In the next window period, the Celtics’ new season planning!

The Celtics' championship window has temporarily ended, and now the Celtics can start to turn their perspective to the offseason.

Although the finals have not ended, there has been a lot of discussions about the possible adjustments of the Celtics in the offseason. Words such as "second-level salary cap", "team roster limit", etc. are gradually being mentioned by Celtics fans. Before predicting the adjustments that the Celtics may choose during the offseason, we must first clarify the issues that management may think about.

Team salary issues:

According to the data, the total salary of the Celtics exceeded the second hard cap of 4.4 million, which means they will pay about $53.5 million in taxes. The team's salary will also increase significantly next year, mainly because Tatum's new contract is about to take effect, and taxes will increase significantly as wages increase. Currently, the Celtics are expected to exceed the second tyrant line by 20 million next year, and they must pay up to 238 million in luxury taxes.

If it can be lowered from the luxury tax threshold for two consecutive years, the team will no longer be subject to duplicate tax restrictions in the subsequent time. This will be of great help to the team's future flexibility, and may even allow them to form a championship lineup again around the healthy Tatum. So how much salary do they need to cut to be safe?

According to the standards, this amount is about 40 million, and under this threshold, the team's potential cleaning goals are roughly as follows:

32.4 million Holiday, 30.7 million Porzingis (contract expiration next year)

28.1 million Derek White, 10 million Sam Hauser

It should be noted that it is difficult for the Celtics to clear their salary directly without getting back any salary. They need to find a team with enough salary space to fully acquire the contract. This is not entirely impossible, but teams with this space will inevitably seek as much reward as possible.

And another alternative is to choose to make an unequal transaction, that is, give out more salary than you receive. For example, trade Holiday to a championship team to exchange for a mid-term contract and a young player or draft pick. As long as there is enough operation combination, the Celtics can reduce the necessary salary and restore the team's salary structure to a healthy state.

Player roster limit:

Let's talk about the transaction limit caused by exceeding the second-tier salary cap. Here we can quote the view expressed by media person Jeff Clark:

"As a team whose salary exceeds the second-tier hard cap, the Celtics cannot package the salary of more than two players, that is, they cannot put together a few small contracts to exchange for a high-paying player. They cannot come with cash in the transaction."

In addition to this, what's worse is that the Celtics can only recover equal or less salary. Teams that don't usually pay luxury taxes can have some wiggle room and can recover up to 125% of their transaction salary, while the Celtics can't exceed a penny.

Draft pick problem:

It seems that all this is not bad enough, they still have the problem of draft picks.

When a team's salary exceeds the second-tier hard ceiling for two consecutive years, their first-round draft picks for the next seven years will be frozen, and of course they still belong to them, but they cannot be traded. If a team is above the second-level hard cap for three years within five years, then the frozen draft pick will be unconditionally adjusted to the last pick in the first round.

Now we have a basic understanding of all the punishment mechanisms that the team faces when trying to maintain the championship roster. According to outside speculation, if the Celtics can win the championship in a row, they may be willing to accept these punishments. However, before Tatum was injured, many rumors had long appeared, pointing out that management wanted to adjust the salary structure to reduce the tax burden.

Considering all the factors, the Celtics are unlikely to be regarded as champion favorites next season, and they have little reason to pay astronomical taxes and bear fines. Although some people are still looking forward to Tatum making a healthy comeback at the end of next season, rationally thinking, it is best not to face the intensity of the playoffs directly after returning to the team rushingly. It is safe to just take a break for a season before returning to the team.

Next, the topic around this team is very simple, focusing mainly on who should be traded, the bargaining chips they get, etc. Fortunately, the Celtics' assets are not that bad as they have to pay a draft pick to sell.

Holiday is getting older, but there are still many championship teams who want to accept him. Although Porzingis is not stable enough at attendance, he is still valuable when he is healthy, which is a good expiration contract. Hauser is a basketball-free shooter, and it is also quite worth it with an annual salary of 10 million.

The plan for the window period:

All the above content is intended to illustrate the difficulty of the Celtics to retain the original team, but this does not mean that the team should be completely rebuilt and into the bad situation. What needs to be done during the window period is to retain the core team, mainly Tatum + Brown + White, to reduce the team's salary to below the luxury tax line, and to lay a solid foundation before the next championship window opens.

And this is likely the biggest challenge Stevens has faced since entering the team's management. He needs to cut the team's salary while bringing back positive talents that are capable of contributing stably in the 2026-27 season and after that. Whether it is a trade or through a draft pick, it is an opportunity that the Celtics need to seize.

If the operation is done properly, the Celtics still have the opportunity to supplement some potential young players while maintaining their competitiveness. If these people can grow normally next year, then when Tatum returns healthy, he will immediately make contributions.

For such a team with a brilliant history, the current era of championship is about to leave. But the players are still valuable and deserve the fans' expectations for them. Looking to the future, the moment of change has begun.