The Boston Celtics are reportedly expected to look for opportunities to improve their front court ahead of the February trade deadline.
Could the Los Angeles Clippers' struggles help them land one of the more underrated players in the market in Ivica Zubac? Unfortunately, LA's front office doesn't seem to be heading into sellers' mode despite the outside suggestions.
ESPN's Brian Windhorst put it bluntly last week: "Zubac is absolutely not available," the insider wrote on Threads.
As for what the Celtics are looking for specifically, Zubac doesn't even fit the fill, based on Windhorst's messaging.
"Absolutely not a stretch big, but yes, this is an area where Boston needs to replenish after losing Porzingis and Horford, and they will be looking for opportunities," he added.
Are the Celtics Desperate?
In short, no. Boston's 2025-2026 campaign was widely viewed as a gap year.
The team needed to make some difficult cost-cutting decisions, which included trading away Kristaps Porzingis. And since the team wasn't expected to be all that competitive, Al Horford left for the Golden State Warriors in free agency.
With Jayson Tatum recovering a lost postseason Achilles tear, the Celtics entered the season with little pressure to succeed. If they struggle, no big deal. If they make the playoffs, it's a successful year, and anything beyond that is a bonus.
The Celtics don't need to make a win-now move for this season alone, but if there is a move that benefits the future, then they seem to be interested in exploring that.
Last year, Zubac played in 80 games for the Clippers, averaging 16.8 points and 12.6 rebounds. He was one of the NBA's best two-way players at the big man position.
This season, Zubac has appeared in 25 games. He is producing 16.6 points per game, while coming down with 11.4 rebounds per outing.
The Clippers are 6-19 on the year, which places them in the bottom three of the Western Conference. All signs suggest they aren't ready to hit the reset button just yet. It doesn't seem like the Celtics are interested in a traditional big, but the 28-year-old center is worth keeping an eye on.
As for the ideal prototype, potential candidates to keep an eye on would be Myles Turner, Nikola Vucevic, and Anthony Davis. So far, the Celtics don't have a strong link to any of them.
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