Hayward to the Celtics
By Tadi Abedje
In one of the biggest transactions in this offseason, Gordon Hayward has announced that he will sign with the Boston Celtics. His contract will be for four years and the 128 million dollars, including a player option in the fourth year. He announced his decision by writing a letter to the Players’ Tribune that was directed towards the fans in Utah and the organization.
“I’ve truly grown up in Salt Lake. I’ve become a man, and I’ve become a professional. I’ve gone from being a kid … to now having a wife and two kids. I’ve gone from having anxiety over leaving my family … to now having a family of my own. A lot has happened to me during my time here, and I honestly can’t think of any part of it that I haven’t cherished. This is a special place, and I know that the impression it’s made on me will long outlast the impression I’ve made on it,” he described in the letter.
His options were his former team, the Utah Jazz, Miami Heat and the Celtics. Hayward was drafted by the Jazz in 2010 and spent seven seasons with the club, making his first All-Star Game appearance this past season.
Last year, he averaged a career high 21.9 points on 47.1 percent shooting, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. He has a career average of 15.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.
The talented swingman explained why he will take his talents to Beantown. “There were so many great things pulling me in that direction. There was the winning culture of Boston, as a city — from the Sox, to the Pats, to the Bruins. There was the special history of the Celtics, as a franchise — from Russell, to Bird, to Pierce, and it goes on. There was the amazing potential of this current Celtics team — from ownership, to the front office, to a talented roster with Isaiah (Thomas), and Al (Horford), and everyone else,” he said.
To make salary cap room for him, Boston declined its qualifying offer to forward Kelly Olynyk, making him an unrestricted free agent. They could trade some of their key role players like Avery Bradley (an unrestricted free agent after next season), Marcus Smart (a restricted free agent in 2018), and Jae Crowder (three years and 21.9 million dollars left on his contract).
He will be joining a team that has an established All-Star in Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford, who signed with the team last summer when he was a free agent. He will also be reuniting with head coach Brad Stevens, who coached him when he played college basketball at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Stevens was part of the free agency pitch along with General Manager Danny Ainge to convince Hayward that this was the right fit for him.
Hayward’s goal is to win a championship, something that he couldn’t do with Brad Stevens in 2010 when he was at Butler.