Big man Daniel Theis and point guard Brad Wanamaker officially inked their new deals, respectively, with the Celtics.
Wanamaker, who spent his entire professional career overseas before signing with Boston last summer, will return for a second NBA season with the Celtics. Theis, who also spent his career playing in Europe before coming to Boston, will be heading into his third season with the Celtics and with a shot at carving out a larger role in Brad Stevens' system.
With a thin frontcourt full of young prospects and unproven NBA talent, Stevens will lean on guys like newly acquired center Enes Kanter and Theis -- two big men expected to earn loads of minutes while Stevens continues to develop second-year center Robert Williams alongside rookies like Grant Williams and french import Vincent Poirier. Theis has been a healthy source of offense off the bench for Stevens in the frontcourt but left much to be desired on the defensive end of the floor, especially last season.
He averaged 5.5 points, 4 rebounds in 14.3 minutes throughout his two years in Boston. Meanwhile, Wanamaker will look to make a leap in Stevens' depth chart from a third-string point guard to Kemba Walker's backup.
Wanamaker has proven himself as a solid facilitator and defender but will have to battle out rookies Romeo Langford and Summer League standout Carsen Edwards. He averaged 4 points and 1.6 assists last season.
Theis' deal is reportedly worth $10 million for the next two seasons, Wanamaker will be back on a one-year deal, worth the league minimum $1.4 million.
Josue Pavón
Follow @Joe_Sway
Photo used is courtesy of the Associated Press
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