The 2026 NBA trade deadline has passed and the dust has started to settle on the many moves made by the Boston Celtics and the rest of the league ahead of the annual cutoff on moving players between teams. This week, the Celtics dealt Anfernee Simons for Nikola Vucevic, and then moved Chris Boucher, Xavier Tillman Sr., and Josh Minott with only two way player John Tonje coming back. Did we mention that Boston got below the luxury tax without using a first round pick to get there from what would have been the costliest roster in the history of the league?

While easing the pinch on Bill Chisholm's pockets may not get the attention of most Boston fans, the fact that these moves put the Celtics in position to go all-in on spending once they are out of the luxury tax repeater status the season after next ought to register some interest. And now the questions of why the Celtics made the moves they did at the deadline starts to come into focus. To get a better idea of which players might also be added to Boston's roster in the coming days and weeks, and what else Celtics fans should watch for in the medium term, "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Third Apron founder and cap guru Yossi Gozlan.

We also get caught up on the news, from the presser for Vooch and his debut, to what the White Noise head honcho has been up to in his offcourt adventures, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics have traded former Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons for Chicago Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic, and the move has landed with mixed reactions from fans and analysts alike. On one hand, Boston was able to minimize the risk of losing Simons in free agency for nothing as an unrestricted free agent this summer while also creating a traded player exception (TPE) they can use down the road to add a long-term solution at the 5.

Did we mention they also got a center who can play a style more amenable to a certain injured star forward than anything the Celtics had to work on their roster right now? We are of course referring to Jayson Tatum, who could benefit from a pick-and-pop center like Vucevic. But with the trade, Boston also loses an electric, capable young scorer some hoped might stick with the team for the long haul.

The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" took a moment to react to the trade soon after news broke. Check it out below to hear what they had to say about this unexpected move from the Celtics.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The 2026 NBA trade deadline is less than a week away, and the Boston Celtics will have some tough decisions to make ahead of it. Add in the news that star Celtics forward Jayson Tatum may actually NOT return this season after all, and what Boston's playoff picture (and what they should do to improve it) got a little murkier as a result.

But some things remain constant, such as the Celtics needing an upgrade in their frontcourt, and some more ballhandling on the bench might also be a concern. At the same time, as teams increasingly negotiate through the media, we are hearing more reports tied to Boston than ever. What rumbles are worth paying attention to, and which should Celtics fans take with a grain (or a pile) of salt? This week, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Forbes and Hardwood Houdini's Bobby Krivitsky to talk ourselves through the glut of Celtics trade rumors, the Tatum news, and more.

So be sure to tune in to get your bearings ahead of what might be a massive trade deadline for Boston – but could also be a relatively quiet one.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics have a tough decision to make ahead of the 2026 NBA trade deadline when it comes to whether they will retain the services of Anfernee Simons. The Celtics dealt for the former Portland Trail Blazers guard this offseason when they moved on from vet guard Jrue Holiday due to cap and perhaps age concerns.

The assumption at that time was that Simons was likely to be a short-timer with the Celtics given his large, expiring contract and seemingly ill fit with Boston to start the 2025-26 NBA regular season. But since then, the Longwood, Florida native has found his niche off the bench with the Celtics, even helping the team to win a few games. How to decide whether Boston should keep him or trade him? To that end, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with "Third Apron" founder and cap guru Yossi Gozlan to host a mock trial on which way the Celtics could go with Simons at the deadline.

This was a fun and informative exercise for us, so be sure to tune in to hear how the trial played out (no one is in jail now, mind you, though there's always a chance this could end with Boston in cap space prison).

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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Are there any realistic big man trade targets out there for the Boston Celtics ahead of the 2026 NBA trade deadline? The Celtics find themselves a ball club of note tied to a number of trade candidates just weeks before the last day in the league calendar teams can swap players. Some of them are sexy names with dubious availability and other concerns, like Jaren Jackson Jr., and Ivica Zubac of the Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers, respectively.

Others are perhaps more likely to be dealt but not quite the impact players Zubac and Jackson are, like Dallas Mavericks big man Daniel Gafford, or former Celtics (and current Portland Trail Blazers) center Robert Williams III. Still more might be bargain options with upside like Brooklyn Nets big DayRon Sharpe, and there's plenty of names we aren't hearing that might be reasonably dealt for.

The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" took some time to look at the Boston big man rumor mill as well as look at some other options, and got caught up on news as well, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The NBA is roughly midway through the 2025-26 NBA season, and with that passage comes some clarity on what teams really are compared to what we thought they were heading into their current campaigns, particularly the Boston Celtics. Plenty of preseason and early-season narratives have become clearly incorrect, Others have emerged to take their place, but have yet to be proven -- and some will need the rest of the regular season and then some to test.

We know the Celtics aren't tanking, ethically or otherwise, that Joe Mazzulla can coach developing players, and expect to see Jayson Tatum return from injury at some point in the regular season. And the question is no longer whether Jaylen Brown can lead a team, but how far, and with what individual accolades. But do the Celtics (and more specifically Brown) really get such a bad whistle? Does Joey Mazz have a shot at Coach of the Year (and does he care)? Most importantly, do we really think this is a contending team?

To get a better view than just the media perspective, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Richard White, Boston sports fan, and father to Celtics guard Derrick White. Don't miss this special pod where we, uh, contend with Boston Celtics narratives.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics have a top-five Most Valuable Player candidate in Jaylen Brown and have cracked home court advantage in the Eastern Conference standings. The San Antonio Spurs have made the Oklahoma City Thunder look mortal again, but also lost to the Brooklyn Nets. The Cleveland Cavaliers appear to be frauds, and the hot start of the Detroit Pistons is slowing down while the Denver Nuggets are somehow staying afloat despite a number of injuries.

At the midway point of the 2025-26 NBA regular season schedule, which teams are contenders, which are pretenders, and what do we think the Celtics are? To get some answers to these questions, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Oklahoma City Thunder Wire editor Clemente Almanza.

We also touch on the big trade sending Trae Young to the Washington Wizards, the rumbles about Boston interest in Los Angeles Clippers big man Ivica Zubac, and more, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics and the rest of the NBA are closing in on the midway point of the 2025-26 NBA regular season, and the players who signed new deals this offseason are becoming available to be dealt or will be soon. And with that, the rough outline of how the season might play out (and what teams can do to change those outcomes via trades) is coming into focus.

Teams that don't have the horses to compete for titles will need to make hard choices under the current, punitive collective bargaining agreement (CBA), while others that are overachieving may need to decide whether their current successes are worth investing assets in. For the Celtics, what are the team's needs in the trade market? Bigs? Wings? Cutting salary regardless of the return? A mix of goals? The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with HoopsHype's Cyro Asseo to talk about what Boston ought to do at the trade deadline, but also about wider trends in the league impacting the trade landscape and what other moves might be coming.

We also get caught up on the news as Boston nears the end of the longest road trip of the season, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers play each other twice this week, but the parallels between the two Eastern Conference ball clubs go beyond the home-and-away series. Both teams were seen as so-called 'gap year' teams heading into the 2025-26 NBA regular season after their stars Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton went down in the 2025 NBA Playoffs with Achilles tears.

They are having very different seasons so far, but they both might be looking to trade for the same or similar players at the 2026 trade deadline -- and might even be able to find trades between themselves worth looking into. To get a read on the game between these teams on Friday, what we saw from them Monday, and what both teams might look to do to get better, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Kory Waldron of the "Full Access Hoops" podcast.

We also cover the news around the Celtics and the NBA as per usual, so be sure to tune in to this week's episode!

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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Hall of Fame Boston Celtics big man Robert Parish has a reputation as one of the most guarded NBA stars of his era, and it is a not a reputation without merit, the intense criticism the Louisiana native went through early in his career set the tone for his stoic persona on and off the court. But in recent years, Parish has opened up to help tell the story of the team he won three of his four titles with -- and now, to tell his own story.

Working alongside co-author Jacob Uitti, Chief (as the Celtics champion center was called for a nickname) Parish has given us an unprecedented window into his life and times as a key cornerstone of Celtics greatness in the 1980s in 'The Chief - the story of the Boston Celtics most enigmatic icon'. Parish doesn't stop there, though, diving deep into what came before he was dealt to Boston, and his historic longevity beyond the Celtics. From his earliest years picking up the sport, collegiate years, time on Team USA, and his later acts with the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls, this tome tells the full story of Parish and his Hall of Fame career.

The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Uitti to talk about how the book came together, why Parish is opening up, and what we can expect to find in the bio of one of Boston's greatest stars, so be sure to tune in this week for a surprisingly rocking episode.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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How did the Boston Celtics lose to the Milwaukee Bucks (and what is going on with Giannis Antetokounmpo)? The Celtics dropped a game to the Bucks this past Thursday (Dec. 11) night at Fiserv Forum to the tune of 116-101, and to make matters worse, Milwaukee was without their star forward, Antetokounmpo on the sidelines for the next several games at least while he rests a calf strain.

How did it happen? Does it change our opinion about Boston's hot start? And what do we know about Giannis wanting out of Milwaukee? Will he end up in the East? What teams are realistic trade partners for the Bucks, and can Boston get in on the deal to bring back a good player? Most importantly, how would such trades impact the Celtics?

The folks behind "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with "Gyro Step" podcast host Ti Windisch to talk all things Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics, so be sure to tune in (and don't miss the surprise announcement in this bonus pod)!

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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