Since becoming the owner of the Boston Celtics in 2002, Wyc Grousbeck has seen his team win two NBA championships in 2008 and 2024. Furthermore, during his tenure as the Celtics' owner, the team has been one of the most successful in the league.
Despite Boston having general success with Grousbeck as the team's owner, not all has gone great for the team. This includes making major changes to the team that either did not make sense at the time or did not age well.
Recently, Grousbeck spoke about one specific trade the Celtics made that he regrets even over a decade later.
Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, head coach Joe Mazzulla, Governor Wyc Grousbeck, and forward Jayson Tatum.
Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, head coach Joe Mazzulla, Governor Wyc Grousbeck, and forward Jayson Tatum.
Bob DeChiara-Imagn
In recent history, the Celtics have made numerous trades that worked in their favor, whether it was the infamous trade with the Brooklyn Nets that indirectly netted them Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, or buying in on diamonds in the rough, such as Derrick White from the San Antonio Spurs. However, there was one specific trade that Grousbeck regrets making to this day.
Recently, the Worcester, MA, native revealed that he still regrets the 2011 trade that sent big man Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Jeff Green (h/t the Club 520 Podcast). Though the team got younger, they moved on from one of their starters from the 2008 Championship team and were left with a major hole at center, which played a big role in their second-round exit to the Miami Heat that season.
"Oh, I’m sure. Well, I do regret trading [Kendrick Perkins], to be honest. That was one we all thought about, and there were discussions around the table. And I’ve got to sign off on the trades as the governor, lead owner. And I feel like I got kind of talked into it—but I did sign off, Grousbeck said. "And Jeff Green came back, and then he had a health problem. And—nothing against Jeff Green—he just won a championship...but anyway, our team didn’t feel the same after Perk was gone.”
Though he was never an All-Star type of player, Perkins was still a useful center in Boston and was a great fit alongside Kevin Garnett in the frontcourt due to his size and physicality. It took years for the Celtics to land another top-tier big man after trading Perkins, and it may have set them back in a major way.
Ultimately, while Green became a solid player in Boston, he never lived up to the hype of potentially being their next franchise player, and it is fair to wonder how differently things would have gone if the Celtics had never made this trade.