Celtics’ Danny Ainge: ‘We Want To Keep’ Isaiah Thomas In Boston

With the Boston Celtics seemingly playing better without Isaiah Thomas than they did with him during the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, speculation has begun to run rampant about whether the team will keep him long-term. Although Thomas is a two-time NBA All-Star and arguably one of the best players in the league at his position while coming off a career year, rumors have been floating around about their potential desire to part ways.

Despite the rumors and speculation, team president and general manager Danny Ainge sticks by the stance that the Celtics want to hold onto Thomas, via Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald:

“Yeah, we can fit everybody in,” said Ainge. “But, listen, those are questions that I don’t even have answers for yet. That’s part of the difficult puzzle that is all hard.

“All I’m saying is those are things I have to worry about that even I don’t like to think about. And I know that those are going to be difficult decisions at some point. But we want to keep Isaiah.

“All I know is that he’s had an amazing year, and who doesn’t want Isaiah Thomas on their team? Like, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

Thomas will become a free agent after next season and will be a hot commodity on the open market if he has another solid year in Boston. The veteran point guard will command a substantial amount of money when he does hit free agency, and things could get interesting if Paul George becomes an option for the Celtics when the time comes.

At this point, Boston is focusing on the upcoming 2017 NBA Draft with the team owning the No. 1 pick in the draft. All signs point to the team drafting Markelle Fultz out of Washington, ironically another point guard out of the same college that Thomas attended.