Who doesn’t want to see Isaiah Thomas return to the Celtics?
The beloved point guard has spent his summer dominating in pro-am leagues across the country, most recently dropping 81 points in the Crawsover Pro-Am in Seattle. After the game, Thomas broke down and cried, saying “they gave up on me” through his tears.
“They” probably means the NBA at large, though Thomas’ struggles began when the Celtics traded him to the Cavaliers in 2017 as part of the package to land Kyrie Irving. Thomas sacrificed his body for the Celtics that postseason, playing through a serious hip injury he suffered in the semifinals.
During a recent appearance on ESPN’s “Jalen & Jacoby,” Thomas addressed his desire to play again in the NBA, and get back to Boston.
“There’s a little talk about that,” he said. “I think the world wants that to happen because it only makes sense.”
Earlier this month, NBA Insider Marc Stein reported the C’s were interesting in exploring an IT reunion. The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmselbach shot that report down, however.
Thomas thrived playing under Brad Stevens, averaging 24.7 points per game in three seasons with the Celtics. As the president of basketball operations, Stevens is in position to court Thomas again.
Though the Celtics have made a couple of additions to their backcourt this offseason — they’ve acquired Dennis Schroder and Josh Richardson — there’s still room to add another guard to the mix. At this stage of his career, Thomas wouldn’t be a guarantee to make the roster.
But it would be nice to see him given the opportunity to try.