Keeping him off another Eastern Conference team
From everything that has been recently reported, there are three teams that seem active in their pursuit of Kevin Durant – the Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors, and Celtics. The Phoenix Suns have reportedly fallen out of their pursuit of KD.
That makes it almost a certainty that if he is indeed traded, he’ll end up on an Eastern Conference team. In an attempt to block Durant from getting to a team like the Heat or Raptors, the Celtics need to make sure they could finalize a deal.
Not only would the Celtics be the favorite in the Eastern Conference heading into the season, but they would effectively block the Heat or Raptors from taking a step forward as contenders as well.
Adding KD would give Boston a huge chance of winning an NBA title next season. And there’s no question that where he lands could have huge ramifications on the rest of the league.