Mike Muscala

2023 - 2 - 10

Post cover — Image courtesy of "Hardwood Houdini"

Grading the Mike Muscala trade for the Boston Celtics (Hardwood Houdini)

Money wise, Muscala's $3.5 million salary will fit right into the $5.9 million traded player exception the Celtics had from the Dennis Schroder trade at last ...

Boston may not be done either, as there will be a plethora of names for the Celtics to monitor in the buyout market. The Celtics did not have many minutes to offer in their already deep rotation, so it was not surprising to see them make only one small move at the deadline. Money wise, Muscala’s $3.5 million salary will fit right into the $5.9 million traded player exception the Celtics had from the Dennis Schroder trade at last year’s deadline. He also provides injury insurance for the likes of Al Horford and Robert Williams. Boston acquired six-foot-10 big man Mike Muscala from the Oklahoma City Thunder for Justin Jackson and two second round picks, Muscala is the depth big man the Celtics have long said to have been seeking at the trade deadline.

Celtics Acquire Center/Forward Mike Muscala (Celtics.com)

BOSTON, MA – The Boston Celtics have acquired center/forward Mike Muscala from the Oklahoma City Thunder, in exchange for forward Justin Jackson and two future ...

Muscala (6-11, 240) has appeared in 43 games (five starts) with Oklahoma City this season, recording averages of 6.2 points and 3.1 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game. His rights were later acquired by the Atlanta Hawks via trade. “We are excited to welcome Mike to Boston,” said Celtics President of Basketball Operations, Brad Stevens.

Thunder trade Mike Muscala to Celtics | NBA.com (NBA.com)

Oklahoma City has dealt veteran center Mike Muscala to Oklahoma City for Justin Jackson and 2 future Draft picks.

4, he matched a season-high with 19 points and made five 3-pointers in a win over the Houston Rockets. His best season, 2020-21, he averaged 9.7 points and 3.8 rebounds for the Thunder. The 31-year-old averaged 6.2 points and 3.1 rebounds for Oklahoma City this season.

Celtics' trade for Mike Muscala helps Boston bolster depth at a low cost (NBC Sports Boston)

The Celtics made a minor but important move Thursday by acquiring Mike Muscala from the Thunder. Our Chris Forsberg breaks down the implications of the deal ...

He takes care of the ball and won’t step outside his role (66 percent of his shots this season are 3-pointers). [Robert Williams III](https://www.nbcsports.com/boston/celtics/robert-williams-iii?b) and [Al Horford](https://www.nbcsports.com/boston/celtics/al-horford?b) both on the injury report, Muscala adds playable depth to a frontcourt that can also lean on Luke Kornet and Grant Williams. Jackson played sparingly after being carried out of training camp.

Film breakdown: How Mike Muscala can help solve Celtics' weak ... (The Athletic)

Mike Muscala may not be a flashy signing, but he fills one of the small needs holes on the Celtics roster.

[Joel Embiid](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/joel-embiid-jcKI7IrySH9vZuXQ/) out in the right high post to [Blake Griffin](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/blake-griffin-fepkXryikrJdZGzu/) in Wednesday’s win. This one step gets Holiday and [Clint Capela](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/clint-capela-ZG4gOjeuHLppDkoO/) committed to the deep drop into the paint with the help defender, [Dejounte Murray](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/dejounte-murray-tm3kUMS7SqPU8gXQ/), completely forgetting about Muscala. Muscala shouldn’t steal any minutes from Williams, but Muscala theoretically provides a good alternative to Kornet when they need to drop into the paint and don’t want to rely on the gamble of the Kornet contests. [Hawks](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/hawks/) guard [Aaron Holiday](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/aaron-holiday-CrX8pPvqqqV6MlVh/), but slips it to roll toward the post right before contact. [Caris LeVert](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/caris-levert-VGLAT0w1iX5l9Sz3/). Muscala doesn’t give the Celtics a post-up big that they’ve been missing, but he’s a versatile roll man and cutter akin to Horford. He provides a balance between Grant Williams’ dynamism guarding pick-and-rolls or closeouts on the perimeter and Kornet’s reach to contest shots at the rim. [Celtics](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/celtics/) had to replace [Danilo Gallinari](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/danilo-gallinari-Tc4KmbImKRw5nB3I/), at least looking for someone who could hit 3s and play some minutes at the five. At 40 percent, he ranks sixth among bigs in the league in hitting those shots on at least 50 attempts, just behind [Al Horford](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/al-horford-1bdxkLwov50QIyiQ/). Muscala has a few quirks to his game that make him effective against defenses with anchor bigs, as he can read the coverage well to decide whether to quickly release off a screen and roll or pop hard. Muscala is 10th in the league in points per possession as a roller/popper with at least 50 possessions, per Synergy. He has the full array of shooting skills for a backup big, being able to catch and shoot from anywhere and even having a quick little pull-up 15-footer on the short roll.

Boston Celtics trade for Oklahoma City Thunder big man Mike Muscala (CelticsBlog)

The Celtics pulled off their first trade of the NBA trade deadline by dealing for shooting big man Mike Muscala.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Boston Celtics are sending Justin Jackson and two second round picks to the [Oklahoma City Thunder](https://www.welcometoloudcity.com) for shooting big man Mike Muscala. After moving on from Justin Jackson, Boston will still have another open roster spot, as they dealt Noah Vonleh earlier in the season to the Boston has previously been linked to Will Barton, if he can secure a buyout with the Muscala, 31, is signed for $3.5 Million this season and a team option of $3.5 Million for next season. The 6’11” big is shooting 39.4% from beyond the arc this season on over three attempts per game, and is a 37.9% shooter from range on his career. [Toronto Raptors](https://www.raptorshq.com) and superstar Kevin Durant to the [Phoenix Suns](https://www.brightsideofthesun.com), the [Boston Celtics](https://www.celticsblog.com) made their first move of the [NBA trade deadline](http://www.sbnation.com/nba-trade-rumors).

10 takeaways as the Celtics trade for Mike Muscala at NBA trade ... (Boston.com)

That's a little surprising. Sure, the Celtics could have packaged Payton Pritchard and/or Danilo Gallinari with picks to see what shook loose, but there was ...

In the interim, remember that the Celtics started Thursday with the NBA’s best record and net rating, a roster full of stars, and a deep bench. That proved to be how the Bucks acquired Jae Crowder, how the Trail Blazers picked up Gary Payton II, and how former Pistons wing Saddiq Bey ended up in Atlanta as part of a three-team deal with the Warriors. The Celtics were linked to Jakob Poeltl repeatedly prior to the deadline, but the Spurs’ big man ultimately ended up with the Raptors, who outbid the Celtics significantly. Speaking of Gallinari, the disabled player exception awarded to the Celtics due to his injury will allow them to spend up to $3.2 million on what promises to be a robust buyout market. As an aside, the Raptors, who are 10th in the Eastern Conference, were expected to be sellers at the deadline. Brad Stevens has a lot of tools in his belt even with the deadline in the rearview mirror. Sure, his contract could have gotten them into certain trade conversations, but that would have cost draft capital, and if he can return this year, he could give the Celtics the addition of a 6-foot-10 sharpshooter shortly before the postseason. If he isn’t, the Celtics’ only loss is Justin Jackson and a pair of picks that will be at the back end of the second round. Payton Pritchard didn’t get dealt, which might be a little disappointing for a young player who understandably wants an opportunity to prove himself with consistent minutes and a real role on a team. Also noteworthy: The Celtics will have a team option on Muscala’s $3.5 million contract next offseason. With Muscala on the bench and Gilgeous-Alexander on the floor, the Thunder have been outscored by 2.9 points per 100 possessions. They also would have needed to swallow hard and decide what they were willing to give up in terms of draft equity to entice anything of real value.