Celtics may have to wait for trade deadline to move recently added scorer

Brad Stevens kicked off the Boston Celtics' retooling process with a flurry of moves earlier this summer. Anfernee Simons landed in Boston as a result of the move that sent Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers. 

Simons, 26, is a versatile three-level scorer. However, his $27.6 million salary and expiring contract make him a difficult player to re-route on the trade market. Nevertheless, the Boston Celtics have reportedly been shopping the score-first guard around the NBA, to no avail. 

According to an anonymous NBA executive, who spoke with long-time Celtics insider Steve Bulpett of Heavy on Sports, Boston may need to wait until the trade deadline to part with Simons.

“Anfernee Simons makes $27-plus million,” The executive said. “Who’s got room to put that in their cap? And he’s up after this year, so the Celtics aren’t going to want to take back anything that would load in more salary of less flexibility. I think, unless they are presented with some sweetheart situation, the most likely time for Simons to get moved — again, if he even does — would be at the trade deadline."

The biggest knock on Simons' game is that he struggles on defense. He's often getting beaten off the dribble or taken out of rotations by solid screens. To make matters worse, he's landed on a team that just 18 months ago won an NBA championship based on having two-way play at every position.

Simons must improve defensively, or he will likely accept that his time in Boston will be short-lived. 

In truth, though, even if his defense does take a jump, Simons may still find himself being flipped. Boston is unlikely to commit to offering him a new contract at his current salary level, and even less so at a higher one. Therefore, finding fair value in a deal with likely be Stevens' North Star in the coming months.

After all, whatever they get back for Simons will be tacked onto the return for Jrue Holiday, and you certainly don't want to have traded a two-time champion for pennies on the dollar.