Enes Kanter left the Trail Blazers for the Celtics in 2019.
He got traded from the Celtics to the Trail Blazers last year.
Now, he’s again leaving the Trail Blazers for the Celtics.
Shams Charania of The Athletic:
Free agent center Enes Kanter has agreed to a one-year deal with the Boston Celtics, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Kanter returns to Boston to compete in the Eastern Conference title race.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 4, 2021
Jared Weiss of The Athletic:
Celtics and Enes Kanter are working out a deal for likely a portion of the MLE, league sources tell The Athletic. Salary still being figured out as team settles its cap situation.
— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) August 4, 2021
Kanter’s minimum salary is $2,641,691 (of which Boston would pay only $1,701,595 on a one-year contract).
The Celtics ought to know he isn’t worth too much more. They surrendered a first-round pick to unload his $5,005,350 salary last year.
Kanter is a good interior scorer and rebounder, but his poor defense is a liability.
The Celtics could have been content with Al Horford and Robert Williams as their rotation centers after trading Tristan Thompson to the Kings, with Tacko Fall as third-stringer. But Horford might prefer to play power forward, and it’s unclear how much Boston trusts Williams. The 29-year-old Kanter, though flawed, is fairly dependable.
Portland is signing Cody Zeller, a much-better defender, to back up Jusuf Nurkic. Zeller’s contract, like Kanter’s, is for only one year.
So, Kanter could return to the Trail Blazers next summer.