The Celtics were eliminated from the playoffs Thursday night and with that came the end of a very successful season. They were the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference and took massive steps forward in comparison to their two previous years. However, with the Cavaliers disposing of them so easily there are questions on if the Celtics have hit their head on the ceiling.
With the No. 1 overall draft pick in Boston's pocket and a fairly young roster, a case can be made to trade away some of the more veteran pieces to make room for whoever they end up drafting. The center piece of that trade speculation has been point guard Isaiah Thomas. He's coming off an All-NBA season and his trade value may never be higher. However, according to Sporting News there have so far been no actual trade talks for Thomas with everything so far being speculation.
"That starts with All-Star Isaiah Thomas, whose name has lately been the subject of trade speculation. But league sources indicate that any talk of dealing Thomas is strictly speculation at this point — the Celtics have had no such discussions. Not yet, at least."
With Thomas coming up on a new contract soon there's an expectation for him to receive a massive pay raise. If the Celtics don't want to put that kind of money into a team they're not sure can win a title, and may take away minutes from their draft pick, then trading Thomas is certainly possible.
However, there's no reason for the Celtics to be talking about trading Thomas right now. They don't even know if they're going to keep their pick, what free agents they can sign, or what their roster is going to look like next season. Speculation is fun, but Boston has all the time in the world to make a decision on Thomas.
