Celtics' Brad Stevens Admits Boston Was Limited Due to Second Apron

The Boston Celtics have been in salary-shedding mode this offseason. They have shipped Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis out of town in order to get under the second apron.

Boston got Anfernee Simons in return for Holiday, and they are looking to reroute him, too. With Jayson Tatum out all of next year, this is a great time for them to clear their books.

General manager and president of basketball operations Brad Stevens knew that he had to get under the second apron with a new owner coming in. He recently acknowledged just how hamstrung he has been this offseason because of the second apron.

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Stevens recently laid out that they haven't been able to accomplish some of their goals because of the punitive nature of the second apron.

“We’ve been limited in what tools we can use with where we are right around the second apron,” Stevens said. “So we’re looking for guys on those contracts that have upside, that are competitors, that are workers, that want to be good, that haven’t hit their peak yet, but we’ve seen something in them that we think gives them a chance to be very impactful.”

This offseason, teams have been operating that the second apron is essentially a hard cap. Teams are terrified to enter that arena for more than a year because of all of the penalties that come with it.

The Celtics were not going to be in the second apron without any chance of winning the championship. Not having Tatum available for most of next season meant that they were not going to be a title contender.

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Boston now has to tread water for a year before the 2026-27 season when Tatum is fully healthy. The Celtics will lean on Jaylen Brown and Derrick White next season as the primary offensive engines.

Teams have been calling about being able to trade for both of those players as well, but the Celtics have not come close to parting ways with either guy.

Stevens might not be done making moves this offseason, but it's likely that they won't improve in any significant way.

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