Boston Celtics Prepare to Go All-In to Land Gordon Hayward and Paul George

By Noriel See, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, June 29, 2017

Two blockbuster trades have already taken place this summer. The Minnesota Timberwolves sent a signal that they were ready to take on the best in the Western Conference when they acquired Jimmy Butler on draft night last week. And now the Houston Rockets added Chris Paul in a move that has created a seismic shift in the National Basketball Association (NBA) landscape.

The offseason has been eventful, to say the least, but things are about to get interesting once the free agency period begins on July 1.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the Boston Celtics are going to attempt a double swoop to land Gordon Hayward and Paul George.

The Celtics are planning to sign Hayward first for salary-cap purposes. Once the team has sealed the deal to bring him to Boston, they will turn their attention to acquiring George. Wojnarowski added that the Celtics may pursue Blake Griffin instead if they can't sign Hayward.

"Boston has maneuvering to do with its roster, including the shedding of salaries to create space to position itself for this scenario. Boston has contingencies in place to make deals and start a possible Hayward-George scenario toward fruition, league sources told The Vertical," Wojnarowski said in his report.

WBZ NewsRadio's Adam Kaufman said he has heard that the Celtics will offer a 2018 first round pick (the Lakers or Kings pick from the Sixers), a 2019 first round pick (via the Grizzlies or Clippers), Jae Crowder and either Tyler Zeller or Avery Bradley for George.

Bradley's inclusion in the list should raise a few eyebrows, but Kaufman thinks the Celtics will have to trade him since there's no financial way to keep him on the roster.

Meanwhile, CSNNE's Mike Giardi has reported that some people in George's camp actually prefers a move to the Celtics and they think he will be a great fit there.