Report: Kings open to trading Willie Cauley-Stein - Should Boston make an offer?

Willie Cauley-Stein is on the trading block, according to ESPN's Marc Stein, and the Boston Celtics need a big man who can rebound.

Should they make the Sacramento Kings an offer?

The former sixth pick in the 2015 NBA draft has seen his playing time decline under new coach Dave Joerger, with the numerous big men on this year's roster cutting into available playing time. Averaging 5.3 rebounds, a block and seven points over close 21 minutes per game in his rookie campaign, Cauley-Stein has seen his playing time decline by more than a third and his production even more so to accommodate the other five big men on the team, which also has two ostensible wings (Omri Casspi and Rudy Gay) spending close to or more than half their minutes as power forwards.


While Cauley-Stein's 5.3 boards and block per game logged as a rookie wouldn't be a silver bullet for Boston's recent defensive woes, it would go a long way to shoring up the pitiful showing of the second unit to date while also providing enough minutes to develop the 23-year-old center if the right players and assets were included in a trade package.


While he's still likely a season or three away from reaching his per-36 projections from his rookie season (9 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 11.8 points per game), it's possible he could play himself into a similar or greater role than he had in his rookie season, given the current state of affairs in Beantown. A package of Terry Rozier and James Young plus the Memphis 2019 first round pick might be enough to get Vlade Divac and company to pull the trigger.

What are your thoughts on the possibility of trading for Willie Cauley-Stein? Just what Boston needs, or a waste of time? What would you propose - if anything - to offer the Kings? Let us know in the comments.



Cauley-Stein photo via Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee
Data via www.basketballreference.com
Follow Justin at @justinquinnn


Share