.
  • The Holiday transaction immediately reduced Boston’s 2025-26 salary by about $4.7 million and cleared roughly $72 million in long-term commitments from its books.
  • Shedding Porzingis’s $30.8 million salary moved the Celtics below the second tax apron, lifting severe restrictions on future roster construction.
  • Boston has indicated that it will remain active in trade discussions as it retools around a younger, cost-controlled roster while Jayson Tatum recovers from his Achilles injury.