Specifically, they sent deep rotation wing Jaden Springer to the Houston Rockets along with a pair of second round picks to drop their tax bill considerably, and Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes assessed that trade in a recent article. “Springer was one of the deadline’s most obvious trade candidates,” he writes.

“The defending champion Boston Celtics were only giving the rugged defensive guard 5.4 minutes per game and had reason to value the nearly $16 million in salary and tax savings they’d get by offloading his $4 million contract.”

“Though not a needle-mover by any stretch, the Celtics made the logical decision by sending Springer to Houston, attaching distant second-rounders to get it done,” Hughes added.