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Gordon Hayward: 5 potential landing spots in free agency

By Gerald Bourguet

April 18, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) during a stoppage in play against the Los Angeles Clippers in the second half in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
April 18, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) during a stoppage in play against the Los Angeles Clippers in the second half in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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Gordon Hayward
Jan 3, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Utah Jazz guard / forward Gordon Hayward (20) takes a shot while guarded by Boston Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas (4) and forward Jae Crowder (99) during the third quarter at TD Garden. The Boston Celtics won 115-104. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Boston Celtics

No one would blame Gordon Hayward for taking the largest payday possible and sticking with a franchise that’s been good to him, but if he’s looking for the most favorable potential path to a Finals appearance, it lies to the East.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have no need or space for Hayward, the Washington Wizards will focus on retaining restricted free agent Otto Porter Jr. and the Toronto Raptors may proceed with a full roster blow-up this summer. That leaves us with the Boston Celtics among the top half of the East.

Though they only won 53 games this season, the Celtics earned the No. 1 seed in the East. We should point out those 53 wins were only two more than Utah had this year, but that’s kind of the point: If Hayward played in the East, his team’s 51 wins may have been enough for the 2-seed.

LeBron James still rules the East with an iron fist, but if the ultimate goal is winning a title, would you rather wait out the King’s eventual decline at age 32 out East, or continuously face a Warriors team that’s about to re-sign Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant this summer and rule the West for the next half-decade?

Despite still having Jae Crowder on the roster, The Vertical has already reported the Celtics will go hard after Hayward in free agency. This kind of power move would provide an upgrade on the wing, perimeter shooting (39.8 percent from downtown) and another scorer to ease the pressure on Isaiah Thomas, who currently has to carry the offense.

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    • With names like Blake Griffin and Gordon Hayward floating around, Boston may prefer to simply sign a star free agent, rather than splurge its plethora of assets — including the potential No. 1 pick in this year’s draft — on a blockbuster trade.

    Unless the Celtics planned on playing small with Hayward and Crowder at the 3 and 4, they’d still need a power forward in free agency. Trading Crowder’s team-friendly deal might become a necessity in that scenario.

    But a core of Thomas, Marcus Smart, Avery Bradley, Hayward, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, Kelly Olynyk, Terry Rozier and a top-three pick in this year’s draft makes the Celtics Eastern contenders in the here and now, while also giving them plenty of room for future growth.

    That’s the kind of core that would also attract talent to fill the gap at the 4 down the road, or Danny Ainge could finally put those assets to use and trade for a quality power forward.

    The Celtics will have plenty of cap space with Amir Johnson, Jonas Jerebko and possibly Tyler Zeller‘s deals coming off the books, meaning a reunion between Gordon Hayward and his former Butler coach, Brad Stevens, could very easily be in the works.

    Maybe the Celtics would prefer to sign Blake Griffin to address an actual position of need, or maybe they’d rather trade for Jimmy Butler or Paul George on draft night. But with Ainge’s penchant for retaining those assets, we certainly can’t rule this free agency target out.

    Next: The top 10 moments of Paul Pierce's NBA career

    The Utah Jazz may have the inside track to re-signing Gordon Hayward this summer, but the Boston Celtics are their greatest threat for a variety of reasons.