Celtics' Jayson Tatum sends championship farewell message to Luke Kornet
Amid Boston Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum recovering from a ruptured Achilles, he has had to send a handful of farewells to his former teammates, including one to backup center Luke Kornet. The moves undoubtedly highlight the Celtics' new cap reality in the wake of Tatum's devastating setback, as Kornet agreed to a four-year, $41 million deal with the San Antonio Spurs.
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Tatum also reposted the Celtics' farewell messages to Kristaps Porzingis, who is heading to the Atlanta Hawks, and starting guard Jrue Holiday, who heads back to the Portland Trail Blazers. Tatum posted a picture of himself and Porzingis on his 24-hour Instagram story, per SB Nation's Noa Dalzell.
Luke Kornet earned his $41 million payday on the strength of turning in one of his better seasons in 2024-25. Kornet averaged 6.0 points on 66.8% shooting, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks in 18.6 minutes per game. His presence was also felt on the defensive end of the floor, as Luke will go from backing up Kristaps Porzingis with the Celtics to becoming All-Star Victor Wembanyama's reserve with the Spurs. Celtics' Jayson Tatum will continue to rehab.
Celtics finalize Anfernee Simons, Jrue Holiday swap with Blazers
Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
The Celtics' trade with the Blazers for Anfernee Simons sends Jrue Holiday to the team the Celtics traded with ahead of the 2024 championship run. However, the Blazers altered the initial trade, diminishing the return of the packaged deal that came with Simons.
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A pair of draft picks is no longer part of the guard-for-guard swap, per The Oregonian's Aaron J. Fentress.
'The Portland Trail Blazers trade with the Boston Celtics has been reduced to a straight player swap without the previously reported two second-round picks going to the Celtics, a league source has told The Oregonian/OregonLive,' Fentress reported. 'According to the source, a recent review of Holiday's medicals revealed nothing substantial enough to warrant the trade being negated.
'However, there was enough there to lead the Blazers to slightly alter the terms of the deal. Holiday, the source said, is considered to be healthy and will be working out this summer in preparation for the start of training camp near the end of September,' Fentress concluded.
After helping the Celtics secure their 18th championship in his first season with the Celtics, Holiday's production took a hit last season. He averaged 11.1 points on 44.3% shooting, including 35.3% from deep, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.1 steals in 2024-25. Holiday, 35, is owed $34.8 million in 2025-26 and has a $37.2 million player option for next season, which is the final year of his four-year, $134.4 million contract.
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Related: Celtics finalize Jrue Holiday, Anfernee Simons trade with Blazers, but there's a catch
Related: Celtics star Jayson Tatum posts encouraging video after Achilles surgery
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