Marcus Smart agreed to an extension. Robert Williams agreed to an extension.
Now add Josh Richardson to the list of Celtics who agreed to an extension. From Shams Charania of The Athletic.
New Boston Celtics G/F Josh Richardson has agreed to a one-year extension that pays him $24 million over the next two seasons, agent Erik Kabe of @BDA_Sports told @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 23, 2021
Richardson had an $11.6 million player option for this coming season he had already picked up before the trade from Dallas, this is a standard raise off of that for one more season, the 2022-23 campaign.
This is a bet on Richardson bouncing back after a couple of down seasons in Philadelphia and Dallas, he averaged 12.1 points a game last season with the Mavs. With Evan Fournier gone to New York, Richardson will have a healthy role on the wing and bring even more switchable defense a roster with Smart, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum. Richardson shot 42.7% overall last season — right at his career average — and 33% from 3. If his 3-point shooting returns to closer to his Miami numbers, then two years of Richardson at $24 million is a good deal.
Richardson also makes a very tradable salary number, either on its own or paired with someone like Al Horford (who is only partially guaranteed for the 2022-23 season) in a swap to bring in a bigger star. Both on and off the court, this extension provides the Celtics options at a reasonable number.
