Boston Celtics Trade Georges Niang to Utah Jazz, Sign Chris Boucher
The Boston Celtics are trading Georges Niang and two future second-round picks to the Utah Jazz for RJ Luis Jr. and signing Chris Boucher, according to NBA insider Shams Charania of ESPN.
The Celtics acquired Niang from the Atlanta Hawks in the Kristaps Porziņģis trade.
The Celtics have been busy this offseason. They have traded Porziņģis, Niang and Jrue Holiday.
Boston also chose not to re-sign Al Horford and Luke Kornet.
Joe Mazzulla’s group lost to the New York Knicks in the second round of the 2025 playoffs in six games after winning the 2024 championship against the Dallas Mavericks in five games. Celtics star Jayson Tatum tore his right Achilles tendon in Game 4 of the Knicks series at Madison Square Garden.
Boston traded Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers for Anfernee Simons, who could be traded soon. The Celtics are not expected to compete for the championship next season, so the front office and new ownership group are trying to save as much money as possible.
While Tatum is already out of his walking boot, the six-time All-Star is expected to miss the entire 2025-26 season.
Almost every NBA contender tried to trade for Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, but the Celtics never took those inquiries seriously. Once Tatum is back in 2026-27, Boston will rely on Tatum, Brown and White again.
It will be fascinating to see how many games Boston wins next season without Tatum. The franchise with the most championships (18) in NBA history will experience a “gap season” in 2025-26.
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