The Boston Celtics waived David Lee last week and they now have an empty roster spot that they can use for the playoff push. The Celtics could either choose to give a 10-day contract to a young player or sign a veteran. It seems as though the Celtics are leaning towards filling the spot with a veteran as they have interest in bringing in Reggie Evans, according to Darren Hartwell of NESN.
The Celtics waived Lee because their frontcourt is so deep and they didn't have consistent minutes to give him. Now that Kelly Olynyk is out with a shoulder injury though, the frontcourt has struggled a bit and they want to address it. Evans isn't going to come in and solve all of their problems but he is a guy that could be very helpful in a variety of ways.
The Celtics are not the only team in on Evans though as the Houston Rockets and Miami Heat are also said to have interest, according to Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders. Evans was unable to find a team to sign with this offseason after spending last season with the Sacramento Kings. Kings star DeMarcus Cousins had said that he wanted Evans re-signed, according to Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops, but the team did not oblige.
Evans has been training very hard since last November, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, so if he gets a shot he should be ready. It seems like Evans will sign with a team in the near future it is just a matter of which team he chooses to sign with.
The Celtics make some sense because their rebounding and defense have been poor recently and those are the two areas where Evans excels. The 35-year-old forward won't come in and play major minutes should the Celtics sign him, nor should he, but he will provide a lot while he is out there. Evans isn't the type of player that will blow you away with his game (3.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game with the Kings last season) but he will give 100 percent effort every second he is on the court and will bring some ruggedness. Evans is an excellent rebounder and an above-average defender and there aren't many teams that can't use that right now so expect him to pick a destination somewhat soon, with the Celtics being towards the top of the list.
