Boston Celtics: No Rush to Extend Zeller Or Sullinger

It’s a contract year for Boston Celtics big men Tyler Zeller and Jared Sullinger and Danny Ainge has begun to explore the necessary steps to keep both of them in Boston.

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Whether you believe these two former first round picks are worth big-dollar extensions, especially with the salary cap expected to skyrocket the next couple of seasons, the most pertinent question on the eve of training camp is simple: Why?

Zeller is a nice player, an ideal backup center on a playoff team. Sullinger, for all his talent, remains an enigma, a quality that has been reinforced by his absence from Boston all offseason save for social media posts about what great shape he’s in.

For what it’s worth, Ainge noted that “my eyes aren’t good enough to see the Twitter pictures, nor do I believe most of the Twitter pictures,” when asked about Sullinger’s social media campaign at the team’s annual charity golf tournament on Tuesday.

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Ainge also said that he “knows Jared put in a lot of work this summer,” and that he’s “confident [Jared’s] gonna have a terrific year.” That sentiment makes sense when you consider that Sullinger, like Zeller, is entering the final year of his rookie contract, thus giving him plenty of incentive to indeed finally get into good shape.

Both players — along with summer acquisition Perry Jones III — will become restricted free agents following the season if they aren’t re-upped by Halloween and with that salary cap boom on the horizon, it makes plenty of sense to want to keep your own guys at somewhat of a discount before they’re eligible to make much bigger money on the open market.

But now that the Celtics are flush with big men, including free agent signee Amir Johnson and ex-Golden State power forward/center David Lee, might it make more sense to see how all these pieces fit together before committing long term to one guy who played just 21 minutes per game in a less crowded front court last year (Zeller) and/or another who is surrounded by in question marks (Sullinger)?

If the Celtics simply let both play out their deals and walk after the year, it’s not like they won’t have the resources or flexibility to replace them. Lee’s deal comes off the books after this season and Johnson signed a two-year deal worth reasonable dollars ($12 million per). The Celts are currently on the hook for just over $52 million in player salaries for 2016-2017 as per Basketball-Reference.com and their treasure trove of future draft picks and trade exceptions is still sitting there mostly intact.

Ultimately, if Ainge decides he wants to keep one or the other, Zeller, who on Tuesday told the assembled press that “it would be nice to have an extension,” and that he’s “hopeful” to get one, makes more sense. He’s more dependable than Sullinger and as a more traditional big man with a clear position, there shouldn’t be any worry about trying to turn him into a long distance shooter or taking him out of his comfort zone.

But really, there’s no rush whatsoever. Neither Zeller nor Sullinger has established himself as much more than solid role player/rotation piece. Those kinds of guys are easily found throughout the league. The best move for the Celtics is to wait it out.

Next: Boston Celtics Player Profile: David Lee

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Boston Celtics: No Rush to Give Extensions to Zeller Or Sullinger

By Jeremy Gottlieb | Sep 23, 2015

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