Report: Celtics Have Interest In J.R. Smith

With the J.R. Smith saga ongoing, it was only a matter of time before teams started expressing interest in signing the former Sixth Man of the Year. One of those teams is reportedly the Boston Celtics, who are looking for scoring help off the bench, according to Frank Isola from the New York Daily News:

It is likely that Smith, a one-time Sixth Man of the Year with the Knicks, will re-sign with Cleveland but there are several teams that have interest in the shooting guard. One team is the Boston Celtics, whose second unit could certainly use a little scoring punch.

 

Barring a trade to clear cap space, the Celtics have approximately $9 million to sign Smith. He’s looking for a bigger payday, somewhere in the $15 million per season range. The Cavs are currently offering between $10 and $11 million annually. The Celtics would have to get close to $15 million for Smith to want to leave Cleveland to be a back-up to Avery Bradley.

Cavs players and coaches have publicly endorsed Smith’s re-signing. LeBron said the front office “needs to get it done,” Tristan Thompson claimed the Cavs “can’t win a championship without Smith” and Tyronn Lue called the 3-point specialist the “heart and soul of the team.” Despite not being signed, Smith has been seen out with the Cavs, most recently at Friday’s Cleveland Indians playoff game.

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