3 Most Underpaid Celtics Heading Into the 2023 Season

Contracts are a popular topic when it comes to sports discourse. While NBA player discourse often comes down to championship rings and individual accolades, you’d be hard-pressed to have a conversation without someone bringing up whether someone does or doesn’t deserve the contract that they’re playing on.

In a sports-crazy city like Boston, the Celtics aren’t exempt from contract debates. The C’s contracts ‚— good or bad — are frequently discussed, but that’s the territory that comes with being one of the biggest sports franchises of all time.

Boston hasn’t been afraid to spend money to chase a championship, proven by a $180.4 million payroll for the 2023-24 NBA season (per Spotrac). However, just because the team has spent a lot doesn’t mean that they overspent on each player.

With a handful of contract steals on the roster, here are the Celtics’ three most underpaid players heading into the upcoming NBA season.

Celtics Most Underpaid Players 2023

1. Robert Williams — 2023-24 Salary: $11.57 Million

The fact that the Celtics were able to lock Robert Williams down to a four-year, $54 million contract two years ago is insane. Although the deal seemed risky at the time, it paid off immediately as he went on to be named to the All-Defensive Second Team in 2022.

Unfortunately, injuries prevented Williams from reaching similar heights last year, holding him to just 35 regular-season contests. He still impressed in the games he did play, though, averaging 8.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks while shooting 74.7% from the floor.

Assuming that he has a healthy training camp, I expect Williams to return to his usual self in 2023-24. He looked good during Boston’s playoff run and hasn’t had any setbacks during the offseason.

In other words, assuming Williams returns to form, the Celtics will only be paying slightly over $11.5 million for someone who’s potentially a top-two defensive center in the NBA. That’s some terrific value.

Even with Kristaps Porzingis now in the frontcourt, the Celtics will still turn to Williams to guard the rest of the league’s top big men. That’s especially true with Grant Williams’ minutes being up for grabs after his departure to the Dallas Mavericks this offseason.

As long as Williams continues to prove that he’s capable of such a task, his deal won’t stop being a bargain any time soon.

2. Derrick White — 2023-24 Salary: $18.35 Million

When he first joined the Celtics as a part of a trade back in February 2022, Derrick White left much to be desired. After all, he only averaged 11.0 points while shooting 40.9% from the floor and 30.6% from the three-point line over 26 subsequent games.

Fast forward to the 2022-23 campaign, and it was like a completely different version of White entered the building.

The Parker, CO native played all 82 games (70 starts) for the first time in his career last year, playing 28.3 minutes per outing along the way. By the time the smoke cleared, White finished with a 12.4 PTS/3.6 REB/3.9 AST line while shooting a career-high 38.1% on his three-point attempts.

Even though he’s a sparkplug on offense, White is also one of Joe Mazzulla’s most reliable defenders. He has no issue going head-to-head against the Eastern Conference’s top backcourts, earning him the reputation of being one of the better defensive guards in the Association.

Making just north of $18.35 million, it isn’t fair to say that White is being paid peanuts. On the flip side, we’re in a world where one-dimensional shooters make as much money, if not more, than that. The fact that he can shoot as well as he does while also being a responsible defender shows that White could be making much more.

Nevertheless, Boston is fortunate to have the ex-Colorado Buffalo signed for the next two seasons. Assuming he doesn’t regress, I won’t be shocked if he makes even more money when he becomes a free agent in 2025, further solidifying his underpaid status at the moment.

3. Jayson Tatum — 2023-24 Salary: $32.6 Million

At 25 years old, Jayson Tatum continues to be one of the NBA’s best players. The Boston fan favorite averaged 30.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting .466/.350/.854 last season, earning him his second straight All-NBA First-Team appearance.

Reading those stats alone, you’d think that Tatum was one of the highest-paid players in the league. Instead, he’s only on the books for a cool $32.6 million — tied with Bam Adebayo and De’Aaron Fox for the 37th-highest salary, per HoopsHype.

In other words, Boston is paying top-40 money for a top-five player. It’s hard to find a better value than that across the league.

The impressive thing is that Tatum is showing no signs of slowing down. His point, rebound and assist totals have increased with each passing season and he’s still young enough that we might not have even seen the best that he has to offer yet.

Adding to the value is the fact that DraftKings Sportsbook lists Tatum as having the fifth-best odds (+900) to be named the 2023-24 NBA MVP. If he can prove that he is, in fact, the Association’s best player, his contract will look even better until his player option comes up in 2025.

Until he inevitably secures the bag on his next deal, Tatum’s contract is arguably the best in the NBA.

Looking to make some futures bets on Tatum and his teammates? Caesars Sportsbook now has the biggest guaranteed bonus in the industry. New users who sign up through the exclusive Chowder and Champion link below will unlock a $250 guaranteed bonus when they place a single $50 bet. It doesn’t even matter if that bet wins or loses — you get the full bonus either way. This offer expires soon though, so make sure to cash in now before it’s too late!

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.