Celtics dysfunction was so bad, a star player was told not to come

Things were so bad with the Boston Celtics this season that a star player was told to stay away when he became available. 

After a disappointing regular season and a quick playoff exit, the Boston Celtics started their offseason quickly with Danny Ainge stepping down as president of basketball operations and coach Brad Stevens moving up to replace him. On Friday the first significant player move came with Kemba Walker being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Exactly how the Celtics’ roster will look at the start of next season, outside of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, is a big question. Oh, and there’s also the small matter of finding a coach to replace Stevens. At least they don’t have to worry about a first-round pick, since that’s now property of the Thunder via the Walker trade.

It’s clear Walker and Stevens didn’t get along well, for whatever reason. Walker didn’t like that Ainge shopped him last offseason, further pushing the eventual outcome that Walker would be traded.

A star player was told to stay away from the Celtics

According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic, Blake Griffin was told by a Celtics player not to sign with them due to the team’s dysfunction. Griffin was held out of action for nearly a month as the Detroit Pistons worked on trading him or buying him out. On March 12, a buyout happened and Griffin ultimately signed with the Brooklyn Nets. But it was easy to put the Celtics on a list of possible suitors, and they presumably had some interest.

In the wake of a bad season, or a significant move (a trade, firing a coach, etc.), rumors of discontent or dysfunction often follow and media members can’t ignore a story that lands on their radar. But it’s still interesting that Griffin was apparently told by a Celtics’ player to stay away, even if said player might be gone now.