Celtics Playoff Hero Lands Impressive Payday to Back Up $55 Million Superstar

The NBA free agent “moratorium” period kicked off on Monday at 6 p.m. Eastern Time, and it took about two hours for the Boston Celtics to see major changes to their roster.

The “moratorium” is a five-day period in which teams may negotiate and even come to agreements with free agent players, but cannot make the signings official. This year, the earliest a free agent NBA player can actually put his name on the dotted line is 12:01 pm Eastern Time on July 6.

In the Celtics’ case, the first player to depart will be 29-year-old backup center Luke Kornet. After generally a solid season overall as a backup for often-injured — and sometimes ill — center Kristaps Porzingis, Kornet is set to spend the next four seasons backing up another superstar, San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama.

Wemby Gets Expensive Backup in San Antonio

According to a report by ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania, “Kornet has agreed to a four-year, $41 million deal with the San Antonio Spurs, sources tell ESPN. Key frontcourt addition for the Spurs, who negotiated a contract tonight with Kornet’s agent Max Wiepking of Gersh Sports.”

Amazingly, assuming Charania’s report is correct, Kornet will be paid approximately 75 percent of the $55.175 million that Wembanyama will earn for his first four years in the NBA. The 7-foot-3, 21-year-old “Wemby” was the No. 1 overall pick in 2023. The 7-foot-2 Kornet signed as an undrafted free agent out of Vanderbilt in 2017.

Though Kornet emerged as one of the league’s premiere backup centers, the NBA really took notice in Game Five of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks — the same franchise that first signed Kornet.

In that game, the Celtics faced elimination, down three games to one — and missing their superstar Jayson Tatum, who suffered a catastrophic Achilles tendon injury in Game Four — Kornet more than rose to the occasion, blocking an incredible seven shots in 26 minutes on the court. He added nine rebounds and 10 points as the Celtics dominated the game to force a Game Six — which they lost.

Now, it appears that each one of those seven blocks was worth $5.85 million, as the reported size of Kornet’s contract with San Antonio will be almost three times Kornet’s total earnings throughout his eight-year career.

The Celtics paid Kornet $2.8 million for the 2024-2025 season, and apparently president of basketball operations Brad Stevens decided that a contract paying $10.25 million per year for four years was just too much for a backup center who will turn 30 on July 15.

Celtics Move Quickly to Replace Kornet

Stevens, however, wasted no time in acquiring a replacement for Kornet — at a significantly lower cost. According to a report posted by Charania less than 40 minutes after reporting the Kornet signing, “free agent center Luka Garza has agreed to a two-year, $5.5 million fully guaranteed deal with the Boston Celtics, sources tell ESPN. The Celtics negotiated the new deal with Garza’s representatives Mark Bartelstein and Kieran Piller of Priority Sports tonight.”

Garza, the National College Player of the Year in 2021 for Iowa, was drafted 53rd overall that year by the Detroit Pistons. After completing his single season in Detroit, he signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves where he saw just 6.3 minutes per game over 92 games in three seasons. He scored 4.5 points per game with Minnesota.

“While Garza possesses skills as an offensive big, his defense is the major question mark and why he hasn’t quite stuck out in the NBA much,” wrote NBA correspondent Souichi Terada of MassLive after the signing. “It’s unlikely the Celtics are going to rely on him as the main starter but more of a reserve big man.”