All-Star Week is now behind us, and the Boston Celtics and the wider NBA turn their attention to the stretch run and the postseason beyond. Which Eastern Conference ball clubs are contenders, pretenders, or somewhere further down the hierarchy of the East?

Taking into account the moves made by these teams and their general health (and predilection for accumulating lottery odds while we're at it), the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" took some time to assess the order of the Eastern Conference now that the dust has settled and we have some returns on the moves made around the conference.

We also touch on one of the more interesting antitanking proposals we've come across, reflect on All-Star week itself, and make sense of the two signings made by Boston this week so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics and the NBA have taken the week off for the league's 2026 All-Star Week proceedings, opening the door for all manner of debates about how the league conducts business as is often the case in the absence of games that count to talk about. But with a few of those issues rising to greater prominence than usual for better or worse this season, some of these debates have become especially polarized.

We are of course talking about the discourse surrounding gambling in the NBA, teams tanking more egregiously than ever. And the prospect of the Association expanding to 32 (or more!) teams! Did we mention the All-Star game is kind of a mess? With so much to talk about, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Gio Rivera of Celtics Blog. We take the pulse of these hot-button issues from a Celtics-leading point of view while we wait for Jaylen Brown to suit up for...(checks notes) one of the US teams as an All-Star starter for the first time in his career.

Join us for a wide-ranging episode that might even have some novel ideas on how to solve at least one of these concerns.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The 2026 NBA trade deadline has passed and the dust has started to settle on the many moves made by the Boston Celtics and the rest of the league ahead of the annual cutoff on moving players between teams. This week, the Celtics dealt Anfernee Simons for Nikola Vucevic, and then moved Chris Boucher, Xavier Tillman Sr., and Josh Minott with only two way player John Tonje coming back. Did we mention that Boston got below the luxury tax without using a first round pick to get there from what would have been the costliest roster in the history of the league?

While easing the pinch on Bill Chisholm's pockets may not get the attention of most Boston fans, the fact that these moves put the Celtics in position to go all-in on spending once they are out of the luxury tax repeater status the season after next ought to register some interest. And now the questions of why the Celtics made the moves they did at the deadline starts to come into focus. To get a better idea of which players might also be added to Boston's roster in the coming days and weeks, and what else Celtics fans should watch for in the medium term, "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Third Apron founder and cap guru Yossi Gozlan.

We also get caught up on the news, from the presser for Vooch and his debut, to what the White Noise head honcho has been up to in his offcourt adventures, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics have traded former Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons for Chicago Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic, and the move has landed with mixed reactions from fans and analysts alike. On one hand, Boston was able to minimize the risk of losing Simons in free agency for nothing as an unrestricted free agent this summer while also creating a traded player exception (TPE) they can use down the road to add a long-term solution at the 5.

Did we mention they also got a center who can play a style more amenable to a certain injured star forward than anything the Celtics had to work on their roster right now? We are of course referring to Jayson Tatum, who could benefit from a pick-and-pop center like Vucevic. But with the trade, Boston also loses an electric, capable young scorer some hoped might stick with the team for the long haul.

The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" took a moment to react to the trade soon after news broke. Check it out below to hear what they had to say about this unexpected move from the Celtics.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The 2026 NBA trade deadline is less than a week away, and the Boston Celtics will have some tough decisions to make ahead of it. Add in the news that star Celtics forward Jayson Tatum may actually NOT return this season after all, and what Boston's playoff picture (and what they should do to improve it) got a little murkier as a result.

But some things remain constant, such as the Celtics needing an upgrade in their frontcourt, and some more ballhandling on the bench might also be a concern. At the same time, as teams increasingly negotiate through the media, we are hearing more reports tied to Boston than ever. What rumbles are worth paying attention to, and which should Celtics fans take with a grain (or a pile) of salt? This week, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" sat down with Forbes and Hardwood Houdini's Bobby Krivitsky to talk ourselves through the glut of Celtics trade rumors, the Tatum news, and more.

So be sure to tune in to get your bearings ahead of what might be a massive trade deadline for Boston – but could also be a relatively quiet one.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The Boston Celtics have a tough decision to make ahead of the 2026 NBA trade deadline when it comes to whether they will retain the services of Anfernee Simons. The Celtics dealt for the former Portland Trail Blazers guard this offseason when they moved on from vet guard Jrue Holiday due to cap and perhaps age concerns.

The assumption at that time was that Simons was likely to be a short-timer with the Celtics given his large, expiring contract and seemingly ill fit with Boston to start the 2025-26 NBA regular season. But since then, the Longwood, Florida native has found his niche off the bench with the Celtics, even helping the team to win a few games. How to decide whether Boston should keep him or trade him? To that end, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with "Third Apron" founder and cap guru Yossi Gozlan to host a mock trial on which way the Celtics could go with Simons at the deadline.

This was a fun and informative exercise for us, so be sure to tune in to hear how the trial played out (no one is in jail now, mind you, though there's always a chance this could end with Boston in cap space prison).

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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Are there any realistic big man trade targets out there for the Boston Celtics ahead of the 2026 NBA trade deadline? The Celtics find themselves a ball club of note tied to a number of trade candidates just weeks before the last day in the league calendar teams can swap players. Some of them are sexy names with dubious availability and other concerns, like Jaren Jackson Jr., and Ivica Zubac of the Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers, respectively.

Others are perhaps more likely to be dealt but not quite the impact players Zubac and Jackson are, like Dallas Mavericks big man Daniel Gafford, or former Celtics (and current Portland Trail Blazers) center Robert Williams III. Still more might be bargain options with upside like Brooklyn Nets big DayRon Sharpe, and there's plenty of names we aren't hearing that might be reasonably dealt for.

The hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" took some time to look at the Boston big man rumor mill as well as look at some other options, and got caught up on news as well, so be sure to tune in.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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The NBA is roughly midway through the 2025-26 NBA season, and with that passage comes some clarity on what teams really are compared to what we thought they were heading into their current campaigns, particularly the Boston Celtics. Plenty of preseason and early-season narratives have become clearly incorrect, Others have emerged to take their place, but have yet to be proven -- and some will need the rest of the regular season and then some to test.

We know the Celtics aren't tanking, ethically or otherwise, that Joe Mazzulla can coach developing players, and expect to see Jayson Tatum return from injury at some point in the regular season. And the question is no longer whether Jaylen Brown can lead a team, but how far, and with what individual accolades. But do the Celtics (and more specifically Brown) really get such a bad whistle? Does Joey Mazz have a shot at Coach of the Year (and does he care)? Most importantly, do we really think this is a contending team?

To get a better view than just the media perspective, the hosts of "Havlicek Stole the Pod" linked up with Richard White, Boston sports fan, and father to Celtics guard Derrick White. Don't miss this special pod where we, uh, contend with Boston Celtics narratives.

Outro: Whistle by Benjamin Banger - https://tiny.ee/Jk4U or BenJaminBanger.com

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