The Celtics are set to changes this summer as their season came to a disappointing end to the Knicks. The C’s blew Games 1 and 2 against New York as it couldn’t rally in the East semifinals, falling 4-2. Plus, Jayson Tatum’s ruptured Achilles tendon makes the future uncertain with his status up in the air for next season.
While fans will look at the roster and any potential trades, there are some key players hitting free agency. Al Horford, who turns 39 next month, wasn’t committed either way on whether he’d return to the Celtics. Then there’s also reserve big man Luke Kornet, who had a breakout season and will hit unrestricted free agency.
“Regarding going forward it’s like, I’ll figure out stuff when it kind of comes to it,” Kornet said. “At this point, you’re just kind of trying to unwind and spend some time with family and you don’t even know what everything is gonna look like because you just got done playing. That’s kind of what it is for now.”
Kornet, 29, averaged 6.0 points and 5.3 rebounds in 73 games (16 starts) for the Celtics this season. He developed his way into a legit rotation player who saw notable playoff minutes. That included a huge Game 5 performance against the Knicks that featured a career-high seven blocks to help extend the Celtics’ season.
Kornet could be in line for a nice payday from a different team this offseason. The Celtics do have Kornet’s Bird Rights, so they could pay him whatever they want. But considering the front office will look to shed salary, that will be another decision that needs to be made when it comes to the reserve big man. It’s still early as this will all be sorted out in the coming weeks. But the C’s, after falling short of their goals, will have changes to their roster.
“The year, obviously it didn’t ultimately end in what we wanted to do and accomplish,” Kornet said. “It’s like a good deal to look back on well. I mean obviously the day after, that’s a little tough. But I think that it was a little more time to be able to kind of appreciate things for what they were. Obviously we had some good stretches and we ultimately came short, so it’s just kind of the taste in the mouth for the time being.”
