By allowing Nikola Vucevic to walk in free agency, the Celtics have around $12 million in room before they hit the luxury tax if they were to sign a player in free agency. By signing D. Wade, the Celtics not only gain depth at the power forward position, but they also can take away a pivotal rotation piece in the Cavaliers' depth chart. Because of the Cavaliers' second apron issues, signing Wade to a $12 million contract would surely disincentivize them from making a comparable offer. With the Celtics' three second-round picks, it is a fair assumption to say that they could use two of those picks for two-way contracts, but for the third pick, it's a gamble to try to use that on a standard roster spot. So instead, they use two of their picks to trade up in the second-round draft for a higher likelihood of success.

Celtics Roster:

D. White / P. Prichard / M. Shulga

S. Howser / B. Schierman / R. Harper

J. Brown / H. Gonzalez / 2026 FRP

J. Tatum / D. Wade / J. Walsh

N. Queta / L. Garza / A. Williams